Forum Lord
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Post by Forum Lord on Oct 11, 2015 9:43:33 GMT -5
Yep! You got it! Back around 1979/1980 when RCB was forming the reason Artimus could not join the band was because he was in a motorcycle accident that crushed his right leg below the knee. Artimus had a steel pin inserted into his right leg because the bone simply was not going to heal and repair itself in a strong enough way to allow him to walk again or even play drums as he had. So to this day, his right leg is shorter than the left, and you can see in this new photo of him, how he is putting all of his weight on his left leg, the right leg is slightly bent at the knee to take weight off of it. You might also notice that his shoes are now customized as well. The shoe on his left foot is normal, while the shoes he wears on his right foot are built up to compensate for the shorter length from his accident. Every single day of his life since this accident Artimus pays dearly for it. He is always in pain. Always hurting. And yet he pushes himself to play as hard as he can despite the pain. I remember Artimus telling me that if he ever breaks this leg again that it might be amputate at the knee. He has been trying to avoid that every day of his life since the accident back in 1979. Almost 36 years now- about half of his life having to live this way. That motorcycle accident caused him more injury, hurt and pain than the plane crash of 1977 did- other than the mental anguish- I am just talking about physical in this comment. Artimus recovered from his plane crash injuries, but he will never recover from this motorcycle accident.
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Post by BlueMonday on Oct 12, 2015 9:47:03 GMT -5
Cutting the guy out of his own selfie, you get this:
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Oct 12, 2015 20:20:12 GMT -5
Alright Cagey. This has got to be you with Artimus...
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Forum Lord
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Post by Forum Lord on Oct 12, 2015 20:26:10 GMT -5
Yes that is me and Artie taken by Charles Odum at his house in St. Augustine, Fl. Overlooking the intra-coastal waterway... it was so peaceful there! As I recall this was actually closer to Crescent Beach South of St. Augustine right off A1A on a dirt side road weaving back into the thick woods and then popping out in this nice clearing with 3 houses there with this one Artimus lived in being the oldest one there as you can tell by these wood framed windows this house was probably built in the 1950's or so. We were outside walking around out there looking around at the dolphins playing and feeding out in the water, and nice big yachts sailing by. Just spending some chillin' time before a show later that evening at a bar around the corner from the house back up on A1A. His band then was Tim Lindsey on bass, Greg Baril on guitar and vocals, and Shelton Irwin on guitar and vocals and Artie on drums of course. I think I even have that show on video tape somewhere... Charles Odum was the professional photographer MCA hired to photograph the Skynyrd band Oct. 17, 1977 at the Altamonte Springs Mall. He lives in St. Cloud area of central Florida and he wanted to go with me to see Artimus on this day because he had not seen him since 10-17-77 and just wanted to meet him again and share his photos from that day with Artimus, some nice prints he had made up. And of course Charles brought his camera and was snapping photos so there are more of Artie and I lounging around on the back deck of the house, chatting, I know I spent some time in the hammock hanging between some trees out back there overlooking the water for awhile. The hammock is just barely visible in this image just in front of Artimus and his right hand you can see some of the ropes of the end of the hammock hanging out there between some trees. I think that was one of my favorite spots of the day. Artimus set it up right too! Rather than perfectly level, he made the end of the hammock closest to the water lower than the end farther from the water so when laying in it, the head would be up higher so you could relax in the hammock while looking out over the water. The garage with band equipment was a separate building from this old house so we had to be outside a lot that day in getting things together for the show later on. I did sound for the band that night and as I recall had a video camera with me for the show portion of it. There are actually quite a few photos floating around taken at this old house... and since Artie no longer lives at this house or even in Florida any longer, I can reveal the location of this old house. It was located on Anastasia Island heading South just past the 206 bridge where it dead ends into A1A, there is a road right there called Middleton. So heading South on Middleton from the 206 bridge (using google satellite imagery) count down to the 11th dock which is now covered. Kind of an odd shaped dock as compared the long straight ones nearby. Once you find the 11th dock South of the bridge, now look due east towards the ocean and the very first house roof you see is this old house. As I recall, since this area was developed decades ago, it had a private only access to it. You turned off of Middleton onto Gracey St and drive past the first 3 homes packed in real close to each other and just before Gracey dead-ends you make a left hand turn onto a long private drive not even shown on google as a road, but it is there under all those trees. And you drive real slow down through there