GAUTIER, MS — Veteran live sound engineer Ken Peden passed away after a bout with cancer, on August 13, 2023, surrounded by his family. He was 70.
Peden had a long and impressive career working with a wide range of top artists. Yet, he was perhaps best known as being one of the 20 survivors of the tragic October, 1977 plane crash that killed three members of Lynyrd Skynyrd (lead vocalist/founder Ronnie Van Zant, vocalist/guitarist Steve Gaines and backing vocalist Cassie Gaines), along with asst. road manager Dean Kilpatrick and the plane’s two pilots.
After high school, Peden and a few friends landed jobs working at the then-new Ingalls West Bank Shipyard in Pascagoula, MS. After a few years of that and some oil rig work in south Texas, the friends split up, with Peden — who long had a passion for sound system design — heading north to Dallas. In 1974, he was hired by Dallas-based pioneering touring sound company Showco, and was sent out to work on David Bowie’s “Diamond Dogs” tour.
Although new to touring, Peden wasn’t “alone” at Showco, and credits the legendary mentors that helped him along the way, including Jack Maxson, Buford Jones, John “JB” Blasuuta and M.L. Procise.
Peden was later assigned to mix monitors for a Kinks tour, although he had little experience in that position. This turned out to be a trial by fire, learn-as-you-go gig, but after a mostly disastrous first night, he got the hang of it, and ending up carving a niche for himself as a first-call monitor engineer that lasted throughout much of his career.
While doing a huge multi-act stadium show at the Oakland Coliseum (Bill Graham’s “Day on the Green #6” on September 20, 1975), Peden was mixing monitors for Johnny Winter and the Winter Brothers Jam. Among other acts on the bill that day were Lynyrd Skynyrd, and when the band’s leader Ronnie Van Zandt heard Johnny Winter’s great-sounding monitor mixes, he asked Peden to work with Lynyrd Skynyrd in the future.
A few months later, Showco got the Lynyrd Skynyrd contract, with the band requesting Peden on monitors and he was on the road with the band, a position he held for the next two years.
After the devastating plane crash in 1977 — which he was miraculously able to walk away from, despite some serious injuries — Peden returned to the road, working monitors and occasionally FOH with Showco and eventually other sound companies — including D.B. Sound (1990-1991) and Sound Image (2000-2001). Among the roster of other clients he worked with during his career were artists such as James Taylor, Joe Cocker, The Who, Blondie, Journey, David Lee Murphy, Bread, David Kersh, Heart, Clint Black, MC Hammer and a 12-year run with Pat Benatar & Neil Giraldo.
Ken Peden retired in 2014, but leaves a legacy of great acts, memorable shows and amazing memories. At press time, no memorial services had been announced.
