A number of Country and Rock music icons got together to tribute the great southern rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd at the 2023 CMT Music Awards this past weekend with a star-studded performance.
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This year's CMT Music Awards saw Guns N’ Roses guitarist Slash join Country icon Wynonna Judd, as well as ZZ Top’s Billy Gibbons, Allman Brothers Band members Chuck Leavell and Warren Haynes, as well as singers Cody Johnson, Paul Rodgers, and LeAnn Rimes among others for a special performance 50 years after the lease of Skynyrd’s 1973 debut.
First up was a cover of the Lynyrd Skynyrd classic "Simple Man," sung by Rogers and Johnson trading verses, with images of Rossington shown on screen. That was followed by “Sweet Home Alabama,” with Slash and Gibbons ripping up a couple of solos while Rimes and Judd served as the set’s backup singers, filling the role of Skynyrd's famous Honkettes.
The tribute also arrived just weeks after the passing of Lynyrd Skynyrd’s last original founding member, Gary Rossington, who passed on March 5 at age 71. Lynyrd Skynyrd will join ZZ Top on their Sharp Dressed Simple Man Tour kicking off in July.
Other performances at this year’s CMT Music Awards, co-hosted by Kelsea Ballerini and Kane Brown, included Darius Rucker playing with The Black Crowes, as well as songs from Carrie Underwood, Carly Pearce, Jelly Roll, Tyler Hubbard, and Ashley McBryde.
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