Sycamore Smith is the
stage name
A stage name or professional name is a pseudonym used by performers, authors, and entertainers—such as actors, comedians, singers, and musicians. The equivalent concept among writers is called a ''nom de plume'' (pen name). Some performers ...
of Marc Smith, a musician from
Marquette, Michigan
Marquette ( ) is the county seat of Marquette County, Michigan, Marquette County and the largest city in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, United States. Located on the shores of Lake Superior, Marquette is a major port known primarily for shippin ...
. Smith, formerly of ''The Muldoons'', has toured the
United States
The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
with his
comic
a medium used to express ideas with images, often combined with text or other visual information. It typically the form of a sequence of panels of images. Textual devices such as speech balloons, captions, and onomatopoeia can indicat ...
brand of
folk music
Folk music is a music genre that includes #Traditional folk music, traditional folk music and the Contemporary folk music, contemporary genre that evolved from the former during the 20th-century folk revival. Some types of folk music may be ca ...
, complete with
derby hat
The bowler hat, also known as a Coke hat, billycock, bob hat, bombín (Spanish) or derby (United States), is a hard felt hat with a rounded crown, originally created by the London hat-makers Thomas and William Bowler in 1849 and commissioned by ...
,
guitar
The guitar is a stringed musical instrument that is usually fretted (with Fretless guitar, some exceptions) and typically has six or Twelve-string guitar, twelve strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming ...
, and gold-plated resonator
kazoo
The kazoo is a musical instrument that adds a ''buzzing'' timbral quality to a player's voice when the player vocalizes into it. It is a type of '' mirliton'' (itself a membranophone), one of a class of instruments that modify the player's v ...
. He is signed to the
Pentimento Music Company.
Though still little known outside of the
Michigan
Michigan ( ) is a peninsular U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, Upper Midwestern United States. It shares water and land boundaries with Minnesota to the northwest, Wisconsin to the west, ...
area, since his stint as lead singer of ''The Muldoons'', Smith has built a reputation as an accomplished
lyricist
A lyricist is a writer who writes lyrics (the spoken words), as opposed to a composer, who writes the song's music which may include but not limited to the melody, harmony, arrangement and accompaniment.
Royalties
A lyricist's income derives ...
.
Smith writes folk songs in an old-fashioned, vaudevillian rural style; songs about heroes and swindlers where characters including Wolfskin Rosie, Legless Paul, and Bobo have adventures that are at times triumphant and other times melancholic. Sycamore uses his first name when referring to himself in his songs (as in ''The Razor Ball'').
Most recently, Smith appeared on an episode of The Happy Birthday Podcast in which he revealed that he would never change his birthday for anything in the whole world.
/ref>
Discography
*''Grosspapa'' (2017)
*''You By Me: Vol. 2'' (with Toh Kay) (2014)
*''Sycotron'' (with Troy Graham) (2012)
*''Redux'' (2011)
*''Sickdom'' (2008)
*''Baboon'' (2007)
*''Sycamore Smith & The Pendulum'' (2006)
*''M...Some Racy Hits!'' (2005)
With The Gray Beast:
*''Demos'' (2015)
*''Syc Nurse (with Wett Nurse)'' (2013)
With The Redettes:
*''Ed'' (2011)
With The Muldoons:
*''You Are Lost & Gone Forever, Dreadful Sorry, the Muldoons'' (2004)
*''The Wreck of the Muldoons'' (2001)
*''Goodnight Muldoons, Goodnight Muldoons, I'll See You In My Dreams'' (recorded in 1997, released in 2011)
*''DiM'' (1994)
*''New Low'' (1993)
Guest Appearances:
*''What Was That Sound?'' by Papa Crow (2012) (Song: Fart like a Pirate)
Compilations:
*''Snickers New Music Search 1990-1991 Presented By Campus Voice Semi Finalists'' (1991) (The Muldoons: Rot)
*''Misery Sessions Vol. 1'' (1994) (The Muldoons: In Something)
*''Misery Sessions Vol. 2'' (1995) (The Muldoons: All Fours)
*''Misery Sessions Vol. 3'' (1996) (The Muldoons: Remote)
*''Misery Four'' (1997) (The Muldoons: Every Single Last One)
*''Misery 5'' (2003) (The Muldoons: Shanty-Town Lullaby)
*''Pentimento Music Company Summer/Fall 2011 Sampler'' (2011) (The Man with the Skeleton Arms) & (The Reaper's Favor)
*''Isolated Culture Vol. 1'' (2013) (The Gray Beast: The Figmoron Tree)
External links
SycamoreSmith.com MySpace page on Sycamore SmithSycamore Smith's old band The MuldoonsMetroTimes article
References
American folk musicians
Musicians from Michigan
Living people
Year of birth missing (living people)
{{US-musician-stub