When Lynyrd Skynyrd’s Ronnie Van Zant Pissed Off Mick Jagger

When we say Mick Jagger, the first thing that comes to mind is his warm smile, energetic persona, and positive energy. It’s as if nothing can get on Jagger’s nerves, as he almost always smiles and jumps around with his never-ending energy. Even when there were tensions between him and Keith Richards, he didn’t go into full-attack mode against the guitarist.

Keith claimed Jagger had a tiny penis and nicknamed him ‘B*tchy Brenda’ and ‘Her Majesty.’ These were serious remarks that could’ve ended the Stones. Instead, the two continued their love-hate relationship and resolved their issues. So, one might think that it’s not that easy to piss Mick Jagger off. However, that’s not true.

Back in August 1976, the Rolling Stones took the stage at Knebworth Park and played in front of 200,000 fans. This was their largest audience to date, so the show had to be perfect. Lynyrd Skynyrd were also there as the Stones’ opening act — a year before the tragic plane crash.

At Knebworth, Lynyrd Skynyrd gave fans an astonishing performance. As the band used substances backstage with Jack Nicholson, they were pretty reckless about what they should or shouldn’t do during the show. Ultimately, this caused them to break the only rule the Rolling Stones had told them.

The moment when the crowd enjoyed their set the most, Ronnie Van Zandt came up with a brilliant idea: using the stage’s extended ramp during the solo part. However, the ramp was shaped like the Rolling Stones’ iconic tongue logo. So, it was obvious the ramp was meant for the Stones’ use.

Thus, after seeing Lynyrd Skynyrd on their ramp and coming up with a dazzling performance, Mick Jagger was pissed off. According to Gary Rossington, this was the Stones’ only rule for the show, and they broke it with a flawless performance.

“Mick Jagger was mad,” Rossington recalled in the 2018 documentary ‘If I Leave Here Tomorrow: A Film About Lynyrd Skynyrd.’ “It took their breath away to see how well we went over and broke their only rule: don’t go out on the tongue.”

Apparently, Mick Jagger was a bit jealous when he saw Lynyrd Skynyrd on the ramp that was there for their use. However, the show went well after this incident, and the Stones performed 20 of their songs for hours until 7 a.m.