You may know him best as the Burt Reynolds co-star and wisecracking bootlegger Cledus “Snowman” Snow from the beloved 1977 action-comedy Smokey and the Bandit. But Jerry Reed—born on this day (March 20) in 1937—had a long and storied career, appearing in more than a dozen films and releasing songs like “Guitar Man” and “When You’re Hot, You’re Hot.”
Videos by American Songwriter
“Every move he made was to entertain and make the world more fun,” country singer Brad Paisley said after Reed’s death in 2008. “Because he was such a great, colorful personality with his acting and songs and entertaining, sometimes people didn’t even notice that he was just about the best guitarist you’ll ever hear.”
Today, we’re taking a look back at the life and career of the “Guitar Man” himself.
Jerry Reed Knew He Was Destined For Fame
Born in Atlanta, Georgia, Jerry Reed Hubbard announced his intentions from an early age. As a small child, he would run around the house, strumming his guitar as he declared, “I am gonna be a star. I’m gonna go to Nashville and be a star.”
At 17, Reed caught the eye of Ken Nelson, a producer at Capitol Records. In 1956, he recorded his own rockabilly song “When I Found You”. The following year, he got his first taste of success when labelmate Gene Vincent recorded his song, “Crazy Legs.”
In 1958, Reed left Capitol Records to enlist in the U.S. Army. During his time in the service, Brenda Lee scored a Top 10 pop hit with his song “That’s All You Gotta Do.” Following his discharge in 1961, Reed moved to Nashville to further his songwriting career. He found minor pop success with “Goodnight Irene” and “Hully Gully Guitar” before drawing the attention of producer Chet Akins, who signed him to RCA Records.
[RELATED: The Jaw-Dropping Glen Campbell Performance That Took Us to Church (Literally)]
Embracing His Uniqueness
Akins encouraged Jerry Reed to be himself in the studio, and it was solid advice. In 1967, he wrote and recorded “Guitar Man”, which he took to No. 53 on the country music charts. Later, Elvis Presley covered the song over Reed’s signature “claw-style” guitar playing. The collaboration hit No. 1.
“I hit that intro, and [Elvis’s] face lit up and here we went,” Reed later recalled.
Reed’s subsequent hits included “Alabama Wild Man,” “Amos Moses,” “When You’re Hot, You’re Hot”, “Good Lord, Mr. Ford”, and She Got the Goldmine (I Got the Shaft)”. “When You’re Hot, You’re Hot” earned him a Grammy nod for Best Male Country Vocal Performance.
Featured image by Doug McKenzie/Getty Images
Leave a Reply
Only members can comment. Become a member. Already a member? Log in.