First heard ‘Ghost Riders In the Sky’ by the Outlaws on a FM rock radio station in the mid 70s. I was astounded! I’m first and foremost a Moody Blues fan, but I rank this piece as one of the best.
i have been playing in bands since 1962..... it always amazes me that GHOST RIDERS is almost universally on a playlist.......yippy....ki ..yay........ oh and cotton fields
They opened for The Rolling Stones in August , 1975. House light's not even turned down and tore it up .Played all of their first album. Got a standing applause . Next day bought the album . I forgot it was at the Hampton Roads Colosseum.
The original members Hughie ,Billy,Henry,Monte and Frank were the outlaws. I saw them in the north Tampa bars before stardom their energy and stage presence was unmatched . Of course the guitar army was mainly Hughie and Billy but the song writing was shared fairly equally in their essential first three Albums and they complemented each other perfectly . By the way Henry was the frontman and he did a great job and his songs were very good too . And don't underplay Billy's influence musically . He was offered a scholarship at julliard school of music he also tutored me in calculas math at USF . I'm sure he offered alot musically writing ,cowritng and in the studio . It was definitely a collective force at that moment which brought them to stardom . RIP Hughie, Billy and Frank the memories you have given your fans will never be forgotten .
I am 55 years old and a lifelong fan of Southern Rock music. I'm a native of Jacksonville, Florida. I was 14 years old when Skynyrd had their plane crash. I was a latecomer to the Southern Rock scene. I became a live music trader thanks to the internet. I have collected over 2000 live recordings, over 200 Allman Brothers Band recordings, lots of Skynyrd, MTB, Hatchet, ZZ Top and so many other bands. But with that as a preface, I never have really given The Outlaws a chance, not any real time at all in my 55 years on the planet. But now thanks to RU-vid I have discovered Billy Jones playing beside Hughie T. I have also now learned who David Dix was, who Henry Paul is and who Steve Grisham is. I also know that Henry Paul is widely reviled for something he may or may NOT have done. I think the story is he basically got Hughie T's widow to sign over rights for The Outlaws band. I think many people dislike Henry because he didn't have the skills of Hughie or Billy Jones and maybe others. Anyway, I'm trying to catch up here. I never cared for Hughie joining Sknynyrd. Hughie needed a paying GIG just as Rickey Medlocke did. The Outlaws and Blackfoot simply didn't have the SONGS that Ronnie Van Zant had penned in his short life. So, ridicule RVZ if you NEED to but he gave a life long job to Johnny Van Zant and to whoever else could play HIS songs over the last 40 something years. Ronnie Van Zant, you were a Southern Rock Poet whose music will live on forever. You were ONE OF A KIND!!!!
@@michaelcraig9449 No, it's more like 3,000 recordings, not videos. Most video, if the quality is decent, finds it's way to RU-vid anyway. And I have a channel, just click on the red devil Harvey Comics character Hot Stuff. It's not uncommon now for people to be able to collect thousands of recordings thanks to torrenting of audio and also video. I really don't have any time right now though for either. WHen I get time again, I'll upload some more musical content. I have videos also on this channel.
I love David Dix as an original member. He was very underrated drummer. Then Hughie needed a good guitarist. Yes, Chris Anderson was wonderful. And other members like Randy Threet were really good musicians too. But in my opinion best lineup for the Outlaws was with Hughie, Billy and Freddie. RIP Frank O'Keefe, Billy Jones, Hughie Thomasson...
Yes, totally the best line up! Harvey Dalton Arnold on bass with Hughie, Billy, and Freddie. Their first three albums were all killer, no filler, then came the double live album! Saw them in the early 80s with Foghat. What a great show!
Another awesome Southern Rock Band with a massive guitar lineup. I saw them in their prime during the 80's. Green Grass and High Tides as epic as any anthem ever written.
66 and still ROCKIN FOREVER.JIMI,BLACK SABBATH,TEN YEARS AFTER,JOHNNY WINTER,ROY BUCHANAN,BB KING,ROBIN TROWER,MOUNTAIN YOU KNOW WHAT I MEAN KEEP ON ROCKIN!!!!
Growing up a big southern rock fan I first saw the outlaws win their first album came out opening for Marshall Tucker in Asbury park New Jersey bought all their albums ever cents and being a bass player myself once Henry left and Billy Huey and the boy Freddy Salem in and Daviid dicks on drums their albums kicked ass they are the outlaws Henry Paul is an egomaniac all he can do is live off the name PS One of the guys Henry Paul plays with in the so-called outlaws is a junkie know this for fact
Don't forget Harvey Dalton Arnold, the bass player. When he joined them they rocked out harder in addition to what you said. What you might like to or even know, Harvey was a left handed bass player. Agree with you about Henry Paul. What that rattlesnake did to Hughie's widow Mary in 2007 is a shameful story best left for another day.
