Larry Junstrom, Lynyrd Skynyrd Founding Member, Dead at 70

Larry Junstrom, founding member and bassist for classic rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd, has died, his former bandmates in rock group 38 Special wrote on Facebook. He was 70.

“The Big Man on the Big Bass has left us,” 38 Special’s Facebook post reads. “He rocked arena all over the world and succeeded in living his dream. He was truly one of a kind, a congenial traveling companion and a great friend to all with a humorous slant on life that always kept our spirits high — a kind man with a big heart for everyone who crossed his path. There will never be another like him. We are sending our devoted love, strength and comfort to his wife Thania and Larry’s family. We will miss our friend and partner.”

Junstrom formed Lynyrd Skynyrd in 1964 alongside his high school classmates Ronnie Van Zant, Gary Rossington, Allen Collins and Bob Burns. He left the group in 1971 prior to the recording of their debut album, (Pronounced ‘Lĕh-‘nérd ‘Skin-‘nérd).

Six years after that, he joined Van Zant’s younger brother Donnie’s band, 38 Special.

“My first show with 38 Special was the [1977] Super Bowl of Rock,” Junstrom told Swampland in 2004. “To this day [it is] one of the biggest shows we have ever done. It was at Soldier Field in Chicago and there were about 100,000 people there. I will never forget it — the acts on the bill were Journey, Skynyrd, Ted Nugent and several other bands. I was so nervous before that show that I could not sleep for three night before, but once I hit the stage it was natural and everyone said I did great.”

Junstrom appeared on all 12 of 38 Special’s studio albums, from their self-titled 1977 debut to 2004’s Drivetrain, before a hand injury forced him to retire from the group in 2014.

“I know everyone tells you their fans are the best, but nobody is more loyal than a 38 fan,” he said. “We give 110 percent at everything we do and that shows in our ability to survive the trends in the music business.”

At press time, Junstrom’s cause of death is unclear.

Junstrom’s death comes just over a year after Lynyrd Skynyrd guitarist Ed King died at 68 following a battle with lung cancer. King was a former member of the southern rock band and was known for co-writing the band’s most famous hit “Sweet Home Alabama.” King played for the group in 1972, a year after Junstrom’s exit, until 1975 and again from 1987 to 1996. He was also one of the founding members of the psychedelic band Strawberry Alarm Clock.

Lynyrd Skynyrd postponed a couple shows from their final Last of the Street Survivors Farewell Tour in August due to founding member and guitarist Gary Rossington’s heart surgery. Rossington, 67, underwent surgery in July after complaining of fatigue and other issues, which led doctors to discover a leaky heart valve.

Lynyrd Skynyrd launched their Last of the Street Survivors Farewell Tour in 2018, in part because of Rossington’s ongoing health issues.

“We did this because of Gary Rossington, the last founding member of the band,” guitarist Rickey Medlocke told PopCulture.com. “In the recent years it’s been pretty well publicly known that Gary’s had a heart issue. And so for us, what we wanted to was, we wanted to make sure that Gary stays with us as long as possible. And, you know what? It wasn’t worth losing him during heavy touring like that. He just can’t do it anymore.”