How did it Start, by Whom, and Why?

[Lady Renee Buchanan]

Every time we go to any faire, no matter what state it's in, when a performer asks for song requests, somebody in the audience always yells out "Free Bird."  Of course, everybody in the audience laughs, and the performers, while probably rolling their eyes after hearing it a gazillion times, still act like it's the first time and play a few chords.  I am curious as to the beginnings of this.  And I'm sure there are several different stories are floating about - you know how legends are made! 

So please share your knowledge of the when, where, and who?  I think it will be very interesting to hear all the different versions come to light.

[Welsh Wench]

Here you go, Renee--

http://blog.wfmu.org/freeform/2005/04/the_history_of_.html

On a side note, on this very forum before it crashed, Porter of Porter and Stout asked if there were any songs we would like to hear at Sarasota Medieval faire.
I said, 'Freebird'.

Escarlata, Captain Spleen and I were there when Porter and Stout took us aside and played 'Freebird' for me, ren-style.

When we were in TN, I asked the girl with the CDs if they were going to do 'Freebird' and she said, 'OMG, YOU'RE THE FREEBIRD WOMAN!'

They now include it in their repertoire. 

[Captain Jack Wolfe]

You should have seen that girl!  She nearly came out of her skin with excitement at meeting the Freebird Lady! 

[Welsh Wench]

I think she thought I didn't exist. 

[Captain Jack Wolfe]

She knows better now!  

[Capt Spleen]

On a side note, on this very forum before it crashed, Porter of Porter and Stout asked if there were any songs we would like to hear at Sarasota Medieval faire.
I said, 'Freebird'.

Escarlata, Captain Spleen and I were there when Porter and Stout took us aside and played 'Freebird' for me, ren-style.

[/quote] I must confirm that this IS a TRUE REAL REN LIFE STORY.

[Lady Renee Buchanan]

http://blog.wfmu.org/freeform/2005/04/the_history_of_.html

OMG!!!!!!!!!   WFMU was the radio station at my college, Upsala College in East Orange, New Jersey.  When I was in high school, I worked there, helping out at their fundraisers.  It was like the PBS television station, where people called in pledges.  I did the phones and helped address envelopes.  I was even on the air a couple of times, because I had a very distinctive laugh, and the stoned DJs used to think it was funny, so they used to make me laugh on the air. They used to be in an administration building, and the DJs would go outside and down a few steps and sit by the building's huge exhaust pipe and smoke a joint while the records were playing.

This is copied from their website:  "Shortly before the closing of Upsala College on May 31, 1995, WFMU purchased the license from them, and is now fully independent."  Now the station is in Jersey City, and I had no idea what had happened to it after Upsala closed.

In the 70's when I went to school at Upsala, WFMU was in the basement of my dorm.  And we used to wander down there and have a great time.  Somtimes we'd take tambourines and pots and lids and have a jam session.  I haven't listened to it now, but you could get away with about anything back then on the air, except for cursing.  So the DJs would sit for 20 minutes and discuss an album cover until one of the listeners would call in and tell them to shut up and play some music.  Isn't it funny, Wenchie, that you would find this from WFMU, the radio station of my past.  What a small world!

[Welsh Wench]

From Wikipedia--

This phenomenon began earlier in the 1970s with The Allman Brothers Band's epic "Whipping Post", but then took off to a much greater extent with "Free Bird", very popular by 1979. This can be traced back to Skynyrd's first live album, 1976's One More From The Road. Skynyrd did not play the song during the main portion of the concert, or even in the encore performance. Instead they saved it for their second encore. After leaving the stage following the first encore of the concert, the crowd was riled by the apparent omission of Skynyrd's signature song. The crowd then began chanting "Free Bird, Free Bird ...". No one left the auditorium. The band then returned to the stage for a second encore and upon taking the microphone Van Zant asked the crowd, "What song is it you wanna hear?", which was immediately followed by several more shouts of "Free Bird". This interaction is recorded as an intro to the song on the album, and the band responded with a 14-minute version of the song.

[arbcoind]

I had that album...

Gina

[Merlin]

What's an "album" my kids ask.

[Dinobabe]

8-track?

[Zardoz]

Freebird and Stairway to Heaven are two songs that cover bands almost always hate to play!   I will always holler "Freebird" or usually "Stairway to Freebird" if they ask for requests!   I've heard them both on pipes a few times!

I can't say I've done it at faire though...

[Capt Robertsgrave Thighbiter]

When someone asks for "Freebird", we always say that we only do "Freebase".

In the 70's and 80's, it used to be "Hot Tuna!"  We would say 'Yes, we are gonna play a hotta tun-a for a-you" in an Italian accent.

Joe Venuti ( famous violinist) never took requests until one night, at Carnegie Hall, he asked if there were any requests.  Some lady yelled out 'Feelings'.  Joe supposedly said "Feelings? Thats the worst song ever written. No more requests"

[Blue66669]

I ask Wine and Alchemy to play Freebird at least once per show. They have yet to do it......

*dangnubbit*

[Welsh Wench]

When E Muzeki was around, I asked Jimmy (the former drummer for Minstrels of Mayhem) if he was gonna do Freebird and he said, "No, but I am working on Stairway to Heaven."

Then I told him he looked like Greg Brady...