@@TheBigjohn527 I agree with you big John there are so many stories and it’s a shame what Henry Paul does And has did Carmas a bitch and I’ll never forget the last time I saw Billy after he left the outlaws and like you say that’s another story for another day and yes Harvey added a lot to that band
if you think this is awesome you should have witnessed their greatness at July jam 7/4/1976 at liberty bowl memorial stadium opening for ZZ Top Lynyrd Skynerd and BOC...
Edwin Hart Yeah. I don't know why southern rock seems to lose so many of its artists too young. I truly believe The Outlaws were on the cusp of a major comeback with the release of the just completed album. But then we lost Hughie. Just a huge loss.
WVFreebyrd I didn't know for the longest Hughie quit skynyrd to do the outlaw thing again. Imo, most the southern rockers passed fairly young is cause the hard living they were known to live, talked about in many of their songs, lol. Aside from the crash, the rest of the dead skynyrd boys passed from living rough. The Allman the same way. I'm not up on the hatchet history but I'm guessing their story is close to the skynyrd boys. Toy caldwell, and the tucker boys, much the same also I'd imagine.
Hughie is one of the most under-rated guitar players EVER!!! This song isn't the same without Billy Jones and Freddie Salem. henry paul looks like a deer in the headlights (because he can't play), and the other lead here just doesn't belong. Lastly, David Dix was/is, a badass drummer!!!
Peter D. Michael RIP Hughie, Billy and Frank! Hughie was way underrated in my opinion. He made it look so easy. And Billy could pretty much match his stride. Outlaws rock for sure.
The Southern Rock phase I went through is still going on. Man that time was magical maybe for the music or maybe the youth I was in. However if this music is the soundtrack of my life I’ll be happy.
Lighten UpFrancis Hughie was the Outlaws. Henry is an asshole. He took the outlaws name, sued Hughie’s widow, now he gets all the revenue for the Outlaws music. He even gets payed with the revenue from the albums he didn’t play on.
@@jamlive6650 ... The most irritating thing to me is Henry Paul showed up at Hughie's funeral in 2007 schemed & talked Hughie's widow into giving him a 3 yr lease to use the Outlaw name. I mean c'mon, Hughie's cold body wasn't even in the ground yet. The woman was probably distraught & unconsolable. Good Lord, the fuckin' funeral! Who does that? Ol' Henry, of course. Then Paul continued to use the name after the lease was done. She had to take HP to court & lost because Paul's lawyer sharks were better than hers. Things were thrown out in court because of technicalities etc. I could go on but you get the drift of it. Here's a better read on it : theangry99percent.wordpress.com/2012/10/14/a-rock-and-roll-tragedy/
Hardly. Is an original member, first three albums( with him) are widely regarded as the Outlaws best work. He went on to form the Henry Paul band, which if anything rocked even harder than the Outlaws. Songs like Grey Ghost, So Long, Crazy eyes and many others are excellent rockers. He then formed country rock act Blackhawk, very, very successful band . Fact is, Henry, by far is the most successful of any Outlaw, songwriting, band accomplishments, multi platinum with Blackhawk, etc, etc. The two new albums he has done since reforming the Outlaws It’s about Pride, and Dixie Highway are as good as anything the Outlaws have ever done. BTW, the lawsuit involved the other original member as well, Monte Yoho, and they won that lawsuit. If you haven’t seen the Outlaws lately, they sing and play as good( if not better) than ever. Anybody who has seen them knows this.
I have them on my playlist for TouchTunes and every time I go somewhere I always play numerous songs by one of the greatest southern rock bands ever The Outlaws. In the early 70s I was in my teens so I got the witness a lot of these tremendous rock bands, including Skynyrd Molly Hatchet the outlaws never got to see Duane and Gregg together. But did see the Gregg Allman Band
I remember my mother playing the original ghost riders when I was a kid by Vaughn Monroe, then my brother brought home the Outlaws LP. I was blown away. It is still the best remake I've ever heard.
saw the same lineup at a club in Syracuse ny called usa sams that same year. was right in front....could shake their hands if I wanted to...…...so cool...I think henry left the band not long after this video
It is surprising that volunteer jam never made it above the mason dixon line can anyone solve that question or is there anyone left alive to long live southern R/R love a yankee
I've always loved this song! Frankie Laine's version of it was #1 the week I was born in 1949. I've heard many others perform it over these many years. I have many versions of Ghost Riders, on 78s, 45s, albums, 8tracks, cassettes, and cds. And, yes, I have The Outlaws, but this is the first Live version I've heard. I'm loving this! Rock On, Outlaws! Thanx so very much for the magic, music, and memories.
Have to disagree with that long gone is the absolute best. The ultimate Kick-Ass jump out of your seat song. I always think it should be a song of fighter comes out to the to the ring no song ever ever had the power and energy that the drumming and the tight breakdowns are just awesome. I'm an old man with terminal cancer and just reminded me of this makes me think I want to start every day with that song to get me up and going get me off my ass you know what they say you got to get busy living or get busy dying and this song is going to get me busy living on vinyl my jbls are going to be singing tomorrow morning
