Discography
Doc's “FutureJazz” Live at the Cadillac Hotel, featuring guitarist Peter McKibben , flautist Laura Austin Wiley, with 7 string bassist Edo Castro Woodhouse and keyboardist Steve McQuarry is now available Edgetone Records! This performance was digitally filmed and recorded live in San Francisco, with all new music and solo pieces! https://edgetonerecords.bandcamp.com/album/futurejazz-live-at-the-cadillac-hotel
Doc's “Trio Electrique”, featuring 7 String Bassist Edo Castro Woodhouse and electric violinist Michele Walther, is now available for pre-orders! You get 2 tracks now (streaming via the free Bandcamp app and also available as a high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more), plus the complete album the moment it’s released! https://edgetonerecords.bandcamp.com/album/trio-electrique
Doc appears on "The Return", the 2nd album by Jason Everett and his Deep Energy Orchestra, featuring Trey Gunn, Fareed Haque, Phil Hirschi, Radhika Iyer, Rachel Nesvig, Aleida Gehrels, Chaz Hastings, Vishal Nagar, Suhail Yusuf Khan and Selvaganesh Vinayakram! Be on the lookout for a February 2020 release on Trey Gunn’s 7D Media label!
Doc’s last album “True Fire” with bansurist John Wubbenhorst, is the sequel to John’s 2006 album “True Water” with percussionist Ken Anoff. This album will be available soon, also features music from the group Facing East.
“My most recent album is "FutureJazz”, with guitarist Peter McKibben and flautist Laura Austin Wiley is now available as a CD or streaming via the free Bandcamp app and as a high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more! Special guests include 7string bassist Edo Castro, Steve Ellison on Chapman Stick and Nora Maki on keyboards! http://edgetonerecords.bandcamp.com/album/futurejazz
“FutureJazz” (Edgetone EDT4171) is the latest work by drummer and electronic percussionist E. Doctor Smith (Brian Eno, Madonna, John Wubbenhorst & Facing East) and his seventh album on the Edgetone Records label. FutureJazz unites Smith with guitarist Peter McKibben (Savant Garde) and features flautist, Laura Austin Wiley (Resonance). Smith’s unique fusion approach with his Zendrum EXP MIDI percussion controller, combines with McKibben’s inspired guitar looping mastery and Wiley’s thoughtful flute playing to create music swirling between the sublime, the beautiful, the incendiary.
Inspired by the music of iconic jazz fusion pioneers like Return to Forever, progressive rock groups like King Crimson, Jethro Tull, Genesis, Tangerine Dream, and the 1970 classic tome “Future Shock” by author Alvin Toffler, Smith and McKibben’s compositions are borne out of an appreciation for the those musical masters, and the shock that accompanies the reality today’s musicians face in our rapidly changing, ever-evolving, digital age. Smith, McKibben and Wiley have not shied away from it. To the contrary, they have sought to embrace it by using some of the latest musical technology, instruments and signal processing to explore the boundaries of the analog and digital, musical frontiers.
Toffler wrote, “To survive, to avert what we have termed future shock, the individual must become infinitely more adaptable and capable than ever before. We must search out totally new ways to anchor ourselves, for all the old roots - religion, nation, community, family, or profession - are now shaking under the hurricane impact of the accelerative thrust. It is no longer resources that limit decisions, it is the decision that makes the resources.”
Releases April 28, 2016
E. Doctor Smith - Zendrum EXP, samples
Peter McKibben - Electric guitars, Guitar synthesizer, loops
Laura Austin Wiley - Flutes, effects
Edo Castro - 7 String Bass samples, loops on “October Sun”
Steve Ellison - Chapman Stick sample on “Martin’s Funk”
Nora Maki - Keyboard sample on “Darkly Noon”
E. Doctor Smith Quantum is now available on iTunes, Bandcamp, Amazon and Emusic worldwide!
EDT4136: http://edgetonerecords.com/catalog/4136.html
Quantum (Edgetone EDT4136) is the latest work by drummer and electronic percussionist E. Doctor Smith (Brian Eno, Madonna, Edo Castro) and his sixth album on the Edgetone Records label. Quantum reunites Smith with his former Drummstick band mate, guitarist Jack Wright (Quantum Kids, Temporal Chaos Project) and features Quantum Kids' bassist, Tom Shiben, and Smith's Feat of Clay co-founder, trumpeter Eric Dahlman. In this collaboration, Smith’s unique fusion approach to the new Zendrum EXP MIDI percussion controller (the first commercially sold EXP, designed by David Haney of the Zendrum Corporation), splash blends with Wright's inspired guitar work and looping mastery to create music swirling between the subtle, the beautiful, the incendiary.
