Free Bird



"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.

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".

The song is dedicated to the memory of Duane Allman by the band in their live shows. 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". <!--

Song structure
Since the song was written in early 1970, "Free Bird" has undergone many changes in its structure and pacing. As it was originally written and also recorded for the Shade Tree Record demos, Billy Powell had not yet joined the band and the song opened with the double-tracked, arpeggiated rhythm playing the verse chord progression once before the slide guitar entered. The song still follows the same format as the 1973 studio version on the Pronounced record. The solo section at this point was just in its infancy, so it did not have the defined 4×4×4 structure to the solo and rhythm guitars. The outro section is almost the same as the version played three years later. The solo lasts for four minutes.

Another recording from the same year, albeit on Quinvy records, follows the same pacing, but the song fades out as Van Zant comes to the final "Lord help me, I can't change" line. This format became familiar to some later when MCA put out "Free Bird" as a single and also fading out as the verses came to a close.

The version recorded at Muscle Shoals studios in Muscle Shoals, Alabama, also has the same structure as the Shade Tree version. However, Billy Powell had informally joined the band at this time, so the signature piano opening to the song is present, closely resembling the final Pronounced version.

The next version that has been released commercially is the version most familiar to listeners. This version – off the (Pronounced 'Lĕh-'nérd 'Skin-'nérd) album, is very close to how the band performed it live. The opening is slightly different from any other version of the song in that an organ was added—the only time it appears on the song. Powell's piano intro is faded in gradually as the song opens. By this time, Collins had refined the solo section, and this can be heard on the "outtake" version present on the Skynyrd's Innyrds compilation. The solo follows a very simple rhythm pattern of 4×4×4, meaning that one different way of playing the three chord jam is played four times before moving on to the next rhythm technique. As Ronnie Van Zant said several times "If you can count to 4, you can play 'Free Bird'," noting the pattern. The traditional ending to the song is also in place, as well, although the final bars of the end are slightly different, with the rhythm guitarists gradually sliding up to the higher G chord, rather than the sudden shift that was later done live. The final G chord that ends the song is let ring as it fades out – something not present on any other version of the song.

Between 1973 and 1976, "Free Bird" gradually had more parts added. For instance, while Ed King was still with the band, he performed a short solo following the second slide guitar solo. After he left, Billy Powell was given the opportunity to fill in that space with a solo. The piano solo suddenly doubled in length after their appearance at the Winterland Ballroom in March 1976. From that point on, no changes were made to the "front end" of the song at all until March 2006.

Also, guitarist Collins added more and more to the final solo section of the song, eventually adding a second "build-up" to it before bringing the song to the outro. Many recordings of the band from 1974 show this facet of the song beginning to emerge. Van Zant also added the "How bout you?" ad-lib following the final "And I'm as free as a bird now" line. This is still done today by his brother Johnny. The 1976 live version also includes a comment by Van Zant: "Atlanta 20–24," possibly referring to upcoming concert dates, as well as the line "play it pretty for Atlanta"; this version was a staple of 1980s album rock radio, sometimes to the exclusion of the studio versions.

Another addition that Ed King brought to the song was that he performed some lead guitar licks over the outro section, except for Collins' final bit. This was only performed while Ed was in the band; following his departure, Billy Powell picked up the slack on the piano and did some fast-paced fills.

By July 1976, all of the changes had been made to the song, and they remained permanent all the way through the performances of The Rossington-Collins Band and the Allen Collins Band shortly thereafter.-->

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.

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. 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" led 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.

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.

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.

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, That '70s Show, Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, and Kingsman: The Secret Service.

"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.

Personnel
Studio version (1973)


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

Additional personnel

 * Steve Gaines – Addition of lead and rhythm guitars

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. Molly Hatchet covered the song on their 1985 live album Double Trouble Live. It was released as a promo single. 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.