The Wooden Hall Concerts has announced it will bring back Richard Smith for an all Chet & Jerry Show, Jan. 28 at Alhecama Theatre, 914 Santa Barbara St. Main show is at 7:30 p.m.
Preshow music starts at 7 p.m. with Leslee Sipress, flute, and Mark Coffin, guitar.
Smith also will be offering a player’s workshop at 2:30 p.m. for those interested in learning how to play this fingerpickin’ style. All proceeds from the workshop will be donated to victims of the Montecito flood.
Smith started playing guitar at age 5. As a protégé of the great Chet Atkins and Jerry Reed, he is uniquely qualified to present this special show dedicated to their work, Wooden Hall Concerts said.
Smith is considered a virtuoso in classical music, jazz, the gypsy style of Django Reinhardt, bluegrass, ragtime, the blues and Sousa marches.
As the 2001 National Fingerstyle Guitar Champion and 2008 Thumbpicker of the Year, Smith has thousands of performances worldwide to his credit and is known for his mastery of instrument and for his entertaining shows.
He has toured around the U.S. and Europe solo or collaborating with Tommy Emmanuel, his swing band The Hot Club of Nashville, his cellist wife Julie Adams and others.
“The most amazing guy I know on the guitar. He can play anything I know, only better,” said Atkins has said.
“If you like my playing, you should hear Richard Smith. The world champion,” Emmanuel said.
Season tickets for all 10 Wooden Hall Concerts in 2018 are available, with priority for admission and seating. The company said it seats only 100 patrons per concert.
For more information and tickets, visit www.sbama.org.
The Wooden Hall Concerts are 90-minute shows set in a historic 1925 theater in downtown Santa Barbara. The nonprofit program, run entirely by volunteers, features acoustic musicians from around the globe.
— Kevin Gillies for Santa Barbara Acoustic Music Association.