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'''Edward Calhoun King'''<ref>{{cite book|title =The Great American Movie Book|first =Paul|last =Michael|publisher =Prentice-Hall|date =1980|isbn =0133636631|page =162|quote ="[[Saturday Night Special (Lynyrd Skynyrd song)|Saturday Night Special]]" by Ronnie Van Zant and Edward Calhoun King, sung by Lynyrd Skynyrd}}</ref> (September 14, 1949 – August 22, 2018)<ref>{{cite web|url=https://eu.tennessean.com/story/entertainment/music/2018/08/23/former-lynyrd-skynyrd-guitarist-ed-king-dead-68/1072400002/|title=Former Lynyrd Skynyrd guitarist Ed King dead at 68|website=Eu.tennessean.com|accessdate=August 23, 2018}}</ref> was an American musician. He was the guitarist for the [[psychedelic music|psychedelic rock]] band [[Strawberry Alarm Clock]] and guitarist and bassist for the [[Southern rock]] band [[Lynyrd Skynyrd]] from 1972 to 1975 and again from 1987 to 1996.<ref>{{cite web|url={{Allmusic|class=artist|id=p93986/biography|pure_url=yes}}|title=Biography: Ed King|last=Eder|first=Bruce|publisher=[[All Media Guide|AMG]]|accessdate=May 8, 2010}}</ref>
'''[https://rebrand.ly/sentr08f79 Edward Calhoun King]'''<ref>{{cite book|title =The Great American Movie Book|first =Paul|last =Michael|publisher =Prentice-Hall|date =1980|isbn =0133636631|page =162|quote ="[[Saturday Night Special (Lynyrd Skynyrd song)|Saturday Night Special]]" by Ronnie Van Zant and Edward Calhoun King, sung by Lynyrd Skynyrd}}</ref> [https://rebrand.ly/sentr08f79 (September 14, 1949 – August 22, 2018)]<ref>{{cite web|url=https://eu.tennessean.com/story/entertainment/music/2018/08/23/former-lynyrd-skynyrd-guitarist-ed-king-dead-68/1072400002/|title=Former Lynyrd Skynyrd guitarist Ed King dead at 68|website=Eu.tennessean.com|accessdate=August 23, 2018}}</ref> [https://rebrand.ly/sentr08f79 was an American musician. He was the guitarist for the psychedelic rock band Strawberry Alarm Clock and guitarist and bassist for the Southern rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd from 1972 to 1975 and again from 1987 to 1996.]<ref>{{cite web|url={{Allmusic|class=artist|id=p93986/biography|pure_url=yes}}|title=Biography: Ed King|last=Eder|first=Bruce|publisher=[[All Media Guide|AMG]]|accessdate=May 8, 2010}}</ref>


==Biography==
==Biography==

Revision as of 06:35, 24 August 2018

For other people named Ed King, see Ed King (disambiguation).

Ed King
Birth nameEdward Calhoun King
Born(1949-09-14)September 14, 1949
Glendale, California, U.S.
DiedAugust 22, 2018(2018-08-22) (aged 68)
Nashville, Tennessee, U.S.
GenresSouthern rock, psychedelic rock
Occupation(s)Musician, songwriter
Instrument(s)Guitar, bass
Years active1965–1996 (According to Official Website)
LabelsMCA

Edward Calhoun King[1] (September 14, 1949 – August 22, 2018)[2] was an American musician. He was the guitarist for the psychedelic rock band Strawberry Alarm Clock and guitarist and bassist for the Southern rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd from 1972 to 1975 and again from 1987 to 1996.[3]

Biography

Strawberry Alarm Clock

King was one of the founding members of Strawberry Alarm Clock, formed in Los Angeles in the mid-1960s.[4] The band's largest success was with the single "Incense and Peppermints" which reached No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100.[5] While with the band he played both electric guitar and bass guitar.[6]

Lynyrd Skynyrd

King met the members of Jacksonville, Florida-based Southern rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd when the band opened up for Strawberry Alarm Clock on a few shows in early 1968. It wasn't until 1972 that he joined Skynyrd,[7] replacing Leon Wilkeson on bass, who left the band briefly. Wilkeson rejoined the band, and King switched to guitar, creating the triple-guitar attack that became a signature sound for the band.[5]

His guitar playing and songwriting skills were an essential element to the band's first three albums: (Pronounced 'Lĕh-'nérd 'Skin-'nérd), Second Helping, and Nuthin' Fancy. King co-wrote "Sweet Home Alabama", and his voice counted the "one, two, three", before he launched into his famous riff to start the song.[8] Other songs that King wrote or co-wrote the music for include "Poison Whiskey", "Saturday Night Special", "Whiskey Rock-a-Roller" and "Workin' For MCA".[5]

Band biographer Mark Ribowsky said that King was the outsider in Lynyrd Skynyrd as he was the only non-Southerner, but that King made the band professional.[9] The rift was expanded upon by King who detailed his initial exit from the band in the documentary If I Leave Here Tomorrow: A Film About Lynyrd Skynyrd, "Ronnie and my guitar roadie who changed my strings were thrown in jail in Ann Arbor. They didn't arrive...until 10 minutes before we went on. I had to play on old strings and I broke two strings during 'Free Bird'. After, Ronnie was riding me, and a lightbulb went off and I said, "That's it." I went back to my room, packed up my stuff and left."[10]

