William Christopher Smither (born November 11, 1944) is an American

folk Folk or Folks may refer to: Sociology *Nation *People * Folklore ** Folk art ** Folk dance ** Folk hero ** Folk music *** Folk metal *** Folk punk *** Folk rock ** Folk religion * Folk taxonomy Arts, entertainment, and media * Folk Plus or Fol ...

/ blues singer, guitarist, and songwriter. His music draws deeply from the blues,

American folk music The term American folk music encompasses numerous music genres, variously known as ''traditional music'', ''traditional folk music'', ''contemporary folk music'', ''vernacular music,'' or ''roots music''. Many traditional songs have been sung ...

, and modern poets and philosophers.

Early life, influences and education

He was born in

Miami Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a coastal metropolis and the county seat of Miami-Dade County in South Florida, United States. With a population of 442,241 at th ...

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, a ...

, United States to Catherine(nee Weaver) and William J. Smither. Although Smither does not himself credit family influence to his talents, uncle

Howard E. Smither Howard Elbert Smither (November 15, 1925, Pittsburg, Kansas – February 1, 2020, Chapel Hill, North Carolina) was an American author, musicologist and historian of music. He is the uncle of musician Chris Smither and younger brother of the late Ro ...

was an award-winning musicologist and author, and father William was a leading professor of Spanish and Mexican culture. The family was well traveled. They lived in

Ecuador Ecuador ( ; ; Quechuan languages, Quechua: ''Ikwayur''; Shuar language, Shuar: ''Ecuador'' or ''Ekuatur''), officially the Republic of Ecuador ( es, República del Ecuador, which literally translates as "Republic of the Equator"; Quechuan ...

and the

Rio Grande Valley The Lower Rio Grande Valley ( es, Valle del Río Grande), commonly known as the Rio Grande Valley or locally as the Valley or RGV, is a region spanning the border of Texas and Mexico located in a floodplain of the Rio Grande near its mouth. The ...

in Texas before settling in

New Orleans New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans

Tulane University Tulane University, officially the Tulane University of Louisiana, is a private research university in New Orleans, Louisiana. Founded as the Medical College of Louisiana in 1834 by seven young medical doctors, it turned into a comprehensive pu ...

. In 1960, Smither and two friends entered and won a folk " Battle of the Bands" at the New Orleans Saenger Theatre. Two years later, Smither graduated from Benjamin Franklin High School in New Orleans and went on to attend the University of the Americas in Mexico City planning to study Latin-American

anthropology Anthropology is the scientific study of humanity, concerned with human behavior, human biology, cultures, societies, and linguistics, in both the present and past, including past human species. Social anthropology studies patterns of be ...

like his father. It was there that a friend played Smither the

Lightnin' Hopkins Samuel John "Lightnin" Hopkins (March 15, 1912 – January 30, 1982) was an American country blues singer, songwriter, guitarist and occasional pianist from Centerville, Texas. In 2010, ''Rolling Stone'' magazine ranked him No. 71 on its list o ...

' record "Blues in My Bottle". After one year in Mexico, Smither returned to New Orleans where he attended Tulane for one year and discovered

Mississippi John Hurt John Smith Hurt (March 8, 1893 – November 2, 1966), better known as Mississippi John Hurt, was an American country blues singer and guitarist. Raised in Avalon, Mississippi, Hurt taught himself to play the guitar around the age of nine. He wo ...

's music through the ''

Blues at Newport 1963 Blues is a music genre and musical form which originated in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s. Blues incorporated spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts, chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads from the Afri ...

'' album on

Vanguard Records Vanguard Recording Society is an American record label set up in 1950 by brothers Maynard and Seymour Solomon in New York City. It was a primarily classical label at its peak in the 1950s and 1960s, but also has a catalogue of recordings by a nu ...

. Hurt and Hopkins would become cornerstone influences on Smither's own music. In 1964, Smither flew to New York City two days prior to boarding the ''

SS United States SS ''United States'' is a retired ocean liner built between 1950 and 1951 for the United States Lines at a cost of (equivalent to $ million in ). The ship is the largest ocean liner constructed entirely in the United States and the fast ...

