“Smokey and the Bandit” Star Jerry Reed Dead

Jerry Reed has died. Reed was best known for playing Cletus Snow in the Smokey and the Bandit movies. But first and foremost, he was a songwriter and guitarist with a unique fingerpicking technique.

“The guitar is, I think, the nucleus of me. Every song I’ve written around the guitar and off the guitar. The guitar is my instrument and my playing is just an extension of my spirit.”

Reed came to Nashville in 1961. He worked as a session player before cutting his first hit, “Guitar Man.” He won a Grammy for his performance of the song “When You’re Hot You’re Hot,” and was a regular on the Glen Campbell Goodtime Hour.

Reed died in hospice care after a long battle with emphysema. He was 71 years old.