Free Bird

"Free Bird"
Song

"Free Bird" is an anthemic song by the legendary American Southern rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd. It is characterised by gospel organ, soaring and chirping slide guitar and a guitar duel. The song has been released by Skynyrd and charted on numerous occasions in both the US and UK but only reaching #1 in the US Billboard charts when it was combined with Peter Frampton's "Baby, I Love Your Way" by the band Will to Power.

BBC Radio 2 considers "Free Bird" a "rock radio staple matched only by Stairway to Heaven." Ronnie Van Zant would dedicate concert encores to the Allman Brothers guitarist, Duane Allman and bassist Berry Oakley, saying that "without the Allman Brothers, I doubt very seriously whether you'd have heard from Lynyrd Skynyrd."

Origins

The song was written early in the band's history, long before the death of Duane Allman, a close friend of the band. Roadie (at that time) and unknown (to the band) as a piano player Billy Powell was discovered when he played a piano intro to the song at a high school musical. Van Zant noticed his talent, and he became the newest member.

The lyrics came about when Allen Collins' steady girlfriend, who realized that the music always came first with Allen, asked him the question, "If I leave here tomorrow would you still remember me?" Allen jotted the line down for future use. This question became the opening line of Free Bird.

Song Structure

Since the song was written in early 1970, Freebird has undergone many changes in its structure/pacing. As it was originally written and also recorded for the Shade Tree Record demos (See album "Collectybles"), Billy Powell had not yet joined the band, so 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 it's infancy, so it did not have the defined 4x4x4 structure to the solo and rhythm guitars. The outro section is almost the same as the version played three years later.

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

The version recorded at the legendary 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. During the solo section, some of Collin's trademark solo licks are present in this version. One odd thing about this version is that the song lacks the slide guitar track. Reasons for this are unknown, however, former guitarist Ed King said that when he was invited to overdub the tracks at Muscle Shoals in 1975, he did do a take of the slide guitar that ended up on the cutting room floor.

The next version that has been released commercially was the version of the song that defined the band to America. This version - off the "Pronounced Leh-nerd Skin-nerd" album, is very close to how the band would perform it live. The opening is slightly different than 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 4x4x4, meaning that one different way of playing the 3 chord jam is played 4 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 Freebird, " 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 would be 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.

During the period between 1973 and 1976, Freebird would gradually add more parts, for instance, while Ed King was still with the band, he would perform 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 of 1976. From that point on, no changes would be made to the "front end" of the song at all until March of 2006.

Also, guitarist Collins would add 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 fascet 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.

Another addition that Ed King brought to the song was that he would perform some lead guitar licks over the outro section, except for Collins' final bit. This would only be 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 of 1976, all of the changes had been made to the song, and they would remain permanent all the way through the performances of The Rossington-Collins Band and the Allen Collins Band shortly thereafter.

Following the plane crash, all performances of the song were instrumental starting with Charlie Daniels Volunteer Jam V in 1979. This lasted up 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 onstage during the Tribute Tour.

More recently, the newer version of Lynyrd Skynyrd has shortened the solo section back to the length that was showcased on the original studio version, and is still done that way today.

One temporary change to the song was done at the 2006 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony when guitarist Ed King did a harmony slide guitar part behind Rossington's second slide solo. He also did his part in the solo section with a slide for most of it.

Reception

"Free Bird" is included in such lists as The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's 500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll, and Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Songs of All Time (holding spot #191). The song — half ballad, half up-tempo guitar boogie — quickly became a staple for Lynyrd Skynyrd at their live performances. Many recognize its nearly five-minute 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. While the live version as played by the original band would include soloing by Gary Rossington and third guitarist Ed King as well as Allen Collins, the recorded version is double-tracked by Collins alone. Gary Rossington plays the slide-guitar part in the song's first half.

Popular culture cliché

It has become a popular culture cliché for the audience of almost any concert to shout "Free Bird" as a request to hear the song, regardless of the performer or style of music. This phenomenon began earlier in the 1970s with The Allman Brothers Band's epic "Whipping Post", but then took off to a much greater extent with "Free Bird". This can be traced back to Skynyrd's first live album, 1976's One More From The Road. Skynyrd did not play the song during the main portion of the concert, or even in the encore performance. Instead they saved it for their second encore. After leaving the stage following the first encore of the concert, the crowd was riled by the apparent omission of Skynyrd's signature song. The crowd then began chanting "Free Bird, Free Bird ...". No one left the auditorium. The band then returned to the stage for a second encore and upon taking the microphone Van Zant asked the crowd, "What song is it that you wanna hear?", which was immediately followed by several more shouts of "Free Bird". This interaction is recorded as an intro to the song on the album, and the band responded with a 14-minute version of the song. More recently, they play the song on the first encore.

In the 1980s, Chicago Radio DJ Kevin Matthews urged his listeners to shout "Free Bird!" at a Florence Henderson concert as a sort of joke towards the musician/actress. Credited with starting the tradition of yelling "Free Bird!", he stated that "It was never meant to be yelled at a cool concert -- it was meant to be yelled at someone really lame. If you're going to yell 'Free Bird,' yell 'Free Bird' at a Jim Nabors concert."

