Nashville 99

"Nashville 99" was one of those mid-season replacements that didn't survive for very long, but I remember enjoying its brief time on the air. Claude Akins as the no-nonsense Nashville cop Lt. Stoney Huff (badge number 99), played well against Jerry Reed as partner Detective Trace Mayne, who provided comic (and musical) relief and would star just a month later in the classic "Smokey and the Bandit." Though the show took plenty of advantage of its Nashville setting with appearances by country music stars like Charley Pride, Mel Tillis, Chet Atkins and Tammy Wynette, it also showed other sides of Tennessee life, and made for an atypical cop show.

One episode that I still remember was the haunting drama "Joldy," featuring veteran character actor Pat Hingle. As Huff and Mayne hunt for two brothers on a crime spree, the brothers are in turn hampered by their delusional father (Hingle), who never recovered from the death of his youngest son Joldy and believes he's still alive.

Earle Hagen provided the score, including the catchy theme song sung by Reed. Hearing it again for the first time in over 30 years on You Tube of all places, it was just as I remembered it. I only wish I could find a recording of it somewhere.

The show only lasted for four episodes before heading off to television oblivion. It's unlikely that the show will ever find its way to DVD, and perhaps my memory of it is subjective, but I would be curious to view it today and see how it fares with the passage of time.