Essential

Jerry Reed's talents as a singer and songwriter have long been a source of wonder for me. Listen to any of his albums, including this one, and find out for yourself. His sense of humor in such
original songs as "When You're Hot, You're Hot," "Lord, Mr. Ford" and "Another Puff" are highly entertaining, and his way with a ballad can truly touch the heart.
On a personal level, being a professional musician AND a guitar
player, I have constantly been blown-away by Mr. Reed's awesome capabilities on the guitar. His instrumental compositions such as "The Claw" and the lesser-known "Lightning Rod" are terrific examples of his mastery of the instrument. In this respect, he has been a tremendous inspiration in making me a better musician. Does anyone know that he was once praised by Jazz critic Gene Lees in Downbeat Magazine? And did I mention that ole Jer is a pretty good actor, as well? Just check out his Bama McCall role in...Read more

Of all the words in the English language which can be used to sum up Jerry Reed's remarkable career, both as a musician and as an actor, perhaps these four words can best apply: "Been there, done that". These four words are most apropos, due to Jerry's longevity in the entertainment industry, which spans upwards of almost five decades. It is because of the many different musical styles displayed on "The Essential Jerry Reed" (ranging from country to swamp rock), why Mr. Reed has paved the way for many a future artist, including the likes of Creedence Clearwater Revival, Lynyrd Skynyrd, The Allman Brothers, Charlie Daniels, etc. - each a successful artist/group in their own right. Therefore, Jerry is credited with starting the swamp rock/southern rock genre, and some of the songs featured in this collection ("Amos Moses", "When You're Hot, You're Hot", "The Uptown Poker Club" and "Ko-Ko Joe") contain a healthy dose of this well-crafted style of music. The lyrical homespun humor Jerry...Read more

JERRY REED-THE ESSENTIAL JERRY REED: The Alabama Wild Man was a triple threat talent in the seventies, playing hotshot session guitar for everyone from Elvis on down, scoring his own twanger smashes like the swampy tall tales AMOS MOSES and WHEN YOU'RE HOT YOU'RE HOT, and serving as Burt Reynolds' cronie in good ol' boy flicks GATOR and SMOKEY AND THE BANDIT. THE ESSENTIAL JERRY REED is exactly what the title suggests...all the witty, gritty, southern fried antics you could ever ask for. Dig into trucker fave EAST BOUND AND DOWN, the autobiographical GUITAR MAN, and the quick-pickin' instrumental THE CLAW; Reed adroitly covers all the bases. He hardly disappoints in the novelty category either...there's LORD MR. FORD, one of the wittiest "car-tunes" since Chuck Berry's NO MONEY DOWN, divorce ditty SHE GOT THE GOLDMINE (I GOT THE SHAFT), and the wheezy narrative ANOTHER PUFF, which is the SMOKE, SMOKE, SMOKE THAT CIGARETTE of its era. Make no mistake son, this is the best Jerry Reed...Read more