Main
line-up
Josh
Furhman – sax, vocals
Matt
Foy – guitar, vocals
Bryan
McNally – Bass
Blair
McNally – Trombone
Other
members… Reggie Wainman – original guitarist (first couple of gigs), Chris Mark
– Trumpet, Sean Whelan – Sax, Ed Desanti – Drums, Chris Gorman- drums, Chris
Dardick- drums, Darryl Hein- Drums, Jeff Houle – Percussion, Mitch Houle – Drums,
Drew Thompson – Piano, Denis Roy – Drums, D. Jeremy Brown – driving, Skip Viitala
– bank account,
From
their first gig in the summer of ’96, this band was made to conquer the stage.
They started with a few of Josh’s original instrumentals that crossed
the paths of swing, Madness and old school Jamaican ska like The Skatellites.
Josh continued to write great new songs over the next couple of years
and rehearsed the band with militancy.
By the time of the lean five, Josh, Matt, Bryan, Blair and Darryl, The
Smokers could easily stand up to any of the ska bands crossing the country at
the time… the Kingpins, The Planet Smashers, etc.
When they recorded their debut album in 1998, they had hoped to put it
out on Stomp records but when the label informed them that they already had
a full roster of releases for that summer, Skip Viitala stepped up and financed
the album so they wouldn’t have to wait.
Package
Deal was released in 1998 and the band hit as many of the ska shows as possible
in the next two years through Ontario and Montreal.
They had a short documentary made about them that showed at Cinefest, and
were one of the most popular acts that played at the Northern Lights Festival
Boreal that year. The local
popularity of the Smokers led to them being cast in a commercial for Josie
Gagnon opticians (for which they all received new glasses) and a local car
dealer (for which they all received new cars- ha, they wish). The
band also found themselves on many ska compilations of the time (All-Skanadian
3, etc.). They recorded most of a second album which remains unreleased.
Frustrations over drummers and difficulty getting on tour led Josh to move to Montreal in 1999. Since then, Josh played for a stint with The Kingpins and continues to play with other Stomp and garage guys in a twist band. Matt and Bryan continued playing ska and reggae in The Mondo Idols. Blair plays classical horn with the Sudbury Symphony. The drummers are all over the place. The last couple of Christmas seasons have seen Josh return over the holidays and the Smokers have a brief reunion. The place is always packed as this band was truly one of the finest that this city ever produced.