Mr. Smolin--Vocals, Keys Probyn Gregory--Guitar Paul Lacques--Lap Steel Vince Meghrouni--Saxophone, Flute, Harmonica Miles Mosley--Bass Brandon Jay--Drums Patria Jacobs--Backing Vocals Harvey Canter--Backing Vocals Chris Rael--Backing Vocals Marc Doten--recording, mixing, and mastering
Influences
Gilbert O' Sullivan, Mr. & Miss Richard & Karen Carpenter, Hoagy Carmichael, Stephen Sondheim, Stephen Foster, Jerome Kern, Gustave Mahler, Michael Franks, Carole King, Don McLean, Lawrence Welk, Tom Jones, The Captain & Tenille, David Bowie, Jerry Garcia, Cat Stevens, Helen Folasade Adu, Ramnad Krishnan, Matt Dennis & Tom Adair, Martin Denny, Frank Sinatra live at The Sands, Allan Sherman, Tom Lehrer, The Beatles, Bob Dylan, Leonard Cohen, Paul Williams, Jacques Brel, Frank Loesser, Herb Alpert, Kate Bush, Vicki Carr, The Monkees, Tommy Roe, Love Unlimited Orchestra, "Julie Do You Love Me?," 12 Dreams of Dr. Sardonicus, Nilsson Schmilsson, Whizz Kid, Bernard Bernard, Stew, Augustus Gloop, Buzzy Lagniappe, Achilles, Holden Caulfield, Annie Hall, Manhattan, La Dolce Vita, Taxi Driver, Willy Wonka & The Chocolate Factory with Gene Wilder, Peter Greenaway, Major Matt Mason, "Classy" Freddie Blassie, the "Golden Greek" John Tolos, Sacheen Littlefeather, The Real Don Steele, Vin Scully, Chick Hearn, Coach John Wooden, Captain Kangaroo, Hobo Kelly, Casper the Friendly Ghost, Bugs Bunny, Gumby, his pony pal Pokey too, The Banana Splits, The Bugaloos, H.R. Pufnstuf, Lucas McCain, Hermann Munster, Ozzie Nelson, Hank Kimball, Jethro Bodine, Kwai Chang Caine, Gilligan, Hawkeye Pierce, the unmitigated genius of Barth Gimble, Captain Kirk, Mr. Spock, Bones McCoy, Scotty, Sulu, Chekov, Lt. Uhura, Marlo Thomas in That Girl, Alan Funt, Derwood Kirby, Mr. Giles French, Mr. Eddie's Father, Lucille Ball, The Twilight Zone, The Channel 7 3:30 Movie, Dusty's Treehouse, the Muscular Dystrophy Telethon, The Phantom Tollboth, Sergio Aragones, Dr. Demento, Groucho Marx, Charlie Chaplin, Sal Mineo, Larry Fine, Johnny Carson, Dick Cavett, Monty Python, George Carlin, Andy Kaufman, Johnny "Wad" Holmes, Hollywood Press, Penthouse Forum, the Sibyl of Cumae, Alan Watts, Lao Tzu, Benjamin Franklin, Cal Worthington, Soupy Sales, Elmer Fudd, Winslow Leach, Rupert Pupkin, Fredo Corleone, Topogigio, Laugh-In, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through The Looking Glass, The Tragedy of Hamlet Prince of Denmark by William Shakespeare, all the rest of Shakespeare, Edward Lear, The Yonghy-Bonghy-Bo, The Jumblies, Gerard Manley Hopkins, Walt Whitman, Henry Miller, Mr. James Joyce, Samuel Beckett, Gertrude Stein, Gravity's Rainbow, Lautreamont, Tristan Tzara, Kathy Acker, Shel Silverstein, the Sears catalogue, Ikea assembly instructions, Mr. Battaglia, Mr. Schoenman, The La Brea Tar Pits, rakes on concrete, air raid sirens, drop drills, the pervasive art of Gary Baseman . . . and anyone else you can think of . . .
DanRae Wilson's video of Mr. Smolin's classic song "Casper":
Mr. Smolin is the performance moniker of Los Angeles songwriter Barry Smolin, aka Shmo. Best known as the host of the psychedelic radio show The Music Never Stops on KPFK 90.7 FM in Southern California, Smolin has been writing songs for 30 years in a variety of genres, finally settling on a piano-based offbeat pop sound that reflects influences ranging from Stephen Foster and Hoagy Carmichael to poet-artists like Bob Dylan and Leonard Cohen to singer-songwriters like Cat Stevens and Harry Nilsson and Elton John and David Bowie and Randy Newman and Tom Waits to pop eccentrics like Gilbert O'Sullivan and Tim Buckley as well as theatre composers like Jerome Kern and Stephen Sondheim, among many others.
Smolin's first band, The Wake, formed post-high school in 1978, was also his first musical interaction with the artist now known as Stew, who played guitar in that late-adolescent outfit. Other members of the group included drummer Eldad Tarmu (now well-known as a jazz vibraphonist), bassist Viken Garabedian, and pianist/singer Ron Dumas (later of Dumas & Attack Group), who also wrote some of the songs. The Wake played its first professional show together in April of 1979 at The Troubadour in West Hollywood, CA. The group disbanded in 1980 after a year of gigs in the Los Angeles club scene.
