Aaron Smith (musician)
Encyclopedia
Aaron "The A-Train" Smith is a Nashville
-based drummer and percussionist.
At the age of 21, Aaron Smith played drums on The Temptations
' megahit
"Papa Was a Rollin' Stone
" (which was a #1 hit on the Billboard Hot 100
and won three Grammy Award
s in 1973), and recorded with Ray Charles
as well. In the fall of 1974, Smith toured with Czechoslovakian bassist Miroslav Vitouš
in support of Miroslav's Warner Bros. release Magical Shepherd. After this tour, he moved to Boston, where he studied for two years under jazz drummer Alan Dawson
. From Boston, he moved to San Francisco where he was a co-founder of the power funk trio Peter Bilt. Later on he joined Romeo Void
. From 1984, Smith played with the Sacramento-based rock band The 77s
. After recording Drowning With Land In Sight in 1994, Smith left The 77s to join Rich Mullins
's A Ragamuffin Band
.
Smith has recorded and toured with dozens of other artists over the years, including Jimmy Abegg
, Michael W. Smith
, Margaret Becker
, Vector
, dc Talk
, Rick Elias
, Mitch McVicker
, Riki Michele
, Cindy Morgan
, Sixpence None the Richer
, Engelbert Humperdinck
, Charlie Peacock
, Romeo Void
, and Steve Scott
.
An autographed pair of Smith's drumsticks can be found in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
, right next to a pair of sticks used by Beatles
drummer Ringo Starr
.
Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville is the capital of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat of Davidson County. It is located on the Cumberland River in Davidson County, in the north-central part of the state. The city is a center for the health care, publishing, banking and transportation industries, and is home...
-based drummer and percussionist.
At the age of 21, Aaron Smith played drums on The Temptations
The Temptations
The Temptations is an American vocal group having achieved fame as one of the most successful acts to record for Motown Records. The group's repertoire has included, at various times during its five-decade career, R&B, doo-wop, funk, disco, soul, and adult contemporary music.Formed in Detroit,...
' megahit
"Papa Was a Rollin' Stone
Papa Was a Rollin' Stone
"Papa Was a Rollin' Stone" is a soul song, written by Motown songwriters Norman Whitfield and Barrett Strong as a single for Motown act The Undisputed Truth in 1971...
" (which was a #1 hit on the Billboard Hot 100
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
and won three Grammy Award
Grammy Award
A Grammy Award — or Grammy — is an accolade by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the music industry...
s in 1973), and recorded with Ray Charles
Ray Charles
Ray Charles Robinson , known by his shortened stage name Ray Charles, was an American musician. He was a pioneer in the genre of soul music during the 1950s by fusing rhythm and blues, gospel, and blues styles into his early recordings with Atlantic Records...
as well. In the fall of 1974, Smith toured with Czechoslovakian bassist Miroslav Vitouš
Miroslav Vitouš
Miroslav Ladislav Vitouš , is a Czech jazz bassist.-Biography:Born in Prague, he began the violin at age six, and started playing the piano at age ten, and bass at fourteen. As a young man in Europe, Vitouš was a competitive swimmer. One of his early music groups was the Junior Trio with his...
in support of Miroslav's Warner Bros. release Magical Shepherd. After this tour, he moved to Boston, where he studied for two years under jazz drummer Alan Dawson
Alan Dawson
Alan Dawson was a respected jazz drummer and widely influential percussion teacher based in Boston. He was born in Marietta, Pennsylvania and raised in Roxbury, MA. Serving in the Army for Korean War duty, Dawson played with the Army Dance Band while stationed at Fort Dix from 1951-1953...
. From Boston, he moved to San Francisco where he was a co-founder of the power funk trio Peter Bilt. Later on he joined Romeo Void
Romeo Void
Romeo Void was an American rock band from San Francisco, California, formed in 1979. The band primarily consisted of saxophonist Benjamin Bossi, vocalist Debora Iyall, guitarist Peter Woods, and bassist Frank Zincavage. The band went through four drummers, starting with Jay Derrah and ending with...
