Curt Smith
His warm, resonant voice gave emotional depth to 80s anthems of anxiety, co-piloting Tears for Fears from basement tapes to global fame.
Born 1961 (age 65)·English singer, songwriter, musician, and record producer·Birthday: June 24·Baby Boomers
Biography
Curt Smith provided the calm, melodic center to Tears for Fears' storm of cerebral pop. Growing up in Bath, England, he and Roland Orzabal forged a partnership in a basement, using music to work through a difficult adolescence. While Orzabal often handled the grand concepts, Smith's voice—smooth, approachable, and subtly soulful—became the vehicle that delivered complex themes of psychology and alienation to the top of the charts. He sang lead on era-defining tracks like 'Everybody Wants to Rule the World' and 'Mad World,' his performance balancing melancholy with an inviting warmth. After a famously fractious split from the band in the early 90s, he built a solo career and life in Los Angeles, only to return two decades later for a reunion that proved the band's music, and their unique chemistry, had lost none of its power. His journey is one of finding his own voice within a defining partnership.
Baby Boomers
1946–1964
The largest generation in history at the time. Shaped by postwar prosperity, the Vietnam War, the sexual revolution, and Watergate. They questioned every institution their parents built — then ran them.
Curt was born in 1961, placing them squarely in the Baby Boomers. The events that shaped this generation — postwar prosperity, civil rights, Vietnam, and the counterculture — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When Curt Was Born
The biggest hits of 1961
#1 Movie
101 Dalmatians
Best Picture
West Side Story
#1 TV Show
Wagon Train
Curt's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1961Born
Yuri Gagarin becomes the first human in space
Gas: $0.31/galHome: $12,500Min wage: $1.15/hrPresident: John F. Kennedy"Tossin' and Turnin'" — Bobby LewisBest Picture: West Side Story
1966Started school
Star Trek premieres on television
Gas: $0.32/galHome: $14,200Min wage: $1.25/hrPresident: Lyndon B. Johnson"The Ballad of the Green Berets" — SSgt Barry SadlerBest Picture: A Man for All Seasons
1974Became a teenager
Nixon resigns the presidency
Gas: $0.53/galHome: $22,600Min wage: $2.00/hrPresident: Gerald Ford"The Way We Were" — Barbra StreisandBest Picture: The Godfather Part II
1977Could drive
Star Wars premieres; Elvis dies
Gas: $0.62/galHome: $31,800Min wage: $2.30/hrPresident: Jimmy Carter"Tonight's the Night" — Rod StewartBest Picture: Annie Hall
1979Could vote
Iran hostage crisis begins; Three Mile Island accident
Gas: $0.86/galHome: $37,900Min wage: $2.90/hrPresident: Jimmy Carter"My Sharona" — The KnackBest Picture: Kramer vs. Kramer
1982Turned 21
Michael Jackson releases Thriller
Gas: $1.22/galHome: $55,200Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"Physical" — Olivia Newton-JohnBest Picture: Gandhi
1991Turned 30
Soviet Union dissolves; World Wide Web goes public
Gas: $1.14/galHome: $82,400Min wage: $4.25/hrPresident: George H.W. Bush"(Everything I Do) I Do It for You" — Bryan AdamsBest Picture: The Silence of the Lambs
2001Turned 40
September 11 attacks transform the world
Gas: $1.46/galHome: $126,400Min wage: $5.15/hrPresident: George W. Bush"Hanging by a Moment" — LifehouseBest Picture: A Beautiful Mind
2011Turned 50
Osama bin Laden killed; Arab Spring sweeps the Middle East
Gas: $3.53/galHome: $138,400Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Barack Obama"Rolling in the Deep" — AdeleBest Picture: The Artist
2021Turned 60
January 6 Capitol breach; COVID vaccines roll out globally
Gas: $3.01/galHome: $298,900Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Joe Biden"Levitating" — Dua LipaBest Picture: CODA
2026Age 65 today
Gas: $3.91/galPresident: Donald Trump
Key Achievements
- As co-lead vocalist and bassist for Tears for Fears, helped create the multi-platinum album 'Songs from the Big Chair', a defining record of the 1980s.
- Sang lead vocals on the global hits 'Everybody Wants to Rule the World' and 'Mad World'.
- Co-wrote many of Tears for Fears' seminal songs, contributing to their lyrical and melodic depth.
- Successfully reunited with Roland Orzabal in the 2000s, leading to new albums and sold-out world tours that reintroduced the band to new generations.
Did You Know?
He became a naturalized U.S. citizen in the 1990s and has lived primarily in Los Angeles for decades.
He hosted a technology review web series called 'Tech Talk' in the early 2000s.
He provided the singing voice for the character 'Raoul' in the 2011 animated film 'The Adventures of Tintin'.
“Roland and I have a very strange relationship. We're like an old married couple who can't live with each other and can't live without each other.”
