[7][8][9][10] None of the three writers of the song were from Alabama; Ronnie Van Zant and Gary Rossington were both born in Jacksonville, Florida, while Ed King was from Glendale, California.

"[5] "We thought Neil was shooting all the ducks in order to kill one or two," said Ronnie Van Zant at the time.

[13] The lyrics to "Sweet Home Alabama" include the following lines: Well, I heard Mister Young sing about herWell, I heard ol' Neil put her downWell, I hope Neil Young will rememberA Southern man don't need him around anyhowIn Young's 2012 autobiography Waging Heavy Peace, he commented on his song: "My own song 'Alabama' richly deserved the shot Lynyrd Skynyrd gave me with their great record.

The final lead vocals from Van Zant, along with Rossington and Collins' rhythm guitars and Powell's piano were added later.

[15] "Sweet Home Alabama" was a major chart hit for a band whose previous singles had "lazily sauntered out into release with no particular intent."

Sweet home Alabama, oh, sweet home baby Where the skies are so blue and the governor's true The choice of Birmingham in connection with the governor (rather than the capital of Montgomery) is significant because it was the site of civil rights activism and violence in the 1960s, most notably Martin Luther King's Birmingham campaign.

Music historians examining the juxtaposition of invoking Richard Nixon and Watergate after Wallace and Birmingham note that one reading of the lyrics is an "attack against the liberals who were so outraged at Nixon's conduct" while others interpret it regionally: "the band was speaking for the entire South, saying to northerners, we're not judging you as ordinary citizens for the failures of your leaders in Watergate; don't judge all of us as individuals for the racial problems of southern society.

"[18] Toward the end of the song, Van Zant adds "where the governor's true" to the chorus's "where the skies are so blue," a line seemingly contradictory to the previous lyrics.

I still like the plaque that hangs here in my office that says I'm an honorary member of the Alabama State Militia...signed personally by George C. Sure, the man had his flaws.

[19]Further complicating the racial politics of the song is the fact that Merry Clayton and Clydie King, two well-known black studio singers, are heard on the track as backing vocalists.

[15] Richard Buskin and Rodney Mills claim that the female backing vocals were performed by The Sweet Inspirations instead of Clydie King and Merry Clayton; Buskin also does not credit the acoustic guitarist but also recalls that the band did not like when their producer Al Kooper overdubbed himself onto their records, which means the acoustic guitar is likely played by Rossington, Collins, or King.

"All Summer Long" also samples Warren Zevon's "Werewolves of London", which has a similar chord progression to "Sweet Home Alabama".

The song is credited to Matthew Shafer, Waddy Wachtel, R.J. Ritchie, Leroy Marinell, Warren Zevon, Edward King, Gary Rossington and Ronnie Van Zant.