Walter Smith III

From a young age, Walter began taking music very seriously. “My first gig was playing at a McDonalds in Houston with another saxophone player. I took a solo on “Blue Bossa.” It was terrible. People clapped, and I figured if I could get away with that and get applause, how could I fail?” Although it may appear Smith is a new voice on the scene, he is widely recognized as an adept performer, accomplished composer, and inspired educator. Smith’s recent release, return to casual, garnered critical acclaim from both audiences and critics alike. “return to casual [is] Smith’s deeply poised first album as a leader for Blue Note... The whole enterprise rings of cool sophistication in a small-group style that Smith and his contemporaries helped define... In that sense, return to casual is not just a homecoming of sorts, but also an emphatic confirmation.” In September of 2024, Smith will release his sophomore album for Blue Note Records,“three of us are from Houston and Reuben is not”, featuring a new offering of original music. Walter is/has been a member of several legendary groups (recording and/or touring) including the Roy Haynes Fountain of Youth Band, Terence Blanchard Quintet, Eric Harland's “Voyager”, Jason Moran’s In My Mind:Monk at Town Hall, Ambrose Akinmusire Quintet, the Christian McBride “Situation”, Christian Scott group and the Sean Jones Quintet to name a few. To date, Walter has appeared on over 100 recordings that are released worldwide.