Charlie Smith
Charlie Smith (April 15, 1927 in New York City – January 15, 1966 in New Haven), was an American jazz drummer. Smith played locally in New York in the late 1940s before taking a position accompanying Ella Fitzgerald. He worked briefly with the Duke Ellington's Orchestra in 1951 before being replaced by Louie Bellson, and also played with Joe Bushkin, Erroll Garner, Slim Gaillard, Benny Goodman, Hot Lips Page, Oscar Peterson, Artie Shaw, and Slam Stewart. He performed on television with Dizzy Gillespie and Charlie Parker in 1952, and later in the 1950s worked with Billy Taylor, Aaron Bell, and Wild Bill Davison. He relocated to New Haven around 1960, where he played with Willie Ruff and Dwike Mitchell in a trio setting. He also worked as an educator late in life. Smith co-wrote, with Thomas Vaughan, "A Jazz Liturgy" for Yale Divinity School. He died of a kidney infection. |
Birth and Death Data: Born New York City (most populous city in the United States), Died January 15, 1966 (New Haven (city in Connecticut, United States) )
Date Range of DAHR Recordings: 1937 - 1957
Roles Represented in DAHR: drums, leader
Notes: Leader of Demerara Lucky Strike Orchestra.
= Recordings are available for online listening.
= Recordings were issued from this master. No recordings issued from other masters.
Recordings (Results 1-25 of 32 records)
| Company | Matrix No. | Size | First Recording Date | Title | Primary Performer | Description | Role | Audio |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Victor | BS-06269 | 10-in. | 3/2/1937 | The capture of the Girl Pat | Demerara Lucky Strike Orchestra ; Bill Rogers ; Charlie Smith | Re-recording : Male vocal solo, with instrumental ensemble | leader | |
| Victor | BS-06270 | 10-in. | 3/2/1937 | The return of Smithie | Demerara Lucky Strike Orchestra ; Bill Rogers ; Charlie Smith | Re-recording : Male vocal solo, with instrumental ensemble | leader | |
| Victor | BS-06271 | 10-in. | 3/2/1937 | The hungry man | Demerara Lucky Strike Orchestra ; Bill Rogers ; Charlie Smith | Re-recording : Male vocal solo, with instrumental ensemble | leader | |
| Victor | BS-06272 | 10-in. | 3/2/1937 | The rajah lost | Demerara Lucky Strike Orchestra ; Bill Rogers ; Charlie Smith | Re-recording : Male vocal solo, with instrumental ensemble | leader | |
| Victor | BS-06273 | 10-in. | 3/2/1937 | Landlords and the rent | Demerara Lucky Strike Orchestra ; Bill Rogers ; Charlie Smith | Re-recording : Male vocal solo, with instrumental ensemble | leader | |
| Victor | BS-06274 | 10-in. | 3/2/1937 | Bill Rogers in U.S.A. | Demerara Lucky Strike Orchestra ; Bill Rogers ; Charlie Smith | Re-recording : Male vocal solo, with instrumental ensemble | leader | |
| Columbia | CO40526 | 10-in. | 3/15/1949 | The egg or the hen | Hot Lips Page | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | instrumentalist, drums | |
| Columbia | CO40527 | 10-in. | 3/15/1949 | I got an uncle in Harlem | Hot Lips Page | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | instrumentalist, drums | |
| Columbia | CO40528 | 10-in. | 3/15/1949 | Cheatie Bo Joe | Hot Lips Page ; Sam Theard | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal duet | instrumentalist, drums | |
| Columbia | CO40529 | 10-in. | 3/15/1949 | Don't tell a man about his woman | Hot Lips Page | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | instrumentalist, drums | |
| Columbia | CO47862 | 10-in. | 4/23/1952 | Lonesome and blue | Howard Biggs' Orchestra ; Annie Laurie | Female vocal solo, with instrumental ensemble | instrumentalist, drums | |
| Columbia | CO47863 | 10-in. | 4/23/1952 | It's been a long long time | Howard Biggs' Orchestra ; Annie Laurie | Female vocal solo, with instrumental ensemble | instrumentalist, drums | |
| Columbia | CO48457 | 10-in. | 10/8/1952 | Just want your love | Big Maybelle ; Leroy Kirkland Orchestra | Female vocal solo, with jazz/dance band | instrumentalist, drums | |
| Columbia | CO48458 | 10-in. | 10/8/1952 | So good to my baby | Big Maybelle ; Leroy Kirkland Orchestra | Female vocal solo, with jazz/dance band | instrumentalist, drums | |
| Columbia | CO48459 | 10-in. | 10/8/1952 | Gabbin' blues | Big Maybelle ; Leroy Kirkland Orchestra | Female vocal solo, with jazz/dance band | instrumentalist, drums | |
| Columbia | CO48460 | 10-in. | 10/8/1952 | My country man | Big Maybelle ; Leroy Kirkland Orchestra | Female vocal solo, with jazz/dance band | instrumentalist, drums | |
| Atlantic | 244 | 10-in. | 7/20/1949 | Flamingo | Erroll Garner | instrumentalist, drums | ||
| Atlantic | 248 | 10-in. | 7/20/1949 | Twilight | Erroll Garner | instrumentalist, drums | ||
| Mercury | 2950 | 10-in. | 8/23/1949 | Remember | Erroll Garner Trio ; Johnny Hartman | instrumentalist, drums | ||
| Mercury | 2951 | 10-in. | 8/23/1949 | Easy to remember | Erroll Garner ; Johnny Hartman | instrumentalist, drums | ||
| Mercury | 2952 | 10-in. | 8/23/1949 | September in the rain | Erroll Garner Trio ; Johnny Hartman | instrumentalist, drums | ||
| Mercury | 2953 | 10-in. | 8/23/1949 | Home | Erroll Garner ; Johnny Hartman | instrumentalist, drums | ||
| Decca | 76732 | 8/15/1950 | I'll never be free | Ella Fitzgerald | instrumentalist, drums | |||
| Decca | 76843 | 9/13/1950 | Autumn leaves | Artie Shaw Orchestra | instrumentalist, drums | |||
| Decca | 76844 | 9/13/1950 | White Christmas | Artie Shaw Orchestra | instrumentalist, drums |
Citation
Discography of American Historical Recordings, s.v. "Smith, Charlie," accessed January 3, 2026, http://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/107251.
Smith, Charlie. (2026). In Discography of American Historical Recordings. Retrieved January 3, 2026, from http://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/107251.
"Smith, Charlie." Discography of American Historical Recordings. UC Santa Barbara Library, 2026. Web. 3 January 2026.
DAHR Persistent Identifier
Linked Open Data Sources
LCNAR: Smith, Charlie, 1927-1966 - https://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/n95046806
Wikidata: Charlie Smith - https://www.wikidata.org/entity/Q1066996
VIAF: https://viaf.org/viaf/95336421
MusicBrainz: Charlie Smith - https://musicbrainz.org/artist/94f63f81-c9ad-48fd-b3e5-382edb4cccb9
Wikipedia content provided under the terms of the Creative Commons BY-SA license
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