Free Bird

"Free Bird"
1976 UK issue
Single by Lynyrd Skynyrd
from the album (Pronounced 'Lĕh-'nérd 'Skin-'nérd)
Released	November 1974 (1974-11)
Format	7" 12"
Recorded	April 3, 1973 at Studio One, Doraville, Georgia, U.S.
Genre	Southern rock hard rock
Length	9:08 (album version) 4:41 (single version)
Label	MCA
Writer(s)	Allen Collins Ronnie Van Zant
Producer(s)	Al Kooper
Certification	Silver (UK)[1]
Lynyrd Skynyrd singles chronology
"Sweet Home Alabama" (1974) "Free Bird" (1974) "Saturday Night Special" (1975)
Music sample Free Bird

"Free Bird",^[2][3][4] or "Freebird",^[5][6][7] is a power ballad performed by American rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd. The song was first featured on the band's debut album in 1973 and has been included on subsequent albums released by the band, including the previously unreleased, unfaded-ending version of the original recording (featured on Skynyrd's Innyrds). Amazon.com music reviewer Lorry Fleming calls it "the most-requested song in the history of rock music."^[8]

Released as a single in November 1974, "Free Bird" bowed at No. 87 on the Billboard Hot 100 on November 23 and became the band's second Top 40 hit in early 1975, where it peaked at No. 19.^[9] A live version of the song also reached the Billboard Hot 100 chart in 1977, peaking at No. 38.^[9] "Free Bird" also achieved the No. 3 spot on Guitar World's 100 Greatest Guitar Solos.^[10]

It is used as a finale by Lynyrd Skynyrd during their live performances and is their longest song, often going well over 14 minutes when played live. It is considered to be Lynyrd Skynyrd's signature song.^[11]

Origins

According to guitarist Gary Rossington, for two years after Allen Collins wrote the initial chords, vocalist Ronnie Van Zant insisted that there were too many for him to create a melody in the belief that the melody needed to change alongside the chords. After Collins played the unused sequence at rehearsal one day, Van Zant asked him to repeat it, then wrote out the melody and lyrics in three or four minutes. The guitar solos that finish the song were added originally to give Van Zant a chance to rest, as the band was playing several sets per night at clubs at the time. Soon afterward, the band learned piano-playing roadie Billy Powell had written an introduction to the song; upon hearing it, they included it as the finishing touch and had him formally join as their keyboardist.

Allen Collins's girlfriend, Kathy, whom he later married, asked him, "If I leave here tomorrow, would you still remember me?" Collins noted the question and it eventually became the opening line of "Free Bird".^[12]

The song is dedicated to the memory of Duane Allman by the band in their live shows.^[13] During their 1975 performance on The Old Grey Whistle Test, Ronnie dedicated the song to both Allman and Berry Oakley, commenting, "they're both free birds".^[14][15]

Reception

"Free Bird" is included in The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's 500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll and at number 193 in Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Songs of All Time. In 2009, it was named the 26th best hard rock song of all time by VH1.^[16]

The song—half ballad, half up-tempo guitar solo—quickly became a staple for Lynyrd Skynyrd at their live performances. Many recognize its 5:12 triple guitar solo section that closes it out. It often turned into an extended jam session at concerts. The band would consistently play it as the last song of every show, as it was their biggest crowd pleaser. Overall the song proved to be a huge hit for Lynyrd Skynyrd and it remains a fan favorite to this day. It is also a classic rock radio staple.

Following the plane crash in 1977 in which several band members were killed, all the songs played by surviving members were performed as instrumentals beginning with the Charlie Daniels Volunteer Jam V in 1979. When "Free Bird" came up, a solitary microphone with a single spotlight would be at center stage while the band played the instrumental version. This tradition lasted until 1989, when an almost-rioting audience coerced Rossington to urge Johnny Van Zant to sing the song for the first time—something he had vowed never to do on stage during the Tribute Tour. The current version has a shortened solo similar to the original studio version.

Legacy

It has become something of a humorous tradition for audience members at concerts to shout "Free Bird" as a request to hear the song, regardless of the performer or style of music.^[7] The phenomenon began earlier in the 1970s with The Allman Brothers Band's "Whipping Post" and Deep Purple's "Smoke on the Water" but then took off with "Free Bird" by 1979. On Skynyrd's first live album, 1976's One More from the Road, Van Zant can be heard asking the crowd, "What song is it you wanna hear?" The deafening calls for "Free Bird" lead into a 14-minute rendition of the song. Kevin Matthews claimed to have further popularized it in the 1980s from his Chicago-area radio show.^[7]

In recent tours, since the song returned to their set list, it has become common for the band to close concerts with it, with photos and film of the former band members being shown on a screen behind them, while lead singer Johnny Van Zant points his microphone to the sky as a tribute. This can be seen on the bands 2003 Vicious Cycle Tour concert video.^[17]

In popular culture

An all-star band performed the song to conclude the final episode of The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien. Will Ferrell sang lead vocals and played cowbell, and was backed by Beck, ZZ Top's Billy Gibbons, Ben Harper, and O'Brien himself on guitar, drummer Max Weinberg and the rest of the show's house band. Some commentators found the lyrics especially resonant due to Conan's decision to leave the show rather than allow it to be aired in a later time slot.^[18][19][20]

The song was featured in several video games, films, and television series, including Guitar Hero II, Forrest Gump, House of Cards, The Devil's Rejects, Guitar Hero: Smash Hits, Rock Band 3, Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, and Kingsman: The Secret Service.^[21][22]

"Freebird" was used as The Fabulous Freebirds' theme song and video package for their induction into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2016.

Chart and sales performance

The song has sold 2,111,000 downloads in the digital era.^[23]

Personnel

Studio version (1973)

• Ronnie Van Zant – vocals
• Allen Collins – lead guitar, acoustic guitar
• Gary Rossington – rhythm guitar, slide guitar
• Ed King – bass
• Billy Powell – piano
• Bob Burns – drums
• "Roosevelt Gook" (Producer Al Kooper) – organ, mellotron

Additional personnel

• Steve Gaines – Addition of lead and rhythm guitar

The addition of Steve Gaines returned Lynyrd Skynyrd to the formula that Ronnie Van Zant felt gave the band its first road to success with a three-headed lead guitar sound. Collins' "Free Bird" solo at the end was changed so that the two guitars were complementing and challenging each other throughout that solo.

Cover versions

The American dance-pop group Will to Power created a medley of this song and the 1976 Peter Frampton song "Baby, I Love Your Way" in 1988. Titled "Baby, I Love Your Way/Freebird Medley", it spent one week at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.^[9] Molly Hatchet covered the song on their 1985 live album Double Trouble Live. It was released as a promo single.^[24] It was also covered by Wynonna Judd on the 1994 tribute album Skynyrd Frynds. The song was also covered by Bronx Casket Co. on their 2005 album Hellectric in Goth style. American jam band Phish has performed an a cappella version of the song live, most frequently throughout 1993 - 94 and 1998.^[25]

References