Simple Man ( Lynyrd Skynyrd song ) - Wikipedia Simple Man ( Lynyrd Skynyrd song ) This article is about the Lynyrd Skynyrd song. For other uses, see Simple Man. `` Simple Man '' Song by Lynyrd Skynyrd from the album ( Pronounced ' Lĕh - ' nérd ' Skin - ' nérd ) Released 1973 Recorded April 30, 1973 at Studio One, Doraville, Georgia, U.S. Genre Southern rock Length 5 : 57 ( album version ) 6 : 39 ( live version ) Label Sounds of the South Songwriter ( s ) Ronnie Van Zant Gary Rossington Producer ( s ) Al Kooper `` Simple Man '' is the last track on Side 1 of Lynyrd Skynyrd 's debut album, ( Pronounced ' Lĕh - ' nérd ' Skin - ' nérd ). The song is one of Lynyrd Skynyrd 's most popular songs. Since the song became available for digital download, it has become Lynyrd Skynyrd 's third best - selling digital song after `` Sweet Home Alabama '' and `` Free Bird ''. It has sold 1,333,000 copies in the U.S. as of November 2013. Contents 1 Live performance popularity 2 Musical Structure 3 Popular culture 4 Certifications ( Shinedown version ) 5 Personnel 6 References 7 External links Live performance popularity Frontman Johnny Van Zant discussed this song in a track - by - track commentary to promote the band 's 2010 CD / DVD Live From Freedom Hall. He said : `` Well that 's a great song and something that I think we all live by. I think anybody out there needs to respect their mother, and the words of their mother. It 's mama talking to you in that song and I think it 's probably one of my favorites if not my favorite to do live. It 's just a great song and that one stays in the set and the crowd always goes crazy on that one. '' Musical structure Simple man is written in the key of A minor / C major. The song begins with an acoustic arpeggiated chord sequence made up of the chords C major, G major and A minor. This intro is accompanied by a bass line and cymbals before the drums and vocals come in for the verse. Lyrically the song is about a mother talking to her child about life, inspired by the passing of Ronnie Van Zant 's grandmother. The chorus of the song includes electric guitars imitating sections of the arpeggiated intro progression. The guitar solo is performed by Gary Rossington and is regarded as one of the bands ' best solos. Popular culture The intro of the song was used in The Sopranos episode Cold Stones. The Lynyrd Skynyrd original of the song was made available to download on April 15, 2008 for use in the Rock Band music gaming platform, and on March 1, 2011 for PRO mode which takes advantage of the use of a real guitar / bass guitar, along with standard MIDI - compatible electronic drum kits / keyboards in addition to up to three - part harmony vocals. This song is used as the television theme song to History 's Mountain Men. Mixed martial artist Matt Mitrione uses `` Simple Man '' as his entrance song. This song was also used in the Supernatural television series in Season 5 episode 3 titled `` Free to Be You and Me ''. The song was covered by alternative - metal band Deftones, appearing on two of their albums, B - Sides & Rarities ( 2005 ) and Covers ( 2011 ). The song was also covered by rock band Shinedown off the deluxe edition of their album Leave a Whisper, having an acoustic version and a rock version. The country rock band Confederate Railroad covers the song in the Lynyrd Skynyrd tribute album Skynyrd Frynds. This song was briefly used in My Name Is Earl episode `` Number One ''. This song is currently used as a warm up song by New York Mets pitcher Jacob DeGrom. Certifications ( Shinedown version ) Region Certification Certified units / Sales United States ( RIAA ) Platinum 1,000,000 sales figures based on certification alone shipments figures based on certification alone sales + streaming figures based on certification alone Personnel Lead guitar : Gary Rossington Bass : Ed King Organ : Al Kooper Keyboards : Billy Powell Lead vocals : Ronnie Van Zant Drums : Bob Burns Rhythm & co-lead guitar : Allen Collins References Jump up ^ Grein, Paul ( 2013 - 11 - 27 ). `` Chart Watch : Eminem Returns to # 1, Gaga Sinks to # 8 ''. Yahoo Music. Retrieved November 27, 2013. Jump up ^ `` Simple Man Songfacts ''. songfacts.com. Jump up ^ Gaddo, Kyle ( 2011 - 02 - 25 ). `` Eleven Legacy Rock Band Tracks Getting PRO Upgrades On March 1st ''. The Gaming Vault. Retrieved 2012 - 11 - 08. Jump up ^ `` UFC 137 : Penn vs Diaz ''. MMA Entrances. 2011 - 10 - 30. Retrieved 2013 - 09 - 24. Jump up ^ `` American single certifications -- Shinedown -- Simple Man ''. Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved October 26, 2017. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Single, then click SEARCH External links Lyrics of this song at MetroLyrics Lynyrd Skynyrd Gary Rossington Rickey Medlocke Johnny Van Zant Michael Cartellone Mark Matejka Peter Keys Johnny Colt Ronnie Van Zant Allen Collins Bob Burns Larry Junstrom Greg T. Walker Leon Wilkeson Billy Powell Ed King Artimus Pyle Steve Gaines Randall Hall Kurt Custer Mike Estes Owen Hale Hughie Thomasson Jeff McAllister Kenny Aronoff Ean Evans Robert Kearns Studio albums ( Pronounced ' Lĕh - ' nérd ' Skin - ' nérd ) Second Helping Nuthin ' Fancy Gimme Back My Bullets Street Survivors Lynyrd Skynyrd 1991 The Last Rebel Endangered Species Twenty Edge of Forever Christmas Time Again Vicious Cycle God & Guns Last of a Dyin ' Breed Live albums One More from the Road Southern by the Grace of God Southern Knights Lyve from Steel Town Lynyrd Skynyrd Lyve : The Vicious Cycle Tour Authorized Bootleg Lynyrd Skynyrd Live / Cardiff Capitol Theater - Cardiff, Wales Nov. 04 1975 Authorized Bootleg Live In Winterland, San Francisco, CA, March 07, 1976 Live from Freedom Hall Compilations Skynyrd 's First and... Last Gold & Platinum Best of the Rest Legend Skynyrd 's Innyrds Lynyrd Skynyrd ( Box Set ) A Retrospective What 's Your Name Old Time Greats Extended Versions : The Encore Collection The Essential Lynyrd Skynyrd Skynyrd 's First : The Complete Muscle Shoals Album 20th Century Masters : The Best of Lynyrd Skynyrd Solo Flytes All Time Greatest Hits Collectybles Then and Now Lynyrd Skynyrd : The Collection Thyrty Greatest Hits Then and Now Volume Two Greatest Hits Icon Video Lynyrd Skynyrd Tribute Tour Freebird... The Movie Lyve From Steel Town Lynyrd Skynyrd Lyve : The Vicious Cycle Tour Lynyrd Skynyrd : Live from Austin, TX Live from Freedom Hall Songs `` Tuesday 's Gone '' `` Gimme Three Steps '' `` Simple Man '' `` Things Goin ' On '' `` Free Bird '' `` Mr. Banker '' `` Do n't Ask Me No Questions '' `` Sweet Home Alabama '' `` Saturday Night Special '' `` Double Trouble '' `` All I Can Do Is Write About It '' `` What 's Your Name '' `` That Smell '' `` You Got That Right '' `` Red White & Blue '' Tours Pronounced ' Lĕh - ' nérd ' Skin - ' nérd Tour Second Helping Tour Nuthin ' Fancy Tour Gimme Back My Bullets Tour One More From The Road Tour Street Survivors Tour Lynyrd Skynyrd Tribute Tour Lynyrd Skynyrd 1991 Tour The Last Rebel Tour Lynyrd Skynyrd Twenty Tour Edge of Forever Tour Vicious Cycle Tour Rebels and Bandoleros Tour Spin - off bands Rossington Collins Band The Rossington Band Allen Collins Band Artimus Pyle Band Van Zant Related articles Discography Band Members Skynyrd Frynds 1977 Convair CV - 240 crash Ronnie Van Zant Memorial Park Leonard Skinner `` All Summer Long '' Shinedown Brent Smith Barry Kerch Zach Myers Eric Bass Jasin Todd Brad Stewart Nick Perri Studio albums Leave a Whisper Us and Them The Sound of Madness Amaryllis Threat to Survival EPs iTunes Session Acoustic Sessions Singles `` Fly from the Inside '' `` 45 '' `` Simple Man '' `` Burning Bright '' `` Save Me '' `` I Dare You '' `` Heroes '' `` Devour '' `` Second Chance '' `` Sound of Madness '' `` If You Only Knew '' `` The Crow & the Butterfly '' `` Diamond Eyes ( Boom - Lay Boom - Lay Boom ) '' `` Bully '' `` Unity '' `` Enemies '' `` I 'll Follow You '' `` Adrenaline '' `` Cut the Cord '' `` State of My Head '' `` Asking For It '' `` How Did You Love '' `` Thick as Thieves '' Music DVDs Live from the Inside Somewhere in the Stratosphere Related articles Discography This 1970s rock song - related article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Simple_Man_(Lynyrd_Skynyrd_song)&oldid=807272552 '' Categories : 1973 songs Lynyrd Skynyrd songs Song recordings produced by Al Kooper Rock ballads 1970s ballads Songs written by Ronnie Van Zant Songs written by Gary Rossington 1970s rock song stubs Hidden categories : Articles with hAudio microformats Certification Table Entry usages for United States All stub articles Talk Contents About Wikipedia Català Español Français Italiano Português Slovenčina Edit links This page was last edited on 26 October 2017, at 23 : 48. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution - ShareAlike License ; additional terms may apply. By using this site, you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Wikipedia ® is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization. About Wikipedia

Question: when was simple man by lynyrd skynyrd released
Answer: 1973