Richard Smith (born 12 December 1971) is an English guitarist.

Biography

Smith was born in

Beckenham Beckenham () is a town in Greater London, England, within the London Borough of Bromley. Prior to 1965, it was part of Kent. It is situated north of Elmers End and Eden Park, east of Penge, south of Lower Sydenham and Bellingham, and west ...

, England. He picked up the guitar when he was five years old after watching his father playing an Atkins and Travis version of "Down South Blues". He begged his father, a longtime Atkins admirer, to introduce him to the fingerpicking style. Smith soon became a child prodigy on the guitar. As a kid he could play the entire discographies of

Django Reinhardt Jean Reinhardt (23 January 1910 – 16 May 1953), known by his Romani people, Romani nickname Django ( or ), was a Belgium, Belgian-born Romani jazz guitarist and composer in France. He was one of the first major jazz talents to emerge in Europe ...

and

Chet Atkins Chester Burton Atkins (June 20, 1924 – June 30, 2001), also known as "Mister Guitar" and "the Country Gentleman", was an American musician who, along with Owen Bradley and Bob Ferguson (musician), Bob Ferguson, helped create the Nash ...

. At the age of 11 he shared the stage with his idol when Atkins invited Smith to play with him at

Her Majesty's Theatre His Majesty's Theatre is a West End theatre situated in the Haymarket, London, Haymarket in the City of Westminster, London. The building, designed by Charles J. Phipps, was constructed in 1897 for the actor-manager Herbert Beerbohm Tree, who ...

in London. He was also influenced by guitarist

Big Jim Sullivan James George Tomkins (14 February 1941 – 2 October 2012), known professionally as Big Jim Sullivan, was an English guitarist. Best known as a session guitarist, he was one of the most in-demand studio musicians in the UK in the 1960s ...

and briefly studied jazz guitar with Shane Hill at Warlingham School, Surrey. He formed the Richard Smith Guitar Trio with his brothers Rob and Sam before marrying American cellist Julie Adams and moving to Nashville, Tennessee in 1999. He founded the Hot Club of Nashville, a jam band with a varying lineup that included John Jorgenson, Pat Bergeson, Bryan Sutton, and

Stuart Duncan Stuart Ian Duncan (born April 14, 1964) is an American bluegrass musician who plays the fiddle, mandolin, guitar, and banjo. Life Duncan was born in Quantico, Virginia, and raised in Santa Paula, California, where he played in the school ...

, combining

gypsy jazz Gypsy jazz (also known as sinti jazz, gypsy swing, jazz manouche or hot club-style jazz) is a musical idiom inspired by the Romani people, Romani jazz guitarist Django Reinhardt, Jean "Django" Reinhardt (1910–1953), in conjunction with the Fr ...

and

western swing Western swing, country jazz or smooth country is a subgenre of American country music that originated in the late 1920s in the West and South among the region's Western string bands. It is dance music, often with an up-tempo beat, which att ...

. Smith performs as a solo act and a duo with his wife. His repertoire includes

country A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. When referring to a specific polity, the term "country" may refer to a sovereign state, state with limited recognition, constituent country, ...

, bluegrass, blues, ragtime,

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

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 ...

, pop, and classical music.

Gear

Smith plays a signature instrument made by luthier Kirk Sand from

Laguna Beach, California Laguna Beach (; ''Laguna'', Spanish language, Spanish for "Lagoon") is a city in Orange County, California, United States. Located in Southern California along the Pacific Ocean, this seaside resort city has a mild year-round climate, scenic c ...

. The Richard Smith Model is an acoustic-electric

nylon-string guitar The classical guitar, also known as Spanish guitar, is a member of the guitar family used in classical music and other styles. An acoustic wooden string instrument with strings made of gut or nylon, it is a precursor of the modern steel-string a ...

. He also endorses steel-string models by Stonebridge Guitars. He prefers German-built AER amplifiers for his guitars. Richard use
D'Addario
strings and accessories.

Awards and honors

Smith won the National Fingerstyle Guitar Championship at the Walnut Valley Festival in

Winfield, Kansas Winfield is a city and county seat of Cowley County, Kansas, United States. It is situated along the Walnut River in South Central Kansas. As of the 2020 census, the population of the city was 11,777. It is home to Southwestern College. ...

in 2001. The National Thumbpickers Hall of Fame named him Thumbpicker of the Year in 2008 and 2021 and inducted him into the Hall of Fame in 2009. He received the Golden Thumbpick Award by the Association of Fingerstyle Guitarists.

Discography

Solo: * 2002: ''Requests'' * 2006: ''Fingerstyle Artistry'' ( Mel Bay DVD) * 2007: ''Slim Pickin * 2014: ''Mastering Thumbpicking with Richard Smith'' ( Homespun Music Instruction DVD) * 2017: ''One Man Roadshow'' Richard_Smith_Rietberg_2006

With The Richard Smith Guitar Trio: * 1996: ''The Richard Smith Guitar Trio'' * 1997: ''Welcome to Smithville'' * 1998: ''Strike it Rich!'' * 1999: ''Out of Bounds'' With Jim Nichols * 2003: ''Live at Boulevard Music'' With Julie Adams * 2001: ''Living Out a Dream'' * 2009: ''Seems Like Old Times'' With Aaron Till * 2004: ''Out of Nowhere'' With Joscho Stephan: * 2007: ''Live in Concert'' (Acoustic Music Records DVD, special guest appearance) With Joscho Stephan: & Rory Hoffman: * Transatlantic Guitar Trio

References

External links

Official site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, Richard 1971 births Living people English country guitarists English jazz guitarists English folk guitarists English male guitarists 21st-century English guitarists 21st-century English male musicians