Smithfield
Fair
Though
2009
marked
Smithfield
Fair’s
20th
anniversary,
the
group
actually
dates
back
to
1973
where
they
got
there
start
in
Pensacola
with
a
group
founded
by
Dudley-Brian
Smith.
Originally
known
as
Laughter,
the
band
played
around the
Florida
acoustic
music scene
until
moving
back
to
Dudley’s
hometown
of
Alexandria,
Louisiana
in
1976
and
changing
the
group's
name
to
Charmer.
By
then,
the
group
was
made
up
of
Dudley
and
his
talented brothers
Joel
and
Bob.
The
new
trio
released
their
first
single
in
1977,
and
their
first
album
in
1981
and
the
second
album
a
year
later.
In
1983,
Joel
left
to
live
in
Munich,
Germany
and
was
replaced
by
Jan
Dedon.
Already
an
established
and
experienced
singer,
she
had
recently
returned
from
San
Francisco
and
met
Dudley
(whom
she
would
later
marry)
at a
recording
session.
Joel
returned
in
1986
and
Charmer
continued
to
record
and
perform
throughout
the
southern
United
States.
They
recorded
and
released
a
total
of 8
albums
before
again
changing
the
band's
name
in
1989,
this
time
to
Smithfield
Fair.
Acknowledging
nearly
4
decades
of
original
music,
the
group
released
its
most
ambitious
project
in
late
2009,
"The
Longing,"
fusing
together
both
the
Celtic
and
original
American
folk
music
for
which
Smithfield
Fair
had
become
known.
In
early
2010,
the
trio
released
"Scotland,
Fair
Scotland,"
a
collection
of
audience
favorites
from
their
traditional
repertoire,
while
continuing
to
work
on a
new
album
of
original
songs
which
is
scheduled
for
release
later
this
year.
