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Meet the Band |
Since forming in the spring of 1994, Bill Smith, Lori Smith, Bobby St. Pierre, Ted DeMille, and Don Smith have been entertaining festival and concert audiences with their hard driving style of bluegrass music. North Star blends the traditional songs of Bill Monroe, Flatt & Scruggs, Reno & Smiley, Jimmy Martin, and especially The Stanley Brothers with dynamic original material. North Star's brand of bluegrass is anchored by a relentless, driving rhythm section, and augmented by precise and inventive soloing. Strong, expressive lead vocals are complemented with heart-felt duo and trio harmonies. The North Star stage show includes up-tempo instrumentals, brother duets, and stirring gospel singing. When they gang around a single microphone, North Star delivers the goods.
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Bill Smith, from Bradley, Maine has been playing and singing bluegrass  music for nearly thirty years. Bill worked with Fred Pike, The Sandy River Ramblers, and The Bluegrass Supply Company before forming North Star. Bill's banjo, dobro, and finger style guitar work are praised and respected by musicians and fans alike. Bill sings all the parts and takes care of the comedy portion of the North Star show. The former President of The Bluegrass Music Association of Maine, Bill is a registered Maine Guide and never asks directions. |
Bobby St. Pierre comes from Brunswick, Maine and needs no introduction to  bluegrass fans in New England. A veteran of The Rainbow Valley Folks, Maine Grass, and The Morse Brothers, Bobby has been entertaining bluegrass fans with his mandolin since he was a teenager. Bobby handles the lead guitar work in North Star. His crowd pleasing flat picking has become a staple of the North Star show. Bobby is the fifth youngest member of North Star and it is widely reported that he is the nicest guy in bluegrass. |
Ted DeMille lives in Bath, Maine. Ted is North Star's lead singer most of the time  and the left handed guitarist all of the time. Ted's bluesy, engaging, and expressive vocals are influenced by traditional bluegrass and folk music. Ted and Don Smith's duet phrasing has been praised by fans and reviewers alike. Ted writes most of North Star's original material- songs which have become some of North Star's most requested numbers. Ted's genial emcee style connects with concert and festival audiences all over New England and the Maritimes.
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Don Smith hails from Farmingdale, Maine. Don is North Star's powerful  tenor man. He sings in the high lonesome traditional style that puts the bite in the band's vocal blend. Don's acute ear for harmony was trained while traveling the bluegrass circuit with Brother Bill in a variety of uninspected vans and trucks in the 70's and 80's. It is a special treat when Bill and Don reach back and pick an old time brother duet to sing during a North Star set. Don plays a mean rhythm mandolin when called upon to do so. |
Lori Smith, from Bradley, Maine, solidly anchors North Star's sound on  the upright bass. Lori gets that low, round sound that is so critical to good bluegrass. Her bass playing provides the foundation for North Star's hard driving rhythm. A member of the popular Maine quartet, Sweet Grass, Lori has been known to field pick late into the night at area festivals. The heart beat of North Star, Lori developed a deep love for bluegrass music at an early age, traveling the festival circuit with her family all over New England.
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