John C. Smith, one of the founding members of Albatross, passed away suddenly on Thursday 26th January.
Without a start there is no middle and no end. Together with Smokey Joe on drums, Barry and John were the original members of Albatross, the hard-rockin’ trio that made Co. Cavan safe for rock ‘n’ roll but scared the heck out of some older folks and ballroom promoters alike.
At first famous for their Rolling Stones’ medley, they developed into one of the top draws back in the mid-seventies and packed out venues wherever they played.
Later Barry travelled to faraway lands to play music full time while John stayed in their hometown Virginia.
“He had a big influence on me, both as a musician and as a person,” Barry said. “He was a bit older than me, so he had some musical experience already by the time we met up. He also taught me a lot about life in general. If he hadn’t been involved in music, or running the family business, I think he’d have made a great teacher.”
Barry has written a tribute to John, which you can find on the Blog page.