because of all the kids and dogs running around popping out of hidden driveways or bushes, etc. You follow this long private drive all the way back into this nice little corner where the old house was overlooking the marsh out behind it and turned right just in front of Artie's house there and parked in between the house and garage across the driveway. A real cool backwoodsy hide away out there. Click the link below to see where this old house is located, and if you try and look at the street view of it, all you see is woods, because google when on site to do the street level view did not violate the private driveway sign and no trespassing back in there! So all they did was stand on Middleton and shot photos of the woods hiding it all back in there. Google satellite link hereIf you look at the image above, and look past Artimus and I, you will see a marsh area behind the house. Google satellite imagery clearly shows this open marsh area behind the house. Kind of nice actually because it keeps neighbors at a distance and seems more natural than city-like. You can see how much bigger a newer more modern house is just east of this old house which appears square looking down on it. Across the driveway out front is where the garage is for this old house and is barely visible in the satellite image. You can see this old house is surrounded by natural woods and a marsh which was awesome! A great place to live when no hurricanes were blowing in... It felt safe and closed in there. I use to take my children with me there sometimes and they loved it. This is also the place where Artimus and Keri had River Pyle and he spent some of his first few years living here too. And since Artie was so close to the beach, he had two modes of transportation here- one was his bicycle he loved to ride it around to the beach. He lived in relative obscurity here and most people had no idea who he was as he rode around on his bike. His other vehicles were a black BMW, but his favorite was an old rust bucket red with white top VW hippie van. Some of his performances were at a bar in a business strip center up on A1A next to Tony's Pizza just to the left of it taking up the end of the building down on the South side. So we could literally walk to the club in like 5 minutes and the beach in 7 minutes. It was truly a great place for anyone to live. The beach was perfect, fishing was great. It just did not get any more Florida island living than this! I wish I lived there now!
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Post by BlueMonday on Oct 15, 2015 10:27:49 GMT -5
The poster could be a modern reproduction or a very well-preserved original. Very old posters can look surprisingly well preserved when they are well cared for. I suppose that the easiest way to find out would be to join the Arti Appreciation Facebook page and ask him. I hope that Arti gets well compensated for these autograph sessions because he sure seems to sit for quite a few of them. Since people are making $$$ out of his signature, so should he! Very cool photos!
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Forum Lord
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Post by Forum Lord on Oct 15, 2015 12:47:25 GMT -5
Blue I did notice the poster had a curve to towards the image which would tend to indicate to me that it had been rolled for some period of time and maybe as you said stored that way. But as for asking Artimus anything online is not possible. Artimus does not use a computer unless he has since learned. The facebook page is run by members of his band and band organization. Artimus does not post anything. If something worthwhile is posted, someone in his band may bring it to his attention, and may bring a quote or two back from Artimus to the facebook page. Hey, can anyone name all the people in the following image??? (Besides the obvious person in the middle)
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Post by Lynyrd Skynyrd Smokes on Oct 16, 2015 14:07:26 GMT -5
That poster looks brand new and yet it is a 1975 tour poster from Europe made by MCA Records. When Artimus first joined the band back in November of 1974, he roomed with Bob Burns for 4 months learning his parts and place within the band. Then Artimus left for a while because of other obligations and Skynyrd continued on with Bob Burns until this 1975 European tour when Bob Burns flipped out in London and the band had to call up Artimus. As I recall from my discussion with Artimus, he was actually already in London at the time Lynyrd Skynyrd was in London but Artimus was there because of his other obligations so it was just a coincidence he was already there in London when Bob flipped out and had to be sent home while the band continued on. As I recall Artimus told me the band had no idea he was in London and made calls back to the USA trying to reach him only to find out he was in London, so after all the calls the connection was finally made and Artimus joined the band to continue the tour- the same one as shown in this poster he is holding recently in 2015 signing apparently for a frynd or fan. When Artimus joined up with the band in London, he saved one of these very same posters and is seen in numerous photos holding the poster shortly after joining Skynyrd in London. That was 1975.
Can you clear something up here Cagey. I've been idly curious for a while about when Bob left and Artimus replaced him permanently. I never even realised that both of them played together onstage at one point till I saw things posted here. I had always wrongly assumed that one day Bob jumped or was pushed, and Artimus came aboard.
