Joe Smooth

Joe Smooth contributed to the foundational house music scene that took shape in Chicago throughout the late 1980s. Although he worked chiefly behind the scenes as a producer, he put out two solo albums in that period—Promised Land in 1989 and Rejoice in 1990—plus a string of singles. The most familiar of these tracks were the title cut from his debut album, which carried vocals by Anthony Thomas, and the similarly styled “I Try.” Little has surfaced from Smooth in the years since, yet he now registers more widely in Europe.