"East Bound and Down"
side-A label by RCA Victor
Side A of the Australian single
Single by Jerry Reed
from the album Smokey And The Bandit: Music from the Motion Picture
B-side"(I'm Just A) Redneck in a Rock and Roll Bar"[1]
ReleasedAugust 1, 1977
GenreTruck-driving country
Length2:45
LabelRCA Records
Songwriter(s)Jerry Reed, Deena Kaye Rose
Producer(s)Jerry Reed
Jerry Reed singles chronology
"With His Pants in His Hand"
(1977) 		"East Bound and Down"
(1977) 		"You Know What"
(1977)

"East Bound and Down" is a song written by Jerry Reed and Deena Kaye Rose,[a] and recorded by Reed for the soundtrack for the film Smokey and the Bandit. The song features Reed on the lead vocal, and vocalist Gordon Stoker of the Jordanaires on the harmony vocal. It was released in August 1977 as a single on RCA Records. The song's lyrics tell the basic plot line of the movie (leaving out the runaway bride element) of making a 28-hour round-trip run from Atlanta, Georgia, to Texarkana, Texas, and back to illegally transport 400 cases of Coors beer for an after-race celebration.

The song spent 16 weeks on the U.S. country music charts, reaching a peak of No. 2.[1] It also reached No. 3 on the Bubbling Under Hot 100.

The "...and Down" in the title and lyric is CB radio jargon for "I'm finished transmitting, but still listening to the channel." "[Direction] bound and down" remains a common sign-off for truckers on CB radio.

Chart performance

Chart (1977–78) Peak
position
U.S. Billboard Hot Country Singles 2
U.S. Billboard Bubbling Under Hot 100[2] 3
Canadian RPM Country Tracks 2

Cover versions

Notes

  1. ^ Credited as Dick Feller; the song was written and released before Rose came out as transgender.

References

  1. ^ a b Whitburn, Joel (2008). Hot Country Songs 1944 to 2008. Record Research, Inc. p. 343. ISBN 978-0-89820-177-2.
  2. ^ Joel Whitburn's Bubbling Under the Billboard Hot 100 1959-2004
  3. ^ Newman, Melinda (August 18, 2023). "Herb Alpert on Making His Grand Ole Opry Debut, Country Artists He Admires & Taylor Swift Tying His Six-Decade Record". Billboard. Archived from the original on August 24, 2023. Retrieved January 3, 2024.


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