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Cover of Nuthin’ Fancy by Lynyrd Skynyrd
Cover: Nuthin’ Fancy

Song · Lynyrd Skynyrd

“Saturday Night Special” by Lynyrd Skynyrd

From the album Nuthin’ Fancy (1975)

“Saturday Night Special” by Lynyrd Skynyrd appears on 57 radio countdowns from 22 stations between 1982 and 2025. It was first released in 1975 on the album Nuthin’ Fancy. Its best result is #164 on The Fox Memorial Day 500 (2016). In the combined RockLists rankings it is #540 classic rock song of all time.

57countdowns
22stations
#164best position
0#1 finishes
0top 10 finishes
1982–2025years charted

Watch

Lynyrd Skynyrd - Saturday Night Special (Audio)

Video from YouTube (LynyrdSkynyrdVEVO). Pressing play loads YouTube's player. Watch on YouTube

"Saturday Night Special" opens Lynyrd Skynyrd's 1975 album Nuthin' Fancy, and it's a sermon against the cheap handgun delivered with the safety off. Ronnie Van Zant and Ed King wrote it, and every verse ends with somebody dead: a man who catches his wife in bed with another man, a card game where a cheating accusation turns fatal, and a drunk who shoots himself by accident.

Van Zant sneers the lead vocal over three electric guitars, Allen Collins, Ed King and Gary Rossington, with Billy Powell on keyboards, Leon Wilkeson on bass and backing vocals and Artimus Pyle on drums. Al Kooper produced and engineered it for MCA and added synthesizer himself. Billboard heard something ominous in it and credited the lyrics with real social commentary, while Cash Box praised its stinging, brash sound.

Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.

RockLists rankings

Classic Rock

Hard Rock & Metal

All Rock Formats

All-time and decade countdowns

Year#StationCountdownof
1982 381 95.5 KLOS KLOS Memorial Day 500 (1982) 499
1994 701 KISW KISW Top 1000 of All Time (1994) 1000
1995 611 KISW KISW Top 1000 of All Time (1995) 1000
1996 634 KISW KISW Top 1000 of All Time (1996) 1000
1997 418 100.7 WZLX WZLX Memorial 500 (1997) 499
1997 345 104.5 KZEP KZEP Memorial Weekend Top 500 (1997) 500
1998 633 KISW KISW Top 1000 of All Time (1998) 1000
1999 711 KISW KISW Top 1000 of All Time (1999) 998
2002 627 92.3 KGON KGON Top 923 Classic Rock Songs of All Time (2002) 923
2004 626 92.3 KGON KGON Top 923 Classic Rock Songs of All Time (2004) 923
2010 221 97.9 The Loop The Loop USO Rock 'N' Roll 500 (2010) 500
2011 389 97.9 The Loop The Loop Rock N Roll 500 (2011) 500
2011 545 100.7 WZLX 100.7 WZLX Top 1100 Countdown (2011) 1100
2012 427 Big 100 BIG 500 Memorial Day Countdown (2012) 500
2012 548 100.7 WZLX 100.7 WZLX Top 1200 Countdown (2012) 1200
2013 428 100.7 WZLX 100.7 WZLX Grand Jam 1000 (2013) 1000
2013 436 Big 100 BIG 500 Labor Day Countdown (2013) 500
2013 214 99.1 PLR 99.1 PLR CT 500 (2013) 500
2013 303 Big 100 BIG 500 Memorial Day Countdown (2013) 500
2013 384 100.7 WZLX 100.7 WZLX Firecracker 500 (2013) 500
2014 439 100.7 WZLX 100.7 WZLX 1K Countdown (2014) 1000
2014 860 Big 100 BIG 1000 New Year's Countdown (2014) 1000
2014 305 100.7 WZLX 100.7 WZLX Firecracker 400 (2014) 400
2015 300 100.7 WZLX 100.7 WZLX Firecracker 500 (2015) 499
2015 482 102.9 The Whale 102.9 The Whale Hartford 500 (2015) 500
2015 429 100.7 WZLX 100.7 WZLX Top 1007 Classic Rock Countdown (2015) 1007
2015 491 I-95 I-95 Memorial Day Weekend Top 500 (2015) 500
2016 298 102.9 The Whale 102.9 The Whale Hartford 500 (2016) 500
2016 398 100.7 WZLX 100.7 WZLX Top 1007 Countdown for 2016 1007
2016 225 Qfm96 Qfm96 Memorial Day 500 (2016) 500
2016 286 Big 100 BIG 500 Memorial Day Countdown (2016) 500
2016 164 103.5 The Fox The Fox Memorial Day 500 (2016) 299
2017 314 97 Rock 97 Rock N Roll 500 (2017) 500
2017 300 Big 100 BIG 500 Memorial Day Countdown (2017) 500
2018 302 Big 100 BIG 500 Memorial Day Countdown (2018) 500
2018 408 97 Rock 97 Rock N Roll 500 (2018) 500
2019 201 Big 100 BIG 500 Memorial Day Countdown (2019) 500
2019 321 102.5 WDVE DVE Memorial Day 500 (2019) 500
2020 443 Q105.7 Q105.7 Memorial Day 500 (2020) 499
2020 422 102.5 WDVE DVE Memorial Day 500 (2020) 500
2021 638 Q104.3 Q104.3 Top 1,043 Classic Rock Songs of All Time (2021) 1043
2021 279 WCSX WCSX Rock & Roll 500 (2021) 499
2021 341 102.5 WDVE DVE Memorial Day 500 (2021) 500
2022 784 Q104.3 Q104.3 Top 1,043 Classic Rock Songs of All Time (2022) 1043
2022 384 WMGK WMGK Philly 500 (2022) 500
2023 409 102.5 WDVE DVE Memorial Day 500 (2023) 500
2023 331 KSHE 95 KSHE 95 Rock N' Roll 500 (2023) 500
2023 679 101.5 WPDH WPDH Top 1015 (2023) 1015
2023 765 Q104.3 Q104.3 Top 1,043 Classic Rock Songs of All Time (2023) 1043
2023 470 97.1 The Drive 97.1 The Drive Memorial Day Weekend Rock N Roll 500 (2023) 500
2023 472 Qfm96 Qfm96 Memorial Day 500 (2023) 500
2024 393 KQRS KQRS KQ 500 (2024) 499
2024 470 Qfm96 Qfm96 Memorial Day 500 (2024) 498
2024 337 KSHE 95 KSHE 95 Rock N' Roll 500 (2024) 500
2024 412 97 Rock 97 Rock N Roll 500 (2024) 499
2025 470 Qfm96 Qfm96 Memorial Day 500 (2025) 498
2025 708 Q104.3 Q104.3 Top 1,043 Classic Rock Songs of All Time (2025) 1043

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