70s Rock Legends Tease First New Album in 13 Years

New Music on the Horizon

In a recent interview with Classic Rock, Lynyrd Skynyrd singer Johnny Van Zant shared that new music may be on the way. “It’s just a question of time,” he said, suggesting that a new studio album could be coming in the future.

The group’s last studio release was Last of a Dyin’ Breed, which came out on April 5, 2012. Though the band teased a new record in 2019, it never came to light. Before Gary Rossington’s death in March 2023, the band had been working on new material. Van Zant explained, “We recorded a song called ‘The Last of the Street Survivors,’ and we put it out [in 2020]. We were headed to doing a new studio album, and then Gary’s health got really bad.”

Remembering Rossington and Staying on Tour

Skynyrd’s upcoming release, Celebrating 50 Years: Live At The Ryman, features Rossington’s final performance. It’s scheduled to be released by Frontiers Records on June 27. Van Zant said there are still some unreleased songs written with Rossington that might be used later. “There are other songs written with Gary before he died that we could record. We will leave that door open for the future.”

Despite Rossington’s passing, the band remains active. They’re currently touring Europe for the first time since his death, with shows planned in Munich, Prague, St. Pölten, Paris, and more. The last time they toured Europe, it was part of their “Last of the Street Survivors Farewell Tour.”

 

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Still a Live Band at Heart

Johnny Van Zant says the band has always been at its best on stage. “For me, Skynyrd always made great records, but it was a live band, and that’s still true today,” he told Classic Rock. “When I first joined [in 1987] we were all still into drinking and having a party on stage – just like the audience – but nowadays we soak that music up. It’s become more of a spiritual thing, and we never, ever phone it in. That’s something I’m very proud of.”