Claydes "Charles" Smith (born Claydes Eugene Smith;
September 6, 1948 – June 20, 2006) was an American
musician
A musician is someone who Composer, composes, Conducting, conducts, or Performing arts#Performers, performs music. According to the United States Employment Service, "musician" is a general Terminology, term used to designate a person who fol ...
best known as co-founder and lead
guitarist
A guitarist (or a guitar player) is a person who plays the guitar. Guitarists may play a variety of guitar family instruments such as classical guitars, acoustic guitars, electric guitars, and bass guitars. Some guitarists accompany themselve ...
of the group
Kool & the Gang
Kool & the Gang is an American Rhythm and blues, R&B, soul music, soul, and funk band formed in Jersey City, New Jersey, in 1964. Its founding members include brothers Robert "Kool" Bell and Ronald Bell (musician), Ronald Bell (also known as " ...
.
Biography
Early life
Born in
, he was introduced to
jazz guitar
Jazz guitar may refer to either a type of electric guitar or a guitar playing style in jazz, using Guitar amplifier, electric amplification to increase the volume of acoustic guitars.
In the early 1930s, jazz musicians sought to amplify their ...
by his father in the early 1960s.
Kool & the Gang
In the late 1960s, he joined with
Ronald Bell (later Khalis Bayyan),
Robert "Kool" Bell
Robert Earl "Kool" Bell (born October 8, 1950), also known by the name Muhammad Bayyan, is an American musician, singer and songwriter. He is the last surviving founding member of the American R&B, soul, funk and disco band Kool & the Gang.
...
, George Brown, Dennis Thomas and Robert "Spike" Mickens to become Kool & the Gang. His cool jazz stylings and octave runs, reminiscent of
Wes Montgomery
John Leslie "Wes" Montgomery (March 6, 1923 – June 15, 1968) was an American jazz guitarist. Montgomery was known for his unusual technique of plucking the strings with the side of his thumb and for his extensive use of octaves, which gave him a ...
but uniquely his own, enriched the music of the group. His playing on the hit "
Summer Madness" is a fine example of his work.
Kool & the Gang blended
jazz
Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...
,
funk
Funk is a music genre that originated in African-American communities in the mid-1960s when musicians created a rhythmic, danceable new form of music through a mixture of various music genres that were popular among African-Americans in the ...
,
R&B, and
pop
Pop or POP may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media
* Pop music, a musical genre
Artists
* POP, a Japanese idol group now known as Gang Parade
* Pop! (British group), a UK pop group
* Pop! featuring Angie Hart, an Australian band
Album ...
. The group remained popular from the 1960s through the 1980s.
Smith stopped touring in January 2006 due to illness.
In 2024, Smith was posthumously selected for induction into the
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (RRHOF), also simply referred to as the Rock Hall, is a museum and hall of fame located in downtown Cleveland, Ohio, United States, on the shore of Lake Erie. The museum documents the history of rock music and the ...
, as a member of Kool & the Gang.
Personal life and death
Smith's family included six children: Claydes A. Smith, Justin Smith, Aaron Corbin, August Williams, Uranus Smith-Garay, and Tyteen Humes. He died in
Maplewood, New Jersey
Maplewood is a township in Essex County in the U.S. state of New Jersey. The township is an inner-ring suburban bedroom community of New York City in the New York metropolitan area. As of the 2020 United States census, the township's popula ...
, on June 20, 2006, aged 57. He is buried in
Westfield, New Jersey
Westfield is a Town (New Jersey), town in Union County, New Jersey, Union County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey, located southwest of Manhattan. As of the 2020 United States census, the town's population was 31,032, an increase of 716 (+2.4% ...
's
Fairview Cemetery.
Discography
Studio albums
Live albums
Singles
Awards and nominations
;
Grammy Awards
The Grammy Awards, stylized as GRAMMY, and often referred to as The Grammys, are awards presented by The Recording Academy of the United States to recognize outstanding achievements in music. They are regarded by many as the most prestigious a ...
!
, -
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1975
It was also declared the ''International Women's Year'' by the United Nations and the European Architectural Heritage Year by the Council of Europe.
Events
January
* January 1 – Watergate scandal (United States): John N. Mitchell, H. R. ...
, ''
Light of Worlds
''Light of Worlds'' is the fifth studio album, and seventh album of new material by the American R&B group Kool & the Gang. Released in 1974, it was later remastered by Polygram and was a second success for the band, reaching number 16 in the R ...
''
,
Grammy Award for Best R&B Instrumental Performance The Grammy Award
The Grammy Awards, stylized as GRAMMY, and often referred to as The Grammys, are awards presented by The Recording Academy of the United States to recognize outstanding achievements in music. They are regarded by many as the ...
,
, rowspan="2",
, -
, align=center,
1979
Events
January
* January 1
** United Nations Secretary-General Kurt Waldheim heralds the start of the ''International Year of the Child''. Many musicians donate to the ''Music for UNICEF Concert'' fund, among them ABBA, who write the song ...
, "
Saturday Night Fever (soundtrack)
''Saturday Night Fever'' is the soundtrack double album (in 2 Long Play records) from the 1977 film '' Saturday Night Fever'' starring John Travolta. The soundtrack was released on November 15, 1977 by RSO Records. Prior to the release of '' Thr ...
"
,
Grammy Award for Album of the Year
The Grammy Award for Album of the Year is an award presented by the The Recording Academy, National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to "honor artistic achievement, technical proficiency and overall excellence in the r ...
,
, -
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, Claydes Charles
1948 births
2006 deaths
American funk guitarists
American male guitarists
Musicians from Jersey City, New Jersey
Kool & the Gang members
African-American guitarists
20th-century American musicians
Guitarists from New Jersey
20th-century American guitarists
20th-century American male musicians
de:Claydes Charles Smith