Lyrics Analysis

Sweet Home Alabama- Lynyrd Skynyrd

The song starts off with "big wheels keep on turning', carry me home to see my kin, singing songs about the south land, I miss Alabama once again and I think its a sin."

I believe to relates to Ronnie Van Zant's ( primary songwriter and vocalist) father, Lacy, who was a semi-truck driver. This talks about a man heading home on "big wheels," probably a semi-truck, to see his kin, his family. he is listening to country and southern rock songs as he heads home, and he really misses his home.

The song continues to say "Well I heard Mr. Young sang about her, Well I heard old Neil put her down, well I hope Niel Young will remember, Southern Man don't need him around anyhow." and then the chorus about coming home to Alabama.

This relates to Niel Young's soung "Southern Man" where he seems to attack the Southern Man for all his wrongdoing, where as Sweet Home Alabama is basically saying "We don't care."

Later, the lyrics are "In Birmingham they love the governor, (Boo, boo, boo) now we all did what we could do, now watergate does not bother me, does your conscience bother you, now tell the truth" and onto the chorus.

This talks about the governor at the time, saying boo boo boo after his name to suggest that they dont support his racist policies. It also mentions that there were people who tried to fight it by doing what they could do. Watergate is an issue that the band did not care about.

The song continues
"Now Muscle Shoals has got the Swampers
And they've been known to pick a song or two
Lord they get me off so much
They pick me up when I'm feeling blue
Now how about you?"

I do not know if this has any significant historical value. It may just be a rememberance of old times that were a lot of fun, hanging out with the swamp workers listening to music.