'' for the five-day transatlantic voyage to Paris for his Junior Year Abroad program, which his father helped administer for Tulane. While in New York, he stopped at

The Gaslight Cafe The Gaslight Cafe was a coffeehouse in the Greenwich Village neighborhood of Manhattan, New York. Also known as The Village Gaslight, it opened in 1958 and became notable as a venue for folk music and other musical acts.Al AronowitzThe Gaslight, ...

to see his hero, Mississippi John Hurt. Once in Paris, Smither often spent time playing his guitar instead of attending classes. Smither returned to New Orleans in 1965. With a few clothes and his guitar, he soon took off for Florida to meet another musical hero, Eric von Schmidt. Smither arrived uninvited at von Schmidt's door; von Schmidt welcomed Smither in, and upon listening to him play, advised him to go north to seek a place in the burgeoning folk scene in New York City or

Cambridge, Massachusetts Cambridge ( ) is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. As part of the Greater Boston, Boston metropolitan area, the cities population of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 U.S. census was 118,403, making it the fourth most ...

. Smither followed this advice, and arrived at Club 47 in

Harvard Square Harvard Square is a triangular plaza at the intersection of Massachusetts Avenue, Brattle Street and John F. Kennedy Street near the center of Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. The term "Harvard Square" is also used to delineate the busin ...

several weeks later only to find von Schmidt performing. Von Schmidt invited Smither on stage to play three songs.

Professional career

Smither soon began writing and performing his own songs. He achieved some local notice and by 1967 was featured on the cover of ''The Broadside of Boston'' magazine. In 1968, music photographer David Gahr's book, ''The Face of Folk Music'' featured Smither's picture. By 1969, after living in several places around Cambridge, Smither moved to Garfield Street in Cambridge and often visited Dick Waterman's house where

Fred McDowell Fred McDowell (January 12, 1904 – July 3, 1972), known by his stage name Mississippi Fred McDowell, was an American hill country blues singer and guitar player. Career McDowell was born in Rossville, Tennessee, United States. His parents were ...

Son House Edward James "Son" House Jr. (March 21, 1902His date of birth is a matter of some debate. House alleged that he was middle-aged during World War I and that he was 79 in 1965, which would make his date of birth around 1886. However, all legal re ...

and other blues musicians were known to congregate. It was there that Smither first performed his song "Love You Like a Man" for Waterman's friend,

Bonnie Raitt Bonnie Lynn Raitt (; born November 8, 1949) is an American blues singer and guitarist. In 1971, Raitt released her self-titled debut album. Following this, she released a series of critically acclaimed roots-influenced albums that incorporate ...

. That summer, he appeared at the Philadelphia Folk Festival for the first time. In 1970, he released his first album '' I'm a Stranger Too!'' on Poppy Records, followed by ''Don't It Drag On'' the next year. He recorded a follow up, ''Honeysuckle Dog'', in 1973 for

United Artists Records United Artists Records was an American record label founded by Max E. Youngstein of United Artists in 1957 to issue movie soundtracks. The label expanded into other genres, such as easy listening, jazz, pop, and R&B. History Genres In 1959, ...

but Smither was dropped from the label and the album went unreleased until 2004, when it was issued by

Tomato Records The Tomato Music Co. Ltd., also known as Tomato Records, is an American independent record label founded in New York City in 1977 by music manager Kevin Eggers. It was a successor to his previous record labels Utopia and Poppy, the label was self- ...

. Despite no longer having a recording contract, Smither continued to tour and became a fixture in New England's folk clubs. In 1972, a longstanding working relationship with Bonnie Raitt took shape as Raitt's cover of "Love Me Like a Man" appeared on her second album '' Give It Up''. Raitt has since made it a signature song of her live performances, and the song has been included on several of her live albums and collections. She has openly expressed admiration for Smither's songwriting and guitar playing, once calling Smither "my Eric Clapton." In 1973, Raitt covered Smither's song "I Feel the Same" on her '' Takin' My Time'' album. Following this mixed early success, Smither's recording and songwriting career had a long fallow period while he struggled personally. In his official biography, Smither is quoted: "I was basically drunk for 12 years, and somehow I managed to climb out of it; I don't know why." Smither began to re-emerge as a performer in the late 1970s, and gained a few press notices. In 1979, he was featured in Eric von Schmidt and Jim Rooney's book, ''Baby Let Me Follow You Down'',Von Schmidt, Eric and Jim Rooney: ''Baby Let Me Follow You Down: The Illustrated History Of The Cambridge Folk Years''. Garden City, New York: Anchor Press / Doubleday & Co. 1979 (2nd edition 1994: Univ. of Massachusetts Press; . (pp 276–277) and the next year in the UK's ''

