Despite being tragically under-recorded during his lifetime, George Harmonica Smith's innovative harmonica playing has exerted a huge influence on a generation of harp players. Current harp masters like Rod Piazza, Charlie Musselwhite, Paul deLay, James Harman, Mark Hummel, the late William Clarke and many others. Since his death in 1983 his stature has continued to grow and he's now considered one of the great post-war harmonica players who's contributions earn him a spot alongside acknowledged masters Little Walter, Sonny Boy Williamson and Big Walter Horton.

 George Smith was born April 22, 1924, in Helena, Arkansas, but he was raised upriver in Cairo, Illinois for most of his youth. His mother, Jessie, a musician herself, schooled the young Smith on harmonica when he was only four. As a teenager, Smith began hoboing around Southern towns, eventually teaming up with Early Woods' country band, featuring Woods on fiddle and Curtis Gould on spoons. Together, they played fish fries and picnics throughout the Delta region. In 1941, Smith moved with his mother to Rock Island, Illinois, working mostly outside music, but managing to play a few gigs with a band that included future Muddy Waters drummer, Francis Clay. Then it was back to Mississippi, where Smith joined The Jackson Jubilee Singers, a gospel group.

 Smith was drawn back to the blues in 1944 by local musician Alec Gill. It was with Gill that George Smith first started experimenting with amplification for his harmonica, making him, along with Snooky Pryor, one of the early innovators of electrified harp. While employed as a projectionist at a theatre in Itta Bena, he discovered he could take the amplifier and speaker from his Bell & Howell film projector and use it to amplify his harmonica. "It was a real moneymaker for me," he recalled. "People hadn't heard anything like that down there … it was something of a novelty."

 Smith landed in Chicago sometime between 1949 and 1951. Already a seasoned player, Smith landed gigs with Otis Rush and the Myers brothers. He fell under the sway of Little Walter, and, according to Smith's mother, the two men became fast friends. When Henry Strong, Walter's hand-picked replacement in Muddy Waters' band, was killed, Muddy called upon Smith to fill the spot. Smith toured the South with Waters, but his stint for some reason was short-lived. By 1954 Smith found himself accepting a permanent house gig at The Orchid Room in Kansas City. By this time, he had a fully developed style of his own, influenced not just by Little Walter but by chromatic virtuoso Larry Adler. It was here that Smith was first seen by Joe Bihari of Modern Records (who was on a scouting trip), who took him into a local studio and cut some sides. These recording sessions were released under the name Little George Smith, and included "Telephone Blues" and "Blues in the Dark", the song that first showcased Smith's remarkable chromatic technique.

 When both records began to sell well, Orchid Room owner Marty Graham arranged for Smith to travel on a Universal Attractions tour with Champion Jack Dupree and Little Willie John. They barnstormed the country, stopping off in Cincinnati in November, 1955, to do a recording session. There, Smith recorded "Sharp Harp" and "Overhead Blues", as well as other songs as a sideman for Champion Jack Dupree. After that, it was on to Los Angeles where Smith eventually chose to settle. He recorded another session for Bihari, this time with a horn section, producing "Cross-Eyed Suzie Lee" and "Down In New Orleans". Smith's tracks fared less well than before and he was dropped from the label. Smith found himself hustling and scraping once more, only now he had a growing family to support. He made a string of recordings for any small label that would work with him including: J & M, Lapel, Melker, Caddy, Carolyn and Sotoplay. During this period he worked with a small band that included West Coast guitar greats Jimmy Nolen and Pete "Guitar" Lewis. Smith recorded some of the rawest and most exciting recording of his career including "Blowing the Blues," "Trap Meat" and "Tight Dresses." Perhaps for contractual reasons Smith adopted a variety of monikers for these recordings, including The Harmonica King, Little Walter Junior and George Allen. During this time, Smith worked many of the hole-in-the-wall joints in South Central L.A., including Moore's Swingtime Club at 118th and Main, and a regular harmonica jam on Sundays at 53rd and Avalon with Harmonica Fats, Johnny Dyer and Travis Blaylock, known as Harmonica Slim.

 In 1966, Smith was reunited with Muddy Waters for a second time, following James Cotton's departure. Smith moved back to Chicago, but like his first with Muddy, this was short-lived. Soon after, Smith returned to his family in Los Angeles, but he and Muddy remained on good terms, and when Little Walter died in 1968, Smith called on Muddy's band to support him on "A Tribute To Little Walter" on World Pacific Records. In 1969 Bob Thiele produced a strong solo album of Smith on Bluesway ("...Of The Blues"), and later made use of Smith as a sideman for his Blues Times label, including sets with T-Bone Walker, and Harmonica Slim. Smith met Rod Piazza, a young White harp player and they formed the Southside Blues Band, later known as Bacon Fat. British producer Mike Vernon came along and signed the group to a European tour. In 1970, Smith recorded "No Time For Jive" for Vernon, and a year later he returned to England and recorded "Arkansas Trap." Despite his success in Europe, Smith still found it hard to get gigs at home.

 Throughout the late '70s and early '80s as the current blues boom blossomed, George Smith began to appear at many of the country's best known festivals, including the Monterey Jazz Festival and the San Francisco Blues Festival, and toured Japan, Europe and Sweden. His health, however began to decline. He recorded as a sideman for Eddie Taylor's "Feel So Bad" album on Advent and backed Big Mama Thornton on her 1976 Vanguard album. He befriended the late William Clarke and coached him on the chromatic harp and reunited with Rod Piazza's band to cut "Boogie'n With George" for the Murray Bothers label in 1982. The session was to be Smith's last as he suffered a heart attack and died on October 2, 1983. As his protege, William Clarke sums up: "An extremely kind and gentle man, George always went all out to help other harmonica players. Everybody liked George Smith. He played a huge role in advancing blues harmonica and should never be forgotten. You can hear the influence of George Smith in most everyone playing blues harmonica today, whether directly or indirectly."

Essential Listening

Harmonica Ace: The Modern Masters (Flair): This disc is described by note writer Ray Topping as "a lasting memorial to one of the last great harp players of the postwar blues scene." Collects seminal early sides Smith cut for the Modern label including "Telephone Blues", "Blues In The Dark", "California Blues" and several other gems.

Now You Can Talk About Me (Blind Pig): Collects some hard to find material Smith cut in the 60's for the Sotoplay label plus a 1982 session for the Murray Brothers label with Rod Piazza behind the board that resulted in the "Boogie'n With George" album. Highlights including prime early numbers like "Blowing The Blues", "Yes Baby" plus fine later tracks like "Bad Start," "Astatic Stomp" and "Sunbird."

Chicago Blues Masters Vol. 3 (Capitol): An odd collection that draws together tracks by James Cotton, Shakey Jake but does include the entirety of Smith's World Pacific album, "Tribute To Little Walter." This brilliant 1968 date finds Smith backed by the Muddy Waters band as he pays glorious tribute to one his main inspirations. Smith blazes through an inspired set including "Mellow Down Easy", "Last Night" and "Juke" among others.

Blowing The Blues (Official): Culled from rare sessions from 1956 to 1966 and 1978, and originally recorded for local labels J&M, Sotoplay, Carolyn and Hittin' Heavy. Some overlap with "Now You Can Talk About Me."

-Erlewine, Michael. "George Smith Biography", All Music Guide Entry

-Townsley, Tom. Notes accompanying "Now You Can Talk About Me" 1998, (Blind Pig)

-Briggs, Keith. Notes accompanying "Chicago Blues Masters Vol. 3" 1997, (Capitol)

-Topping, Ray. Notes accompanying "Harmonia Ace: The Modern Masters" 1993, (Flair)