Hal Smith Jazz
I am an old-school drummer who celebrates Ragtime, classic jazz of the 1920s and 1930s and the New Orleans Revival.
About Me
Since taking up the drums in 1963, I have been inspired by the live performances of
Ben Pollack, Nick Fatool, Fred Higuera and Wayne Jones as well as recordings by classic jazz drummers Minor Hall, Zutty Singleton, Paul Barbarin, Baby Dodds, Andrew Hilaire, Vic Berton, Stan King, Harry Dial, Johnny Wells and others. I was fortunate to take lessons from the great swing drummer Jake Hanna in 1983.
My main influence on washboard is the South Frisco Jazz Band's Bob Raggio.
I have played with the Jim Cullum Jazz Band, Soprano Summit, Butch Thompson Trio, Climax Jazz Band, Lawson-Haggart Jazz Band, Grand Dominion Jazz Band, Dukes of Dixieland and many Western Swing, Rockabilly, Blues and Contemporary Swing bands. In addition to performances on Minnesota Public Radio's "A Prairie Home Companion" and Texas Public Radio's "Riverwalk: Live From The Landing" I have appeared on over 200 recordings.
Currently I co-lead the Oliver-Smith Incomparables (with pianist Andrew Oliver) and lead the Hal Smith Trio, El Dorado Jazz Band and the Golden Snake Jasss Band.
I also work as a sideman with Banu Gibson's New Orleans Hot Jazz and Grammy Award-winner Floyd Domino and his All-Stars.
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Besides playing music, I am on the faculty of the New Orleans Trad Jazz Camp and the Advisory Board of the Bix Beiderbecke Jazz Society/Jazz Festival.
As I writer, I contribute regularly to The Syncopated Times. I was one of the editors of "Dust Bowl To Disney -- The Lost Autobiography Of Danny Alguire" and co-wrote "Clancy Hayes - The Swingin' Minstrel" (with Chris Reid).
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The Oliver-Smith Incomparables
The Incomparables specialize in performing the music of Ferdinand "Jelly Roll" Morton and music associated with King Oliver, Doc Cook, the New Orleans Owls, Halfway House Orchestra and others in an authentic style with plenty of originality.
Andrew Oliver, piano/co-leader
Hal Smith, drums/co-leader
Colin Hancock, cornet
T.J. Muller, trombone
Andy Schumm, clarinet
Jacob Alspach, banjo/guitar
Dan Anderson, bass/tuba
The Hal Smith Trio
The Hal Smith Trio performs a wide variety of piano-centric material from Scott Joplin to Earl Hines.
Kris Tokarski - piano
Steve Pikal - double bass
Hal Smith - drums, leader
Golden Snake Jasss Band
The Golden Snake Jasss Band plays San Francisco Style Hot Jazz following in the footsteps of
Lu Watters' Yerba Buena Jazz Band, the Bay City Jazz Band and the South Frisco Jazz Band.
Dave Kosmyna - cornet
T.J. Muller - cornet
Howard Miyata - trombone
Andy Schumm - clarinet
Jeff Barnhart - piano
Matt Bottel - banjo
Paul Hagglund - tuba
Hal Smith - washboard, leader
El Dorado Jazz Band
The El Dorado Jazz Band plays New Orleans Jazz; stomps, blues, marches, rags and skiffle with a Southern California twist
Dave Kosmyna - cornet, vocals
Brandon Au - trombone, vocals
Ryan Calloway - banjo, vocals
Jeff Barnhart - piano, vocals
T.J. Muller - banjo, vocals
Mikiya Matsuda - string bass
Hal Smith - washboard, leader
Upcoming Events
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​2026​​​​​​​​
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June 14 - 19: NEW ORLEANS TRAD JAZZ CAMP (Faculty).
July 24 - 26: EVERGREEN JAZZ FESTIVAL - Evergreen, Colorado with Floyd Domino's Western Swing All-Stars, featuring Elana James.
July 30 - Aug. 1: BIX BEIDERBECKE JAZZ FESTIVAL - Davenport, Iowa with the Oliver-Smith Incomparables and Jeff Barnhart's Fats Waller Legacy Band.
New Recording!
Order the CD for $20.00 including postage via Media Mail. E-mail hws08@live.com for details.
Also available as a digital album from Bandcamp.com.
Other Recordings
I have produced several traditional jazz recordings such as the one below, plus two sessions featuring World-Class vocalists. All of them are available from the Hal Smith page on Bandcamp.com.
New Orleans Style Ragtime
on Rivermont Records
"St. Louis Rag" features the New Orleans Night Owls playing classic (and not-so-classic) rags in a style influenced by the ragtime recordings of Bunk Johnson, Mutt Carey, Ken Colyer and the St. Louis Ragtimers.
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Available from rivermontrecords.com
Publications
Both of these books are available from Amazon.com