The Boston Globe - 20.09.2019

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER20, 2019 The Boston Globe G5

ByLaurenDaley
GLOBECORRESPONDENT
When Chris Smither and his twin
sister were 12 years old and livingin
Paris, theirlinguist professor father,
whohad beentravelingEurope,re-
turned one day bearinggifts.
“He camebackfromSpainand
said, ‘Here’s a guitar. Think you can
handleit?’ And I was off and running,”
recalls Smither, 74, from his Amherst
home. “I hadn’t brought my ukulele
with me to Paris, and I missed it terri-
bly. He knew that.”
A few years prior, Smither had
learnedukulelefromhis uncle:“I
found it and thought it was a guitar be-
causeI wasn’t very big. My uncle said,
‘Nah, that’s a uke. Wanna learn to play
it?’ He showedme three chords. I took
off.”
Born in Miami in 1944, the Smither
twins, Chris and Catherine, grew up in
New Orleans, where theirfather
taught at Tulane University.
Though“obsessed” withguitar,
Smither went on to study anthropolo-
gy in college. While in Mexico for an
excavation as a freshman,his favorite
find was the new guitar he bought in
Mexico City. “I was really interested in
pre-Colombian culturesin southern
Mexico.I went on a few digs down
there.But the further I got into my ac-
ademiccareer,themoreIwasinto
buyingand playingguitars,” he says
with a laugh.
If his childhoodsoundslike “The
RoyalTenenbaums,” his next chapter
was more “On the Road.”
One day in the early’60s, he and a
buddy rolled into Sarasota,Fla., look-
ing for folktroubadourEricVon
Schmidt. They found him in the phone
book,weretold “Come on over!,” and
endedup at a jam at Von Schmidt’s
placewith half the members of the Jim
Kweskin Jug Band.
Von Schmidt, the Pied Piperfigure
of the ’60s Boston folk scene,told
Smither, “ ‘Oh man,you shouldcome
up to Boston.. .’ So I did,” Smither
says. “I think he was a little shocked. I
sort of dropped everythingin my life
and went to take up vagabondage and
guitar playing.”
“Everybody’s goal was to get into
Club 47. WhichI finallydid. I man-
aged to play there onceor twice,” says
Smitherof the storiedfolk jointnow
known as Club Passim.
Smither returns to Passimfor a
sold-out showFriday witha batch of
new originals from his 2018album,
“Call Me Lucky,” among a half-centu-
ry’s worth of songs that are all distinct-
ly him: the tapping feet, the beat-heavy
finger-picking, thoseJohn Prine-
meets-Professor lyrics.
“Chris Smither’s songwritingis
magnetic. His unusual fingerpicking
style grabs my ears, but the thing that
keeps me rapt is his ability withina
couple lines to have you chuckling
with glancingblows of sharp wit, then
reelingafter a gut punchof profound

observational truth,” says Matt Lorenz,

who performs as The Suitcase Junket.

SmithertappedtheWestern

Mass.-based multi-instrumentalist as a

studio musician for “Call Me Lucky.”

“I also find it inspirational that his

writing just keeps getting better. I

mean,that’s what we all hopefor as

artists, but it’s pretty great to see some-

one actually living it,” says Lorenz, 37,

who has also toured with Smither.

Smither’s is a catalogheavy on try-

ing to understandwherewe came

from,why we’re here,and Vonnegut-

esquenuggets of wisdom. “Most of my

songs are just about existence — the

big questions.Love, death, hunger,

‘Why am I doingthis?’All those

things,” says Smither.

A Smither 101 syllabusmight in-

clude witty science-vs.-religion via

Darwinism (“Originof Species”); rue-

ful musings on that “little known di-

mension” called time (“Leave the Light

On”); pinings for simpler times (“Cave-

man”); and many songs on the self-

awareness of the lonely human condi-

tion, including “Help Me Now.”

“Beyond his music, he’s a great guy

to spend time with;smart, funny, no

bull.I lookto him as a role model,”

says Lorenz.

It’s a good description of Smither.

There is no act, no bravado. All smile-

creased eyes, mop of still-dark hair,

voice patinated to a gruff, bluesy bass.

In an interview, he’s warm,laughs eas-

ily, has peaceful senseabouthim.On-

stage, he’s apt to laugh randomly while

in a jam, smile, and shake his hair, an

almost childlike thrill at what’s hap-

pening.

He is, today, an amalgamof his

childhood passions:anthropology,

music, and language. If he weren’t a

musician, he’d be “some kind of aca-

demic,” he says. Smither speaks fluent

French and Spanish. “I can feed myself

in German. I can say a few thingsin

Chinese.”

“My father was a language guy,” he

says. “He just dropped us kids into a

Frenchpublic school,without speak-

ing a wordof French.Inside of two

months,we werepretty fluent. I

learned Spanish because I went to

Mexico City and did the same thing to

myself that my father did to me when I

was 12.”

The professor’s kid felt rightat

home arriving in the college townof

Boston in the ’60s, where he “got work

right away, mostly overon Beacon

Hill” and “started songwriting serious-

ly.” His guitar playing emulated his two

heroes, Lightnin’ Hopkins and Missis-

sippiJohn Hurt. “They’re still the

foundation stones where I build every-

thing I do on guitar.”

