When You're Hot, You're Hot

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"When You're Hot, You're Hot"
When You're Hot, You're Hot.jpg
Single by Jerry Reed
from the album When You're Hot, You're Hot
B-side "You've Been Cryin'"
ReleasedMarch 1971
Genre
Label RCA Records
Songwriter(s) Jerry Reed
Producer(s) Chet Atkins
Jerry Reed singles chronology
"Amos Moses"
(1970)		"When You're Hot, You're Hot"
(1971)		"Ko-Ko Joe"
(1971)

"When You're Hot, You're Hot" is a 1971 crossover single written and recorded by Jerry Reed. The song was his most successful on the country chart, peaking at number one for five weeks. [1] "When You're Hot, You're Hot" was also Jerry Reed's second song to cross over to the Top 40, peaking at number nine. [2] It also appeared in the Australian and New Zealand charts. "When You're Hot, You're Hot" was certified gold for sales of one million units by the Recording Industry Association of America.

Contents

Synopsis

The refrain of the song indicates: "When you're hot, you're hot / When you're not, you're not".

The song describes an illegal game of craps being played in a back alley. The singer is having a streak of good luck against his two friends, winning several games in a row. In the second verse, a police officer discovers the game, arrests the participants and "take(s) all that money for evidence." Now the singer uses the same words to acknowledge his predicament, telling the cop "when you're hot, you're hot."

The third verse describes the trio in court to face the punishment, and to the singer's delight, he finds out that the judge presiding over the case is one of his old fishing buddies—whom, as it turns out, he owes money. When the singer attempts to bribe the judge by offering to pay back the money in exchange for a lighter sentence, the judge grins and does the opposite: gives the other two small fines, but sentences the singer to 90 days in jail with the response "when you're hot, you're hot!"

The song ends with the singer going into a tirade against the judge, telling him that if he weren't in his black robe, he'd have been physically attacked, and that someone would have to "collect my welfare, pay for my Cadillac." The judge immediately declares the singer to be in contempt of court.

Chart performance

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References

  1. ↑ Whitburn, Joel (2004). The Billboard Book Of Top 40 Country Hits: 1944-2006, Second edition. Record Research. p. 283.
  2. ↑ Whitburn, Joel (2004). The Billboard Book of Top 40 Hits: Eighth Edition. Record Research. p. 523.
  3. ↑ "Go-Set Australian charts - 7 August 1971". Poparchives.com.au. 1971-08-07. Retrieved 2012-03-14.
  4. ↑ Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. p. 249. ISBN   0-646-11917-6.
  5. 1 2 3 "Jerry Reed". AllMusic. Retrieved 2012-03-14.
  6. ↑ "Item Display - RPM - Library and Archives Canada". Collectionscanada.gc.ca. Retrieved 2012-03-14.
  7. ↑ "Item Display - RPM - Library and Archives Canada". Collectionscanada.gc.ca. Retrieved 2012-03-14.
  8. ↑ "Item Display - RPM - Library and Archives Canada". Collectionscanada.gc.ca. Retrieved 2012-03-14.
  9. ↑ Billboard, December 25, 1971.
  10. ↑ "Jerry Reed on Scooby-Doo". YouTube. 2006-08-11. Archived from the original on 2021-12-20. Retrieved 2012-03-14.


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