Biography
A prolific, constantly in-demand drummer whose sensitive, yet authoritative playing has been heard on dozens of sessions, Marvin “Smitty” Smith seems to live in the studio. A onetime Berklee student, he played with Jon Hendricks’ band in New York during the early ’80s, then worked with John Hicks, Bobby Watson, and Slide Hampton. Smith later recorded with Archie Shepp, then with a quintet co-led by Frank Wess and Frank Foster. He did sessions with Hamiett Bluiett, Kevin Eubanks, and David Murray, as well as playing with Ray Brown, Dave Holland, Ron Carter, Hank Jones, and the Jazztet. Smith made his recording debut as a leader in 1987, and also recorded that year with Sonny Rollins and toured with Sting. Since then, Smith’s been constantly featured on sessions, often paired with Ray Drummond. He has several Concord dates available and can also be heard on a countless number of releases by other musicians, ranging in style from bop and mainstream to M-Base and post-bop. ~ Ron Wynn