G.E. Smith brings Roger Waters to Riverhead's The Suffolk

Guitarist G.E. Smith is about to pull off a miracle. The 74-year-old Amagansett resident booked former Pink Floyd singer/bassist Roger Waters, who lives in Bridgehampton, to join him on stage for "an intimate evening" at The Suffolk in Riverhead on Nov. 22.

Waters, 83, is the biggest get Smith has captured for his ongoing Portraits series, which has included Samantha Fish, Albert Lee and Billy Squier in the past. In fact, the duo performed a similar type of show at the Bay Street Theater in Sag Harbor back in 2015. Both men met through their wives years ago and a social relationship turned professional when Waters hired Smith for his "The Wall Tour" from 2010-2016.

Smith spoke to Newsday’s David J. Criblez about the plan for the concert with Waters, his years in the Hall & Oates Band and as band leader for "Saturday Night Live" plus what it’s like working with big name legends.

How did you get Roger Waters to scale down from arenas and stadiums to playing The Suffolk?

I think he’s doing it out of friendship. He likes to do things that are a little unexpected sometimes.

Will it just be you and Roger?

I think we will have a keyboard player but it won’t be a full band with bass and drums. The focus is going to be on the songs.

What are the plans for the setlist?

We don’t have it fleshed out yet. I’m sure there will be songs people know and some more modern songs from Roger’s solo career. I wouldn’t be surprised if we hear some of the well known ones that we all love. He’s not a cover band guy. It’s all what he decides. But, it’s still in the planning.

Is the show going to have a "VH1 Storytellers" vibe?

We will definitely do some talking. I always enjoy doing that. I’ll ask questions to my special guest about the origin of his songs. The idea is to make the show feel like we are sitting around the living room with instruments where we are talking and playing.

Were you influenced by Pink Floyd as a musician growing up?

When I went to college, we used to listen to the first Pink Floyd album repeatedly. "Comfortably Numb" is a song I’ve played hundreds of times and I still like hearing it when it comes on in my car. Roger has written some killer songs.

You have worked with legends like Jeff Beck, Mick Jagger, David Bowie, Bob Dylan and Roger Waters. Is it intimidating?

I’m always aware of how lucky I’ve been. There’s hundreds of great guitar players out there. The most important thing is to approach each gig with a certain amount of humility. You must always be very sure of what you are going to play and respect the songs. But these are all just people. At one time, they were performing in a place and nobody knew who they were. It’s important to remember that. They don’t want you to be in awe or afraid of them. You can’t work like that.

How would you describe what it was like to play with Bob Dylan?

When I was 10 years old, I had already been playing guitar for 3-4 years. I saw his first record, which came out in 1962, in my hometown music store. Here was this guy with an acoustic guitar that kind of looked like my guitar and he didn’t seem that much older than me. I bought the record and it just killed me. I still love that album. When I got to play with him, it was a dream.

From 1979-1985, you were in the Hall & Oates Band during its golden era with hit-after-hit. What did you take away from that experience?

When I first started with them I was paid $200 a week — $100 to play guitar and $100 to drive the station wagon. Within four to six months that turned into Learjets and limos. MTV started in 1981 and through their manager at the time, Tommy Mottola, they were aware of how important the channel was going to be. In anticipation, we recorded a bunch of videos that were ready to go when MTV came on. That really helped. It was a great time playing to 20,000 people four to five times a week traveling all over the place. We were young and we had a ball.

From there, you went on to be the band leader at "Saturday Night Live" from 1985-1995. Here you were very recognizable. How did you get so much screen time?

It’s show business therefore you’ve got to show your business! Sometimes, the comedy bits might run short so they would cut to the band. It was a necessity. That was the end of the predigital age. At the time, television was the most powerful thing going in the United States. That band was made up of consummate musicians. I learned so much from everyone there. I’m just a bar band guitar player.

By David J. Criblez

david.criblez@newsday.comDavidJCriblez

David J. Criblez is a reporter for Newsday's exploreLI, covering entertainment-related events from local music to stand-up comedy to festivals.