Post by Rob Durkee on Sept 2, 2008 18:30:22 GMT -5
By ROCKIN' ROBIN
Singer-actor Jerry Reed, who co-starred in the car-chase movie series "Smokey And The Bandit," had two top 10 pop hits in 1971 and wrote hits for Elvis Presley and Brenda Lee, died of complications from emphysema early Monday, September 1, 2008 in Nashville according to the Associated Press. He was 71.
Reed had been battling health problems for nearly 10 years. He'd undergone quadruple bypass surgery in June, 1999.
Reed acted in at least 21 movies, the most famous of which were three versions of "Smokey And The Bandit" in 1977, 1980 and 1983. Co-star Burt Reynolds gave Reed a shiny black 1980 Trans Am like the one used in the "Smokey and The Bandit" movies. Reed also portrayed Bama McCall in the Reynolds-directed movie, "Gator" and was last seen as the hateful coach Red Beaulieu in the 1998 movie, "The Waterboy."
Reed's first movie was 1969's "Harper Valley PTA" but he first burst onto the pop music scene in 1960 when he wrote the Brenda Lee #11 Cash Box chart hit, "That's All You Gotta Do." Boots Randolph provided his unique saxophone sound on that rock and roll hit for Lee, which was originally the A side of the single release. However, disc jockeys couldn't help but play the B side, too, and "I'm Sorry" became the only #1 Cash Box pop chart hit for Little Miss Dynamite. Reed had also written songs for Johnny Cash, Tom Jones, Dean Martin, Nat King Cole and the Oak Ridge Boys.
Reed started chalking up the first of over 50 country-western hits in 1967 with "Guitar Man." A year later in 1968, that song became a #39-peaking hit for Elvis Presley and would become an integral part of Elvis' famous late 1968 TV comeback special. Elvis had another Reed-penned hit in 1968 when "U.S. Male" reached #26. Meanwhile, "Guitar Man" became a Top 40 hit a second time for Elvis, when a re-released version became a #31 posthumous hit for the King of Rock and Roll in 1981.
As a pop singer, Jerry Reed broke through the #9 "Amos Moses" and "When You're Hot, You're Hot" (#9), both in 1971. Among his many country-western hits were "East Bound And Down," "The Bird" and "She's Got The Goldmine (I Got The Shaft)."
The accolades poured in for Reed after his passing. Carrie Moore-Reed, his long-time booking agent who wasn't related to him, told the Associated Press, "He's one of the greatest entertainers in the world. That's the way I feel about him." Joe Galante, the Sony BMG Nashville Chairman, said, "Everything about Jerry was distinctive: His guitar playing, writing, voice and especially his sense of humor. I was honored to have worked with him."
Reed was born in Atlanta and dropped out of high school so he could tour with Faron Young and Ernest Tubb. In 1954, at age 17, he signed his first recording contract with Capitol Records. The vast majority of his pop and country-western hits, though, came on the RCA label. By 1970, he was voted instrumentalist of the year in 1970 by the Country Music Association. He also won at least three Grammys.
Reed performed well into the late 1990's, often averaging 80 shows a year. "I'm proud of the songs," he told the Associated Press in 1992. "I'm proud of the things that I did with Chet (Atkins), I'm proud that I played guitar and was accepted by musicians and guitar players."
Jerry Reed even second-guessed himself and his acting ability in a 1998 interview with The Tennessean, pointing out, "I used to watch people like Richard Burton and Mel Gibson and think, 'I could never do that.' When people ask me what my motivation was, I have a simple answer.
"Money."
Singer-actor Jerry Reed, who co-starred in the car-chase movie series "Smokey And The Bandit," had two top 10 pop hits in 1971 and wrote hits for Elvis Presley and Brenda Lee, died of complications from emphysema early Monday, September 1, 2008 in Nashville according to the Associated Press. He was 71.
Reed had been battling health problems for nearly 10 years. He'd undergone quadruple bypass surgery in June, 1999.
Reed acted in at least 21 movies, the most famous of which were three versions of "Smokey And The Bandit" in 1977, 1980 and 1983. Co-star Burt Reynolds gave Reed a shiny black 1980 Trans Am like the one used in the "Smokey and The Bandit" movies. Reed also portrayed Bama McCall in the Reynolds-directed movie, "Gator" and was last seen as the hateful coach Red Beaulieu in the 1998 movie, "The Waterboy."
Reed's first movie was 1969's "Harper Valley PTA" but he first burst onto the pop music scene in 1960 when he wrote the Brenda Lee #11 Cash Box chart hit, "That's All You Gotta Do." Boots Randolph provided his unique saxophone sound on that rock and roll hit for Lee, which was originally the A side of the single release. However, disc jockeys couldn't help but play the B side, too, and "I'm Sorry" became the only #1 Cash Box pop chart hit for Little Miss Dynamite. Reed had also written songs for Johnny Cash, Tom Jones, Dean Martin, Nat King Cole and the Oak Ridge Boys.
Reed started chalking up the first of over 50 country-western hits in 1967 with "Guitar Man." A year later in 1968, that song became a #39-peaking hit for Elvis Presley and would become an integral part of Elvis' famous late 1968 TV comeback special. Elvis had another Reed-penned hit in 1968 when "U.S. Male" reached #26. Meanwhile, "Guitar Man" became a Top 40 hit a second time for Elvis, when a re-released version became a #31 posthumous hit for the King of Rock and Roll in 1981.
As a pop singer, Jerry Reed broke through the #9 "Amos Moses" and "When You're Hot, You're Hot" (#9), both in 1971. Among his many country-western hits were "East Bound And Down," "The Bird" and "She's Got The Goldmine (I Got The Shaft)."
The accolades poured in for Reed after his passing. Carrie Moore-Reed, his long-time booking agent who wasn't related to him, told the Associated Press, "He's one of the greatest entertainers in the world. That's the way I feel about him." Joe Galante, the Sony BMG Nashville Chairman, said, "Everything about Jerry was distinctive: His guitar playing, writing, voice and especially his sense of humor. I was honored to have worked with him."
Reed was born in Atlanta and dropped out of high school so he could tour with Faron Young and Ernest Tubb. In 1954, at age 17, he signed his first recording contract with Capitol Records. The vast majority of his pop and country-western hits, though, came on the RCA label. By 1970, he was voted instrumentalist of the year in 1970 by the Country Music Association. He also won at least three Grammys.
Reed performed well into the late 1990's, often averaging 80 shows a year. "I'm proud of the songs," he told the Associated Press in 1992. "I'm proud of the things that I did with Chet (Atkins), I'm proud that I played guitar and was accepted by musicians and guitar players."
Jerry Reed even second-guessed himself and his acting ability in a 1998 interview with The Tennessean, pointing out, "I used to watch people like Richard Burton and Mel Gibson and think, 'I could never do that.' When people ask me what my motivation was, I have a simple answer.
"Money."