Inspired by Wright's progressive rock compositions and musicianship, Smith’s Washington, D.C.- based Drummstick band performed Wright’s anthemic Reflections and syncopated Progress, bringing the guitarist’s work to the area’s larger venues for the first time. During a performance at a club in Northern Virginia in the fall of 2000, Smith was playing the Drummstick, (his original MIDI percussion controller), alongside Wright when the guitarist’s creative use of loops, especially in his beautifully crafted song PsychoBilly, prompted the legendary guitarist Bill Kirchen, who happened to be in attendance, to ask Smith, "What is that thing you are playing, Doc, who is that guitarist, and why have I never heard of him before?" Since then, Wright’s many memorable live performances and online presence have provided increasing recognition of his work and access to it for loyal fans.
Smith recorded two albums with Wright: The Drummstick in 2000 (Edgetone EDT4046) and The Drummstick 2 in 2007 (Edgetone EDT4053) after relocating to San Francisco with bassist Celia DuBose. Smith and Wright performing several times in San Francisco and agreed to work together again when the time was right.
Happily, in 2008 Smith reunited with Wright and fellow band mate, MIDI saxophonist and flautist Neil Mezebish at the Barn, Mezebish's recording studio in Taylorsville, Maryland and Smith recorded several of Wright's best-known compositions from the Quantum Kids repertoire, including Angular Momentum, Progress, PsychoBilly, and Son of Frunkenstein." Those sessions were the foundation for this album, which was completed with several pieces from Smith’s Feat of Clay repertoire, including Kodo and Blue Moon, recorded with trumpeter Eric Dahlman and Mike Hall on guitar synthesizer.
The result is Quantum, a mix of progressive rock and jazz with ambient and otherworldly sounds, a potent musical cocktail — definitely shaken, not stirred!
E. Doctor Smith - Zendrum EXP
Jack Wright - PRS guitars, iGuitars, loops
Tom Shiben - 4, 5 and 8 String Rickenbacher basses
Eric Dahlman - Trumpet and loops
Mike Hall - Roland Guitar synthesizer
E.Doctor Smith - Live with Edo Castro
EDT4081: http://edgetonerecords.com/catalog/4081.html
Spawned by the extraordinary Northern California bassist Michael Manring, the "Bass Solo Night" concert series has quickly become a stomping ground for some of the San Francisco Bay area's best musicians. It's a movable feast of talented bassists and features a rotating pool of extremely creative and innovative players.
E. Doctor Smith, (the inventor of the MIDI percussion instrument, the Drummstick), had been asked to perform at one of those shows alongside the bassist and fellow Flecktone fan, Ariane Cap. Ironically, it was during this show at Oakland's Rooz Cafe that led to his first encounter with the bassist Edo Castro. Like Manring before him, Castro was another master of the "E-Bow". His 7 string bass playing was simply gorgeous and his ability to build loops and solo live was equally astounding. Needless to say, Smith was surprised when Castro graciously asked him join him for a "gratuitous funk" tune. The result was a truly magical experience and a unique new musical friendship was born.
The pairing of Smith/Castro has often been compared to acid-jazz "jam band" of the Benevento/Russo Duo and the intensely powerful, yet poignant music of Brian Eno and Robert Fripp. This live album features the music of Smith's earlier Drummstick 2, K2, Robert Anbian and the Unidentified Flying Quartet CDs, and culled from performances recorded at the Sheba Lounge in San Francisco and Mill Valley's 142 Throckmorton Theatre.
