August 23, 2018
According to a post on his Facebook page, Ed King died at his Nashville home on Wednesday.
King, 68, played guitar for Lynyrd Skynyrd from 1972-75 and 1987-1996. He co-wrote the Southern rock band's 1974 classic "Sweet Home Alabama," and that's his voice counting off the "One, two, three..." before going into the instantly recognizable guitar riff that starts the song.
Former Lynyrd Skynyrd guitarist and Sweet Home Alabama co-writer Ed King dead at 68
I don’t know anyone who doesn’t “know” the intro lick to 'Sweet Home Alabama,' said guitarist Andrew Michael Sovine. "If that was all (King) was known for I think that would be worth remembering, but all of his work with Skynyrd was just amazing...as a guitarist I don’t think he ever got the credit he was due. The music he wrote really was the soundtrack of a generation or two."
"Ronnie [Van Zant] wrote the lyrics and Ed [King] and I wrote the music," Skynyrd band member Gary Rossington told "Garden and Gun" in 2015 when discussing the story behind "Sweet Home Alabama."
"Well, when I came to rehearsal that day Gary was playing this riff that you can hear in the verses," King told Gibson.com. "It's not the main riff that I play; it's a part that he plays. And as soon as I picked up the guitar I immediately bounced off his riff. And that's when Ronnie looked at me and he gave me this whirling sign with his finger, like keep going, keep playing that over and over. And so I mean if it hadn't been for Gary writing his part, I never would have written my part. And once I heard what Ronnie had, I just wrote the rest of the song in like a half hour, it just came so fast."
"I’ve just found out about Ed’s passing and I’m shocked and saddened," said Rossington in a statement on Thursday morning. "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."

A California native, King was also a founding member of the psychedelic rock band Strawberry Alarm Clock, known for their 1967 psychedelic chart-topper "Incense and Peppermints."
In the early 1970s, Skynyrd opened several shows for Strawberry Alarm Clock, and in '72, King joined the Southern rock outfit as a bass player before switching to guitar.
He's an integral part of the band's three-guitar sound and first three albums: 1973's "Pronounced 'Lĕh-'nérd 'Skin-'nérd," "Second Helping" (released in 1974) and "Nuthin' Fancy" (1975), and is credited with co-writing classics like "Saturday Night Special," "Workin' for MCA" and "Whiskey Rock-a-Roller"
King stayed with Lynyrd Skynyrd until 1975. He reunited with the band at Charlie Daniels' 1987 Volunteer Jam and remained with them for nearly a decade until, struggling with congestive heart failure, he retired in 1996.
Funeral arrangements are unknown at this time.
Latest News
Top news around the world
Academy Awards

‘Oppenheimer’ Reigns at Oscars With Seven Wins, Including Best Picture and Director

Get the latest news about the 2024 Oscars, including nominations, winners, predictions and red carpet fashion at 96th Academy Awards

Around the World

Celebrity News

> Latest News in Media

Watch It
Olivia Munn Reveals Breast Cancer Diagnosis and Double Mastectomy Procedure | E! News
March 13, 2024
kUaEV1Kd3S0
Travis Kelce Shares Details From His Trip to Singapore With Taylor Swift | E! News
March 13, 2024
3YXi-Dgf4eg
Kate Middleton VIRAL Photo: Agency Addresses Photoshop Claims | E! News
March 13, 2024
S4VkO0TpkCY
Da'Vine Joy Randolph Plays 'Smash or Pass' With Iconic Moments From Her Career
March 13, 2024
vkPdJEF2BX4
Jean Smart Wears a Hotel Bathrobe to Present an Award to Hannah Einbinder l Power of Comedy SxSW
March 12, 2024
Bw7uVEYQev4
Lenny Kravitz Walk of Fame Ceremony
March 12, 2024
MlWq8BcnwhE
Dak Prescott Extortion Plot & Steph Curry for President? | TMZ Sports Full Ep - 3/12/24
March 13, 2024
jHFsrjs7OFY
A Japanese space rocket blew up after takeoff Tuesday, turning the sky into a fireball of smoke.
March 13, 2024
YkfJ3Qg8B7c
#KimKardashian and #BiancaCensori hung out at #KanyeWest's listening party Tuesday night!
March 13, 2024
EfwLLq6bx9k
‘Pioneer Woman’ Ree Drummond denies using Ozempic to lose 60 pounds
March 13, 2024
Omfjk1AlZ3A
Chrissy Teigen reveals her ‘boob lift scars’ in daring dress at Jay-Z & Beyoncé’s Oscars 2024 party
March 13, 2024
VxZ2qXAlpmU
Zoë Kravitz pokes fun at dad Lenny Kravitz's style during Hollywood Walk of Fame speech
March 13, 2024
j3-lcFu_1sQ
TV Schedule
Late Night Show
Watch the latest shows of U.S. top comedians

