Editing Lynyrd Skynyrd (section)

===Hiatus (1977–1987)===
Lynyrd Skynyrd disbanded after the tragedy, reuniting only on one occasion to perform an instrumental version of "Free Bird" at [[Charlie Daniels]]' [[Volunteer Jam]] V in January 1979. Collins, Rossington, Powell, and Pyle were joined by Daniels and members of his band. Leon Wilkeson, who was still undergoing physical therapy for his badly broken left arm, was in attendance, along with Judy Van Zant, Teresa Gaines, JoJo Billingsley, and Leslie Hawkins.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Free Bird - The Charlie Daniels Band & Friends - Jan 13, 1979 |url=https://www.wolfgangs.com/music/the-charlie-daniels-band-and-friends/audio/20052270-3738179.html?tid=4797426 |language=en |access-date=2022-02-11}}</ref>

Rossington, Collins, Wilkeson and Powell formed the [[Rossington Collins Band]],<ref>{{cite book|title=[[Encyclopedia of Popular Music|The Guinness Who's Who of Heavy Metal]]|editor=Colin Larkin|editor-link=Colin Larkin (writer)|publisher=[[Guinness Publishing]]|date=1995|edition=Second|isbn=0-85112-656-1|page=302}}</ref> which released two MCA albums, ''Anytime, Anyplace, Anywhere'' in 1980 and ''This Is The Way'' in 1981. Deliberately avoiding comparisons with Ronnie Van Zant as well as suggestions that this band was Lynyrd Skynyrd reborn, Rossington and Collins chose a woman, Dale Krantz, as the lead vocalist. However, as an acknowledgement of their past, the band's concert encore would always be an instrumental version of "Free Bird". Rossington and Collins eventually had a falling out over the affections of Dale Krantz, whom Rossington married<ref>{{cite news |last=Lovejoy |first=Heather |url= http://www.jacksonville.com/news/metro/2011-10-21/story/lynyrd-skynyrd-honkette-dale-krantz-rossington-tlcs-say-yes-dress |title=Lynyrd Skynyrd Honkette Dale Krantz-Rossington on TLC's 'Say Yes to the Dress' |newspaper=[[The Florida Times-Union]] |date=October 21, 2011 |access-date=August 15, 2021}}</ref> and with whom he formed [[The Rossington Band]], which released two albums, ''Returned to the Scene of the Crime'' in 1986 and ''Love Your Man'' in 1988 and also opened for the Lynyrd Skynyrd Tribute Tour in 1987–1988.{{citation needed|date=September 2014}}

The other former members of Lynyrd Skynyrd continued to make music during the hiatus era. Billy Powell played keyboards in a Christian rock band named Vision, touring with established Christian rocker [[Mylon LeFevre]]. During Vision concerts, Powell's trademark keyboard talent was often spotlighted and he spoke about his conversion to Christianity after the near-fatal plane crash. Pyle formed the Artimus Pyle Band in 1982, which occasionally featured former Honkettes [[JoJo Billingsley]] and [[Leslie Hawkins]]<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.tennesseeconcerts.com/Skynyrd.html |title=Exclusive Lynyrd Skynyrd Plane Crash Pictures |last=Adams |first=Pat |website=tennesseeconcerts.com |access-date=February 7, 2018 |archive-date=February 7, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180207122910/http://www.tennesseeconcerts.com/Skynyrd.html |url-status=dead }}</ref> and released one MCA album, titled ''A.P.B.''

In 1980, Allen Collins's wife Kathy died of a massive hemorrhage while [[Miscarriage|miscarrying]] their third child. He formed the [[Allen Collins Band]] in 1983 from the remnants of the Rossington Collins Band and released one MCA studio album, ''Here, There & Back''. He was visibly suffering from Kathy's death; he excessively drank and consumed drugs. On January 29, 1986, Collins, then 33, crashed his [[Ford Thunderbird]] into a ditch near his home in Jacksonville, killing his girlfriend Debra Jean Watts and leaving himself permanently paralyzed from the chest down.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://apnews.com/60be797135c45eefa4c334ecc2679ca7 |title=Woman Killed, Rock Musician Injured In One-Car Accident| publisher=Associated Press| date=January 30, 1986| access-date=December 10, 2017}}</ref><ref name="Ult"/>