In Cambridge, he met Radcliffe Col-

lege student Bonnie Raitt, who eventu-

ally covered Smither’s “Love You Like a

Man” (repurposed into “Love Me Like

a Man” on her 1972album “Give It

Up”).

Smither “can’t play withouttap-

ping” his feet, so about 25 years ago he

started mic-ing them. And after get-

ting an aortic valve replaced a while

back, he’s back on those famous feet.

So how long after arrivingin Bos-

ton before he felt he made it?

“About 40 years,” he says witha

laugh.“Seriously. I’ve been doingthis

over 50 years, and except for the last

15, 20 years,it was pretty hand-to-

mouth.I just persisted. And so far I’ve

been lucky.”

Lauren Daley can be reached at

[email protected]. She tweets

@laurendaley1.

For Chris Smither, it’s been 50 years

of digging deep into existential folk-blues

‘Most of mysongsare

just aboutexistence—

thebigquestions.

Love,death,hunger,

“Why amI doing

this?”Allthosethings.’

CHRIS SMITHER

DANCE

MUSIC

OPERA

THEATER THEATER THEATER

MUSIC

THEATER MUSIC

SATURDAY,SEPTEMBER 21

Join legendarymusicianNOELPAULSTOOKEY

and 100+performersat this FREEfamily

celebrationof the AutumnalEquinoxalongthe

CharlesRiverat the HerterPark Amp in Allston.

FamilyFun beginsat 5pm.Singingbeginsat 6!

Comesingwithus!

Detailsat Revels.org

afreefamilycelebration

of fall

SEPTEMBER24 -OCTOBER 6

AndrewLloydWebber’sTonyAward-winning

musicalthriller!Fadedsilent-screengoddess,

NormaDesmond,lives alonein the dark with

little morethan her celluloidmemories.In her

fantasies,sheremainswhatsheoncewas-the

greateststarofall.Watchasshetriestoreclaim

the spotlight,but with dramaticconsequences.

NORTHSHOREMUSICTHEATRE

62 DunhamRoad|Beverly|MA

BOOKTODAY:NSMT.ORG|978.232.7200

StarrinGtonyWinner

alice ripley WhenAna’scherishedbookgroupbecomesthe

focusof adocumentaryfilm, intimatediscussions

aboutlife and literaturetake aturn for the hilari-

ous in front of the inescapablecameralens.A

delightfulplayaboutlife,love,literature,andthe

side-splittingresultswhenfriendsstartreading

betweenthelines.DirectedbyShanaGozansky.

BostonPlaywrights’Theatre

949 CommonwealthAvenue

Thurs.7:30 p.m.,Fri./Sat.8p.m., Sun. 2p.m.

Tickets:866-411-8111or BostonPlaywrights.org

Sept.26-oct. 13

BostonBallet’sGiselle,ahauntingtale of love,

betrayal,and forgivenessreturnsto the stagefor

thefirst time in adecade.Experiencethe thrilling

dramaand exquisitechoreographyof anew

stagingby LarissaPonomarenko,who delighted

audiencesin the title role throughouther career.

With an iconic,ghostlycorpsde ballet,and one

of the mostdemandingand covetedheroinesin

the repertoire,Giselleruns September19–29

at the CitizensBankOperaHouse.Ticketsat

bostonballet.org.

fallmadlyin love,

September19–2 9

HarryChristophers,conductor

“Revelingwith astonishingclarity.”

-The BostonMusicalIntelligencer

Friday,Oct 4, 2019at 7:30pm

Sunday,Oct 6, 2019at 3:00pm

SymphonyHall

HandeLand HaYdn sOCietY

JamieKent headlinesaconcertfeaturingthe

BabsonMusicCollectiveand Sababa.Kent has

beennamedbyRollingStone.comasan“Artist

You Needto Know”and dubbeda“MustWatch

Artist” by The Huffington Post.

Thursday,September26 at 7:00P.M.

SorensonCenterfor the Arts at BabsonCollege

231 ForestStreet,Wellesley

Tickets:FREEwithregistration

Visit BabsonARTS.orgor call 781-239-5880

JamieKent&Friends

PhilipGlass&the PhilipGlassEnsemble

performthe GoldenGlobe-winningscore

to accompanyGodfreyReggio’scinematic

classicfilm Koyaanisqatsi.Apropheticand

apocalypticvisionof the collisionof urbanlife,

technology,andtheenvironment,Koyaanisqatsi

isabrilliantperformanceexperience.

ONE NIGHTONLY

SEP 20, 8PM,OrpheumTheatre

1HamiltonPlace,Boston

For ticketsand information:

globalartslive.org|617.876.4275

KOYaanisQatsiLiVe!

LiFeOUtOF BaLanCe

FEATURINGDoo-WoppHall of FamerSHIRLEY

REEVES(originallead singerof THE SHIRELLES)

-“Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow”,“Soldier

Boy”,“I Met Him On ASunday”,“DedicatedTo

The One ILove” •THE MARCELS-“BlueMoon”

“Heartaches”•ASaluteto THE MARVELETTES

with LONNIECLARKand Group-“PleaseMr.

