David Berthy Posts

The mercurial Slim Smith (born Keith Smith) was rumored to have bled
to death at the age of twenty-five from a hand wound caused by
smashing out a window. Others say he simply committed suicide after a
rocky sojourn in a sanitarium. Regardless of his early demise, Smith
is undoubtably one of the great vocalists in Jamaica’s considerable
musical history. His unique, raggedly intense falsetto stands out even
when Smith sings, as he sometimes did, as a part of a vocal ensembles
like the Victor Youth Band and the Techniques. My two favorite solo
tracks of his are “Please Stay,” and his cover of the Curtis Mayfield
song “Gypsy Woman.”

Slim Smith Tracks