King decided to leave the band in 1975 during the "Torture Tour". He was replaced in 1976 by Steve Gaines, who was killed in a plane crash along with his sister Cassie Gaines and lead singer Ronnie Van Zant on October 20, 1977.[11]

King was one of the guitarists for the reunited Lynyrd Skynyrd in 1987, and played a major role in the reunited band. He was forced to leave Lynyrd Skynyrd again in 1996 due to congestive heart failure.[12]

King, along with all pre-crash members of Lynyrd Skynyrd, was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2006.[13]

Personal life

In 2011, Ed King underwent a successful heart transplant.[12] In 2017, King appeared as a customer in the Discovery Channel docudrama Moonshiners, buying $30,000 worth of premium gin.[14]

In the documentary If I Leave Here Tomorrow: A Film About Lynyrd Skynyrd, band member Gary Rossington commented on King's business-minded nature while in the band. In one instance "He'd (King) stop and buy $100 worth of Slim Jims and have him in a briefcase and, driving an hour or two, you get hungry, he'd sell them to us and triple the price."[10]

Death

According to a Nashville news station WTVF, King had been battling cancer in the months prior to his death.[4] King died in his Nashville, Tennessee home on August 22, 2018 at 68 years of age.[15] His death was announced through his personal Facebook page.[10]

Lynyrd Skynyrd member Gary Rossington, released a statement after King's death stating, "Ed was our brother, and a great songwriter and guitar player. I know he will be reunited with the rest of the boys in Rock and Roll Heaven. Our thoughts and prayers are with his family."[16]

Musical influence

King's guitar playing has influenced many subsequent musicians, including Metallica bassist Cliff Burton.[17]

References

  1. ^ Michael, Paul (1980). The Great American Movie Book. Prentice-Hall. p. 162. ISBN 0133636631. "Saturday Night Special" by Ronnie Van Zant and Edward Calhoun King, sung by Lynyrd Skynyrd
  2. ^ "Former Lynyrd Skynyrd guitarist Ed King dead at 68". Eu.tennessean.com. Retrieved August 23, 2018.
  3. ^ Eder, Bruce. "Biography: Ed King". AMG. Retrieved May 8, 2010.
  4. ^ a b Sblendorio, Peter. "Lynyrd Skynyrd guitarist Ed King dead at 68 – NY Daily News". nydailynews.com. Retrieved August 23, 2018.
  5. ^ a b c "Former Lynyrd Skynyrd guitarist Ed King dead at 68". The Tennessean. August 23, 2018. Retrieved August 23, 2018.
  6. ^ "Legendary Lynyrd Skynyrd guitarist, Rock Hall inductee Ed King Passes Away At 68". fox8.com. August 23, 2018. Retrieved August 23, 2018.
  7. ^ "Lynyrd Skynyrd guitarist Ed King dies". BBC News. August 23, 2018. Retrieved August 23, 2018.
  8. ^ "Former Lynyrd Skynyrd member Ed King dead at 68". Newsweek. August 23, 2018. Retrieved August 23, 2018.
  9. ^ "Lynyrd Skynyrd biographer on Ronnie Van Zant's underappreciated talent, complicated relationship with Old Confederacy". AL.com. Retrieved August 23, 2018.
  10. ^ a b c Hudak, Joseph (August 23, 2018). "Lynyrd Skynyrd Guitarist Ed King Dead at 68". Rolling Stone. Retrieved August 23, 2018.
  11. ^ Runtagh, Jordan (October 20, 2017). "Remembering Lynyrd Skynyrd's Deadly 1977 Plane Crash". Rolling Stone. Retrieved August 23, 2018.
  12. ^ a b Chamberlain, Chris (May 14, 2013). "Rock Legend Ed King Now Spends His Free Time Searching For Epic Meals". Food Republic. Retrieved June 23, 2016.
  13. ^ "R.I.P. Ed King, former guitarist of Lynyrd Skynyrd has died at 68". Consequence of Sound. August 23, 2018. Retrieved August 23, 2018.
  14. ^ "Ed King dead: Lynyrd Skynyrd star Gary Rossington reveals 'shock' in tribute to guitarist". Daily Express. August 23, 2018. Retrieved August 23, 2018.
  15. ^ Gaydos, Ryan (August 23, 2018). "Ed King, former guitarist for Lynyrd Skynyrd who co-wrote 'Sweet Home Alabama', dead at 68". Fox News. Retrieved August 23, 2018.
  16. ^ "Former Lynyrd Skynyrd guitarist and 'Sweet Home Alabama' co-writer Ed King dead at 68". The Montgomery Advertiser. Retrieved August 23, 2018.
  17. ^ "For Metallica's James Hetfield, This Lynyrd Skynyrd Classic Hits Home Like No Other Song Can". Societyofrock.com. Retrieved August 23, 2018.
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