Artimus Pyle

Thomas Delmar Pyle (Artimus) soon to be nicknamed the "wild man" of Lynyrd Skynyrd, was born July 15, 1948 in Louisville, Kentucky. An only son to Clarence and Mildred Pyle. He weighed in at nearly 8 lbs. and was fascinated by rhythm and sound from his earliest memories. He listened to the rhythmic clopping of horses as they moved. Horses became Tommys first "love" . He recalls falling off a horse at age 7 and when asked if he were OK.."Tommy" replied, "Yep, it's a long way down though".

One of his earliest jobs, at age 8 was running a bulldozer with his grandfather. Tommy noticed the rhythym of the machine & soon started tapping his feet & patting his hands to the rhythym while he worked.

Tommys mother noticed his talent & bought him a set of bongos at age 9. At age 12, his dad bought him a real set of drums. A used Slingerland rig. The gift led to his first band, "The Thom Thumbs".

After graduating high school, Tommy entered the Marine Corps where he performed extremely well. He was selected the best honor recruit in 1968, which netted him the award of a full-dress Marine uniform from the "Leatherneck" magazine. Although his stint in the Marines was a short one, it was rewarding and an influence that remains to this day. When he left the Marines, Tommy enrolled at Tennessee Technical College in Cookeville, Tennessee. Here Tommy was transformed into Artimus. His "baby face" netted him the nickname after the virgin artemus by his college buddies.

The drums were definitely Artimus' true calling. His first break came with the Charlie Daniels bands Volunteer Jam. His first recording listed him as, Artimus Pyle, Percussion. Working for Marshall Tucker, he became known as a powerfull session drummer.

Charlie Daniels and Marshall Tucker often toured with Lynyrd Skynyrd and as a result, Artimus met Ronnie Van Zant and Ed King at Studio One in Doraville, Georgia. The outcome of that meeting...Saturday Night Special, Greatly impressed Ronnie. Artimus' live debut took place in October, 1974 at Sgt Pepper's Club in Jacksonville Fl.

When Bob Burns left Lynyrd Skynyrd Permanently following Skynyrd's first European tour in December 1974, Artimus joined the band as Skynyrd's new drummer.

After the plane crash, survivors continued their musical careers with the Rossington Collins band. Artimus was slated to resume his duties on drums but prior to recording project, he was involved in a serious motorcycle wreck in South Carolina. His injuries prevented Artimus from joining, but the following year he released his own album, A.P.B. with the Artimus Pyle Band. Followed by "Nightcaller" in 1983.

Ten years after the plane crash, Artimus was asked to join Lynyrd Skynyrd for a Tribute Tour in 1987 at which he time he returned to the states after studying in Jerusalem. This "one time" event, led into a three year tour across country. In 1991, Lynyrd Skynyrd '91 released the first new recordings in 14 years. The tour supporting the album was too much for Artimus and resulted in his leaving the band. Since then Artimus always remained active in his musical projects. He had taken an active role in promoting Freebird...The Movie by appearing in t.v and radio interviews across the country..

Artimus is living just south of St. Augustine, Florida on the ocean in Crescent Beach. He has reformed the APB Band (All Points Bulletin) with former Skynyrd guitarist Mike Estes, Tim Lindsey (played bass with Skynyrd for a short period), and Greg Baril.

Read Artimus' one to one interview with Bruce and www.downsouthjukin.com