Lynyrd Skynyrd and Big & Rich team with KICKS 101.5 and Eagle 106.7 to help raise funds for the 173d Airborne Brigade National Memorial

Recent Rock-n-Roll Hall of Fame inductees Lynyrd Skynyrd and hot country duo Big & Rich teamed up with KICKS 101.5 and the Eagle 106.7 at the HiFi Buys Amphitheatre in Atlanta, Georgia on Saturday, October 7, 2006, for a fundraising concert that included performances by John Anderson, Cowboy Troy, The Lost Trailers and others. The fun started earlier in the day with a RAWHIDE ROUNDUP Motorcycle and classic car ride to the concert with Big & Rich and the 173d Airborne Brigade Veterans. The motor cavalcade arrived at the venue for the concert, causing much of a stir among other motorists. Big & Rich's country hit "The 8th of November" pays tribute to the brave members of the 173d who lost their lives on November 8th, 1965, in an ambush in Viet Nam. All profits from the show went to the building fund for the 173d Airborne Brigade National Memorial planned for the new National Infantry Museum campus in Ft. Benning, Georgia. [Read more about the show.]

CONCERT PHOTOS

Big Kenny (right) and John Rich kicked off the motorcycle run with thanks to all attending for their support of the 173d memorial.

Big Kenny and Al Rascon confer at the Motorcycle Run site. The event wound its way through rural Georgia and returned north to HiFi Buys Amphitheatre, the site of the concert.

This GMA truck was tricked out as the super-fine all-time 173d vehicle. The names of all KIAs are placed on khaki background from the left front to the right front of the truck. The truck bed contains 173d insignia. The slide-in step-up bar (which everyone needed because the seats are at least 5 feet off the ground) is emblazoned with 173d Airborne and the upholstery and cab are decorated as well. Even the wheel wells tell the Herd’s story. Thanks to Carl Black Automotive Group for an inspiring symbol.

BG James Yarbrough and Niles Harris look on as Ken Smith, Honorary Colonel of the 503d PIR, inducts Big Kenny and John Rich as Honorary Members of the Regiment, a recognition that required approval by the Secretary of the Army.

Memorial Foundation President Terry Modglin presents thank-you gifts to Victor Sansone, owner of WKXH and WYAY, the Atlanta radio sponsors of the concert, and the stations’ promotions director, Christy Ullman, who provided vital day-to-day coordination of numerous pre-conference activities.

In an extended “meet and greet” with Gold Star families and 8th of November veterans, John Rich cheerfully signed baseball caps and t-shirts to provide unique souvenirs to young and old.

Niles Harris, whose story inspired Big & Rich’s "The 8th of November," attended the Association-sponsored Friday-night reunion to talk with old comrades and Gold Star families.

Craig Ford, who with Foundation Vice President Ray Ramirez coordinated Gold Star families’ attendance, talks at the Association-sponsored reception with a number of the family members.