The Headless Horseman After high school, Smith became part-owner of Portland teen club The Headless Horseman along with two friends, Al Dardis and Ross Allemang. Smith and Allemang were members of the club's house band, the former playing guitar and the latter on bass. In 1962,
Mark Lindsay and
Paul Revere had relocated to Portland and were seeking musicians to complete their band. They visited the club, met Smith, and invited him to join as their drummer. The Raiders signed on as the club's house band, ultimately sharing time with Gentlemen Jim and the Horsemen as their popularity and commitments elsewhere increased. It was during this time that Revere was first exposed to "
Louie Louie" when a fan gave him a copy of the
1961 Wailers single. The
1963 Raiders recording featured Smith's "Grab yo woman, it's-a 'Louie Louie' time!" vocal intro.
Paul Revere & the Raiders Smith was the drummer for Paul Revere & the Raiders from 1962 to 1967, and again from 1971 to 1972. The classic line-up of
Revere,
Lindsay, Smith,
Levin, and
Volk performed on some of their biggest hits, including "
Just Like Me," "
Hungry," and "
Kicks." Their 1967 compilation album
Greatest Hits also achieved gold certification. Christened the "mad little wizard", and "the kookiest member of the group", he was noted for his "flair for comedy" and "outlandish sense of humor". with water fights and crazed drum solos. He was a "powerful drummer" and a "strong, energetic player", but with "enough subtlety in his technique" to support the group's earlier R&B-focused dance music and their later garage and pop/rock phases.
Brotherhood/Friendsound After leaving Paul Revere & the Raiders in 1967, Smith and ex-Raiders
Drake Levin and
Phil Volk formed Brotherhood. Originally called Phil, Drake & Smitty, the trio became a quartet with the addition of organist Ron Collins. The band was signed to
RCA, but their progress was hindered by the members' lingering contractual obligations to Revere and
Columbia. Multiple lawsuits had to be resolved over the course of 18 months before any music could be released. In the interim, Smith, Levin, and Volk did studio work for producer
Terry Melcher and jammed with local musicians including
Jimi Hendrix,
David Crosby, and others. They also wrote and performed on two songs for
Barry McGuire's 1968 album ''The World's Last Private Citizen
. and wanted to "write our own tunes and connect with the culture of that day". creation using musique concrète and other experimental forms. Smith was listed as co-writer on all but one of the tracks and credited for playing drums, tambourine, celesta, shovel, and console. Joyride'' was included along with other experimental albums on the 1979
Nurse with Wound list of
avant-garde music. All three albums were rereleased by Real Gone Music on a 2014 CD compilation
Brotherhood/Friendsong: The Complete Recordings.
Later events Smith left Brotherhood after the
Joyride album citing lifestyle conflicts and constant arguing. On October 13, 2007, the entire group was inducted into the
Oregon Music Hall of Fame. ==Discography==