@airplay_movies reacts to The making of the song Freebird by Lynyrd Skynyrd Like comment and subscribe patreon.com/user?u=81569817 Airplay Beats 3609 Bradshaw Rd Ste H #337 Sacramento, CA 95827 Www.Airplaybeats.com
Al Kooper also is the guy that got Skynyrd to open for the Who on that original tour. Al knew EVERYBODY in the business, & when the Who told him they needed an opening band, Al said, hey I got someone right here. Cool story: I think the 1st show was in Atlanta's Omni stadium. (I think.) So a few weeks before that, Skynyrd played the Omni themselves & there were so few tickets sold that they didnt even open the main seating area, they played to a few hundred people, facing the back of the arena! Then a few weeks later, same arena, they open for the Who in front of 18,000 people. Also the Who's manager said he was astounded when Skynyrd got multiple encores cause the fans went nuts. That was a first cause no other opening act for the Who EVER got encores. The Who's fans always just yelled at bands to hurry up, get off the stage, we want the Who! Anyway.
Gary told the story in the documentary, If I Leave Here Tomorrow, that Billy told them he could play piano but they ignored him until he sat down and played what he thought would work in Free Bird.
Definitely do the Muscle Shoals documentary! Aretha Franklin insisted on those “Greasy” (her word) be her band (The Swampers) when cutting a few albums. That documentary will Blow your mind, as will the west coast version, “The Wrecking Crew”.,another fantastic documentary that will absolutely blow your mind and give you knowledge that you didn’t even know you needed!
I would also add "Standing in the Shadows of Motown" documentary about "The Funk Brothers" as well! So many hits that they were involved with, to give the world the Motown sound!!!
Legends, Skynyrd will never die. My 20 year old son got in the car with me to travel to a Florida State Football game, which was about a 4 hour drive. He hooks up his phone to the blue tooth in my car as we are headed out. The first song that came on was Free Bird. I looked over at him and said, "You know this song, and listen to 70s classic rock, and he was like sure dad these guys are Legends." I didn't know he listened to anything besides rap or hip hop, lol. Made me tear up driving down the road. Lynyrd Skynyrd will never be forgotten. If I Leave Here Tomorrow is a great Skynyrd documentary to watch.
Tom Dowd was the man behind the curtain for countless musical wizards. He has worked with Ray Charles, Otis Redding, Sam and Dave, Cream, Rod Stewart, the Allman Brothers Band and more. His inventive genius and technical skill combined with his musical talent made him one of the best producers in the business.
You guys will be very glad to have watched the documentary about muscle Shoals. You might be shocked at just how important that those studios were to both rock and roll and R&B.
Billy Powell was playing his own written piano introduction to Freebird when they walked in on him by surprise! Billy Powells piano intro used in the song Freebird!
Think about this. During the 60's and 70's how many bands which grew up together (actually lived near or went to school with each other) turned out amazing? Allman Bros, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Aerosmith, The Beatles, Ted Nugent/Amboy Dukes, Van Halen, Metallica, Monstrose, Journey, The Beach Boys........on and on. And what also made these bands great was they all had their unique sound because of where they were from and how they came together. SOOOOO much talent and I havent even named many more
I was so lucky to have seen Skynyrd In Macon on New Year's Day 1975, just 5 days short of my 16th birthday. One of the best live shows I've ever seen. Y'all, their "Live at the Fox (Atlanta), "One More From the Road" is a masterpiece. The historic Fox Theatre in Atlanta was set for demolition, and all the proceeds from their performance went to the "Save the Fox" campaign. That venue is where I first saw SRV and is still going strong. The inside of the theatre is breathtakingly beautiful!
Coincidentally, my ide and I just watched the Muscle Shoals documentary again last weekend! One of the best movies you’ll ever see if you are a music fan. It really touches your soul. Among many other famous musicians, the Stones recorded Brown Sugar, Wild Horses and You Got to Move at Muscle Shoals. Keith Richards said he could hear in his head what he imagined recording there would be like, and then when they finally got to record it was even better than he’d imagined, “and for a musician, that is pure rock and roll heaven.”
Y’all would enjoy the movie IF I LEAVE HERE TOMORROW. It used to be on Netflix. That will take you from the beginning to the end. Excellent documentary about Skynyrd. The best I’ve ever seen, in fact.
Billy Powell was Skynyrds secret weapon. His piano playing is just as big a part of their sound as the 3 lead guitar attack. I’ve seen them many times and Billy Powell was the real deal! He was the shit! No doubt about it!
This is just a small segment of an incredible documentary that you HAVE TO WATCH ! It will absolutely blow your minds when you discover all of the music history that started there at MUSCLE SHOALS
A similar thing happened with Queen...their song Bohemian Rhapsody was turned down because of it's length. They took their music elsewhere and the rest is history...check it out.
You know what happened with the band, Kansas? They got a call from a Don Kirshner (Midnight Special) rep saying he was interested in coming to watch them play after hearing a demo. The band got a very enthusiastic audience by offering FREE BEER on posters advertised far and wide. It worked!😆They ended up touring with Queen! You should find that portion of their documentary, Miracles Out of Nowhere (2015), to react to. Of course, I spoiled it but it's always better to see and hear it from the horse's mouth. The Who were the perfect band for LS to tour with!
