Freebird... The Movie

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Freebird... The Movie
Freebird Cover.jpg
Directed byJeff G. Waxman
Written bySanford Santacroce
Produced byJeff G. Waxman
Starring Allen Collins
Steve Gaines
Billy Powell
Artimus Pyle
Gary Rossington
Ronnie Van Zant
Leon Wilkeson
JoJo Billingsley
Cassie Gaines
Leslie Hawkins
Music by Lynyrd Skynyrd
Production
company
Release date
  • August 30, 1996 (1996-08-30)
Running time
101 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

Freebird... The Movie is an in-depth look at Southern rock band, Lynyrd Skynyrd. Released on video on August 30, 1996, it is part documentary and part concert footage. Charlie Daniels was involved as "creative consultant".[ citation needed ]

Contents

The film incorporates live concert and personal footage filmed in 1976 and 1977. It took nearly ten years to assemble and produce. [1]

Performances

The band lineup features Ronnie Van Zant, Steve Gaines, Allen Collins, Gary Rossington, Billy Powell, Leon Wilkeson, and Artimus Pyle. [1]

Most of the footage is from the band's appearance at the Knebworth festival, on August 21, 1976, while the last performance is from a show in Oakland, California.

Promotion and Release

In 1996, they offered a performance to promote the documentary. Bob Burns (who had left Lynyrd Skynyrd in December 1974 due to drumming fatigue) reunited with the band for the performance.

The film debuted at the Fox Theatre in Atlanta, Georgia. [1] The band performed during the last week of 1995 in Atlanta to coincide with the documentary's premiere. On Thursday, Dec 28, they performed for the event Freebird... The Jam. Then the band performed over the weekend for the event Lynyrd Skynyrd: Freebird... The Celebration. [2]

On July 27, 1998 the Lynyrd Skynyrd website announced that producer and distributor Cabin Fever Entertainment had gone out of business and a new company would be re-packaging the documentary. The Freebird Foundation would distribute the videos through the website. [3]

Soundtrack

A soundtrack of the film was released by MCA Records. [4] It was released on August 13th, 1996. [3] It included most of the recordings of the performances from the film. However, the soundtrack omits "Gimme Back My Bullets" and "Cry For The Bad Man," both of which were included in the film and recorded on 3/7/76 at Bill Graham's Winterland Ballroom in San Francisco, CA

  1. "Workin' for MCA" (Ed King, Ronnie Van Zant)
  2. "I Ain't the One" (Gary Rossington, Ronnie Van Zant)
  3. "Saturday Night Special" (Ed King, Ronnie Van Zant)
  4. "Whiskey Rock-A-Roller" (Ed King, Billy Powell, Ronnie Van Zant)
  5. "Travelin' Man" (Leon Wilkeson, Ronnie Van Zant)
  6. "Searchin'" (Allen Collins, Ronnie Van Zant)
  7. "What's Your Name?" (Gary Rossington, Ronnie Van Zant)
  8. "That Smell" (Allen Collins, Ronnie Van Zant)
  9. "Gimme Three Steps" (Allen Collins, Ronnie Van Zant)
  10. "Call Me the Breeze" (J.J. Cale)
  11. "T for Texas (Blue Yodel No.1)" (Jimmie Rodgers)
  12. "Sweet Home Alabama" (Ed King, Gary Rossington, Ronnie Van Zant)
  13. "Free Bird" (Allen Collins, Ronnie Van Zant)
  14. "Dixie" (Traditional)

Recording Dates/Locations

Reception

Bob Cannon of Entertainment Weekly gave the film a B+, writing that the film was "Proof that there was more to Southern rock than boogie and beer," and praised Lynyrd Skynyrd as a "ferocious live act." [5]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lynyrd Skynyrd</span> American rock band

Lynyrd Skynyrd is an American Southern rock band formed in Jacksonville, Florida in 1964. The group originally formed as My Backyard and comprised Ronnie Van Zant (vocals), Gary Rossington (guitar), Allen Collins (guitar), Larry Junstrom (bass), and Bob Burns (drums). The band spent five years touring small venues under various names and with several lineup changes before deciding on "Lynyrd Skynyrd" in 1969. The band released its first album, (Pronounced 'Lĕh-'nérd 'Skin-'nérd), in 1973. By then, they had settled on a lineup that included bassist Leon Wilkeson, keyboardist Billy Powell, and guitarist Ed King. Burns left and was replaced by Artimus Pyle in 1974. King left in 1975 and was replaced by Steve Gaines in 1976. At the height of their fame in the 1970s, the band popularized the Southern rock genre with songs such as "Sweet Home Alabama" and "Free Bird". After releasing five studio albums and one live album, the band's career was abruptly halted on October 20, 1977, when their chartered airplane crashed, killing Van Zant, Steve Gaines, and backup singer Cassie Gaines, and seriously injuring the rest of the band.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Free Bird</span> 1974 single by Lynyrd Skynyrd

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One More from the Road is a live album by Southern rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd, capturing three shows recorded in July 1976 at the Fox Theatre in Atlanta, Georgia. Since 1974 Lynyrd Skynyrd had supported rock promoter Alex Cooley so that the theatre could be saved from demolition. This record was the band's first live album, and the only live album from the band's classic era of 1970 to 1977, prior to the plane crash that killed lead singer and songwriter Ronnie Van Zant, guitarist Steve Gaines, and backing singer Cassie Gaines. The album was released in September 1976. It was certified gold by the RIAA on October 26, 1976, platinum on December 30, 1976 and 3× platinum on July 21, 1987.

The Rossington Collins Band was an American Southern rock band founded in 1979 by guitarists Gary Rossington and Allen Collins following the 1977 plane crash which killed three members of Lynyrd Skynyrd, of which both had been members. The band included two other surviving members of Lynyrd Skynyrd, Billy Powell and Leon Wilkeson. The band wished to develop their own sound rather than being regarded as a reformed Lynyrd Skynyrd, and toward that objective they hired a female lead vocalist, Dale Krantz, who later married Rossington. The Jacksonville-based band released two albums before disbanding in 1982. Their biggest hit, "Don't Misunderstand Me," charted in late 1980.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bob Burns (drummer)</span> American drummer (1950–2015)

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References

  1. 1 2 3 "Lynyrd Skynyrd Freebird the Movie". skynyrd.com. Lynyrd Skynyrd. Archived from the original on December 10, 1997. Retrieved November 2, 2023.
  2. ↑ "Freebird... The Movie Atlanta Premiere". skynyrd.com/. Lynyrd Skynyrd. Archived from the original on February 7, 1998. Retrieved November 2, 2023.
  3. 1 2 "Lynyrd Skynyrd Freebird the Movie". skynyrd.com/. Lynyrd Skynyrd. Archived from the original on November 30, 1996. Retrieved November 2, 2023.
  4. ↑ "MCA". Film Score Monthly . Vol. 1, no. 73. Vineyard Haven, Massachusetts: Lukas Kendall. December 15, 2019 [September 1996]. p. 3. Retrieved November 2, 2023.
  5. ↑ Cannon, Bob (September 13, 1996). "Freebird: The Movie". Entertainment Weekly . New York City: Dotdash Meredith Publishing. Archived from the original on November 2, 2023. Retrieved November 2, 2023.


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