E.Doctor Smith - Zendrum ZX, PowerBook G4, iDrum, iControl, Alesis D4 & DMPro, Midi Jet Pro
Edo Castro - 7 String "Stinger" Bee and Conklin Basses,Roland GR 20 Guitar Synth, Line 6 M13 Stomp Box
"While steeped in jazz, San Francisco seven-string bass master Edo Castro is a versatile player whose lyrical lines have graced a vast array of settings. He joins forces with electronic percussion explorer E. Doctor Smith and special guests for an evening of ambient soundscapes inspired by Brian Eno (shaped partly by Eno's generative software). Smith recorded with Eno in the early 1980s, one of many illustrious artists he's collaborated with, including Madonna, Warren Zevon, Mickey Hart and Jimmy Cliff..."
Nice to come across this little piece by Andrew Gilbert in the SF Chronicle's "Essentials" section promoting my recent Royce Gallery show with Edo Castro... Edo played beautifully as he so often does... Here we come up with an improvisational segue into "Blue Moon", a song from my old Feat of Clay days that found its way onto our live CD on Edgetone.
E. Doctor Smith and Seth Elgart - K2
EDT4071: http://edgetonerecords.com/catalog/4071.html
“K2” is the culmination of a nearly thirty year musical collaboration between two friends that began with their early days in the NYC prog rock group “Everest”. Since that time, E. Doctor Smith and Seth Elgart have continued to collaborate on a variety of projects, ranging from the Source Theater production of “The Mound Builders”, to Steve Ellison’s “Flash to Bangtime” and Smith’s acid jazz group, “The Drummstick”. Influenced by the works of Brian Eno, Tangerine Dream, Kit Watkins, Larry Fast and others, “K2” represents the fullfilment of their long time dream of paying tribute to those like-minded musical mentors and utilizing a variety of today’s 21st century MIDI technology.
"The Doctor is IN, and he's way cool..." Kit Watkins
E. Doctor Smith, Zendrum ZX, Samples
Seth Elgart, Synthesizers, Samples
Neil Mezebish, Flute, Saxophones, MIDI Wind Controllers
Edo Castro, 7 String “Stinger” Bee and Conklin
Neng Canzon, Bass on Son of Mobado
E. Doctor Smith - The Drummstick 2
EDT4053: http://edgetonerecords.com/catalog/4053.html
E. Doctor Smith’s original invention, the Drummstick, has a vertical design that enhances his ability to digitally tap, slap, flam, and roll. This CD showcases the versatility of his instrument and presents truly inspired left-the-box-way-behind music that smacks you up one side of your head while caressing you down the other.
For the Drummstick’s 10th anniversary, Doc reassembled many of the musicians from the Drummstick’s debut release in 2000, as well as some great new ones. Rejoining Doc for Drummstick 2 are bassist and co-producer Celia DuBose; Jack Wright with his array of electric guitars and loops; Neil Mezebish on acoustic and MIDI saxes; trumpeter and Feat of Clay co-founder the “Mad Swede,” aka Eric Dahlman; and his long-time collaborator and K2 co-founder Seth “Elgie” Elgart on assorted iBooks, vintage synthesizers, keyboards and samples.
Also joining Doc is bassist Mike Shea, who recorded with Doc’s latest ensemble, Robert Anbian and UFQ: The Unidentified Flying Quartet, featuring poet Robert Anbian, saxophonist Charles Unger, and pianist Sam Peoples.
“I call the post-fusion, world beat jazz these guys play ‘acid-bop’...”
-Robert Anbian, Poet
E. Doctor Smith - The Drummstick, Samples
Celia DuBose - Electric Bass
Jack Wright - Electric Guitars, Loops
Neil Mezebish - Flute, Alto, Tenor, Soprano and MIDI Saxophones
Seth Elgart - Synthesizers, Samples
Eric Dahlman -Trumpet
Charles Unger - Tenor and Soprano Saxophones
Sam Peoples -Acoustic and Electric Piano, Samples
Mike Shea - Acoustic and Electric Bass
Robert Anbian & the UFQ: The Unidentified Flying Quartet
EDT4052: http://edgetonerecords.com/catalog/4052.html
From the San Francisco poetry underground comes the voice of Robert Anbian, backed by electronic percussionist E. “Doc” Smith and Bay Area sax legend Charles Unger, plus keyboardist Sam Peoples and bassist Mike Shea. UFQ makes its own magic inspired by the music of Miles Davis, Thelonius Monk, and Bobby Hutcherson, with infusions of Brian Eno, the Grateful Dead, and something else. Notes Anbian: “I call the post-fusion, world beat jazz these guys play ‘acid-bop’ – it’s got more possibilities for poetry than the typical verse-chorus cadences of popular music.”
