Remembering
TERRY SMITH 1945 - 2005
Born in Dungog in 1945 into a family of 5 boys & 5 girls. Terry used to sit in with his mothers dance band and try his hand at drumming. After leaving school, Terry bought a base guitar and until the age of 22 played rock& roll with the Delawares (who backed the Bee Gees on their early recordings, before they were famous) The Delaware’s recorded two singles of four songs penned by Barry Gibb. Made many appearances on Bandstand, Saturday Date & Teentime, played in places like Surf City for four years.
Terry then moved to Wauchope and promoted his own dance band for two years or so until he was offered a job at the Texas Tavern in Sydney. Here he worked with Tony Sheridan and then joined up with Kevin King & Nev Nicholls. Terry was with them for 15 months before meeting up with Jan Kelly in 1969. Jan claims it took him three weeks to get up enough nerve to ask her out! Not long after that he joined the army and went to Vietnam driving trucks. He still found time to do shows at the US bases.
He came home in late 1971 and went back to work for Kevin King, still playing base
At the Crystal Palace. Then he ran into Jan again, and she asked how come he had not written to write for two years. They worked together there for six months until Terry moved to the Gold Coast to appear at the Surfers Paradise hotel. Jan followed a couple of month’s later.Jan and Terry started their careers with Desree Crawford in Country Roads. When Desree and husband Max left the band six months later the band was renamed Country Gold and continue to average eight gigs a week in NSW, Jan & Terry moved back to Sydney and played with Kevin King’s band in 1974.They played the Crystal Palace for twelve months then switched to the Transport Club and other venues. In 1980 Jan and Terry left the Sydney scene, formed there own band the Kelly Express began to build up a considerable following. The band released two LPs:
Jan and Terry wrote much of there own material. Jan and Terry never married but were together seventeen years They had two children but the first child died at birth
Terry worked casually with Stan Coster while working with the Kelly Express, He separated from Jan in 1986 and on April 18th 1986 went full time with Stan Coster to be part of the Blue Gum Band. In December 1986 Terry was MD for Stan and Tracy, recording three albums at Enrec Studios in Tamworth. Terry finish working for Stan after the Gympie Muster late 1991, He also did Tamworth and Bungendore for Stan in 1992. After finishing with Stan Coster in 1992 he worked in Lindsay Butlers Band through to mid 1999.Terry moved to Gloucester to live in the late 80’s’ and met up with Christine Smith in 1990 who became his partner, He was a tireless worker for the Gloucester CM club, teaching many of kids with their music. In mid 2001 they moved to Nundle where they lived till his death on the 4-2-05. Terry was buried at Nundle cemetery 11 o’clock on the 8-2-05