'Lynyrd Skynyrd', one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed Southern Rock groups of the 1970's, was founded in the mid-1960s when five friends - singer Ronnie Van Zant, guitarist Gary Rossington, guitarist Allen Collins, bassist Leon Wilkeson, and drummer Bob Burns - formed at Robert E. Lee High School in Jacksonville, Florida, initially as the group, 'My Backyard.' By 1969, the band's name had changed to 'Lynard Skynard' to immortalize (and jab at) their school gym teacher and coach Leonard Skinner, who was regarded by the long haired students as a source of teen angst.
In 1972, the band was discovered by producer Al Kooper of â??Blood, Sweat, and Tears,â? who had attended one of their shows at a club in Atlanta. The band changed the spelling of their name to "Lynyrd Skynyrd", and Kooper signed them to MCA Records, producing their first album, which was self-titled, in 1973, and featured their hit song "Free Bird", which received national airplay, eventually reaching #19 on the Billboard Hot 100 charts.
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