Postman”,“Don’tMessWith Bill”

NORTHSHOREMUSICTHEATRE

62 DunhamRoad|Beverly|MA

TIX: $59 &$49 |NSMT.ORGor 978.232.7200

indUCtiOns and COnCert

OCtOBer13 at 2pm

Blue Heron(ScottMetcalfe,dir.) celebratesits

20th birthdayand 20 yearsof engagementwith

the Tudor-erapolyphonyfoundin the Peterhouse

partbooks(copiedc. 1540for CanterburyCathe-

dral),with aprogramfeaturingfan favorites.

Saturday,October5•8PM

First Churchin Cambridge,Congregational

11 GardenStreet,Cambridge

Sunday,October6•4PM

S. Stephen’sChurch

114 GeorgeStreet,Providence

http://www.blueheron.org/(617) 960-7956

canterburyrediscovered

sat. oct.5&sun.oct. 6

“DownrightHilarious!”-HuffingtonPost

Tues-Friat 7, Sat at 5&8,Sun at 3&7

To order617-426-5225or shearmadness.com

Studentrush &speciallypricedseniortix

Greatgrouprates!617-451-0195

CharlesPlayhouse,74 WarrentonStreet

boston’sHilarious

WHodunit! Songsfrom the AmericanMusicTheater

Presentedby MusicWorcester

Wed.Oct. 2at7:30pm

Tickets$65+adults;$25 youth/student

Venue-MechanicsHall, Worcester

WWW.MUSICWORCESTER.ORG508-754-3231

audraMcdonaldoct. 2

WhenSeymourdiscoversacarnivorous,

conniving–not to mentionsinging–plant,

he thinksall his wisheswill cometrue.

There’sjust one thingmissing.BLOOD!

Thru Oct 6Lyric StageCopleySq

617.585.5678 lyricstage.com

“a deliGHt!”“brilliant!”

“stuPendous!

“A theatricalhug for turbulenttimes!”-Variety

Adaptedfor the stageby Nia Vardalos

BasedonthebookbyCherylStrayed

SEP11-OCT6, 2019

Box Office978-654-4678

http://www.mrt.org

merrimackrepertory

theatre

1940’sMulti-MediaPresentation

Musicof WWII~Rexall RadioHour

Saluteto Rodgers&Hammerstein

617 LexingtonSt., Waltham

ReagleMusicTheatre.com~Free Parking

Veteransof all WarsAdmittedFREE

october5&6at2pm

781-891-5600

REMEMBERING

4 O

’

S

THE

An End of SummerTributeof 30 Hit Songs

The Very Best of 50’s and 60’s Surfin’ Music

ReagleMusicTheatre.com

617 LexingtonStreet,Waltham

FREEPARKING

september22 at 3pm

781-891-5600

BEACHBUMS

THE

ATRIBUTETOTHEBEACHBOYS

Translated&adaptedby BrendaWithersfrom

AlfredJarry’s“KingUbu”

Directedby WesleySavick.9/19-21&9/26-28

Presentedby Juvenilia&The NationalTheatre

of Allston

ModernTheatre.com|866.811.4111

“...hilarious,profound&

raucous!”

Sun 9/22,7:30pmat SandersTheatre

HaydnPianoTrio in Cmajor

ShostakovichPianoQuintetin Gminor

MozartViolaQuintetin Cmajor

$27,$39, $51,$63; Students:$9; Sr: $4 off

http://www.bostonchambermusic.org/617.349.0086

seasonpremiere: haydn

shostakovich&mozart

An ImmigrantOpera

Fri, Sept 20 at 7:30pm

Sat, Sept 21 at 7:30pm

Sun, Sept 22 at 3:00pm

EmersonParamountCenter,Boston

Tickets:617.824.8400/whitesnakeprojects.org

iamadreamerwhono

longerdreams

The mesmerizingcircustroupe,The 7Fingers,

returnsto Bostonwith Passengers!Climbaboard

andtakeanunforgettableridethatwillengage

your imagination,pull at your heartstrings,and

discoverwonderand beautyalongthe way.

Ticketsat ArtsEmerson.org

U.s. premiere

sep 25-oct 13

FromOscar-winnerTarellAlvinMcCraney

(“Moonlight”)comesthis powerfulcoming-

of-agestorypunctuatedby live gospel&

R&B performances.Containsnudity.

Ticketsfrom $25! Now throughOct. 12.

http://www.SpeakEasyStage.com/617-933-8600

2019 tonyawardnominee

-Best play-

Whathappenedafter Nora slammedthe door on

her familyin Ibsen’sADoll’s House?With razor-

sharpdialogue,LucasHnath’sTony-nominated

comicdramaprovokesquestionsaboutmarriage,

equalityand the cost of liberation.Sep 12-Oct6.

CodeGLOBE5for $5 off! GAMMTHEATRE.ORG

NORAIS BACK!

ADOLL’SHOUSE,PART 2