This article is an autobiography or has been extensively edited by the subject or by someone connected to the subject. (October 2019) |
Darden Smith (born March 11, 1962, in Brenham, Texas) is an Austin-based singer-songwriter known for his lyrics and for weaving folk and Americana influences with rock, pop, and the musical roots of his home state.[1] His debut album, "Native Soil," was released in 1986. His sixteenth album, Western Skies, was released March 25, 2022.[2] Smith has published two books, The Habit of Noticing: Using Creativity to Make a Life (and a Living) (2018) and Western Skies (2022), a companion book for the album of the same name. Over the past decade, Smith has developed two programs, The Be An Artist Program (2003) and SongwritingWith (2011). Both use collaborative songwriting to work with groups ranging from children in the classroom to soldiers returning home from combat.[3] Smith established SongwritingWith:Soldiers as a separate non-profit organization in 2012.[4]
Darden Smith | |
|---|---|
 Smith in 2013 | |
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Darden Craig Smith |
| Born | March 11, 1962 |
| Origin | Austin, Texas US |
| Genres | Folk, Americana, Rock, Country |
| Occupation(s) | Singer-songwriter, educator |
| Instrument | Guitar |
| Years active | 1986–present |
| Website | www |
Biography
Smith's early interest in music was sparked by singing in the local church choir, the "seat-rattling sound" of the church's pipe organ, and accompanying his parents to country-western dances. By the third grade, he had a guitar and a teacher who taught him how to play every song on Neil Young's Harvest and After the Gold Rush. Smith began writing his own songs at age ten. In 1976, after his family moved to Humble, Texas, in the Houston suburbs, Smith spent his teen years listening to Guy Clark, Townes Van Zandt, John Prine, and Bob Dylan.[1] His musical influences expanded when he moved to Austin to attend The University of Texas and was exposed to blues and reggae, as well as musicians coming out of the United Kingdom such as Nick Lowe, Elvis Costello, and The Pretenders.[5] Smith quickly got involved with Austin's burgeoning music scene, playing in small Austin venues like the Alamo Lounge, Taco Flats, and Waterloo Ice House. He joined a bluegrass band called The Ramblers. By the time Smith graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in American Studies (1985), he was a regular on the local and Texas music scenes.[1] He has one son and one daughter.[6]
Career
After releasing Native Soil in 1986, Darden Smith was signed by Dick James Music to a publishing deal. In 1987, Epic Records signed Smith at the inaugural South by Southwest Festival and released Darden Smith (1988), which produced two country chart hit singles, “Little Maggie” and “Day After Tomorrow.”[7] Later that year, Nigel Grainge, the head of Ensign Records, introduced Smith to the British songwriter Boo Hewerdine. Four days later, they had eight songs and a record deal with Ensign/Chrysalis that resulted in Evidence (1989). After Smith's label deal with Epic was transferred to the pop division of Columbia Records, he released Trouble No More (1990), best known for “Midnight Train” and “Frankie & Sue," and Little Victories (1993) which included the Top 10 pop hit single, "Loving Arms".[1]
Smith left Columbia in 1995 and spent several years without an agent or label. He returned to recording through independent labels, which led to a trio of albums for Dualtone Records (Sunflower, 2002; Circo, 2004; Field of Crows, 2005)[8] to Marathon (2010), a 15-track cycle of songs named for a remote town in West Texas, described by one reviewer as "a peak in [Smith's] 25-year songwriting career"[9] His 2017 album Everything was co-produced by Smith and Stewart Lerman and released on Compass Records. The Habit of Noticing:Using Creativity to Make a Life (and a Living) (2018) was published by Irie Books. His installation, "What I See When I See You" is in the permanent collection of Facebook.[citation needed] Smith continues to tour, performing regularly across America and the UK.
Arts programs
Smith founded The Be An Artist Program in 2003. The program brings arts and creativity into educational settings, including songwriting with students. The Be An Artist Program has reached more than 15,000 students in the United States and in Western Europe.[10] Smith has used collaborative songwriting in work with homeless young adults at Covenant House in New Jersey; residents of Sefhare, Botswana suffering from HIV/AIDS, and Israeli and Palestinian groups.
