Eighteen years ago today, on 1 September 2008, country guitarist and singer Jerry Reed died of complications from emphysema at the age of 71. He was a Grammy-winning songwriter and performer celebrated for his virtuoso guitar playing, who later built a parallel career as a film actor, becoming a familiar on-screen partner to Burt Reynolds.

Reed began playing guitar as a child and recorded his first singles for Capitol Records at just 17, before session work and a deal with RCA led to his breakthrough single "Guitar Man" in 1967, later covered by Elvis Presley with Reed himself on guitar. His hits included the chart-toppers "When You're Hot, You're Hot," "Lord, Mr. Ford" and "She Got the Goldmine (I Got the Shaft)," as well as "East Bound and Down" from the Smokey and the Bandit soundtrack. His acting career, launched via appearances on the Glen Campbell Goodtime Hour, included roles alongside Reynolds in W.W. and the Dixie Dancekings, the Smokey and the Bandit films and Gator, plus later parts in Nashville 99 and 1998's The Waterboy with Adam Sandler.