Melody Maker ''Melody Maker'' was a British weekly music magazine, one of the world's earliest music weeklies; according to its publisher, IPC Media, the earliest. It was founded in 1926, largely as a magazine for dance band musicians, by Leicester-born ...

'' magazine. In 1984, Smither's belated third album, ''It Ain't Easy'' was released on

Adelphi Records Adelphi Records is an American independent record label founded in 1968 and incorporated in 1970 by Gene Rosenthal. History The label name was crafted by Rosenthal to suggest a combination of the Greek oracle, nearby Adelphi, Maryland, as well as ...

, which the ''Boston Phoenix'' acoustic music critic Jon Herman called "the naked and sophisticated blues album that Eric von Schmidt, Rolf Cahn, Spider John Koerner, and other white revivalists groped for more than 20 years ago, at the dawn of the folk revival." He recorded his next album, ''Another Way to Find You'', in front of a live audience at Soundtrack Studio in Boston and in 1991 released it on

Flying Fish Records Flying Fish Records was a record label founded in Chicago in 1974 that specialized in folk, blues, and country music. In the 1990s the label was sold to Rounder Records. Bruce Kaplan, the label's founder, was a native of Chicago and the son of ...

. Later that year he received a

Boston Music Award Founded in 1987, the Boston Music Awards are a set of music awards given annually that showcase talent in the Boston, Massachusetts, area. Past shows have featured such notable talent as Aerosmith, Paula Cole, Esperanza Spalding, Boston, Ruby ...

. Two years later, he was invited to compose music for a documentary on Southern folk artists and met Southern folk artist Mose T. In 1993, Smither recorded and released his fifth album, ''Happier Blue'' (Flying Fish), which earned Smither a National American Independent Record Distributors NAIRD award. Another two years later, he released ''Up on the Lowdown'' (

Hightone Records HighTone Records was an American independent record label based in Oakland, California, United States. HighTone specialized in American roots music including, country, rockabilly, western swing, blues and gospel. The label was created by Larry ...

), which was recorded at the Hit Shack in

Austin, Texas Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of Texas, as well as the county seat, seat and largest city of Travis County, Texas, Travis County, with portions extending into Hays County, Texas, Hays and Williamson County, Texas, Williamson co ...

. This was the first of three records produced by

Stephen Bruton Turner Stephen Bruton (November 7, 1948 – May 9, 2009) was an American actor and musician. Background Born in Wilmington, Delaware, United States, he moved with his family to Texas at the age of two. He fell into the Fort Worth music scene afte ...

. Also that year, the ''Chris Smither Songbook I'' was published. In 1996, he began recording live concerts in the US and Ireland for what would later become a live CD. The next year, he released his seventh album, ''Small Revelations'' (Hightone), and filmed an instructional guitar video for Happy Traum's Homespun Tapes in

Woodstock, New York Woodstock is a town in Ulster County, New York, United States, in the northern part of the county, northwest of Kingston, NY. It lies within the borders of the Catskill Park. The population was 5,884 at the 2010 census, down from 6,241 in 200 ...

