BIOGRAPHY
John Smoker is a blues musician with a soulful sound that resonates with audiences around the world. His music is a blend of traditional blues with a modern twist, capturing the essence of raw emotion and storytelling.
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A charismatic and dynamic performer, John has always brought passion and commitment to his performances. His energy on stage is palpable, captivating audiences and leaving a lasting impression. Today, he continues to perform and record with his current band, The Midnight Jammers.
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John Smoker - Vocals, Guitar, Harmonica
John is a unique singer songwriter who hails from the Kimberley Region of Western Australia. He has played in a wide variety of bands around Perth since the mid 70s including Sheriff right up to The Hip Replacements in 2012. Then later The KG Bees and Racy Tailor.
John’s early life was spent in the West Kimberley where he grew up listening to Buddy Williams and Slim Dusty as well as his mother’s piano accordion. Upon being sent from the isolated town of Fitzroy Crossing
to the suburbs of Perth for high school, John was finally exposed to the world of radio and pop music of the late 60’s.
He discovered the music of The Band and all things Blues and Rock ‘n Roll. John formed his first blues band Spinifex in 1975. His musical journey had begun!
This journey led him to play in 1978 in Melbourne for two years then a four year stint from 1979 in London playing in a reggae band called The Ambassadors. He spent 1982 in Tokyo playing with an urban power pop band called Tasuku. John eventually settled back in the Kimberley in the 1990’s where he played with and managed the renowned top end Kimberley band Fitzroy Xpress. John later moved to Kununurra where he formed Rattle and Hum, plus Sooty Grunter in the 2000’s.
He returned to Perth and reformed his first band Spinifex in 2009 renaming it The Hip Replacements. They were in hot demand performing at various Perth
venues, blues festivals, the Perth Blues club, and Cocos Island.
In 2015 John was asked by Don Whittington from the Fremantle Worker’s Club to put together a blues band and play at the front bar of the South Fremantle Football Club on a Friday night. The Midnight Jammers
were formed and have continued to evolve since then.
John has made Perth his home and the Midnight Jammers (TMJ) continue that musical journey. His style is a blend of Americana meets rhythm and blues meets Australiana! He has been greatly influenced by The Band’s legacy and particularly Levon Helm (drummer/singer with The Band).
In 2009 John travelled to the town of Woodstock, upstate New York, to meet Levon, where he shook his hand and watched him perform in his barn at one of his Midnight Ramble concerts. John bought his first Fender strat (1964 L series) in Perth, in the early 70’s and still plays it to this day.
Among his many other guitars he enjoys playing his Gibson Lucille, his well-worn Profile Tele (which he bought off the dentist in Fitzroy Crossing of all places!) and his Cole Clarke FL2 acoustic.
When it comes to travel John would like to visit Cuba and Monserrat in the Caribbean. John says, the music of Cuba is something I’ve just got to hear first-hand one day. Next would probably have to be Jamaica … I just love reggae music but before all that he would like to do a road trip all the way from New Orleans,
Louisiana and take his time traveling to all the little towns and jook joints up the Mississippi to Chicago just like the blues artists that I love - Muddy Waters and Junior Wells did all those years ago.
When asked what have been the most memorably bands and gigs that John has seen he said The Band in Tokyo in 1983 (but sadly minus Robbie Robertson!) Wembley Stadium London 1979 …All on the one bill … Nils Lofgren, The Stranglers, ACDC, The Who … beat that! Wendy O Williams chain sawing a guitar in half onstage with the Plasmatics gig in 1979 at the CBGB in New York. Buddy Williams on the hostel veranda in Halls Creek when I was about 9 years old !