Sports

Latest sport results, news, videos, interviews and comments
Latest Events
17
Mar
SPAIN: La Liga
Atletico Madrid - Barcelona
17
Mar
ENGLAND: FA Cup
Manchester United - Liverpool
17
Mar
ITALY: Serie A
Inter Milan - Napoli
17
Mar
GERMANY: Bundesliga
Borussia Dortmund - Eintracht Frankfurt
17
Mar
ENGLAND: FA Cup
Chelsea - Leicester City
17
Mar
ITALY: Serie A
Roma - Sassuolo
17
Mar
ITALY: Serie A
Verona - AC Milan
17
Mar
ITALY: Serie A
Juventus - Genoa
17
Mar
GERMANY: Bundesliga
SC Freiburg - Bayer Leverkusen
17
Mar
USA: Major League Soccer
Atlanta United - Orlando City
17
Mar
ENGLAND: Premier League
West Ham United - Aston Villa
17
Mar
SPAIN: La Liga
Rayo Vallecano - Real Betis
17
Mar
ENGLAND: Championship
Leeds - Millwall
17
Mar
SPAIN: La Liga
Las Palmas - Almeria
17
Mar
SPAIN: La Liga
Villarreal - Valencia
17
Mar
SPAIN: La Liga
Sevilla - Celta Vigo
16
Mar
GERMANY: Bundesliga
Darmstadt - Bayern Munich
16
Mar
ENGLAND: FA Cup
Manchester City - Newcastle United
16
Mar
ENGLAND: Premier League
Fulham - Tottenham Hotspur
16
Mar
SPAIN: La Liga
Osasuna - Real Madrid
13
Mar
CHAMPIONS LEAGUE: 1/8 Final
Atletico Madrid - Inter Milan
12
Mar
CHAMPIONS LEAGUE: 1/8 Final
Barcelona - Napoli
12
Mar
CHAMPIONS LEAGUE: 1/8 Final
Arsenal - Porto
11
Mar
ENGLAND: Premier League
Chelsea - Newcastle United
10
Mar
ENGLAND: Premier League
Liverpool - Manchester City
10
Mar
SPAIN: La Liga
Real Madrid - Celta Vigo
10
Mar
ENGLAND: Premier League
Aston Villa - Tottenham Hotspur
10
Mar
ITALY: Serie A
Juventus - Atalanta
10
Mar
ITALY: Serie A
Fiorentina - Roma
10
Mar
ITALY: Serie A
AC Milan - Empoli
09
Mar
GERMANY: Bundesliga
Werder Bremen - Borussia Dortmund
09
Mar
ENGLAND: Premier League
Arsenal - Brentford
09
Mar
ITALY: Serie A
Bologna - Inter Milan
Find us on Instagram
at @feedimo to stay up to date with the latest.
Featured Video You Might Like
zWJ3MxW_HWA L1eLanNeZKg i1XRgbyUtOo -g9Qziqbif8 0vmRhiLHE2U JFCZUoa6MYE UfN5PCF5EUo 2PV55f3-UAg W3y9zuI_F64 -7qCxIccihU pQ9gcOoH9R8 g5MRDEXRk4k
Copyright © 2020 Feedimo. All Rights Reserved.