In the late 1950s and early 1960s, he had a string of hit records produced by Lee Hazlewood which were noted for their characteristically "twangy" guitar sound, including "Rebel-'Rouser", "Peter Gunn", and "Because They're Young".

His guitar style influenced the Ventures, the Shadows, the Beatles (especially their lead guitarist George Harrison), Bruce Springsteen, Steve Earle, and Marty Stuart.

They performed and appeared on radio stations in Phoenix and joined Buddy Long's Western Melody Boys, playing country music in and around the city.

[10][11][12] Eddy was not happy with his singing voice,[6] and he devised a technique of playing lead lines on his guitar's bass strings to produce a low, reverberant "twangy" sound instead.

[1] At the age of 19, he had acquired a 1957 Chet Atkins model Gretsch 6120 guitar from Ziggie's Music in Phoenix,[1] and in November 1957, he recorded an instrumental piece, "Movin' n' Groovin'", which he co-wrote with Hazlewood.

[13] His backing band included saxophonist Steve Douglas, pianist Larry Knechtel, and bassist Al Casey.

The opening riff, borrowed from Chuck Berry's "Brown Eyed Handsome Man", was in turn copied a few years later by the Beach Boys on "Surfin' U.S.A."[15][unreliable source?]

The follow-up, "Rebel-Rouser", featured a saxophone overdubbed by Los Angeles session musician Gil Bernal, and yells and handclaps by doo-wop group the Rivingtons.

[citation needed] According to writer Richie Unterberger, "The singles, of which 'Peter Gunn', 'Cannonball', 'Shazam', and 'Forty Miles of Bad Road' were probably the best, also did their part to help keep the raunchy spirit of rock and roll alive during a time in which it was in danger of being watered down.

In the 1960s, Eddy launched an acting career, appearing in such films as Because They're Young, A Thunder of Drums, The Wild Westerners, Kona Coast, and The Savage Seven.

[19][20] In 1961, he signed a three-year contract with Paul Anka's production company, Camy, whose recordings were issued by RCA Victor.

Eddy's 1962 single release, "(Dance With The) Guitar Man", co-written with Hazlewood, sold a million copies and earned his third gold disc.

[4] A recording of "You Are My Sunshine", featuring Willie Nelson, Waylon Jennings, and Eddy's third wife Deed, appeared in the country charts in 1977.

Guest musicians included John Fogerty,[4] George Harrison,[4][1] Paul McCartney,[4][1] Ry Cooder,[1] James Burton, David Lindley, Phil Pickett, Steve Cropper,[1] and original Rebels Larry Knechtel and Jim Horn.

Eddy was the lead guitarist on Foreigner's 1995 hit "Until the End of Time",[1] which reached the top 10 on the Billboard Adult Contemporary chart.

[24][1] In 2015, Eddy participated in overdubbing sessions for the Elvis Presley and Royal Philharmonic Orchestra (RPO) remix album If I Can Dream, adding guitar to "Bridge Over Troubled Water" and "An American Trilogy".

[26][27] Eddy later expressed disappointment that some of his guitar playing was cut from the two songs, which he assumed happened because it may have interfered with the orchestral focus of the album project.

[28] In 2016, Eddy participated in an extensive interview with the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum as part of their "Nashville Cats" series.

[31][28] In an interview with Music Radar that year, Eddy was unsure if he would continue recording or touring after conditions related to the coronavirus pandemic improved; however, he stated that he was working on a documentary and considering writing an autobiography.

[32][2] In 1987, Eddy won his first and only Grammy award for Best Rock Instrumental Performance for his re-recording of "Peter Gunn" with Art of Noise.

[2] In 1996, he received a second Grammy nomination, this time for Best Country Instrumental Performance, for his contribution as a "featured artist" on Doc Watson's "Thunder Road/Sugarfoot Rag".

[35] In 1997, Eddy was inducted into Guitar Center's "Rockwalk", an honor similar to the Hollywood Walk of Fame bestowed exclusively to legendary rock and pop musicians.

[4] In the 1990s, Eddy's songs appeared in the soundtracks of popular films including Forrest Gump, Natural Born Killers, Broken Arrow, Milk Money, and Scream 2.