. In 1997, Smither's music was used exclusively on the entire score of the short film, ''The Ride'', directed by John Flanders and produced by Flanders's company, RoughPine Productions. Flanders plays a folk-singer in the film who is largely influenced by Smither. ''The Ride'' won the Audience Best Film Award at the 2002 Moscow Film Festival. 1998 was a year of small breakthroughs and the start of a fertile songwriting and recording period for Smither. HighTone reissued ''Another Way to Find You'' and ''Happier Blue'' and

Jorma Kaukonen Jorma Ludwik Kaukonen, Jr. (; ; born December 23, 1940) is an American blues, folk, and rock guitarist. Kaukonen performed with Jefferson Airplane and still performs regularly on tour with Hot Tuna, which started as a side project with bassi ...

invited Smither to teach at his Fur Peace Ranch in Ohio. In addition, Smither toured with

Dave Alvin David Albert Alvin (born November 11, 1955) is an American singer-songwriter, guitarist and producer. He is a former and founding member of the roots rock band the Blasters. Alvin has recorded and performed as a solo artist since the late 1980s ...

Ramblin' Jack Elliott Ramblin' Jack Elliott (born Elliot Charles Adnopoz; August 1, 1931) is an American folk singer and songwriter. Life and career Elliott was born in 1931 in Brooklyn, New York, United States, the son of Florence (Rieger) and Abraham Adnopoz, a ...

and Tom Russell as Hightone's Monsters of Folk tour, and

Emmylou Harris Emmylou Harris (born April 2, 1947) is an American singer, songwriter and musician. She has released dozens of albums and singles over the course of her career and has won 14 Grammys, the Polar Music Prize, and numerous other honors, includin ...

recorded his song "Slow Surprise", for the ''

Horse Whisperer Natural horsemanship is a collective term for a variety of horse training techniques which have seen rapid growth in popularity since the 1980s. The techniques vary in their precise tenets but generally share principles of "a kinder and gentler ...

'' soundtrack. In 1999, Smither released ''Drive You Home Again'' (HighTone). Also in 1999 he went to New Zealand and played at the

Sweetwaters Music Festival Sweetwaters Music Festival was a series of events held between 1980 and 1999, at venues such as a farm in Ngāruawāhia, then further north on a farm near Pukekawa, and finally at South Auckland, New Zealand. Events *1980 - Ngāruawāhia *1981 ...

. In 2000, he released, ''Live As I'll Ever Be'' (HighTone), comprising the live recordings made two years earlier. His song "No Love Today" was featured in the

Bravo Bravo(s) or The Bravo(s) may refer to: Arts and entertainment Music Groups and labels * Bravo (band), a Russian rock band * Bravo (Spanish group), represented Spain at Eurovision 1984 *Bravo Music, an American concert band music publishing compan ...

network program ''Tale Lights''. The following year, songwriter

Peter Case Peter Case (born April 5, 1954) is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist. His career is wide-ranging, from rock n' roll and blues, to folk rock and solo acoustic performance. Biography Early career Case was born in Buffalo, New York a ...

invited Smither to be part of a Mississippi John Hurt tribute record for which he contributed the opening track, "Frankie and Albert". In 2003, ''Train Home'' was released on Hightone. In 2004, jazz singer

Diana Krall Diana Jean Krall (born November 16, 1964) is a Canadian jazz pianist and singer known for her contralto vocals. She has sold more than 15 million albums worldwide, including over six million in the US. On December 11, 2009, '' Billboard'' maga ...

covered "Love Me Like A Man" on her CD, ''The Girl in the Other Room''. In September 2006, Smither released '' Leave the Light On'' ( Signature Sounds Recordings) produced by David 'Goody' Goodrich. His song, "Origin of Species," from the CD was named No. 42 on ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first known for its co ...

'' Magazine's list of 100 Best Songs of the Year 2006. Smither was also named as 2007's Outstanding Folk Act by the

Boston Music Awards Founded in 1987, the Boston Music Awards are a set of music awards given annually that showcase talent in the Boston, Massachusetts, area. Past shows have featured such notable talent as Aerosmith, Paula Cole, Esperanza Spalding, Boston, Ruby ...

