Gospel Singer. A native of Andrews, South Carolina, Smith was a member of, and a first tenor for the early gospel quartet, The Harmonizing Four. He was also the father of singer, pianist, and flutist Donald C. Smith, and jazz musician and composer Lonnie Liston Smith Jr. Born to a church deacon, Smith was exposed to religion and gospel music through his father's church choir. As he grew older, Smith became more interested in music by discovering such greats as Ma Rainey, Blind Lemon Jefferson, and others. In the 1930s, his family relocated to Richmond, Virginia. In Richmond, he worked as a tobacco factory porter, and sang with the musical group, the Christian Four. In 1943, Smith joined The Harmonizing Gospel Quartet, a popular gospel group formed by four high school friends some 16 years earlier. The quartet went onto sing at the Smithsonian Institute, the famed Apollo Theater, Carnegie Hall in New York, and on radio, most notably the WRNL and WRVA Radio Stations for many years. They had successes with such recordings as, "Motherless Child", "I'm Bound For Higher ground", "I Cried Holy", "Jesus Gave Me Water", "Blessed Quietness", "I Believe", "A Closer Walk With Thee", and "How Great Thou Art". Smith's later years was spent mainly with the quartet, and as a member of the 31st Street Baptist Church in Richmond, Virginia. He passed away in 1995, at the age of 88. At the time of his death, he had been a member of The Harmonizing Four, a total of 52 years.
Gospel Singer. A native of Andrews, South Carolina, Smith was a member of, and a first tenor for the early gospel quartet, The Harmonizing Four. He was also the father of singer, pianist, and flutist Donald C. Smith, and jazz musician and composer Lonnie Liston Smith Jr. Born to a church deacon, Smith was exposed to religion and gospel music through his father's church choir. As he grew older, Smith became more interested in music by discovering such greats as Ma Rainey, Blind Lemon Jefferson, and others. In the 1930s, his family relocated to Richmond, Virginia. In Richmond, he worked as a tobacco factory porter, and sang with the musical group, the Christian Four. In 1943, Smith joined The Harmonizing Gospel Quartet, a popular gospel group formed by four high school friends some 16 years earlier. The quartet went onto sing at the Smithsonian Institute, the famed Apollo Theater, Carnegie Hall in New York, and on radio, most notably the WRNL and WRVA Radio Stations for many years. They had successes with such recordings as, "Motherless Child", "I'm Bound For Higher ground", "I Cried Holy", "Jesus Gave Me Water", "Blessed Quietness", "I Believe", "A Closer Walk With Thee", and "How Great Thou Art". Smith's later years was spent mainly with the quartet, and as a member of the 31st Street Baptist Church in Richmond, Virginia. He passed away in 1995, at the age of 88. At the time of his death, he had been a member of The Harmonizing Four, a total of 52 years.