Founded in 2012 by Smith and Mary Judd, SongwritingWith:Soldiers organizes weekend retreats during which professional songwriters are paired with veterans and active duty service members who share stories about their experiences of combat and the return home. Working collaboratively, the musicians and soldiers turn those stories into songs.[4] SongwritingWith:Soldiers has held 40+ retreats at locations including Texas, New York, Virginia, Colorado, Arizona, Tennessee, and California[4] Participants are registered with the American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers (ASCAP) as co-writers of their songs.
Other Contributions
- Artist-in-Residence at Oklahoma State University’s Institute for Creativity and Innovation[11]
- Arts Entrepreneur-in-Residence at Oklahoma's School of Entrepreneurship.[12]
- Published "Using Your Gift: Creativity in the Classroom" with The Huffington Post.[13]
- Developed scripts and workshop performances of “Marathon” (2009–10).[9]
- Researched and produced “Songs From the Big Sky,” a radio documentary on Texas songwriters for BBC Radio 2 (2006).[14]
- Composed “Grand Motion,” a symphony commissioned by Peter Bay for the Austin Symphony Orchestra, accompanied by dance performance inspired by composition (1999).[15]
- Composed music for dance/theatre productions, including “9 Chains to the Moon” and “Walking on Water” for the Johnson/Long Dance Company in Austin, TX (1988–94).[15]
Discography
| Title | Album Details |
|---|---|
| Western Skies |
|
| Everything |
|
| Love Calling |
|
| Marathon |
|
| After All This Time |
|
| Ojo |
|
| Field of Crows |
|
| Circo |
|
| Sunflower |
|
| Extra Extra |
|
| Deep Fantastic Blue |
|
| Little Victories |
|
| Trouble No More |
|
| Boo Hewerdine and Darden Smith—Evidence |
|
| Darden Smith |
|
| Native Soil |
|
References
- ^ a b c d Keith Kachtick, "Quick Change Artist Texas Monthly p. 70 (October 3, 1996).
- ^ Darden Smith Hears Love Calling on August 27th Album" http://www.directcurrentmusic.com/dc-music-news-feed/2013/4/11/darden-smith-hears-love-calling-on-august-27-album-stream-an.html Archived 2013-04-16 at the Wayback Machine Direct Current Music (April 11, 2013). Accessed May 1, 2013.
- ^ Jessica Nicholson, "Nashville Songwriters Partner With Songwriting:WithSoldiers" http://www.musicrow.com/2013/04/nashville-songwriters-partner-with-songwritingwithsoldiers/ Music Row (April 9, 2013). Accessed April 25, 2013.
- ^ a b c Kristin Shevory, "Writing Songs Provides Peace for Some Soldiers" https://www.nytimes.com/2012/11/18/us/songwritingwithsoldiers-eases-way-for-soldiers.html The New York Times (November 18, 2012)
- ^ "Darden Smith: Biography," Sean Sessler http://www.last.fm/music/Darden+Smith/+wiki Last FM (April 27, 2006). Accessed May 1, 2013.
- ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2015-06-18. Retrieved 2015-06-18.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ^ Johnny Loftus, "Darden Smith Biography" http://www.allmusic.com/artist/darden-smith-mn0000572385 AllMusic (Accessed April 26, 2013)
- ^ No Depression: The Roots Music Authority http://archives.nodepression.com/2002/05/darden-smith-sunflower/ Archived 2013-07-21 at the Wayback Machine (Mar-Apr 2006)
- ^ a b Jim Caligiuri, Marathon http://www.austinchronicle.com/music/2010-11-26/darden-smith-marathon/ (November 26, 2010)
- ^ Patrick Beach, "Lesson in Passion" http://www.statesman.com/news/entertainment/music/lesson-in-passion-austin-singer-songwriter-darde-2/nRbdp/ Austin American-Statesman (February 7, 2009) p.D01
- ^ Institute for Creativity and Innovation http://creativity.okstate.edu/speakerseries/past-speakerseries/(October 7, 2011)
- ^ http://entrepreneurship.okstate.edu/ses/cie/
- ^ "Darden Smith: Using Your Gift: Creativity in the College Classroom" http://lifestyle.topnewstoday.org/lifestyle/article/5323392/ Archived 2013-07-05 at archive.today Top News Today (April 4, 2013) (Accessed May 1, 2013)
- ^ BBC Radio 2 https://www.bbc.co.uk/music/southbysouthwest/radio2/schedule.shtml BBC Radio 2 (March 2006)
- ^ a b Jerry Young, "Singer takes symphony in new direction," Austin American-Statesman, (November 4, 1999).
External links
