Free Bird
| "Free Bird" | ||||||||
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1976 UK issue
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| Single by Lynyrd Skynyrd | ||||||||
| from the album (Pronounced 'Lĕh-'nérd 'Skin-'nérd) | ||||||||
| Released | November 1974 | |||||||
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| Recorded | April 3, 1973 at Studio One, Doraville, Georgia, U.S. | |||||||
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| Label | MCA | |||||||
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| Producer(s) | Al Kooper | |||||||
| Lynyrd Skynyrd singles chronology | ||||||||
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"Free Bird", or "Freebird", 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."
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. A live version of the song also reached the Billboard Hot 100 chart in 1977, peaking at No. 38. "Free Bird" also achieved the No. 3 spot on Guitar World's 100 Greatest Guitar Solos.
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.
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".
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Wikipedia