Country Singer Jerry Reed Passes Away at 71

Grammy-winning country singer and Burt Reynolds' Smokey and the Bandit cohort Jerry Reed died of complications from emphysema on Monday. He was 71. As a songwriter, Reed penned songs for Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, Dean Martin, Nat King Cole and scores more. In 1971, Reed won a Grammy for his own "When You're Hot, You're Hot." Reed won three Grammys over his career, including two for collaborations with Chet Atkins. Reed's segue into films helped inspire his Nashville peers like Dolly Parton, Willie Nelson and Kenny Rogers to try their hand at acting. In addition to his turn in the Smokey series, Reed was also immortalized as the rival coach in Adam Sandler's The Waterboy and the "Phantom of the Country Music Hall" episode of The New Scooby-Doo Movies.

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Song Stories

“My President”

Young Jeezy | 2008

Young Jeezy teams up with Nas on this track, in which he compare his own success with the idea of an African-American winning the Democratic Party's nomination in the 2008 presidential election. "When I pulled up in my car, that s--- was unbelievable to people in my neighborhood because they were like, 'We grew up with him. How the hell did he accomplish this?'" he told Rolling Stone. "I feel like it was the same way with Obama. I grew up all this time, but I've never seen a black man this close to running this country."

More Song Stories entries »

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