. That year he also contributed an essay entitled "Become a Parent" to the book ''Sixty Things to Do When You Turn Sixty'' (Ronnie Sellers Productions). And he narrated a two-CD audio book recording of ''Will Rogers' Greatest Hits'' (Logofon Recordings). Smither released a 78-minute live concert DVD, ''One More Night,'' (Signature Sounds) in February 2008. In May 2009, Smither's short story "Leroy Purcell" was published in ''Amplified'' (

Melville House Publishing Melville House Publishing is an American independent publisher of literary fiction, non-fiction, and poetry. The company was founded in 2001 and is run by the husband-and-wife team of Dennis Loy Johnson and Valerie Merians in Hoboken, New Jersey. ...

), a collection of fiction by fifteen prominent performing songwriters. Smither's thirteenth CD ''Time Stands Still'' was released on September 29, 2009, on Signature Sounds. On this, his most stripped down recording in some time, Smither worked with just two accompanists after the same trio had played a rare band performance – a non-solo setup required to play a Netherlands festival. About the recording Smither says, "We're the only three guys on this record, and most of the songs only have three parts going on. We had a freewheeling feeling at that festival gig, and we managed to make a lot of that same feeling happen in this record." On February 8, 2011, Smither was profiled in ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' "Frequent Flier" column, entitled, "The Drawbacks of a Modest Celebrity," in which he recounts anecdotes from his four decades as a traveling musician. Always wanting to treat his fans well, in 2011 Smither put out two fan projects: a collection of live tracks from newly discovered concert recordings from the 1980s–1990s titled ''Lost and Found'' and the rollicking EP, ''What I Learned in School,'' on which Smither covered six classic rock and roll songs. Smither followed these fan-projects with ''Hundred Dollar Valentine'' (2012), a studio record rated with five stars by the magazine MOJO. With longtime producer David "Goody" Goodrich at the helm, this collection sported the unmistakable sound Smither has made his trademark: fingerpicked acoustic guitar and evocative sonic textures meshed with spare, brilliant songs, delivered in a bone-wise, hard-won voice. ''

American Songwriter ''American Songwriter'' is a bimonthly magazine covering songwriting. Established in 1984, it features interviews, songwriting tips, news, reviews and lyric contest. The magazine is based in Nashville, Tennessee. History The ''American Songwr ...

'' magazine published Smither's blog about making his first record of all original material in his four-decade career. In 2014, Chris Smither marked fifty years of songwriting with the release of ''Still on the Levee'' – a double-CD retrospective. Recorded in New Orleans at the Music Shed, this career-spanning project features fresh new takes on 24 iconic songs from his vast career – including "Devil Got Your Man," the first song he penned, on up to several of his most recent originals. The band included Billy Conway on drums. Coming out at the same time as ''Still on the Levee'', the book ''Chris Smither Lyrics 1966–2012'' features his complete set of lyrics complemented by select images and performance memorabilia from his decades-long career. To commemorate his career to-date, on September 30, 2014, Signature Sounds released an all-star tribute record (''Link of Chain: A Songwriters' Tribute to Chris Smither'') including a list of artists offering their takes on some Smither favorites including

Josh Ritter Josh Ritter (born October 21, 1976) is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and author who performs and records with the Royal City Band. Ritter is known for his distinctive Americana style and narrative lyrics. In 2006, he was named one of ...

, Bonnie Raitt,

Loudon Wainwright III Loudon Snowden Wainwright III (born September 5, 1946) is an American singer-songwriter and occasional actor. He has released twenty-six studio albums, four live albums, and six compilations. Some of his best-known songs include "The Swimmin ...

, Dave Alvin,

, Tim O'Brien, and

Patty Larkin Patty Larkin (born June 19, 1951) is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist based in Boston, Massachusetts. She is a founding member of Four Bitchin' Babes. Her music has been described as folk-urban pop music. Life and career Patty Lark ...

. The 2018 release ''Call Me Lucky'' also included Conway on drums.

In pop culture

Several of author Linda Barnes’ books make reference to Chris Smither. ''Keys to Tetuan'' by Israeli novelist Moshe Benarroch uses a line from Smither's song "I Am The Ride" on the opening page.

Discography

Albums

* 1970 – '' I'm a Stranger Too!'' * 1971 – '' Don't It Drag On'' * 1984 – '' It Ain't Easy'' * 1991 – '' Another Way to Find You'' * 1993 – ''

Happier Blue ''Happier Blue'' is an album by American singer/songwriter Chris Smither, released in 1993. It won a National American Independent Record Distributors (NAIRD) award. Reception Writing for Allmusic, critic Richard Meyer wrote of the album "All th ...

