Ed King | |
---|---|
Birth name | Edward C. King |
Born |
Glendale, California, US |
September 14, 1949
Genres | Southern rock, psychedelic rock |
Occupation(s) | Musician, songwriter |
Instruments | Guitar, bass |
Years active | 1965–1996 (According to Official Website) |
Labels | MCA |
Associated acts | Lynyrd Skynyrd, Strawberry Alarm Clock, Hunger |
Notable instruments | |
Custom Pensa-Suhr guitars Paul Reed Smith Special "Ed King" Model (1991 only) Gibson SG Gibson Les Paul (special ed king collectors choice) |
Edward C. King (born September 14, 1949 in Glendale, California) is an American musician. He is best known as the guitarist for the psychedelic rock band Strawberry Alarm Clock and guitarist and bassist for the Southern rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd from 1972 to 1975 and again from 1987 to 1996.
King was one of the founding members of Strawberry Alarm Clock, formed in Los Angeles in the mid-1960s. The band's largest success was with a song that King co-wrote, "Incense and Peppermints" (but, along with keyboardist Mark Weitz, did not get credit). The song reached No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 in October 1967. Their follow-up single, "Tomorrow," reached No. 23 on January 1. King met the members of Jacksonville, Florida-based Southern rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd when the band opened up for Strawberry Alarm Clock on a few shows in early 1968. It wasn't until 1972 that he joined Skynyrd, replacing Leon Wilkeson on bass, who left the band briefly. Wilkeson rejoined the band, and King switched to guitar, creating the triple-guitar attack that became a signature sound for the band.
His guitar playing and songwriting skills were an essential element to the band's first three albums: Pronounced Leh-Nerd Skin-Nerd, Second Helping, and Nuthin' Fancy. King co-wrote the Skynyrd hit song "Sweet Home Alabama" and it is his voice you can hear counting off the tune before launching into his famous Stratocaster riff. Other songs that King wrote or co-wrote the music for include "Poison Whiskey," "Saturday Night Special," "Mr. Banker," "Swamp Music," "Whiskey Rock-a-Roller,""Railroad Song," "I Need You" and "Workin' For MCA."