Even the avant-garde Blue Man Group gets into the act. After they play riffs from Devo's "Whip It" and other rock songs on their PVC instruments, a planted audience member shouts out "Free Bird." Blue Man's back up band starts to play the song, the Blue Men sway to the rhythm, and one of them whips out a cigarette lighter to wave. Another Blue Man douses him with a fire extinguisher.

A harsh reaction to "Free Bird" came from comedian Bill Hicks during a Chicago gig in 1989. On a bootleg recording of the show, I'm Sorry, Folks, Mr. Hicks at first just sounds irked. "Please stop yelling that," he says. "It's not funny, it's not clever - it's stupid." The comic soon works himself into a rage, but the "Free Birds" keep coming, eliciting the now infamous outburst: "Hitler had the right idea, he was just an underachiever; kill everyone, Adolf, kill them all!" "Free Bird," he finally says wearily, then intones: "And in the beginning there was the Word - 'Free Bird.' And 'Free Bird' would be yelled throughout the centuries. 'Free Bird,' the mantra of the moron."

The conductor of the Charleston (SC) Symphony Orchestra, David Stahl, irritated by outbursts of "Free Bird!" at concerts, had the orchestra learn to perform the song so that they could go directly into it from whatever piece they were performing at the moment.

References in other media

• In The Simpsons episode "The Otto Show", the bus driver Otto takes Bart's guitar and plays a loud guitar solo. The kids cheer and are very impressed, so Otto says that he is going to slow it down a little. He starts to play "Free Bird", including singing the lyrics in his very raspy voice. Some of the children produce lighters and hold them in the air.

• The song was used several times on the television show "That 70's Show."

• The solo to "Free Bird" is also featured in the 1994 movie Forrest Gump, during a scene in which Jenny is experiencing the effects of heroin, and the fast-paced solo mirrors her reaction to the drug. Earlier in the movie, Jenny prays as a child for God to turn her into a bird so she can fly "far, far away". Also, while standing on a bridge as an adult, she asks Forrest if he thinks she'll be able to fly if she jumped.

• In the video game Guitar Hero, during a loading screen, a message appears that states, "They don’t really want you to play ‘Free Bird’. They're just heckling you", an obvious reference to the calling of the song to be played at various concerts.
  • The song is featured as the final encore track in Guitar Hero II, though it had the guitar outro abridged, reducing the song length to 9 minutes and 20 seconds. It is sometimes accompanied by the loading screen message "FINE. They AREN'T just heckling you this time. SIGH." There is also another message that says "AND THIS BIRD YOU CANNOT CHANGE!!!"

• Professional wrestling stable The Fabulous Freebirds used the song as their entrance theme and the inspiration for their name. Professional wrestler Necro Butcher also uses this song as his theme. Professional wrestler Terry Gordy also used this song as his entrance theme throughout his solo career after The Fabulous Freebirds. Professional wrestler Adam Pearce also used the song as an entrance theme for some time.

• In the film The Devil's Rejects, "Free Bird" is played in the end of the film during a gun battle between several police officers and the three main characters.

• In the film Elizabethtown, "Free Bird" is played as homage to the main character's father. The fire alarm goes off, but the solo continues, despite the sprinkler system going off.

• Bill Hicks was once heckled by an audience member, who shouted "Free Bird!" loudly several times during his set. Hicks became enraged and made several misanthropic insults to the audience, famously stating, "Hitler had the right idea!"

• In the episode "Two Balls, Two Strikes" of the sitcom My Name Is Earl, Earl sings a part of "Free Bird" at the hospital to Little Chubby.

• In the movie "Cars", "Free Bird!" is shouted by a rusty old vehicle right before Lightning McQueen gives a speech to his sponsors

• In the song, "Billy's Got His Beer Goggles On" by Neal McCoy, a line of the chorus says, "He's (Billy) on the dance-floor, yelling 'Free Bird'...", an obvious reference to the song.

Credits

(Studio Version) - 1973

• Ronnie Van Zant - Vocals
• Allen Collins - 1964 Gibson Firebird I (Rhythm Guitar/Double-Tracked solo/Acoustic Guitar)
• Gary Rossington - 1969 Gibson SG (Slide Guitar/Rhythm Guitar)
• Ed King - 1964 Fender Jazz Bass
• Billy Powell - Wurlitzer Electric Piano
• Bob Burns - Drums
• Roosevelt Gook (Producer Al Kooper) - Organ

(Live Version) - July 7, 1976

• Ronnie Van Zant - Vocals
• Allen Collins - 1964 Gibson Firebird III (Rhythm guitar/solo)
• Gary Rossington - 1969 Gibson SG (slide guitar/rhythm guitar over solo)
• Steve Gaines - 1958 Gibson Les Paul Custom (rhythm guitar/secondary solo guitar)
• Leon Wilkeson - 1962 Fender Jazz bass
• Billy Powell - Steinway and Sons Grand Concert Piano
• Artimus Pyle - Slingerland Drum kit

External links

• That Joke Isn't Funny Anymore - article about the cultural cliche
• Wall Street Journal: Rock's Oldest Joke: Yelling 'Free Bird!' In a Crowded Theater
• The Curse of the Freebird