'' * 1995 – ''

Up on the Lowdown '' Up on the Lowdown'' is an album by the American musician Chris Smither, released in 1995. It was recorded at The Hit Shack, in Austin, Texas. " What Was It You Wanted" is a cover of the Bob Dylan song. Critical reception The ''St. Petersburg ...

'' * 1997 – ''

Small Revelations ''Small Revelations'' is an album by the American singer/songwriter Chris Smither, released in 1997. Emmylou Harris recorded “Slow Surprise” for the ''Horse Whisperer'' soundtrack CD. Reception Music critic Robert Christgau Robert Thoma ...

'' * 1999 – ''

Drive You Home Again ''Drive You Home Again'' is an album by American singer/songwriter Chris Smither, released in 1999. Reception Writing for Allmusic, critic Jeff Burger wrote of the album "Smither's gravelly, instantly recognizable voice is a perfect fit for his ...

'' * 2000 – '' Live as I'll Ever Be'' * 2003 – ''

Train Home ''Train Home'' is an album by American singer/songwriter Chris Smither, released in 2003. Guest Bonnie Raitt provides slide guitar and backup vocals on "Desolation Row". Reception Writing for Allmusic, critic Hal Horowitz called the release "a q ...

'' * 2005 – ''

Honeysuckle Dog ''Honeysuckle Dog'' is an album by Chris Smither originally recorded in 1973 for United Artists Records but released in 2005. The album was not released until 2005 because the record label was purchased by Transamerica, which culled over half th ...

'' (recorded in 1973) * 2006 – '' Leave the Light On'' * 2009 – '' Time Stands Still'' * 2011 – ''

Lost and Found A lost and found (American English) or lost property (British English), or lost articles (also Canadian English) is an office in a public building or area where people can go to retrieve lost articles that may have been found by others. Frequen ...

'' * 2012 – '' Hundred Dollar Valentine'' * 2014 – '' Still on the Levee'' * 2018 – ''

Call Me Lucky ''Call Me Lucky'' is a 2015 American documentary film directed by Bobcat Goldthwait about the life of satirist, author, and performer Barry Crimmins. Synopsis ''Call Me Lucky'' details the life of stand-up comedian and activist Barry Crimmins, ...

'' * 2020 – ''

More From The Levee More or Mores may refer to: Computing * MORE (application), outline software for Mac OS * more (command), a shell command * MORE protocol, a routing protocol * Missouri Research and Education Network Music Albums * ''More!'' (album), by Booka ...

Live recordings

* ''Stuck in Amber'', Bethlehem, Pennsylvania (1985) * ''Chris Smither Live at McCabe's Guitar Shop 3/14/03'' (2003)

Compilation albums

* ''Blues Live From Mountain Stage'' (''The Devil's Real'') (1995) * ''Avalon Blues: A Tribute to the Music of Mississippi John Hurt'' (''Frankie and Albert'') (2001) * ''Raise the Roof – A Retrospective'' (''Winsome Smile'') (2004) * ''Various – 89.3 The Current'' by Minnesota Public Radio (''Train Home'') (2005) * ''A Case for Case: A Tribute to the Songs of Peter Case'' (''Cold Trail Blues'') (2006) * ''Tales from the Tavern, Vol.1'' (''Train Home'') (2006) * ''True Folk'' (''Step It Up and Go'' with

) (2006)

References

External links

Official web site

NPR Interview
{{DEFAULTSORT:Smither, Chris 1944 births Living people American male singers American blues singers American blues guitarists American male guitarists American folk guitarists American rock guitarists Fast Folk artists American folk musicians Musicians from Miami Blues musicians from New Orleans People from Arlington, Massachusetts Songwriters from Louisiana Songwriters from Florida Singers from Louisiana Guitarists from Florida Guitarists from Louisiana 20th-century American guitarists 20th-century American male musicians Signature Sounds artists Flying Fish Records artists American male songwriters