PAT SMILLIE
E-mail: pat@patsmillie.com
Born in Detroit, MI on Valentines Day 1969, Pat’s musical memories stretch back to age 5 when he would listen to music in the car with his father. He fell in love with the music of classic Motown singers like Marvin Gaye, The Temptations, Stevie Wonder, Levi Stubbs (of The Four Tops), and Detroit’s original blue-eyed soul shouter: Mitch Ryder.
Pat’s interest in performing and writing songs developed throughout his teens. At age 15, he began making music with assorted friends and relatives. By age 18, he had joined his first garage band.
Around this time, Pat also began collecting the recordings of his favorite
vocalists. He would spend the better part of the next decade immersed
in the classic recordings of legendary Blues and R&B artists like
Ray Charles, James Brown, Howlin’ Wolf, Chuck Berry, Wilson Pickett, Otis
Redding, Al Green, Etta James and Joe Cocker. In the process, Smillie
would amass an almost encyclopedic knowledge of “useless liner note trivia”
but, most importantly, he also began to find his own voice.
In 1992, Smillie moved to Chicago where soon he was being invited on stage
to sing in blues joints across the city. In 1996, Pat booked his first
headlining gig at The Tyrone Davis Entertainment Center (with Tyrone’s
blessing). Over the years, Pat Smillie has opened shows for national touring
artists including Koko Taylor (“The Queen of the Blues”), The Robert Cray
Band, Jim Belushi & Dan Aykroyd, Bobby Rush, and Andre Williams.
In 2001, Chicago R&B legend, Tyrone Davis, joined the band on stage for a few songs. Pat and his background singers (Renee Ruffin and Tina Howell) provided back-up vocals for Mr. Davis as he performed “Turning Point”, “Turn Back the Hands of Time”, and “Mom’s Apple Pie”.
In May 2003, Pat celebrated the release of Letter to Hampton (FBM 1001). The disc featured guest appearances from Chicago blues stalwarts Jimmy Burns and Vance “Guitar” Kelly. In March/April 2004, the album cracked Living Blues magazine’s TOP 25 album chart - garnishing airplay on blues radio programs across the United States.
In January 2006, Pat Smillie teamed up again with co-producer, Bud Johnson (of Red Brick Recording) to record six new original songs and a handful of cover tunes. The resulting album, Down by the River (FBM 1002), features the first new studio recordings from the band in over 3 years. Special guest appearances include contributions from Corky Siegel, Alice Stuart, and the Chicago Playboys Horns.
Performances at Major Music Festivals:
• 22nd Annual Chicago Blues
Festival (Chicago, IL) – June 10, 2005
• 20th Annual Chicago Blues Festival (Chicago, IL) – May 30, 2003
• 18th Annual Fiesta Bowl Block Party (Tempe, AZ) – Dec 31, 2002