The next 21 years Smolin spent variously playing solo (including appearances at Gerde's Folk City while residing in New York in the mid-'80s), as a duo with college-chum Harvey Canter, and as the keyboard player in Canter's bands Sea of Green and Ruby Flux. Having set aside his own music for most of the '90s, concentrating instead on writing poetry and playing other people's music, both live and on the radio, Smolin regained his muse and started writing songs again in 2001, the batch of tunes that would become his 2004 album At Apogee, a lush, non-linear song-cycle produced by Stew. Performers on the album included horn virtuoso Probyn Gregory, the psychedelic surf-noir band Double Naught Spy Car, and other hit-men from the L.A. indie-pop mafia. Village Voice music critic Richard Gehr dubbed Smolin's style on At Apogeepsychedelic cabaret music."
Mr. Smolin's 2nd album is another collaboration with Stew entitled The Crumbling Empire Of White People. Released in June of 2007, The Crumbling Empire Of White People is the artist's take on love and loss, politics, religion, and other burdens of our age.
Renowned "Pervasive" artist and longtime Smolin enthusiast Gary Baseman provides 4 original paintings for the album art on The Crumbling Empire Of White People.
Mr. Smolin's 3rd album, a Los Angeles song-cycle entitled Bring Back The Real Don Steele, recorded live (and unrehearsed) at Echo Curio, was released in November of 2009.
When he isn't making radio and music, Smolin wears a variety of other hats as well. His primary fulltime gig is as a high school English teacher in the Los Angeles Unified School District. He is also a dedicated writer of fiction and poetry, seeking out methods of forging language that communicates the deepest layers of consciousness. As a journalist, Smolin has written articles on a variety of subjects for such publications as the L.A. Times, NY Arts, Relix, Dupree's Diamond News, The Sondheim Review, Rhino.com, and Jambands.com. He has also provided liner notes for numerous recordings over the past 10 years. In 2004, Smolin wrote the Foreword to the book Dumb Luck, a retrospective of the work of Gary Baseman.
In the words of Billie Jean King, "Pressure is a privilege."
Bring Back The Real Don Steele is a digital-only release available via download at CDBaby.com and at the iTunes Music Store
The Crumbling Empire Of White People and At Apogee are currently available via download AND on CD at cdbaby.com and at amazon.com or via download only at the iTunes Music Store.
Crumbling Empire "album extras"--2 alternate takes of "A Goddamn Thing" and an uncut version of "Knock This Gulag Down"--are available for grabbing from the Mr. Smolin Downloads page.
**Download unreleased tracks in Mr. Smolin's always ongoing Bootleg Demo series**
thanks for approving our friendship. the main reason I have copy and pasted this comment into your comment field is to tell you we have a new song, "conditional love". but also to thank you for being friends with the body parts.
I might have already mentioned that your recent broadcast of the live New Riders of the Purple Sage was especially tasty. Speaking for myself, and for all the rest of us who groove to your thing with much resonance, know that you are held in high esteem. I have abstained now for nearly 2 years, but am reconsidering my options, thanks in part to the loftiness of your Sunday night pow wow. However, I believe it is possible to achieve an altered state of consciousness on music alone, citing your program as evidence. I am recently retired from LAUSD, where I was a substitute baffoon for 10 years. You have kept the beacon burning brightly for the same amount of time, if I'm not mistaken. I want to get back into jamming. If you know anyone out there looking for a singer-songwriter-anything with strings on it player, please hook me up. Namaste, brother. rfwagnerjr, venice beach
Hi Mr. Smolin!!!! I miss you so much. Please tell me you'll be there for the 1999 reunion????? I want to dance with you!!! The Doors, Kanye, Michael Jackson, Nirvana, Grateful Dead, whatever you like!!!!!
Come celebrate America's birthday with a little Peace Love and ROCK N ROLL!!
The Marina Music Festival honors the 40th Anniversary of Woodstock featuring a live musical tribute to Jimi Hendrix, The Doors, Janis Joplin, The Who, and Creedence Clearwater Revival .
Hosted by Music Source at the luxurious Waterfront Marina Concert Hall, 4211 Admiralty Way, Marina Del Rey, CA 90292 featuring live performances, BBQ, art, and of course a stellar Fourth of July fireworks display. Show starts at 9PM
Proceeds will benefit the nonprofit Artistspalooza organization for the arts.
David Lockhart's painfully excessive capturing of the booze-swilling and constantly concupiscent Jim Morrison is an encyclopedic homage to the ethos of rock. Boudeeka's haunting accurate portrayal of Janis Joplin is a tribute to women in rock and the raw emotion that was so much a part of the scene. Carlton Poward is an almost frightening replica with his spot-on Jimi Hendrix characterization and inspired guitar playing. Pat Craig Contra Costa Times
For more information on the event and our non profit please visit us at http://www.artistspalooza.org/ /> Please reserve your tickets at www.417artists.com
i look forward to singing with you at the curio.... i'm hoping to move p-world; sunday night isn't optimal and we need the shmo love occasionally. it sucks to miss you every goddamned sunday... see you soon.
