Music Mondays
If I Leave Here Tomorrow: A Film About Lynyrd Skynyrd
Featuring rare interviews and never-before-seen archival footage, If I Leave Here Tomorrow takes viewers on a trip through the history, myth and legend of the greatest American rock band ever! Rising from the swamps of the Deep South these good ol’ boys from Jacksonville, FL came to define an era with their hard rocking boogie-woogie sound, their drunken and dangerous antics, and their controversial use of the rebel flag. The film also serves as a portrait of band leader Ronnie Van Zant; Simple Man, Country Boy, Whiskey Rock-a-Roller, a poet and prophet for the common man whose life was cut tragically short, but whose legacy endures to this day.
The film is primarily narrated by Gary Rossington, the last of the Street Survivors, founding member along with Ronnie Van Zant and Allen Collins, who remains the only original member still in the band today. His recollections, from the beginning to the very end, mingle with the tales of drummer Artimus Pyle and “Sweet Home” co-writer Ed King, interviews with the late drummer Bob Burns and “Honkette” JoJo Billingsley, producer Al Kooper, and recently discovered interviews with the late founding members Allen “Freebird” Collins and Leon “Mad Hatter” Wilkeson. And Lead Redneck, singer & lyricist Ronnie Van Zant, captured in radio interviews, comes vividly to life through his own words and the stories and memories of the people who made music with him.
USA, 2018, 95 minutes, Not Rated, Directed by Stephan Kijak