Watch Blackberry Smoke pay tribute to Gary Rossington

(Image credit: Blackberry Smoke/YouTube)

In November last year, Southern rockers Blackberry Smoke took to the stage at the St. Augustine Amphitheatre in St. Augustine, Florida, and paid tribute to Lynyrd Skynyrd guitarist Gary Rossington, who had passed away earlier in the year.

This was no ordinary tribute. Before the show, Rossington's family had presented Blackberry Smoke frontman Charlie Starr with Rossington's iconic 1961 Gibson Les Paul/SG, the guitar Rossington played on Skynyrd's classic Free Bird in 1973 (the guitar was made when SGs bore the Les Paul name, before the expiration of his endorsement deal with Gibson in 1963).

"We've played tons of Skynyrd songs but left Free Bird alone...'cause it feels kinda sacred," Starr told Guitar World. "That's Skynyrd's song, y'know? It doesn't feel right to tread upon it. You don't mess around with it. That's just my opinion, and it was our opinion as a band.

"But with that guitar, I thought, Well, we have to. One of my friends actually said, 'You can't get up there and play another song on that guitar and leave Free Bird out of it.' And I said, 'You're right.' Metaphorically, it felt appropriate to me. It felt kind of special to do."

On the night, Blackberry Smoke performed Free Bird as part of a two-song medley, with the opening section leading into a version of Tuesday's Gone. And now the band have released pro-shot footage of the performance.

"A night we’ll never forget," say Blackberry Smoke. "Truly an honour and a Best Of moment getting to share the stage with Gary Rossington’s 1961 Gibson Les Paul/SG last year in St. Augustine. As requested, our full performance honouring Mr. Rossington is available on our YouTube channel. Big love and thanks to the Rossington family and Chicago Music Exchange for making this special moment possible."

Blackberry Smoke are currently on their Rattle, Ramble and Roll tour in the US, while Charlie Starr has a series of solo shows lined up for January. Full dates below.

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Blackberry Smoke: Rattle, Ramble and Roll tour

Nov 12: New Haven College Street Music Hall, CT
Nov 13: Ithaca State Theater of Ithaca, NY
Nov 14: Grand Rapids GLC Live at 20 Monroe, MI
Nov 15: Nashville Brown County Music Center, IN
Nov 19: Jacksonville Florida Theatre, FL
Nov 20: Lake Buena Vista House of Blues, FL
Nov 21: Fort Lauderdale The Parker, FL
Nov 22: Pinellas Park St. Pete BikeFest, FL
Dec 31: Athens The Classic Center Theatre, GA

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Charlie Starr: Solo Tour 2026

Jan 08: Asheville The Orange Peel, NC
Jan 09: Atlanta Buckhead Theatre, GA
Jan 10: Macon Capitol Theatre, GA
Jan 22: Knoxville Bijou Theatre, TN
Jan 23: Cincinnati The Ludlow Garage, OH
Jan 24: Decatur Princess Theatre, AL
Jan 29: Evans Hardin Auditorium, GA
Jan 30: Wilmington Brooklyn Arts Center, NC
Jan 31: Rocky Mount Harvester Performance Center, VA

Get Charlie Starr tickets.

Artists

Online Editor at Louder/Classic Rock magazine since 2014. 40 years in music industry, online for 27. Also bylines for: Metal Hammer, Prog Magazine, The Word Magazine, The Guardian, The New Statesman, Saga, Music365. Former Head of Music at Xfm Radio, A&R at Fiction Records, early blogger, ex-roadie, published author. Once appeared in a Cure video dressed as a cowboy, and thinks any situation can be improved by the introduction of cats. Favourite Serbian trumpeter: Dejan Petrović.

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