Brian Smith (Canadian musician)
Encyclopedia
Brian "Smitty" Smith is a British
-Canadian guitarist, known for being a founding member of the rock band
Trooper
.
Smith began performing on the guitar
before he was fifteen years old. Some of his first gigs were playing with Don Geppert and Anne Attenborough, in a band which played Hawaiian music.
Smith has performed with Trooper along with Ra McGuire
since 1975, when their first album was released, to the present day. He currently resides in Langley, BC
.
Smitty and Trooper continue to perform 100 shows a year across Canada. As part of the Vancouver
2010 Winter Olympics
festivities, Smith was featured when Trooper performed on February 21, 2010. Coverage of the event was broadcast in Canada and around the world on networks such as CTV
and MuchMusic
.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
-Canadian guitarist, known for being a founding member of the rock band
Rock Band
Rock Band is a music video game developed by Harmonix Music Systems, published by MTV Games and Electronic Arts. It is the first title in the Rock Band series. The PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 versions were released in the United States on November 20, 2007, while the PlayStation 2 version was...
Trooper
Trooper (band)
Trooper is a Juno Award winning Canadian rock band that developed from a group formed by vocalist Ramon McGuire and guitarist Brian Smith in 1975...
.
Smith began performing on the guitar
Guitar
The guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
before he was fifteen years old. Some of his first gigs were playing with Don Geppert and Anne Attenborough, in a band which played Hawaiian music.
Smith has performed with Trooper along with Ra McGuire
Ra McGuire
Ramon McGuire is a Canadian singer and songwriter, known for being a founding member of the rock band Trooper...
since 1975, when their first album was released, to the present day. He currently resides in Langley, BC
Langley, British Columbia (city)
The City of Langley is a municipality in Metro Vancouver. It lies directly east of the City of Surrey, adjacent to Cloverdale, and surrounded on the north, east and south by Township of Langley.-History:...
.
Smitty and Trooper continue to perform 100 shows a year across Canada. As part of the Vancouver
Vancouver
Vancouver is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It is the hub of Greater Vancouver, which, with over 2.3 million residents, is the third most populous metropolitan area in the country,...
2010 Winter Olympics
2010 Winter Olympics
The 2010 Winter Olympics, officially the XXI Olympic Winter Games or the 21st Winter Olympics, were a major international multi-sport event held from February 12–28, 2010, in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, with some events held in the suburbs of Richmond, West Vancouver and the University...
festivities, Smith was featured when Trooper performed on February 21, 2010. Coverage of the event was broadcast in Canada and around the world on networks such as CTV
CTV television network
CTV Television Network is a Canadian English language television network and is owned by Bell Media. It is Canada's largest privately-owned network, and has consistently placed as Canada's top-rated network in total viewers and in key demographics since 2002, after several years trailing the rival...
and MuchMusic
MuchMusic
MuchMusic is a Canadian English language Category A specialty channel owned by Bell Media. MuchMusic is dedicated to music-related programs, pop and youth culture.-History:...
.
Notable Instruments
Brian Smith has a large collection of vintage guitars, including the following:- Fender StratocasterFender StratocasterThe Fender Stratocaster, often referred to as "Strat", is a model of electric guitar designed by Leo Fender, George Fullerton, and Freddie Tavares in 1954, and manufactured continuously by the Fender Musical Instruments Corporation to the present. It is a double-cutaway guitar, with an extended top...
- 1974 Gibson Les PaulGibson Les PaulThe Gibson Les Paul was the result of a design collaboration between Gibson Guitar Corporation and the late jazz guitarist and electronics inventor Les Paul. In 1950, with the introduction of the Fender Telecaster to the musical market, electric guitars became a public craze. In reaction, Gibson...
, which Smith still plays at every Trooper show. - A GretschGretschThe Gretsch Company was founded in 1883 by Friedrich Gretsch, a twenty-seven year old German immigrant recently arrived in the US. Friedrich Gretsch manufactured banjos, tambourines, and drums, until his death in 1895. His son, Fred, moved operations to Brooklyn, New York in 1916...
Guitar, formerly owned and played by Randy BachmanRandy BachmanRandolph Charles "Randy" Bachman, OC, OM is a Canadian musician best known as lead guitarist, songwriter and a founding member for both the 1960s–70s rock band The Guess Who, and the 1970s rock band Bachman–Turner Overdrive...
of Bachman–Turner Overdrive and The Guess WhoThe Guess WhoThe Guess Who are a Canadian rock band from Winnipeg, Manitoba. Initially gaining recognition in Canada, they also found international success from the late 1960s through the mid-1970s with numerous hit singles, including "American Woman", "These Eyes" and "Share the Land"...
. This guitar was also used for the guitar riff at the end of the Trooper hit "Round Round We Go". - A Bill Lewis handbuilt guitar which Smith played mostly when Trooper was known as Applejack.