British-born Richard Smith is one of the finest contemporary guitarists to specialize in the thumbpicking style developed by Chet Atkins and Jerry Reed. However, while his hot fingerpicking got him to first place at the 2001 Walnut Valley Festival fingerstyle competition in Winfield, Kansas, he is far too versatile to limit himself to playing the music of his earliest musical heroes. He plays Gypsy jazz with the Hot Club of Nashville; performs in a duo with his wife, Julie Adams, that bills itself as “Bach to Beatles”; and frequently sits in with many of the finest musicians in his adopted hometown of Nashville, Tennessee. Smith has released several albums; his latest is Slim Pickin’. In this video, Smith discusses his background and plays his arrangement of the Merle Travis classic, “Nine Pound Hammer.” richardsmithmusic.com
