LYNYRD SKYNYRD – Gimme Back My Bullets ’76 [Japan SHM-CD Deluxe Limited Edition] HQ *Exclusive*

320_1 /// 320_2 /// HQ 1 /// HQ 2

Now we have here one of the best – or at least purest – Southern Rock album of all time; 1976’s LYNYRD SKYNYRD fouth LP “Gimme Back My Bullets“, in its wonderful Japanese pressing on SHM-CD, a Limited Deluxe Edition including bonus tracks – a mini-LP replica now out of print.
There was a time when LYNYRD SKYNYRD’s music was tough. It had drive and force; it was impossible to ignore. The title track is powerful — relentless, a little dangerous — with lead guitar wailing urgently behind one of the angriest Ronnie Van Zant vocals yet recorded. Melodic, tumbling guitar figures introduce second track “Every Mother’s Son,” providing fuel for another standout Van Zant performance — this one appropriately understated and searching.
Back in the day, I read some reviews saying ”Gimme Back My Bullets” wasn’t as consistent as the previous LP’s. But c’mon—the group had toured non‑stop since their debut, and this album followed three dynamite records. LYNYRD SKYNYRD is in fairly good shape on ”Gimme Back My Bullets”: most of the songs roar like thunder, and Ronnie Van Zant wrote some of his finest lyrics here.
”Gimme Back My Bullets” is celebrating its 50th Anniversary, and still sounds great today…

With Ed King having abruptly departed the lineup during a ’75 tour, only Allen Collins and Gary Rossington wielded electric guitars in the group. It thus stands to reason that riffs would dominate the material, most fittingly on the title song of the half-century-old album. In addition, though, the admiration the group shared (with its aforementioned mentor) for British rockers Free remains unmistakable on “Cry for the Bad Man.”
This no-frills approach is in line with the forthright lyrics of Van Zant. And the titular leader of Skynyrd had a blues-derived vocal delivery that maximized the pithy potency of his words on tracks like “Searchin’” in doing so, the expression of this down-to-earth attitude furthered the Lynyrd Skynyrd persona as it evolved through the group’s early success with “Sweet Home Alabama” and the emergence of “Free Bird” as its signature song.

The torturous cycle of recording and roadwork, plus some intraband dissension (among other factors) was taking its toll on the whole band. So, if Van Zant sounds defensive on “Cry For The Bad Man”–even as Artimus Pyle swings and hammers away on his drums to buttress Rossington and Collins–he did evince some open-minded reflection during “Trust.” Composed with both fretboarders in one of a rotating series of songwriting teamups, that track, like the acoustic guitar and piano-based “Every Mother’s Son,” precedes what is essentially the pivot point for these nine tracks.

With Billy Powell’s rollicking piano noticeable even at the periphery of the arrangement (like his clavinet and organ elsewhere on the longplayer), this cover of J.J. Cale’s “(I Got the) Same Old Blues” is hardly the jaunty interpretation of the late Oklahoman’s “Call Me The Breeze” from the sophomore Lynyrd Skynyrd Second Helping. On the contrary, its relentless nature typified the general tenor of ”Gimme Back My Bullets”.
In certain cases, like “Double Trouble,” with the dulcet tones of the vocal group The Honeycuts, the songs’ sentiments alternated between defensive and vulnerable. Nevertheless, candor underpinned the emotions throughout, as did the massive pulse of Leon Wilkeson’s bass in the audio mix.

Crucially, though, the sonics were not in line with the musicianship until ”Gimme Back My Bullets” was remastered for this reissue. The sonic treatment made otherwise nearly subliminal traces of country music apparent on “Roll Gypsy Roll.”
And those roots became more overt through the use of an unidentified violinist, plus Barry Lee Harwood’s dobro and mandolin, on “All I Can Do Is Write About It.” The finality of that number is clear-cut, even in the acoustic demo added as bonus track, one of the half-dozen live cuts and alternate studio takes on this reissue.

In the years that followed, various lineups of musicians worked under the name LYNYRD SKYNYRD, even after all the original members had passed away. Whether or not that subsequent studio and live work upholds the now near-mythic tradition of the group, there’s no mistaking ”Gimme Back My Bullets” as an enduring testament to that legacy.
Highly Recommended

ＵＮＩＶＥＲＳＡＬ ＭＵＳＩＣ ＪＡＰＡＮ
ＵＩＣＹ～ 94174
【ＬＴＤ ＳＨＭ－ＣＤ】 Ｌｉｍｉｔｅｄ Ｅｄｉｔｉｏｎ

01 – Gimme Back My Bullets
02 – Every Mother’s Son
03 – Trust
04 – I Got The Same Old Blues
05 – Double Trouble
06 – Roll Gyspy Roll
07 – Searching
08 – Cry For The Bad Man
09 – All I Can Do Is Write About It
BONUS TRACKS:
10 – Double Trouble (Live)
11 – I Got The Same Old Blues (Live)
12 – Gimme Back My Bullets (Live)
13 – Cry For The Bad Man (Live)
14 – All I Can Do Is Write About It (Acoustic)
15 – Double Trouble (Alternate Take)

Ronnie Van Zant – lead vocals
Gary Rossington – guitars
Allen Collins – guitars
Leon Wilkeson – bass, background vocals
Artimus Pyle – drums, percussion
Billy Powell – keyboards
with:
The Honeycuts, The Honkettes – background vocals

Out of Print
www.cdjapan.co.jp/product/UICY-94174