The instrumental backing for this coming of age tale is a mash-up of Warren Zevon's "Werewolves Of London" and Lynyrd Skynyrd's "Sweet Home Alabama." When Lynyrd Skynyrd entered the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2006, Kid Rock inducted them.

Rock N Roll Jesus was released in October 2007, and Kid Rock's record company wanted to release this as a single that fall. Rock talked them into waiting until summer to release the song, which is a more appropriate time for the single but a long way off from the album's release.

The ploy worked, as radio stations picked up the song and the album got a huge boost in sales, selling 1.3 million copies by the summer of 2008.

Rock explained to MTV News why the song has been such a success. He said: "I knew the track was solid - it's got two of the best songs of all time mashed up together ['Sweet Home Alabama' and 'Werewolves of London'], it's got great melodies, so really, my work was done.

I knew people would hear it and know I wrote it. They'd know it was real, and there'd be that connection. And that's what's missing in music today.

I think people don't believe half the s--t they hear some rapper or some pop girl singing about... but with me, they do. And that's why people have reacted the way they have to the song."

This won the award for Best Rock Song at the 35th People's Choice Awards, held on January 7, 2009.

According to Rock's DJ, Uncle Kracker, this came about because the record label was itching to capitalize on the trend of mashup songs. "And to Kid Rock, he'd been mashing up songs, anyway, his whole life with being a DJ and that type of thing," he told Songfacts in 2023.

"One morning, he had this track from Mike Clark where he looped 'Sweet Home Alabama' and 'Werewolves Of London.'

I happened to be home off tour, and he was home off tour.

He was like, 'Man, I've got this banger, you've got to come out here. Let's write this thing today.' I drove out to his studio and we wrote that in probably about a half hour, I bet."