| Roy Smeck (born Leroy Smeck, 6 February 1900 – 5 April 1994) was an American musician. His skill on the banjo, guitar, steel guitar, and especially the ukulele earned him the nickname "Wizard of the Strings." A documentary by Alan Edelstein and Peter Friedman about Smeck and his career, Wizard of the Strings (1985), was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Short Documentary, and won an award at the Student Academy Awards. Smeck died in New York City at age 94. He was posthumously inducted into the National Four-string Banjo Hall of Fame in 2001. Smeck's work is also featured in the Ukulele Hall of Fame Museum. His 1928 recording of Sam Moore's "Laughing Rag", played on the octachorda, an 8-string Hawaiian guitar, is considered a classic of slide guitar by some. |
Roy Smeck Wizard of strings - Roy Smeck Everyone's favorite ukulele player Roy Smeck's imitation of "Bill Robinson's Tap and Stair Dance" |
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