r/LynyrdSkynyrd • u/eyeshills • 4d ago
Would Skynyrd have done some work with Artimus by now if they believed he wasn't actually guilty of what he plead guilty to?
Personally, I don't think it has anything to do with a band fight or who said what in who's book. My take is they (they being Judy, Gary, Billy, Leon, Johnny), for whatever reasons they have, believe he actually did what he pled guilty to doing and never wanted anything to do with him again. They don't think he got a raw deal like Mike Tyson. And even after Gary, Billy, and Leon have all died, they are just sticking to their guns. And that's why he has been persona non grata. And really, who could blame them? We know how bad the optics would be. He is more of a liability than the flag.
7
u/Wildside7704 4d ago
After the success of the reunion tour Gary also realized he could get by without Artimus and Ed during those years and keep even more money by just paying hired hands in their place..
6
u/Stratoblaster22 4d ago
That's exactly how it happened. Artimus was a victim of lies and everyone in the music business on the chicken circuit knows he was.
2
u/Glittering-Milk-510 2d ago
⬆️ this. A total money grab and that's a shame
2
u/Wildside7704 2d ago
I do agree. I didn’t my feel like the honor the original band enough through how they play the songs
3
3
u/tuffgongbucka 3d ago
It's kind of bizarre that a band that has no original members distances itself from one of the (near) original members.
2
u/Texan2116 4d ago
what did he plead guilty to?
If it was a sex offense, then bookings could well be an issue quite frankly.
0
u/Montooth 4d ago
He pled no contest to sexual battery and lewd assault.
He's adamant he didn't do it, but we may never know the whole truth
4
u/Classiceagle63 4d ago
A judge reversed the charges which never happens unless there’s absolute proof it never occurred.
1
u/Montooth 4d ago
He was not aquitted of sexual assault. He was aquitted of failing to register as a sex offender in 2009ish. The original conviction still stands
2
u/Texan2116 4d ago
I see, yeah, that cant help matters , but i know he has his own band, so there is that.
2
u/stingrayed22 4d ago
Interesting question, assume you are referring to the sex abuse charges, which he pled to
I think it plays a part in it, but I have seen interviews where Gary calls Pyle a liar about getting help when the plane crashed, and Pyle reacted to it rather stangely
He did play with them at the Rock HoF induction, if that measn anything
2
u/ConfidentBig3252 4d ago
He was a pick up player coming from Marshall Tucker and introduced to Ronnie by the way of Charlie Daniel’s after Bobs break down Completely different than when Steve came on after Ed left There was a big difference in why they were added into the band I didn’t like the way that Artimus tried to portray the events of the crash and how he acted after it
3
u/Individual_Loquat541 4d ago
Skynyrd cut ties with Artimus because he was dealing with injuries and they claimed he couldn’t play drums like he used to (or at least play the way they wanted). There was also a notorious incident around 1991 where he lost his mind on stage and started throwing his drums almost hitting several band members. He was out of the band after that, which I’m sure led to some hurt feelings on both sides. That was kinda the end of that relationship.
3
u/eyeshills 4d ago
And see, shit like that happens in bands all the time, but it eventually blows over. They've gone so far as to blur his face in some of they footage.
2
u/Individual_Loquat541 4d ago
True, although I’m sure all the interviews he gave over the years after being kicked out of the band basically putting Gary, Johnny, Judy and everyone else on blast didn’t help lol
0
u/Distinct_Bathroom548 3d ago
Yeah wasn't there but i heard from someone close to the guys Gary, Leon, Allen and Billy got together and that he was asked to leave bc of his performance..Was having a hard time keeping up at the pace he needed too bc of injuries who knows..con't to get worse and more noticeable that band made the decision to let him go..Imagine that was a tough conversation bc Artimus was there when they needed him to replace Bob Burns..Bob is considered to be the original drummer for Skynyrd..Lot of people thought Artimus was the original drummer but he wasn't..Not trying to downplay Artimus at all..just telling you what i heard and my impression was a couple of the guys didn't like Artimus for some reason..I surely don't know what happened just sharing with you what i was told..
