Jerry Reed, whose roles in three "Smokey and the Bandit" Southern comedy films opposite Burt Reynolds often overshadowed his gifts as a prolific country singer-songwriter and virtuoso guitarist, died Monday at his home outside Nashville of complications from emphysema. He was 71.
"He was still recording right up until he couldn't any more," his booking agent, Carrie Moore-Reed, who is not related, said Tuesday. "He had been ill for some time."
Reed gained widespread fame as Reynolds' wisecracking foil starting with "W.W. and the Dixie Dancekings" in 1975, followed the next year by "Gator" and then, in 1977, the first of three "Smokey and the Bandit" movies in which he played Cledus "Snowman" Snow. In his last major film role, he played a harsh football coach in the 1998 Adam Sandler comedy "The Waterboy."
But before he made the jump to Hollywood he had established himself as one of the most sought-after guitarists in Nashville, a songwriter who wrote hits for Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, Brenda Lee and many others. He became a regular presence on the pop and country charts in the '70s and '80s with humorous hits including "When You're Hot, You're Hot," "Amos Moses," "East Bound and Down" and "She Got the Goldmine (I Got the Shaft)."
"The general population might recognize him most as Snowman in the 'Smokey' films, but they should be aware of so many important contributions he made in music," Michael Gray, museum editor for the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum in Nashville, said Tuesday.
Added current country star Brad Paisley: "I drew a lot of inspiration from him in various ways. His overall artistry and persona was so much fun and entertaining -- that is just one way I want to emulate him. Another is his total musicianship -- anyone who picks a country guitar knows of his mastery of the instrument -- one of the most inspirational stylists in the history of country music."
Reed, however, said that growing up he had admired comedians as much as musicians, and that he had long hoped to emulate them in his own career. "My favorite people on Earth are the Jack Bennys and Jackie Gleasons and Red Skeltons and Sid Caesars -- those guys that could just tear your head off," he said in 1999. "If you're laughing your guts out, how can you be depressed?"
Besides, he said, the movies kept his face and voice in circulation long after his 16-year string of 57 Top 100 country singles tailed off in 1983.
