The First Lynyrd Skynyrd Song Didn’t Feature Ronnie Van Zant’s Vocals

Even though we are accustomed to the lead singer handling the vocal duties in a band, different members also sometimes take turns to use the microphone. At the end of the day, many bands feel lucky to be blessed with several good vocalists as it allows them to enrich their sound by adding new singing styles.

To exemplify, the Rolling Stones’ ‘Happy’ featured Keith Richards on lead vocals rather than the original singer Mick Jagger, while KISS’ drummer Peter Criss wrote and sang the band’s classic song, ‘Beth,’ taking over the duty from Paul Stanley and Gene Simmons. Besides those, ‘Take It to the Limit’ is the only Eagles song to feature original bassist Randy Meisner on lead vocals.

It is easy to find many more examples where the lead singer takes a step back from delivering the lead vocals. In the case of Lynyrd Skynyrd, Ronnie Van Zant led the band with his outstanding singing style until his tragic death in a plane crash. However, there was still one song that didn’t feature Van Zant on vocals during his stint with Skynyrd.

Before passing away in 1977, Ronnie Van Zant had recorded five studio albums, with Lynyrd Skynyrd, ‘Street Survivors’ being the last one. All of the albums featured the backing vocals of other band members on some songs, but the lead vocals were always in the hands of Ronnie, except for one particular track, ‘Ain’t No Good Life.’

The song, written and sung by the guitarist Steve Gaines, appeared in the band’s fifth studio album, ‘Street Survivors.’ Although Gaines was the newest member of Skynyrd at the time, the band had great confidence in his instrumental, songwriting, and vocal skills. So, they gave him a chance to stand out by letting him handle the vocal duties, though it was unusual for their prevalent working process.

Aside from ‘Ain’t No Good Life,’ Gaines also wrote another track, ‘I Know a Little,’ featuring in the same album. Yet, his contribution was not limited to only two original compositions. The late guitarist also co-wrote ‘You Got That Right’ and ‘I Never Dreamed’ with Ronnie Van Zant. In ‘You Got That Right,’ the duo also shared the lead vocals.

The musician also displayed his remarkable guitar playing in the songs like ‘That Smell’ and ‘Honky Tonk Night Time Man.’ It would be fair to say that Steve Gaines dramatically impacted the band’s sound during his brief stint with Lynyrd Skynyrd. His bandmate, Ronnie Van Zant’ was never indifferent to his exceptional talent, as he praised the guitarist with encouraging words several times, both publicly and privately. Unfortunately, Gaines also lost his life in the plane crash, although he had much to contribute to the music scene.