Maps of Music
Nuthin' Fancy (1975)
Where the lyrics of Nuthin' Fancy take you, and where it was really made.
The album gave Lynyrd Skynyrd their first top 10 placing, yet it is best known for a single that peaked only at number 27.
View on the mapKey places
Studio One, Doraville (1975)
Recording site Studio One — The first recording period took place in August 1974 at Studio One in Doraville, Georgia, before the second session in Atlanta. Google Maps · Apple Maps
How to get there: See the map for directions.
WEBB IV Studios, Atlanta (1975)
Recording site WEBB IV Studios — The second recording period took place in January 1975 at WEBB IV Studios in Atlanta, after the sessions at Studio One. Google Maps · Apple Maps
How to get there: See the map for directions.
Album story
Overview
- Nuthin' Fancy is the third studio album by Southern rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd
- Released in March 1975, 24 March according to French Wikipedia, on MCA Records
- Produced by Al Kooper
- Best known for its only single, "Saturday Night Special," which peaked at #27 on the U.S. Billboard chart
Background
- First album by the band to reach the top 10 of the U.S. album chart, peaking at number 9
- First record with new drummer Artimus Pyle
- Bob Burns left the band at the end of 1974 after health problems caused by the heavy schedule of touring and recording, and Pyle replaced him
- Guitarist Ed King left the band in late May 1975 in the middle of the Torture Tour, the promotion tour for this album
- This was Ed King's last album with the band before his return in 1991
Recording
- Recorded in two periods, separated by constant touring
- First period in August 1974 at Studio One in Doraville, Georgia
- Second period in January 1975 at WEBB IV Studios in Atlanta
Cover
- A photographer kept shooting the band, and Billy Powell gave him a middle finger
- The resulting photo was chosen for the cover because it matched the band's attitude
Sources: en.wikipedia.org · es.wikipedia.org · fr.wikipedia.org
Tracklist
| 1 | Saturday Night Special | 5:10 |
| 2 | Cheatin’ Woman | 4:39 |
| 3 | Railroad Song | 4:15 |
| 4 | I’m a Country Boy | 4:25 |
| 5 | On the Hunt | 5:27 |
| 6 | Am I Losin’ | 4:35 |
| 7 | Made in the Shade | 4:40 |
| 8 | Whiskey Rock-A-Roller | 4:15 |
Sources: musicbrainz.org
Artist
Formation
- Formed in Jacksonville, Florida, in 1964 as My Backyard, with Ronnie Van Zant (vocals), Gary Rossington (guitar), Allen Collins (guitar), Larry Junstrom (bass), and Bob Burns (drums).
- Adopted the name Lynyrd Skynyrd in 1968, partly as a mocking tribute to P.E. teacher Leonard Skinner.
- Debut album (Pronounced 'Lĕh-'nérd 'Skin-'nérd) released in 1973, produced by Al Kooper.
Members
- Core lineup in 1973: Van Zant, Collins, Rossington, Leon Wilkeson (bass), Billy Powell (keyboards), and Ed King (guitar).
- Burns was replaced by Artimus Pyle in 1974; King was replaced by Steve Gaines in 1976.
Career
- Popularized Southern rock with "Sweet Home Alabama" and "Free Bird".
- Career halted on October 20, 1977, when their chartered plane crashed, killing Van Zant, Gaines, and Cassie Gaines.
- Reunited in 1987 with Johnny Van Zant as lead vocalist and continued touring for decades.
- Gary Rossington, the last founding member, died in March 2023.
- Inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2006; Rolling Stone ranked them No. 95 among the 100 Greatest Artists of All Time in 2004.
Sources: en.wikipedia.org
Reception
At release
- Robert Christgau gave the album a positive review
- He wrote that two or three cuts sound like heavy-metal-under-funk, and he singled out "Saturday Night Special" as a real killer
- He praised Ronnie Van Zant's vocals, saying Van Zant had never used his limited, husky baritone with such subtlety
- He noted that Van Zant feints and dodges, shifting from sly to sleepy and from boastful to indignant or admonitory with the barest changes in timbre
Reappraisal
- The source gives no later critical reassessment of the album
Records
- U.S. Billboard album chart: the band's first top 10 album, peaking at number 9
- RIAA certification: gold in 1975 and platinum in 1987
- Only single "Saturday Night Special" peaked at #27 on the U.S. Billboard chart
Sources: en.wikipedia.org · es.wikipedia.org · fr.wikipedia.org
Trivia
- Billy Powell gave a photographer a middle finger when the man kept shooting, and that photo was chosen for the cover
- The Japanese CD spells track 2 "Cheatin' Women" on the inlay and insert, but "Cheatin' Woman" on the disc face
- Ed King left the band in the middle of the Torture Tour, the promotion tour for this album
Sources: en.wikipedia.org · fr.wikipedia.org · www.discogs.com
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