. From 1984, Smith played with the Sacramento-based rock band The 77s
The 77s
The 77s are an American rock band consisting of Michael Roe on vocals/guitar, Mark Harmon on bass, and Bruce Spencer on drums.-Scratch Band:...
. After recording Drowning With Land In Sight in 1994, Smith left The 77s to join Rich Mullins
Rich Mullins
Richard Wayne "Rich" Mullins was an American Contemporary Christian music singer and songwriter born in Richmond, Indiana. He had two sisters and two brothers....
's A Ragamuffin Band
A Ragamuffin Band
A Ragamuffin Band is a musical group founded by Rich Mullins in 1993, when he gathered friends from other bands to back him on his A Liturgy, A Legacy, & A Ragamuffin Band album. The band continued to record and tour with Mullins, and even carried on after his 1997 death...
.
Smith has recorded and toured with dozens of other artists over the years, including Jimmy Abegg
Jimmy Abegg
Jimmy Abegg aka Jimmy A, is an American guitarist, composer, director, photographer and artist, currently living in Nashville, Tennessee....
, Michael W. Smith
Michael W. Smith
Michael Whitaker Smith is a Billboard top ten Billboard Hot 100 recording artist and Grammy Award-winning American singer-songwriter, composer, and actor. He is one of the best-selling and most influential artists in Contemporary Christian music. Smith also has achieved a considerable amount of...
, Margaret Becker
Margaret Becker
Margaret Becker is an American Christian rock singer, guitarist, and songwriter. She has had twenty-one No. 1 Christian radio hits, won four Dove Awards, and been nominated for four Grammy Awards.-Biography:...
, Vector
Vector (band)
Vector is a new wave rock band formed in Sacramento, California in the early 1980s by Jimmy Abegg, Steve Griffith and Charlie Peacock. The band had several drummers over the years, including Aaron Smith and Bruce Spencer, both also played drums for The 77s....
, dc Talk
Dc Talk
DC Talk , is a Grammy-winning Christian rock music trio. The group was formed in Lynchburg, Virginia in 1987 by Toby McKeehan, Michael Tait, and Kevin Max Smith. They have released five major studio albums together: DC Talk , Nu Thang , Free at Last , Jesus Freak , and Supernatural...
, Rick Elias
Rick Elias
Rick Elias is a Nashville based singer and songwriter.From 1993 to 2002, Elias was a member of Rich Mullins' A Ragamuffin Band.Rick was a founding member of Rich Mullins and a Ragamuffin Band. Today Rick spends his time writing and producing music in Nashville TN., and continues to perform solo...
, Mitch McVicker
Mitch McVicker
Mitch McVicker is a GMA Dove Award-winning Contemporary Christian Music singer-songwriter.-Biography:McVicker attended Friends University in Wichita Kansas, in the early-1990s where he met and befriended the late CCM recording artist, Rich Mullins...
, Riki Michele
Riki Michele
Adam Again chanteuse Riki Michele is a female Christian alternative music artist. She has also recorded four eclectic solo records....
, Cindy Morgan
Cindy Morgan
Cindy Morgan is an American actress best known for her appearances as Lora/Yori in Tron and Lacey Underall in Caddyshack.-Biography:...
, Sixpence None the Richer
Sixpence None the Richer
Sixpence None the Richer is an American rock/pop band that formed in New Braunfels, Texas, eventually settling in Nashville, Tennessee. They are best known for their songs "Kiss Me" and "Breathe Your Name" and their covers of "Don't Dream It's Over" and "There She Goes". The name of the band is...
, Engelbert Humperdinck
Engelbert Humperdinck (singer)
Engelbert Humperdinck is a British pop singer, best known for his hits including "Release Me " and "After the Lovin'" as well as "The Last Waltz" .-Early life:...
, Charlie Peacock
Charlie Peacock
Charlie Peacock is an American singer-songwriter, pianist, record producer, session musician and author. While growing up in California Peacock was inspired by John Coltrane and began playing the piano. After completing his education, Peacock formed a band and began a career as a professional...
