Dick Smith

Who the hell are these guys?

"Ok, first of all, these cats are mighty whacked. But they're hella good. They take old forms and play the hell out of them in new ways. It's bluesy old-timey, it's inbred urbane country, it's...hell, I don't know what it is, but I'm diggin' it..." 
   -Frank Goodman, puremusic.com 

Dick Smith is 4 fellers from the fetid swamps of the Chicago regions. Individually they play with other bands, put out solo records, do the odd session job, and show up at the salt mine -usually on time. But when they join together, things get a bit...greezy. Tipsy. 
  

Dave Nelson plays Dobro & National steel, harmonica & jawharp. He likes to soak things in brine. 

Bob Kuhn plays mandolin & mandola, and naps in his car. 

Dave Ramont plays banjo, concertina & jug. His shoes leak. 

They all pass the guitar around like it was the last Tall Boy. 

And Scott Stevenson, The Rememberer, plays accordion, piano & organ. He has a bottle full of change. 

They all sing, chortle, and bring songs to the stew. And when making records (or there's a likker surplus at the gig), they'll summon the Band O' Dicks- adding drums, bass, lap steel. Gerald Dowd, Chris Walke, Tom Jancauskas, Hurley & Chevy. All Chicago-area music scene vets, all old enough to know better. 

"Real nice angst from outta Chicago here. Rootsy blues and swamp-touched country slip out between the banjos and guitars, the vocals swirl and twang. The songs move almost alcoholically and make you feel the stories behind the songs until all you want is a nice porch to sit on...and I want to play these songs like a Tom Waits grin." 
    -Marcel Feldmar, The Big Takeover 

The songs are downlifting, like a sunny night. They've released 3 CDs- "Woozy", Smoke Damage", and "Swill". Plus a holiday offerin'- "Glad Tidins: Christmas Gouger Vol. 1". "Smoke Damage" was one of Acoustic Guitar Magazine's top 3 indy releases of 2003. Their songs and live shows have garnered excellent reviews from DJs, critics, drunks, drunken critics. 

"It's truly subversive alt-country, but most of all it's real music by real people, with lots of soul and plenty of guts." 
    -Gary Whitehouse, greenmanreview.com 

C'mon friends- take a pull- if the brakes are out you might as well hit the gas.

Check out their music here.

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