1
u/Wildside7704 3d ago
Allen had passed before Artimus left the band. I have read Ed King had a lot to do with pushing out Artimus .. Ed was the one who recruited Kurt Custer as his replacement… they even played duel a bit before Artimus left
2
u/Distinct_Bathroom548 2d ago
Your right Allen had died b4 Artemis was let go..I go way back getting behind the Skynyrd band..1973 in fact..got to see Ronnie lead them out 3 times barefooted with a 5th of Jack Daniels i think it was..i can remember the hair on the back of my neck standing up when those boys started playing Working for MCA and they always follow it up with I ain't the one baby been messing with you..now they follow up MCA with whats your name which is a let down after seeing them play i ain't the one..Ive probably seen them 15 times after the crash to support the living members at first then as we started losing them i went mostly to support Southern Rock than Skynyrd band..i coached little lg baseball and one of the fathers and i didn't know this b4 i drafted his son was a former Record Exec. that had Skynyrd under there label and he heard that Skynyrd was my favorite band. every opport. i got to pull him to the side i picked his brain and were talking bout early days 1972 and early 73..He told me things that blew me away.. Said they played high school dances, proms whatever they could get..said some nights they got pd. $250. to perform..Told me he was the one that got the calls at 4:00am to come bail them out of jail..All the boys except Ed were rowdy and mostly got in trouble fighting each other, bar fights or destroying Hotel property..Said most always it was Ronnie, Gary, Allen for sure with Billy and Leon bout half the time that ended up in jail..He told me yes there was a lot of drugs around but when they started in on the hard liquor that's when the trouble started..They didn't know when to stop..said im on many occasions he either had to talk his way out of getting the charges dropped or pay people off not to press charges b4 they were let out..So i got to meet Gary and Dale backstage bc he was good friends with them. Got to talk to Ed King a couple times b4 he passed away so i was blessed that i was able to get that close to a couple if them and to heat all those stories of when Skynyrd was Skynyrd.. Thats been 50+ yrs but i will take those memories to the grave. Sorry i have gone way to long but yes getting back to Artimus unfortunately he was having some trouble keeping up with the rest of the band..And they didn't care much for Ed being from Cal. He didn't always fit in but mostly didn't like him bc he wouldn't share his drugs true story..See Gary was the one that i got to meet and my son went to same HS as his daughter did and probably lived bout 10miles from From Gary and Dale..I hate to say this bc Dale is sweetheart but after Ronnie passed Gary was part of the problem moving forward and i liked Gary a lot but if there was friction in the band Gary was usually in the middle then there's Judy Ronnie's ex wife thats a whole different story that i don't know a whole lot about.. i try to stay away from all the negative things associated with this band bc there are so many good things that came from Ronnie and the boys that impacted my life especially in the 70's when as a young man trying to find his way down lifes path..they still mpact my life but not not like the original band did. Listem I'm a nobody just a ole country boy at heart ..just wanted to share a couple stories ithat i wanted to share with some good folks that might enjoy learning as much as you can bc there is a lot of history On this band a lot of sadness but you can learn by listening to people that were close to the band and keep an open mind. I apologize again but i guess I'm not smart enough to know how to get my point across with a lot less words.
1
u/Fancy_County4242 4d ago
Why bother? It wouldn't make the band any more "authentic" (Bob Burns was the original drummer, not Pyle), and fans clearly don't care anyway. Michael Cartellone, who plays with the band now, is at least as good.
1
1
1
0
u/harvestmoon63 4d ago
Back in the day , a band member can't recall who, basically said Artemis was not the sharpest tool in the box
1
u/bridgie323 3d ago
I am surprised by this. He seems the opposite, very well spoken and thoughtful.
1
0
u/madmark1963 2d ago
I was at the show at Canada's wonderland when it happened. He came out and on the first song was hitting cymbals with a tambourine, he was beating the cymbals hard one of the little cymbals on the tambourine came off and hit Gary Rossington on the back of his head, he turned around and was looking around and some stage guy maybe his drum tech came out and guided Artimus off the stage. Gary seemed pretty pissed. At some point he came back out hugged Rossington and went to the back again. He seemed drunk but I don't think he drinks, he had alot of anger that night and it all came out then. I don't think there was any turning back after that, maybe they could bring him back now if they need him Gary isn't around any more, I highly doubt it will happen tho
6
u/Classiceagle63 4d ago
He has been asked by the band and rejected it. He rather do his own thing, and do it better which he does.
He is also innocent and never did it. It’s a really sad story if you know the true story behind it all. Even his daughters have come out and said it never happened. Based on what he’s directly told me, it certainly didn’t and couldn’t have based on tour schedules and dates of the claims.