A Conversation with Jerry Reed (continued)

PM: We at Puremusic here have gotten the documentary bug lately, and I got the urge to get great musicians, friends of mine, on video, especially in the comfort of their own home. What do you think about the at-home approach, versus just videotaping a show? It seems to me that if you're going to catch great musicians, you should catch them at home, just playing a tune.  

JR: I don't know if they like all that show business at their house.

PM: Ah, I see your point.

JR: [laughs] See, I learned this in the movie industry. Boy, when you start bringing video equipment into somebody's house, and disrupt their daily life, they don't like it. We'd do TV shows years ago, and we'd get a location. And they were all gung ho when it first started until they saw what it did to their house and how disruptive it was. And then they didn't like it.

[laughter]

PM: Well, that's a hot tip, there. I think I learned something there. Because didn't you have your own huge video facility around Nashville at one time?

JR: That's one of the things I did wrong. I wish you hadn't brought it up.

PM: [laughs] Sorry about that.

JR: Yeah, I did. It cost me an arm and a leg. Oh, yeah. I ain't doing it anymore, I'll tell you that.

PM: And eventually you got out from under it.

JR: Oh, eventually. It took me a while, but I did.

PM: I know that you officially retired from touring last year. If this is retirement, what might be up ahead?

JR: Well, I'm in the studio now. And when I say "retired," it's--well, who knows? But for the next year or so, I'm going to be in the studio finishing two albums.

PM: Wow.

JR: So I've got my work cut out for me, son. I just decided that I wanted to do what I love doing the best, and that's get in that studio and come out of left field somehow, and do something that nobody else has done.

PM: [laughs]

JR: And one of my albums is so off-the-wall, you're not going to believe it.

PM: Oh.

JR: I've got a twenty-two minute song in it.

PM: Really.

JR: [laughs] Yeah, I do.

PM: What is it about?

JR: I ain't going to tell you.

PM: [laughs]

JR: I ain't about to tell you. What do you mean, what is it--I ain't telling you nothing.

PM: [laughs]

JR: Give you something to look forward to. You can go around and tell folks, "That crazy Reed, he's got a twenty-two minute song. He wouldn't tell me what it was.

PM: Oh, my Lord. And I know you got a twenty-two minute song in you, too. I can't wait to hear it.

JR: You'll enjoy it, because it's off-the-wall. It really is. You'll love it

PM: [laughs] We'll be looking for it. And I'll call you back when that comes out and we'll put you on the cover again and talk about your twenty-two minute opus. [laughter]

JR: Well, when you hear it, you're going to roll your eyes back and look up at the ceiling and say, "Reed is just out there. He's somewhere--I don't know, we got to go locate him. I believe he's in another galaxy."

[laughter]

JR: You just wait, and mark my words.

PM: Consider them marked. It's great to talk to you, Jerry.

JR: Well, it's been my pleasure, my pleasure, indeed. And God bless you for calling. And I'll look forward to your response when you hear it--the new song, I mean.

[laughter]

PM: All the best to you and your family. It's very nice to talk to you, Jerry. You take care, and rock on, my brother.

JR: You, too. God bless.

[To find out more about Jerry Reed, we suggest you start at Pat Teachey's fansite Hot A' Mighty. Deep background can be found at alabamawildman.com, the basics at his label site r2krecords.com. To give you a taste of Jerry's gut-string wizardry, we've included a couple of clips from the 1995 compilation The Essential Jerry Reed on our Listen page, following several clips from Jerry's new CD.]

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