Ronny Smith

Ronny Smith is a contemporary jazz guitarist, composer and producer who grew up in the Baltimore area. He was a student at Morgan State University, played in the University of Maryland jazz band, and went on to spend some 35 years playing guitar in US Army bands, four of them on active duty. His first album as a leader, Laid Back, appeared in 2002.

Several of his albums have come out on Pacific Coast Jazz, including Just Groovin (2009), Shake It Up (2017), Coastal Sunset, Struttin’ (2024) and Velvet Vibe (2026). On Struttin’ he played guitar, keyboards and bass, took care of programming and production, and included Wes Montgomery’s ‘Angel’. Reviewers hear Montgomery, Joe Pass and George Benson in his playing and describe a warm, melodic, groove-based style with touches of soul, funk and Brazilian music, while radio promoters have placed him somewhere between jazz proper and the R&B-leaning style heard on most smooth jazz radio.