Street Survivors

Infobox Album |
Name = Street Survivors
Type = Album
Artist = Lynyrd Skynyrd


Released = October 17 1977
Recorded = Criteria Studios, Miami, Florida; Studio One, Doraville, Georgia; Muscle Shoals Sound Studios, Muscle Shoals, Alabama
Genre = Southern rock
Length = 35:26
Label = MCA Records
Producer = Tom Dowd, Jimmy Johnson & Tim Smith (track 3)
Reviews =
Allmusic Rating|4.5|5 [http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=10:ze5ibkd96akx link]
Last album = "One More From the Road
(1976)"
This album = "Street Survivors
(1977)"
Next album = "Skynyrd's First And... Last
(1978)"
| Misc = Extra album cover
Upper caption = Original cover
Background = #b0c4de


Lower caption = The original and current cover of "Street Survivors"

"Street Survivors" is the fifth studio album by Southern rock band, Lynyrd Skynyrd released on October 17, 1977 and is the last album ever recorded with all of the original members. Three days after the album's release, on October 20, 1977, the band's chartered airplane crashed in route to Baton Rouge, Louisiana, killing the pilot, copilot, the group's assistant road manager and 3 band members, including lead singer and songwriter Ronnie Van Zant and guitarist/singer/songwriter Steve Gaines, and Gaines' sister, backup singer Cassie Gaines, and severely injuring most who survived the crash.

Perhaps partially as a result of the attention garnered by the tragedy, the album and the lead single "What's Your Name" and "That Smell" did quite well on the charts, with "What's Your Name" peaking at #13. After an extensive recovery process, the surviving original band members ultimately decided to disband Lynyrd Skynyrd. In the early 1980's, two derivative bands, The Rossington-Collins Band and the Allen Collins Band, achieved moderate and minimal success, respectively. Lynyrd Skynyrd would re-form in the late 1980's with several of the plane-crash survivors and featuring Ronnie Van Zant's youngest brother Johnny as lead vocalist.

The original pressing of the cover of "Street Survivors" had a photograph of the band standing in flames. Eerily, in the original cover, Gaines' eyes were closed and his head appears to be surrounded by flames. The cover was changed to an alternate photo with an all-black background in respect of the deceased. Thirty years later, the original "flames" cover was restored, while the alternate cover serves as the back of the case. Interestingly, lead singer, Van Zant is wearing a t-shirt depicting Neil Young's album "Tonight's the Night" in both photographs.

The album was recorded twice. Once with Tom Dowd at the helm at Criteria Studios in Florida, and them later it was re-recorded it for the final release at Studio One in Doraville,Georgia five months later. In March 2008, the album was re-issued with these alternate versions of most of the songs. Differences are minor on some songs, with the major difference being a much slower and extended earlier version of "That Smell." Also included are two songs recorded for, but not included on the original album, "Georgia Peaches," and "Sweet Little Missy," with the latter being included twice, in demo and final form. Also included is a version of "Honky Tonk Night Time Man," with Ronnie's alternate autobiographical vocal take, entitled "Jacksonville Kid," which is believed to be the last vocal take he ever recorded in a studio.

The song "One More Time" was added to the album, presumably after it was decided to drop one of the two tracks above, however, this song is the original recording from their 1971 Muscle Shoals demo, it was not re-recorded for this album (which is why it features Ed King, Greg Walker and Ricky Medlocke in place of Steve Gaines, Leon Wilkeson and Artimus Pyle).

"Street Survivors" was a showcase for guitarist/vocalist Steve Gaines, who had joined the band just a year earlier on the recommendation of his sister Cassie. Publicly and privately, Ronnie Van Zant marvelled at the multiple talents of Skynyrd's newest member, claiming that the band would "all be in his shadow one day." Gaines' contributions (which more than justified his induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, despite this being his only studio album with Skynyrd) included his co-lead vocal with Van Zant on the co-written "You Got That Right" and the rousing guitar boogie "I Know A Little" which he had written before he joined Skynyrd. So confident was Skynyrd's leader of Gaines' abilities that the album (and some concerts) featured Gaines delivering his self-penned blues "Ain't No Good Life" - the only song in the pre-crash Skynyrd catalog to feature a lead vocalist other than Ronnie Van Zant. The album also included the hit singles "What's Your Name" and the ominous "That Smell" - a cautionary tale about drug abuse that was clearly aimed at one of the band members (both Collins and Rossington had serious car accidents which slowed the recording of the album).

Track listing

#"What's Your Name" (Rossington, Van Zant) – 3:30
#"That Smell" (Collins, Van Zant) – 5:47
#"One More Time" (Rossington, Van Zant) – 5:03
#"I Know A Little" (Gaines) – 3:26
#"You Got That Right" (Gaines, Van Zant) – 3:44
#"I Never Dreamed" (Gaines, Van Zant) – 5:21
#"Honky Tonk Night Time Man" (Haggard) – 3:59
#"Ain't No Good Life" (Gaines) – 4:36

Bonus tracks on 30th Anniversary edition

#"What's Your Name (Original Version)"
#"That Smell (Original Version)"
#"You Got That Right (Original Version)"
#"I Never Dreamed (Original Version)"
#"Georgia Peaches"
#"Sweet Little Missy (Original Version)"
#"Sweet Little Missy (Demo)"
#"Ain't No Good Life (Original Version)"
#"That Smell (Complete Original Version)"
#"Jacksonville Kid"
#"You Got That Right (Live)"
#"That Smell (Live)"
#"Ain't No Good Life (Live)"
#"What's Your Name (Live)"

Personnel

*Ronnie Van Zant – lead vocals
*Allen Collins – guitar
*Gary Rossington – guitar
*Billy Powell – keyboards
*Artimus Pyle – drums
*Leon Wilkeson – bass
*Steve Gaines - guitar, lead vocals on "Ain't No Good Life", dual lead vocals on "You Got That Right"Back-up vocals on "That Smell": The Honkettes (Cassie Gaines, Jo Billingsley, Leslie Hawkins).

Musicians on "One More Time": Ronnie Van Zant, vocals; Allen Collins, guitar; Gary Rossington, guitar; Ed King, guitar; Greg Walker, bass; Rick Medlock, drums & back-up vocals; Tim Smith & Leslie Hawkins, back-up vocals.