, Romeo Void
Romeo Void
Romeo Void was an American rock band from San Francisco, California, formed in 1979. The band primarily consisted of saxophonist Benjamin Bossi, vocalist Debora Iyall, guitarist Peter Woods, and bassist Frank Zincavage. The band went through four drummers, starting with Jay Derrah and ending with...
, and Steve Scott
Steve Scott (poet)
Steve Scott is a poet, spoken word artist, and musician. His written work was published by PRIZM Magazine, Radix Magazine, Monolith:UK publications and STRIDE UK publications...
.
An autographed pair of Smith's drumsticks can be found in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum is a museum located on the shore of Lake Erie in downtown Cleveland, Ohio, United States. It is dedicated to archiving the history of some of the best-known and most influential artists, producers, engineers and others who have, in some major way,...
, right next to a pair of sticks used by Beatles
The Beatles
The Beatles were an English rock band, active throughout the 1960s and one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music. Formed in Liverpool, by 1962 the group consisted of John Lennon , Paul McCartney , George Harrison and Ringo Starr...
drummer Ringo Starr
Ringo Starr
Richard Starkey, MBE better known by his stage name Ringo Starr, is an English musician and actor who gained worldwide fame as the drummer for The Beatles. When the band formed in 1960, Starr was a member of another Liverpool band, Rory Storm and the Hurricanes. He became The Beatles' drummer in...
.
Selected discography
- Sky's the Limit The TemptationsThe TemptationsThe Temptations is an American vocal group having achieved fame as one of the most successful acts to record for Motown Records. The group's repertoire has included, at various times during its five-decade career, R&B, doo-wop, funk, disco, soul, and adult contemporary music.Formed in Detroit,...
, 1971 album - Solid Rock The TemptationsThe TemptationsThe Temptations is an American vocal group having achieved fame as one of the most successful acts to record for Motown Records. The group's repertoire has included, at various times during its five-decade career, R&B, doo-wop, funk, disco, soul, and adult contemporary music.Formed in Detroit,...
, 1972 album - MasterpieceMasterpiece (Temptations album)Masterpiece is a 1973 album by The Temptations for the Gordy label, produced and written by Norman Whitfield.-Overview:The title refers to the album being not the group's intended masterpiece, but Whitfield's...
The TemptationsThe TemptationsThe Temptations is an American vocal group having achieved fame as one of the most successful acts to record for Motown Records. The group's repertoire has included, at various times during its five-decade career, R&B, doo-wop, funk, disco, soul, and adult contemporary music.Formed in Detroit,...
, 1973 album - Mannequin Virtue, VectorVector (band)Vector is a new wave rock band formed in Sacramento, California in the early 1980s by Jimmy Abegg, Steve Griffith and Charlie Peacock. The band had several drummers over the years, including Aaron Smith and Bruce Spencer, both also played drums for The 77s....
, 1983 album - Instincts, Romeo VoidRomeo VoidRomeo Void was an American rock band from San Francisco, California, formed in 1979. The band primarily consisted of saxophonist Benjamin Bossi, vocalist Debora Iyall, guitarist Peter Woods, and bassist Frank Zincavage. The band went through four drummers, starting with Jay Derrah and ending with...
, 1984 album - All Fall DownAll Fall Down (77s album)All Fall Down is the title of The 77s' second album, released in 1984 on the Exit Records label.-Side one:# "Ba-Ba-Ba-Ba" written w/Gene Mascoli# "Under The Heat"# "Mercy Mercy"# "You Don't Scare Me"# "Make A Difference Tonight"-Side two:...
, The 77sThe 77sThe 77s are an American rock band consisting of Michael Roe on vocals/guitar, Mark Harmon on bass, and Bruce Spencer on drums.-Scratch Band:...