Artimus played on the recording of Saturday Night Special in late 1974, and the rest of the album, which was recorded in early 1975. By then (when the album came out), Bob had now gone and Artimus was in. Is that correct? (Nuthin' Fancy was released on March 24, 1975.)
The breakdown Bob had in London, documented in the Mojo feature states that it was during the first European tour in late 1974, November 14 (various countries Wikipedia says) to December 5 (Hamburg) and that Bob was flown back to America separately. The 1975 European tour ran from October 16 (Rotterdam) to October 31 (Sheffield) so I'm thinking Bob was long gone by that time.
Artimus joins LS but Bob is still in the band, they play with 2 drummers for a while, then Bob cracks up and leaves the band as a result. Is that correct, that the European tour (1974) was the final straw for him?
I don't know when SNS was recorded, just late 1974 apparently, was Bob gone permanently by then? I'm curious about when Artimus joins the band, the month/year, and for how long they are both playing live together, and when Bob's exit becomes final. The timeline of events. You might have to excuse my ignorance here, like not even knowing they were both in the band together for a spell.
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badman
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Post by badman on Oct 17, 2015 0:00:07 GMT -5
This last photo is puzzling to me. That poster looks brand new and yet it is a 1975 tour poster from Europe made by MCA Records. When Artimus first joined the band back in November of 1974, he roomed with Bob Burns for 4 months learning his parts and place within the band. Then Artimus left for a while because of other obligations and Skynyrd continued on with Bob Burns until this 1975 European tour when Bob Burns flipped out in London and the band had to call up Artimus. As I recall from my discussion with Artimus, he was actually already in London at the time Lynyrd Skynyrd was in London but Artimus was there because of his other obligations so it was just a coincidence he was already there in London when Bob flipped out and had to be sent home while the band continued on. As I recall Artimus told me the band had no idea he was in London and made calls back to the USA trying to reach him only to find out he was in London, so after all the calls the connection was finally made and Artimus joined the band to continue the tour- the same one as shown in this poster he is holding recently in 2015 signing apparently for a frynd or fan. When Artimus joined up with the band in London, he saved one of these very same posters and is seen in numerous photos holding the poster shortly after joining Skynyrd in London. That was 1975. Here it is 2015 some 40 years later. Is this poster an original? I have never seen another listed for sale ever, but I suppose it is possible that one found its way onto ebay for sale where someone snapped it up and brought it for Artimus to sign. As I look at this poster it does look real to me. But I am wondering if it may be copy? I have no idea really just speculating but that is a lot of trouble to go through to recreate one of these extremely rare 1975 European tour posters from MCA. So for now, I am just going to have to assume this poster is legitimate. When I use to hang out with Artimus years ago, he had the very same poster he was photographed with the band in London 1975 hanging on his wall framed in a red plastic frame. Artimus kept it for over 20 years but sometime in the 1990's he let it go. Don't recall if he sold his or just gave it away, but regardless of that, I have tried for years and years to find one for myself without luck and have never seen another one until now- unless this is the same poster Artimus brought back from Europe??? It would be interesting to me find out from Artimus one day if this is another one or the one he let go??? Or, a modern recreation of it??? you can buy that poster that Artimus is holding here: www.posters57.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=735&zenid=fn8krnqr54veva76dk7lm6b9s5There's also some other cool posters on that site as well.
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Forum Lord
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Post by Forum Lord on Oct 22, 2015 19:35:35 GMT -5
For that price of less than $20.00 I'd really have to wonder if they are selling original MCA posters or reprints??? This poster is or should be kind of rare and the price should be quite a bit more than less than $20.00 in my opinion.