Known for his lyrical-epic “WE” series, and such topical effronteries as “Haikus for the White House,” Anbian has been described by fellow poet Richard Hack as “a passionate virtuoso steeped in these times and deep with tradition” [whose] “poetry crackles with currency – hiply linguistic turns of natural originality, rhythmically brimming with a tempestuous taste of ecstasy, reason, and love.” Dusty Dog Reviews declared him “a genius or a Venusian.”
Robert Anbian - voice, poetry
E. Doctor Smith - The Drummstick, samples
Charles Unger - tenor & soprano saxophones
Sam Peoples -acoustic & electric piano, samples
Mike Shea - acoustic & electric bass
E. Doctor Smith - The Drummstick
EDT4046: http://edgetonerecords.com/catalog/4046.html
Having played for 20 years in jazz, fusion, pop, and folk bands as a serious student of drums, E. Doctor Smith developed a love of digital drumming that compelled him to design and build an instrument that would give him maximum flexibility as a writer, drummer, and performer. The Drummstick, a percussion controller with 16 finger-pads mounted on a 2 x 6 piece of wood, is worn like a guitar and used exclusively to achieve Doc’s primary goal in life— to make spirits dance.
“From the banjo-meets-Bruford tribal groove of 'Futureboy' to the atmospheric sonic landscapes of “Girl of a Thousand Days,” E. Doctor Smith treads a musical road less traveled. His intrepid ensemble’s acid jazz explorations wander into every world musical nook and cranny, making this collection a trip well worth taking.”
-Stephen Bray, Producer
E. Doctor Smith, The Drummstick
Celia DuBose, Bass and Vocals
Jack Wright, Guitars
Neil Mezebish, MIDI Sax and Flute
Eric Dahlman, Trumpet/Jamman
Carlos Augustus, Guitar Synthesizer
Siobhan Canty, Vocals/Jamman
Seth Elgart, Synthesizers
Chris Gulino, Banjo on “Futureboy”
All of these titles are available via Edgetone Recodrds, iTunes and Amazon.com
E. Doctor Smith - Feat of Clay - 2020
E. Doctor Smith - Trio Electrique - 2020
Deep Energy Orchestra - The Return - 2020
The Laura Austin Wiley Quintet - Live! - 2019
John Wubbenhorst and E. Doc Smith - True Fire - 2019
Peter McKibben - Life Cycle - 2019
Laura Austin Wiley - Waiting for Rain - 2018
Echelon - Are You Listening? - 2018
McQuarry Organ Trio - The Walk - 2018
E. Doctor Smith and Peter McKibben - FutureJazz - 2017
E. Doctor Smith - Quantum - 2016
Maki Smith Duo - Live at the Cadillac 2016
Edo Castro - Sacred Graffiti - 2015
E. Doctor Smith - Live with Edo Castro - 2014
The Wilbur Rehman Quartet - Live at the Cadillac Hotel - 2011
E. Doctor Smith and Seth Elgart - K2 - 2008
E. Doctor Smith - The Drummstick 2 - 2007
The Charles Unger Experience - Around the World - 2007
E. Doctor Smith - Robert Anbian and the UFQ: The Unidentified Flying Quartet 2007
Carlos Augusto - Zenastics - 2003
E. Doctor Smith - The Drummstick Live at the State Theater - 2002
E. Doctor Smith - The Drummstick - 2001
Madonna - Pre-Madonna, 1980-1981 New York City -1997
Steve Ellison’s Bangtime - Bangtime 1995
Between the Lines - Live at the Theater of Living Arts - 1995
Between the Lines - Find the Place - 1994
Madonna - And You Can Dance - 1990
Madonna - Who’s That Girl? - 1989
Bryan Ferry - Bete Noire - 1987
Gladys Knight and the Pips - Miami Vice Soundtrack II - 1986
Madonna - True Blue - 1988
The Breakfast Club - Right on Track -1987
The Breakfast Club - Rico Mambo -1986