Heaven Is A Truck

Well.

We lost another one. I'm a few days late on this, but couldn't let the passing pass. Shit, I've got a memorial to another, and forgotten, legend that I've been working on since May.

But today it's all about Jerry Reed, who died on August 31st.

I posted about Reed a couple of years ago:

"Born and raised in Atlanta, Reed was already a shit-hot guitarist (dubbed "The Guitar Man" during his subsequent time in Nashville) by the time he recorded his first songs at the age of 18. He recorded some forgotten, or forgettable, country and rockabilly sides in the 50's, with his best success coming off a Gene Vincent treatment of his song "Crazy Legs". During the 60's he released some pretty solid singles and spent his downtime doing session work as a guitarist.

Finally the 70's dropped and Reed hit his commercial and artistic stride with such classics and "Amos Moses" and "When You're Hot You're Hot", amongst others. Reed mixed modern Country and Cajun swamp trash, brewing a moonshine still's worth of tonky love.

Reed was never really included in conversations involving the Outlaw movement circling around Willie, Waylon, et. al, and his flirtation with Hollywood, with the exception of the immortal Smokey and the Bandit (from which I chose my avatar, obviously), suggested that maybe he wasn't too concerned with working outside the carefully drawn lines of the established entertainment industry. Who knows? But somehow his songs sounded different, more raw and alive than the usual Nashville fare. It's music for southern country roads, topping the century mark in a hopped up muscle car round dangerous curves. Or maybe it's music for beater pickup trucks, with the gun rack barely holding on. Better yet, a pontoon boat hauling illegal whatnot through a Louisiana swamp."

Not sure how much I have to add to that. "East Bound and Down" is one of our favorite songs here at the Mountain, certainly one of the greatest Truckin' songs ever laid to wax. And regular visitors will know how highly we rate the Truckin' song.

Safe travels, Jerry Reed.


Jerry Reed: East Bound And Down (mp3)

Jerry Reed: Texas Bound and Flying (mp3)

Jerry Reed: Alabama Wild Man (mp3)

Jerry Reed: Free Born Man (mp3)

Jerry Reed: That Lucky Old Sun (Just Rolled Around Heaven All Day) (mp3)

Jerry Reed: Amos Moses (mp3)

Jerry Reed: Guitar Man (mp3)

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