STEVE SMITH

Hard Bop / Fusion / World Fusion / Soul Jazz • United States
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Steve Elliott Smith (born on August 21, 1954 in Whitman, Massachusetts) is an American drummer who has worked with hundreds of artists in his career, but is mostly known for being the drummer of the rock band Journey during their peak years of success. Modern Drummer magazine readers voted him the #1 All-Around Drummer five years in a row. In 2001, Modern Drummer named Steve as one of the Top 25 Drummers of All Time, and in 2002 he was voted into the Modern Drummer Hall of Fame.

At age nine, in 1963, Smith began studying the drums with local Boston area teacher Bill Flanagan, who played in big bands in the swing era. Smith performed in the usual school band program and garage bands while in his teens, but also began to broaden his performing experience by playing in a professional concert band and the big band at local Bridgewater
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STEVE SMITH Discography

STEVE SMITH albums / top albums

STEVE SMITH Cause and Effect album cover 0.00 | 0 ratings
Cause and Effect
Fusion 1998
STEVE SMITH Steve Smith & Buddy's Buddies album cover 0.00 | 0 ratings
Steve Smith & Buddy's Buddies
Hard Bop 1999
STEVE SMITH Stranger's Hand album cover 0.00 | 0 ratings
Stranger's Hand
Fusion 1999
STEVE SMITH Reimagined, Vol. 1: Jazz Standards album cover 0.00 | 0 ratings
Reimagined, Vol. 1: Jazz Standards
Hard Bop 2003
STEVE SMITH Flashpoint album cover 0.00 | 0 ratings
Flashpoint
Fusion 2005
STEVE SMITH Steve Smith, George Brooks & Prasanna : Raga Bop Trio album cover 3.00 | 1 ratings
Steve Smith, George Brooks & Prasanna : Raga Bop Trio
World Fusion 2010
STEVE SMITH Steve Smith, Tony Monaco & Vinny Valentino : Groove: Blues album cover 0.00 | 0 ratings
Steve Smith, Tony Monaco & Vinny Valentino : Groove: Blues
Soul Jazz 2015
STEVE SMITH Steve Smith and Vital Information NYC Edition : Heart Of The City album cover 0.00 | 0 ratings
Steve Smith and Vital Information NYC Edition : Heart Of The City
Fusion 2017

STEVE SMITH EPs & splits

STEVE SMITH live albums

STEVE SMITH VVery Live At Ronnie Scott's Set Number 1 album cover 0.00 | 0 ratings
VVery Live At Ronnie Scott's Set Number 1
Hard Bop 2003
STEVE SMITH Very Live at Ronnie Scott's London, Set 2 album cover 0.00 | 0 ratings
Very Live at Ronnie Scott's London, Set 2
Hard Bop 2003
STEVE SMITH Live on Tour, Vol. 1 album cover 0.00 | 0 ratings
Live on Tour, Vol. 1
Hard Bop 2009
STEVE SMITH Live on Tour, Vol. 2 album cover 0.00 | 0 ratings
Live on Tour, Vol. 2
Hard Bop 2009

STEVE SMITH demos, promos, fans club and other releases (no bootlegs)

STEVE SMITH re-issues & compilations

STEVE SMITH The Best of Steve Smith album cover 0.00 | 0 ratings
The Best of Steve Smith
Fusion 2009

STEVE SMITH singles (0)

STEVE SMITH movies (DVD, Blu-Ray or VHS)

.. Album Cover
0.00 | 0 ratings
Drumset Technique/History Of The U.S. Beat
Hard Bop 2002

STEVE SMITH Reviews

STEVE SMITH Steve Smith, George Brooks & Prasanna : Raga Bop Trio

Album · 2010 · World Fusion
Cover art Buy this album from MMA partners
js
Ragabop Trio is Steve Smith on drums, Prasanna on guitar and George Brooks on saxophone, three experts in the fine art of Indian jazz-rock fusion. This first effort, also called 'Ragabop Trio', reveals a lot of talent as well as a few possible problems. The big plus is Prasanna’s considerable skills on the electric guitar. I’m not sure how he produces intricate South Indian Carnatic micro-tonal note bends on an electric guitar, but he does and his ornaments are deadly accurate and authentic, but most importantly, they sound great.

Not everything is all Indian jazz-rock on here, on a few tunes they also turn to African fusion to provide some rhythmic foundation. The variety of styles they perform can be interesting, but sometimes it seems like this CD lacks focus or some kind of anchor point. Overall though, I think the biggest problem here is the lack of a bass player. I can see that by excluding the bass they have created a more Indian style ensemble with Smith acting as a tabla player on the trap set with the other two providing the raga like solos, which is fine on some of the more Indian styled cuts, but on the more rockin or funky numbers the lack of bass really sticks out and makes the music sound empty.

Some of the best cuts include: ‘Tug of War’, a fast paced fusion workout with lots of great guitar leads, ‘Garuda’, a beautiful mellow African melody and ‘Katayini’, a cool groove number with excellent alternating raga melodies. That last one could show up on some exotica collections someday. The least successful cut is ‘The Geometry of Rap’, in which Steve Smith presents Indian rhythm counting syllables (konnakol) as a sort of rap. It comes across as something that is clever the first time you do it, but not something to put on your CD. Besides, as a rap song, its not very good. I think I have heard someone else trying to use konnakol as rap, probably one of those things that will make the rounds for a while and then disappear for good, sort of like parachute pants.

I think fans of Indian fusion will find a lot of things to enjoy here. A couple songs are excellent and Prasanna’s guitar playing is a revelation, but I think a little more musical unity and at least an occasional bass player could do this band some good.

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