For seven years, The Statler Brothers had the highest-rated program on The Nashville Network. Millions of viewers tuned in for country music, gospel harmonies, familiar faces, and the kind of humor that made Saturday nights feel like a visit with old friends.
Most people knew Harold Reid as the deep bass voice of The Statler Brothers, the funny man who could make an audience laugh with a perfectly timed remark or an exaggerated expression.
But there was another side to Harold Reid that television audiences rarely saw. While viewers enjoyed the performances, Harold Reid was helping write and produce the very show that brought those performances into American homes.
When television wanted something new, the Statlers offered something old
In 1991, The Nashville Network approached The Statler Brothers about making television specials. The idea eventually developed into a weekly variety series, something that seemed almost old-fashioned at the time.
Television had changed dramatically since the days when families gathered around programs hosted by Perry Como, Dinah Shore, and other entertainers who mixed music with comedy and special guests.
By the early 1990s, many television professionals considered the traditional variety format outdated.
But The Statler Brothers had spent decades building a career around precisely that kind of entertainment.
Harold Reid and younger brother Don Reid agreed to take on the project, with an unusual amount of creative freedom. The two brothers would write the programs, share production responsibilities, and help select the guests.
In an October 1991 interview with the Los Angeles Times, Don Reid explained that the network’s willingness to give them creative control was a major reason The Statler Brothers accepted the opportunity.
For Harold Reid, this was familiar territory. Comedy had long been part of the group’s stage performances, and Harold Reid had already developed a reputation for delivering humor that audiences remembered almost as fondly as the songs.
The Saturday-night show that brought back an American tradition
The Statler Brothers Show premiered on October 12, 1991, with Barbara Mandrell as its featured guest.
The program combined performances by The Statler Brothers with appearances by established country stars, emerging singers, comedians, and traditional variety entertainers.
Guests over the years included such recognizable names as Charley Pride, Conway Twitty, Roger Miller, and the Oak Ridge Boys.
The show also celebrated gospel music and American musical history. Its recurring segments revisited familiar songs and memories from earlier decades, giving viewers a chance to remember the music that had accompanied their younger years.
One especially distinctive segment, called Yesteryear, revisited individual years through popular songs and notable events.
Harold Reid and Don Reid understood the audience they were entertaining. Instead of chasing television trends, the brothers helped create a program that respected the musical tastes and memories of longtime country fans.
And the audience responded.
By 1995, the show was still The Nashville Network’s highest-rated series. It maintained that standing throughout its seven-season run, which ended in 1998.
The creativity behind the deep bass voice
Harold Reid’s contribution to The Statler Brothers had never been limited to singing.
Although Don Reid was the group’s principal songwriter, Harold Reid collaborated on memorable recordings including “The Class of ’57,” “Do You Remember These,” and “Do You Know You Are My Sunshine.”
Long before the television series, Harold Reid had also helped establish the group’s comic identity. The Statlers became known for combining serious songs with playful sketches and character-based humor, including the fictional Lester “Roadhog” Moran.
Don Reid later remembered Harold Reid as fearless when it came to comedy.
That willingness to be funny became an important part of the group’s identity. The Statler Brothers could sing a heartfelt gospel number and then turn around and make an entire audience laugh without making either performance feel out of place.
What Harold Reid left behind
When Harold Reid died on April 24, 2020, at age 80, the country music world remembered an unforgettable bass singer, a gifted songwriter, and a beloved entertainer.
But Harold Reid also left behind something that deserves a place alongside the group’s Grammy Awards, hit records, and Country Music Hall of Fame induction.
For seven seasons, Harold Reid helped create a television program that proved traditional country entertainment still had a devoted audience.
The laughter, the guest appearances, the gospel songs, and the familiar Saturday-night atmosphere were not accidents. They were the result of careful creative work by people who understood what their audience loved.
And among those people was Harold Reid, the man with the deepest voice in The Statler Brothers, whose influence extended far beyond the notes that audiences heard him sing.