Simple Men and Southern Nights was formed in 2021 during the downtime of the pandemic.  Award winning entertainment producer of Magnificent Events & Entertainment and the founder of the world-renowned cover band Maggie Speaks Dave Calzaretta finally had the time to create this passion project. 

“I met Randall Hall (formerly of Lynyrd Skynyrd) back in 2018 when I started the Celebrity Sit-In Program for our corporate band Maggie Speaks.  We became great friends and I enjoyed playing this catalog and hearing his stories of life on the road with Lynyrd Skynyrd.  As I dove into the music, I really enjoyed the intricacies of the music.  Most people think Skynyrd is three chords and the truth, but it couldn’t be any further from that.  Each song is a crafted work of art in and of itself.  I wanted to create a project that paid homage to the group and truly highlighted the sense of detail they put into their songs.  During COVID, I finally had the one commodity that I needed to make it happen…TIME!”

The dueling lead guitars of Mike Aquino and Jimmy Riley are certainly the highlights of the show.  Both have performed with a who’s who of rock and roll over their careers, including the former lead singer of Journey Steve Augeri, Boston’s Tommy DeCarlo, Mike Reno of Loverboy, Kelly Keagy of Night Ranger, Jim Peterick of Survivor and many, many more.

The show can be divided into two acts, the first being a salute to all of your Southern Rock favorites from the Allman Brothers, Marshall Tucker Band, ZZ Top, .38 Special, the Black Crowes and more.  Then set two is all Lynyrd Skynyrd.  You will hear all of your favorite classics from “Gimme Three Steps”, down to “Sweet Home Alabama” and “Free Bird”.

Celebrity Guest Randall Hall (formerly of Lynyrd Skynyrd) is often added to the band to bring some star power to the shows.  Additionally, Derek St. Holmes, vocalist of the legendary Ted Nugent Band (“Stranglehold”) has also guested with the band.