Early in his career he was a member of the original Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section and later worked as a session musician in Nashville for over three decades.
He recorded with Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, Charley Pride, Jerry Lee Lewis, Ray Stevens, Kenny Rogers, George Jones and many others.
He recorded with non-country artists as well, including Henry Mancini, Al Hirt, Johnny Mathis, and the Boston Pops Orchestra.
His father, Larry Carrigan, was a painting contractor who supported his son's interest in music and bought the youngster a set of drums.
When Carrigan was 15, his father began recruiting boys to form a band with Jerry, his idea being that money could be made playing for college parties– four major universities were within an easy drive from Florence.
The young players developed their skills and gained experience as Larry drove them to various gigs in the southeast in a station wagon pulling a trailer full of band equipment.
As time passed, more future talents frequented those rooms including Spooner Oldham, Terry Thompson, Dan Penn and Donnie Fritts.
[5] With primitive mono tape machines, he created FAME studios (an acronym for "Florence Alabama Music Enterprises")[6] Hall's house band included Carrigan, Putnam and Briggs as the foundation of the rhythm section consisting of drums, bass and piano.
[3] Before the recording session started, Jarvis, Rick Hall, Jerry Carrigan, Norbert Putnam and David Briggs gathered in the control room to listen to demo vocal by Paul McCartney.
[3] The Muscle Shoals boys were invited to an exclusive party for the Beatles at the British Embassy but had to decline because Hall had them scheduled for recording sessions the next day.
He hired a new group of session players, later known affectionately as "The Swampers" consisting of Barry Beckett, Roger Hawkins, David Hood, Jimmy Johnson, who reached unprecedented success.
[4] "The first year I was in Nashville, I did about ninety percent of the sessions that were done at RCA,"[4] Top producers such as Owen Bradley, Chet Atkins, and Billy Sherrill and Jerry Kennedy all hired him for record dates.
[4] Carrigan recorded with Henry Mancini, Joan Baez, the Boston Pops, Al Hirt, Johnny Mathis, Andy Williams and Tom Jones.
Through his association with Nashville producer Larry Butler, he worked with Sammy Davis Jr., Don McLean, Nana Mouskouri, Kenny Rogers, Paul Anka, Bobby Vinton, Steve Lawrence/Eydie Gormé, Debby Boone, Wayne Newton, and John Denver.