Lynyrd Skynyrd: Listener's Guide

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I started listening to Lynyrd Skynyrd in October 2020.

Second Helping (1974): B+
Nuthin' Fancy (1975): B+
One More from the Road (1976): B+
Street Survivors (1977): B


Ronnie's voice and lyrics radiate with personality and intelligence--which separates him from Gregg Allman who sings similarly but whom it is impossible to enamored by--especially on the slow, hard rock "Simple Man," his signature song "Mississippi Kid," and the politically conscious and groovy "Things Goin' On." Garry Rossington and Allen Collins achieve everything I love about twin lead guitars: vibrant riffs, powerful solos, and added texture while producer Al Kooper, who even gets to add a bit of his trusty organ, subtly uses a Mellotron on "Tuesday's Gone," which adds volumes. A-

I hate that the annoying indirect lyrics (while meaning to condemn racism I'm sure) of "Sweet Home Alabama" has allowed for millions of patriotic southerns to embrace a very different message, one that guitarist Ed King has gone running with and one that I can't even argue isn't there. (It's not like all those idiots I can make fun of who wrongly assume the theme of "Born in the U.S.A.") I shouldn't dwell on it too much though--even Neil Young likes the song, and I like it too. After stacking their debut with the best material they wrote in their first eight years as a band, it's a testament to their talent and skill that they've come up a new batch of excellent tracks and a slightly different style--three lead guitarists, prominent piano, lots of groove, and some swamp--as consistently exciting and dense. Heck, I might even prefer this one--I don't, but you know what I mean. B+

Nuthin' Fancy (1975):
It's apparent they weren't as successful at it this time around--Ronnie probably wouldn't have come off as snobbish on "I'm a Country Boy" if he did a few more takes--but much of the band's success comes from the band's top-notch studio execution of the songs and their ability to make riffs hypnotic, build texture with tuneful solos, and squeeze everything out of the song they can. They do that here though the songwriting is also a step down and "On the Hunt" veers too closely to heavy metal for me. But this is not a disappointment: "Railroad Song" and "Saturday Night Special" are great rockers and "Am I Losin'" and "Made in the Shade" prove they're still both tasteful and substantive. B+

While certainly their worst batch of songs yet--the title track and "All I Can Do Is Write about It" are probably the only songs I'll return to occasionally--Skynyrd is still as groovy as ever and Van Zant continues to be a great front-man for a band full of impressive studio musicians. They lost some much enjoyed texture that King offered but this would probably be equal to Nuthin' Fancy if just a few things were fixed. The production could be better and Ronnie sounds as if he lost his zeal for singing on "Trust," two problems I shouldn't have to worry about on a Skynyrd record. B

One More from the Road (1976):
An excellent live performance--everything you might expect and more from a band Ronnie wanted to sound exactly the same every time they took the stage. B

Despite the fact that Skynyrd once again has three guitarists, this isn't a return to their sound on Second Helping or Nuthin' Fancy. Instead, the band make it their most unique and adventurous album with horn section on the opener while Steve Gaines brings a 50s-inspired guitar boogie "I Know a Little" and the bluesy "Ain't No Good Life." The repetitiveness of the chorus ("Oo that smell/Can't you smell that smell? The smell of death around you") on "That Smell" bothers me, but the strong lyrical verses as well as the guitar solo make up for it. Part of the problem with Gimme Back My Bullets was that it was in the same style as their three previous album and the songwriting was a step down. The songwriting isn't their best here either, but the unique direction help it get some bonus points. B