Turn it up: It’s been 50 years since Lynyrd Skynyrd released ‘Sweet Home Alabama’

It’s been 50 years since Ronnie Van Zant first implored listeners to turn it up and sing songs about the Southland.

“Sweet Home Alabama,” which would certainly be the signature song of any band that didn’t already have “Freebird” in its catalog, was released June 24, 1974.  

Here are some interesting facts about the Lynyrd Skynyrd classic, which peaked at No. 8 on the Billboard charts. 

Who wrote Lynyrd Skynyrd’s “Sweet Home Alabama?” 

The music was written by Lynyrd Skynyrd guitarists Ed King and Gary Rossington. Singer Ronnie Van Zant added the lyrics. In Marley Brant’s book “Freebirds,” King is quoted as saying the opening riff came to him in the middle of the night. “I woke up, wrote down the music, complete with all of the guitar parts, and then played it for Ronnie,” King says. 

Where was “Sweet Home Alabama” written? 

Gene Odom was a longtime friend of Van Zant and later and employee of the band (he was on the plane that crashed in 1977, killing Van Zant and five others). In his book “Lynyrd Skynyrd: Remembering the Free Birds of Southern Rock,” Odom says the song was written at Hell House, a shack along Peters Creek near Green Cove Springs that the band used as a rehearsal space in its early years. Hell House no longer stands; the property is part of the Edgewater Landing housing development, but the Hell House lot was purchased by a nonprofit group and remains undeveloped. The Fender Stratocaster guitar that King used to write the song is now in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

Where did Lynyrd Skynyrd record the album version of “Sweet Home Alabama?” 

According to Odom’s book, the song was recorded at Studio One in Atlanta, just four days after it was written. The rest of the “Second Helping” album was recorded in Los Angeles. 

When was “Sweet Home Alabama” released as a single? 

The single, with “Take Your Time” on the B-side, was released on June 24, 1974. 

Was “Sweet Home Alabama” a gold record? 

The single was certified as either gold or platinum in the United States, the United Kingdom, Spain, Italy, Germany, Denmark and Brazil. The song was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 2009. 

What Lynyrd Skynyrd album contained the original version of “Sweet Home Alabama?” 

“Sweet Home Alabama” is the first song on side one of Lynyrd Skynyrd’s “Second Helping” album. The album also included Skynyrd staples “Call Me the Breeze,” “Workin’ for MCA” and “The Ballad of Curtis Loew.” 

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What other official versions of “Sweet Home Alabama” has Lynyrd Skynyrd released? 

The song also appears on a bunch of Lynyrd Skynyrd live albums, including “One More From the Road” from 1976, “Southern by the Grace of God” from ‘87, “Lyve from Steeltown” from ‘97 and “Live from Freedom Hall” in ‘07. It can also be heard on “Pronounced ‘Leh-nerd Skin-nerd’ and ‘Second Helping’ Live from Jacksonville at the Florida Theatre” and “Last of the Street Survivors Lyve,” which was recorded at TIAA Bank Field in 2018. A reworked acoustic version of the song was released on the band’s studio album, “Endangered Species.” 

Has anyone released a cover version of “Sweet Home Alabama?” 

The song has been recorded by Jewel, Alabama, the Outlaws, Big Head Todd and the Monsters and the Leningrad Cowboys.  

How many times has Lynyrd Skynyrd publicly performed “Sweet Home Alabama?” 

According to setlist.fm, a website that tracks concert performances, Lynyrd Skynyrd has played “Sweet Home Alabama” 1,154 times in concert. The only song they’ve played more is “Freebird,” clocking in at 1,177 performances. 

Was Lynyrd Skynyrd from Alabama? 

No. Ed King was a California native but the rest of the original band members were from Jacksonville. 

Who are the Swampers? I hear they’ve been known to pick a song or two. 

Muscle Shoals, Ala., is known for its recording studios (Skynyrd recorded songs there before releasing their first album). The Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section was a group of studio musicians who were better known as the Swampers. They can be heard on recordings by Aretha Franklin, Bob Dylan, Leon Russell, Bob Seger, Wilson Pickett and others and are featured in the 2013 documentary “Muscle Shoals.” 

Is Alabama really “where the skies are so blue?” 

Alabama gets about 213 sunny days per year. That’s eight more than the national average. 

Who are the “boo, boo, boo” background singers on “Sweet Home Alabama?” 

Merry Clayton, Clydie King and Sherlie Matthews were brought into the studio to sweeten the vocals. Clayton can also be heard on the Rolling Stones’ “Gimme Shelter” and was one of Ray Charles’ Raelettes; King also sings background on hits by Neil Diamond, Steely Dan and Bob Dylan. Matthew sang on many Motown hits, plus songs from Barbra Streisand, the Beach Boys and Lionel Richie.

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Why is Neil Young mentioned in “Sweet Home Alabama?” 

The song includes the line “I hope Neil Young will remember, a Southern man don’t need him around anyhow.” That was in response to a couple of Young’s songs, “Southern Man” and “Alabama,” that were critical of Southern culture. There was never a feud between the acts; Van Zant was frequently pictured in a Neil Young T-shirt and, in his autobiography, Young acknowledges that he deserved everything Skynyrd dished out. 

In Birmingham, do they love the governor? 

Perhaps, but they definitely love Skynyrd. “Sweet Home” was printed on the state’s license plates for several years, and the band has played more than 50 concerts in the state, including shows in Birmingham in 1973, ‘74, ‘87, ‘99, 2004 and 2009. 

Does “Sweet Home Alabama,” the Reese Witherspoon film from 2002, have anything to do with the song? 

The film is set in Alabama, but that’s the only connection other than a cover version of the song recorded by Jewel for the soundtrack. Skynyrd’s version of the song can also be heard on TV shows “Knight Rider,” “That ‘70s Show” and “Six Feet Under” and in the movies “Mask,” “Forrest Gump,” “Crimson Tide,” “To Die For,” “Con Air,” “Outside Providence,” “Joe Dirt,” “8 Mile” and “Sahara.”