You need to check out that album “Skynyrd’s First ” recorded at Muscle Shoals….its just like it was when they recorded it…raw and unedited and it’s great!!
Re: Billy Powell being a roadie then a band member. Virtually the same thing happened when Lynard Skynard guitarist Ed King quit the band. Backup singer Cassie Gaines recommended her brother (and fellow Okie) Steve Gaines. His amazing work is heard on their final album. Unfortunately, both Steve and his sister Cassie died in the plane crash.
Great reaction again, guys. Just a quick note about the footage and all the women up front, this was one of promoter Bill Graham's Day On the Green shows at the Oakland Coliseum and Peter Frampton (heart throb and hottest act in the world at the time) was the headliner, that's why the women are there. Full lineup was The Outlaws, Santana, Lynyrd Skynyrd, and then Frampton.
This was both really great and also, now I want to cry 😭 That ending. I knew about the crash, of course, but it just cut off so many future iconic songs. And the album being called 'First and Last'? Omg.
In a handful of songs you’ll hear Ronnie say “Billy Powell on Piano “ before he starts his solo Yeah Billy was the real deal and of course the whole band was just simply fantastic There’s an interview with guitarist Pete Townsend of the Who wile L.S. was finishing up there set , Pete pauses the interview for a second and turns to the interviewer and says “ They’re really quiet good , aren’t they ? “
The story about Otis Redding was that he was driver for a group recording at STAX Records. The group wasn’t having any success during the session and he asked if he could sing one and a star was born…
If you like music engineers i.e. Muscle shoals you have to watch a doc. Tom Dowd. He was the engineer of Ray Charles all the way to Cream and the Allman bros. band. His life was like the real Forrest gump. He also worked on the Atomic bomb.
I know Billy Powell, of course from Skynard, but when he received Christ he was in a band called Vision. We don't know who may be listening, and Billy I don't think he had a clue what would happen but Lynard Skynard is a great Southern Rock band and Billy made them better! I think you've reacted to Molly Hatchet, not sure, they're my favorite, plus 38 Special as well!
Thus whole documentary is a MUST watch. This studio launched Aretha Franklin who was trapped in a label attempting to make her into a doo-wop black artist. It's where she recorded one of the finest songs...vocals. composition, soul..ever "Never Loved a Man" Must watch for any lover of music BTW, Skynyrd was heavily influenced by blues (and country and rock). You can gear the blues influences in the way they composed...the guitar riff variety, the layering, call and response with their 3 guitars.
Al Kooper is playing piano on Dylan's Like a Rolling Stone--he snuck into the recording studio and pretended to be a session musician--lied and told them he was a piano player, but could only play basic stuff (compared to a pro).
Singer Ronnie Van Zant called pianist Billy Powell an "educated fool" because he was classically trained. Everyone else in the band was more or less self-taught. Billy overplayed the piano w/ his left hand, & producer Al Kooper (founder of Blood, Sweat, & Tears), a keyboardist himself, used to actually tie Billy's left hand to the piano stool to fix the problem & keep the guitars from getting lost in the mud. Billy quickly learned how to boogie woogie, & it doesn't show in every video but many of Billy's solos are played almost exclusively w/ his right hand only. What sounds like he's playing w/ 4 hands he's playing w/ only one. Anyway Al Kooper produced their first 3 albums & as great as Skynyrd is it helped that they had an acknowledged genius of a producer too...
Would love for y’all to come to Jax! I am friends with Johnny Van Zant and Gene Odom and can make arrangements for a tour that you will never forget ! Thanks for keeping the music alive !
I live in the Shoals! It’s still an amazing place for music! Pass by Muscle Shoals Sound and Fame recording studios all the time and they are busy making music!
What's up guys, there is still a bunch of lynard Skynard songs that you have not reacted to yet. I can't wait to see the reactions. Great reactions guys!!
My brother played in several bands as a kick-ass drummer for decades. He had a brush with Glory when he was touring with some band back in the 90's. His band was opening for Mark Farner of Grand Funk Railroad fame I think. But someone somehow had a tight connection to either Gary Rossington or Allen Collins--founding members (guitarists) of Skynyrd. He crashed a night or two at one of their houses, and there, mounted on the wall --he saw the guitar that "Freebird" was composed on!
What a cool thing to react to! I didn't know half this stuff either, man! My favorite part of this clip was at about 5:07--the transition from "They were a HIT BAND" to that beautiful summer crowd going nuts for "Freebird"! I laughed and instantly got a little teary-eyed as well.
I saw these guys in '73 or '74 @ the Aragon Ballroom in Chicago. They had folding chairs set up but they were all pushed around and everyone was standing as close as they could get to the stage. I was a wild night let me tell you! But I was in high school so it would have been pretty wild for me. The place was a dump at the time,
No, the way I understand it, Walden, he was the first guy to tell him about LS, and it was Walden that got them on the Who tour,,I could be wrong but is how understand it
Allen Collins doesn’t get enough credit for the guitar player he was and Ronnie doesn’t get enough credit for the incredible song writer that he was If Ronnie had not died in the plane accident This band would have went down in history as the best rock band of all time To me they still hold this title I have never even heard of a band that ever song they ever recorded was a good song You can make a list of all of their songs from all of their albums and close your eyes and put your finger on one song and you will either like or be able to relate to it in some way I don’t know of another band anyone can make that statement Even the greatest Led Zeppelin can’t say that
