Saturday Night Special

Lynyrd Skynyrd, 1975, from Nuthin' Fancy. Solo by Ed King, Allen Collins.

Heavy riffing and stacked guitar leads give this anti-handgun song a harder edge than most of the band's catalogue.

Saturday Night Special is one of Lynyrd Skynyrd's heaviest songs, and the guitars carry its menace. Ed King and Allen Collins stack their leads over a grinding, mid-tempo riff, building a thick wall of sound that feels closer to hard rock than to the band's usual boogie. The solos are aggressive and bluesy, full of hard-hit bends and stinging runs that suit the song's blunt message about cheap handguns. There is a darker, more serious mood here than on much of the band's catalogue, and the guitars sell it. Listen for how the stacked lead lines thicken as the song builds, and notice that the riff underneath never lets up, giving every solo phrase a threatening backdrop.

Saturday Night Special by Lynyrd Skynyrd is featured in our Southern Rock (#14) list. The solo is played by Ed King, Allen Collins and the song was released in 1975.

In our lists

• The 25 Greatest Southern Rock Guitar Solos — #14
• The Best Lynyrd Skynyrd Guitar Solos — #8

Sources