The Real Reason Lynyrd Skynyrd's 'Free Bird' Is So Long

People always ask for "Free Bird," so this article is unapologetically giving you the bird for free. On a broadcast of the Ultimate Classic Rock Nights radio show Lynyrd Skynyrd's Gary Rossington recounted how "Free Bird" came to be so long. "[Guitarist] Allen Collins had the chords all written, and he had planned a lot and he was trying to get [vocalist Ronnie Van Zant] to write lyrics to it," Rossington recalled. Van Zant took issue with the number of chord changes, so the musicians spent a few weeks trying to achieve creative harmony. "

Initially, "Free Bird" was meant to be "a real simple love song about leaving you." The book Whiskey Bottles and Brand-New Cars explains that the opening line, "If I leave here tomorrow, would you still remember me?" was actually something that Collins' then-girlfriend, Kathy, had asked him. But during the band's jam sessions, "it got longer and longer," and according to Rossington, "At first it didn't have the end, the long guitar end; it was just the slow love song. Then we came up with the end, and as we practiced every day, it came along."

So there you have it: "Free Bird" is long because the band made it long. Maybe not the most exciting reason, but after hearing Chuck Berry sing about playing with his ding-a-ling, everything else sounds like an anticlimax anyway.

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