Nervous Neal Smith

With over thirty-five years of performing experience in the Quad City area alone, I have access to the region's best musicians should a trio, quartet or quintet be needed. I have experience playing popular and jazz music from every decade of the 20th century in addition to more recent favorites. I have a solid reputation for being punctual and professional.

In addition to countless regional radio and television jingles, my saxophone tracks have been licensed to NBC Sports, Telemundo, The Discovery Channel, Comedy Central, CNN, TruTV, The Science Channel, MTV, and The Fuel Network, as well as being featured in independent films such as "Minimum Wage" and "Eliot Ness: An Untouchable Life." An original film soundtrack, composed specifically to fit the 1912 movie "The Land Beyond the Sunset," was completed in October 2018, with me handling all the composing, arranging, performing, and audio engineering credits.

Career highlights include live performances with Bernard Allison (1988), Yardbirds drummer Jim McCarty (1989), Jim Schwall (1989), Louie Bellson (in big bands and small groups from 1994 to 2008), Buddy DeFranco (1995), Clark Terry (1995), Alex Chilton & The Box Tops (1997 and 1998), The Temptations (1998, 1999 and 2006), Martha Reeves & The Vandellas (1998), The Marvellettes (1998), Garrett Morris from the original "Saturday Night Live" cast (2000), Chuck Loeb (2004), Paul Asaro (2006), Randy Napoleon (2007), and featured as a soloist with Debby Boone and the Quad City Symphony (2013). I'm perhaps best known as a founding member, composer, arranger, and performer with the klez-punk quartet known as The Kabalas.

After working as a musician for four years on cruise ships and ocean liners, I spent some time performing with the film soundtrack ensemble Morricone Youth in New York City. I returned to Davenport, Iowa, in July 2013 and intend to remain here.