, 1984 album - The 77sThe 77s (album)The 77s released their third self-titled album in 1987 on the Exit and Island Records labels.The album contains the band's biggest hit single to date, which was "The Lust, The Flesh, The Eyes and the Pride of Life." Years later, the song would be covered by Roe's other band The Lost Dogs , and the...
, The 77sThe 77sThe 77s are an American rock band consisting of Michael Roe on vocals/guitar, Mark Harmon on bass, and Bruce Spencer on drums.-Scratch Band:...
, 1987 album - 88, The 77sThe 77sThe 77s are an American rock band consisting of Michael Roe on vocals/guitar, Mark Harmon on bass, and Bruce Spencer on drums.-Scratch Band:...
, 1988 album - Special The TemptationsThe TemptationsThe Temptations is an American vocal group having achieved fame as one of the most successful acts to record for Motown Records. The group's repertoire has included, at various times during its five-decade career, R&B, doo-wop, funk, disco, soul, and adult contemporary music.Formed in Detroit,...
, 1989 album - Sticks and StonesSticks and Stones (77s album)Sticks and Stones is the title of The 77s' fourth album, released in 1990 on the Broken Records label.The record is primarily a collection of previously recorded unreleased songs....
, The 77sThe 77sThe 77s are an American rock band consisting of Michael Roe on vocals/guitar, Mark Harmon on bass, and Bruce Spencer on drums.-Scratch Band:...
, 1990 album - Pray NakedPray NakedPray Naked is the title of The 77s' sixth album, released in 1992 on the Brainstorm Artists, Intl label.The band's first album after reforming with members of The Strawmen...
, The 77sThe 77sThe 77s are an American rock band consisting of Michael Roe on vocals/guitar, Mark Harmon on bass, and Bruce Spencer on drums.-Scratch Band:...
, 1992 album - Drowning with Land in SightDrowning with Land in SightDrowning With Land In Sight is the title of The 77s' seventh album, released in 1994 on the Myrrh Records label. The music, their heaviest up to that point, ranged from the opening note-for-note Led Zeppelin cover to the straightforward Rolling Stones homage "Cold Cold Night" to Roy...
, The 77sThe 77sThe 77s are an American rock band consisting of Michael Roe on vocals/guitar, Mark Harmon on bass, and Bruce Spencer on drums.-Scratch Band:...
, 1994 album - Emperors of SoulEmperors of SoulEmperors of Soul is a 1994 box set compilation for The Temptations, released by Motown Records. The five-disc collection covers the Temptations' entire four-decade history, from the first recording of The Distants in 1959 to four new recordings by the then-current Temptations lineup of Ali-Ollie...
The TemptationsThe TemptationsThe Temptations is an American vocal group having achieved fame as one of the most successful acts to record for Motown Records. The group's repertoire has included, at various times during its five-decade career, R&B, doo-wop, funk, disco, soul, and adult contemporary music.Formed in Detroit,...
, 1994 boxed set - Brother's KeeperBrother's Keeper (album)Brother's Keeper is the eighth album by American singer/songwriter Rich Mullins, released in 1995.-Track listing:# "Brothers Keeper" – 3:16#*Appeared on compilation Songs 2 1999...
, Rich MullinsRich MullinsRichard Wayne "Rich" Mullins was an American Contemporary Christian music singer and songwriter born in Richmond, Indiana. He had two sisters and two brothers....
, 1995 album - The Jesus RecordThe Jesus RecordThe Jesus Record is the ninth and final album by American singer/songwriter Rich Mullins, released posthumous on July 21, 1998, ten months after his death....
, Rich MullinsRich MullinsRichard Wayne "Rich" Mullins was an American Contemporary Christian music singer and songwriter born in Richmond, Indiana. He had two sisters and two brothers....
, 1998 album - Prayers of a Ragamuffin, A Ragamuffin BandA Ragamuffin BandA Ragamuffin Band is a musical group founded by Rich Mullins in 1993, when he gathered friends from other bands to back him on his A Liturgy, A Legacy, & A Ragamuffin Band album. The band continued to record and tour with Mullins, and even carried on after his 1997 death...
, 2000 album