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Forum Lord
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Post by Forum Lord on Oct 22, 2015 19:46:31 GMT -5
Can you clear something up here Cagey. I've been idly curious for a while about when Bob left and Artimus replaced him permanently. I never even realised that both of them played together onstage at one point till I saw things posted here. I had always wrongly assumed that one day Bob jumped or was pushed, and Artimus came aboard. Artimus played on the recording of Saturday Night Special in late 1974, and the rest of the album, which was recorded in early 1975. By then (when the album came out), Bob had now gone and Artimus was in. Is that correct? (Nuthin' Fancy was released on March 24, 1975.) The breakdown Bob had in London, documented in the Mojo feature states that it was during the first European tour in late 1974, November 14 (various countries Wikipedia says) to December 5 (Hamburg) and that Bob was flown back to America separately. The 1975 European tour ran from October 16 (Rotterdam) to October 31 (Sheffield) so I'm thinking Bob was long gone by that time. Artimus joins LS but Bob is still in the band, they play with 2 drummers for a while, then Bob cracks up and leaves the band as a result. Is that correct, that the European tour (1974) was the final straw for him? I don't know when SNS was recorded, just late 1974 apparently, was Bob gone permanently by then? I'm curious about when Artimus joins the band, the month/year, and for how long they are both playing live together, and when Bob's exit becomes final. The timeline of events. You might have to excuse my ignorance here, like not even knowing they were both in the band together for a spell. I had always heard from Artimus that he joined the band in November 1974. But he also told me that before then he had gone out on the road with the band for about 4 months learning his parts so he could replace Bob Burns. Artimus told me that he and Bob actually roomed together during that time. So if we put it together, I'd have to say that those 4 months were just prior to the November 1974 dates in Europe when Bob finally flipped out and had to be sent home. As I recall Artimus telling me this story and I am going from memory here of things told me years ago so my memory may be faulty, but I recall Artimus telling me something to the effect that he toured with Skynyrd for like 4 months, and then left because of other obligations he was involved in and this took him to London, England just by pure coincidence at the same time Bob Burns and Skynyrd were in London when Bob flipped out. Artimus said the band did not know he was in London already and they called back to the states for him only to find out he was already there in London and could easily slide into the drum position at the same time they were sending Bob back home to the states. So my understanding is that Artimus must have been introduced to the band possible back in June or July of 1974 (my assumption) in order to get those 4 months in leading up to him joining permanently in November of 1974. That is about all I can recall... TailGator may be able to provide greater detail and a better timeline than I.
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Forum Lord
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Post by Forum Lord on Oct 25, 2015 9:53:03 GMT -5
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heathinvader
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Post by heathinvader on Oct 25, 2015 21:24:38 GMT -5
Great finds, Cagey! That third one, especially (it's not every day that you see photos of an adult Ronnie VanZant stopping to smile at the camera). The last image isn't showing for some reason, though.
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Forum Lord
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Post by Forum Lord on Nov 25, 2015 12:11:57 GMT -5
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Post by Deleted on Jan 13, 2016 20:49:41 GMT -5
This is now my favorite photo of Artimus. Ain't he purdy?
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chromatica
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Post by chromatica on Feb 4, 2016 11:57:06 GMT -5
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Post by Deleted on Mar 10, 2016 20:23:00 GMT -5
Artimus calling home before the St. Pete Show, October 16, 1977....
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tonytrout
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Post by tonytrout on Mar 18, 2016 12:15:06 GMT -5
I've wondered how he didnt end up with another bigger named band.He sure has the chops. This is purely a guess, but the particular controversy that surrounded his personal life could be the reason. I don't think Arti did anything wrong myself but when you have that type of disturbing allegation it is not going to make bands come running to hire you. That controversy later turned out to be false. His girlfriend made those false claims against him. Also, getting back to a normal subject regarding Artie, has anyone ever thought that (in the mid-1970s) he had a bit of a Charles Manson-type look going on with the long hair and the beard and the wild eyes? LOL!!!
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grayghost
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Post by grayghost on Mar 18, 2016 17:50:27 GMT -5
He most definitely had a Mansonesque look to him back then. I think RVZ joked that they keep him caged and feed him raw meat.
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tonytrout
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Post by tonytrout on Mar 19, 2016 15:12:36 GMT -5
He most definitely had a Mansonesque look to him back then. I think RVZ joked that they keep him caged and feed him raw meat. Yep, he joked about it on the extended version of the OMFTR 2-CD set. I thought it was hilarious!! I've always thought that Artie (even though he and Ronnie were/are the same age) looked a lot older than Ronnie - probably because of the beard and long hair.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on May 2, 2016 21:12:51 GMT -5
From the AP Fan Appreciation Facebook page. Artimus Pyle and his band, Studebaker Hawke late '70's or very early '80's at The Torch Club, Tryon , North Carolina.
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