Nice & slow from Rex Smith

And I don’t know how I knew it,
But I knew it somehow
You’re the answer to the question
No one answered til now – from the song Simply Jessie.
They say that you and I
Are reaching for too high
We know our love is young
We’ve only just begun
Through the night
We hold each other tight
Forever….– from the song Forever
You and I will build a world of our own
Where we can run to
We will find what all true lovers have known
Will make our dreams come true
As we walk on this land
Heart and heart, hand and hand, darling
Put your faith in me
Let’s make a memory – from the song Let’s Make a Memory

Some people say these songs are mushy, but these are the ones many of us have grown to love. And these songs were sung by Rex Smith. What were you doing and where were you when these songs became hits? I don’t know but in my case, I know where I was – dancing the most beautiful dance I know.

Smith has been dubbed "Sexy Rex." He’s a devoted father. He was born on Sept. 15, 1955 in Jacksonville, Florida. His favorite actors are Sean Connery and Myrna Loy. He loves risotto, eggs over tempura but he also eats everything. Rex is not much into sweet potatoes and lamb. He likes listening to the songs of Tears for Fears, Nat King Cole, Dave Brubeck, Marvin Gaye and Matchbox 20. Among his early musical influences are James Brown, Major Lance, Anthony Newley and David Bowie.

Later, Rex counts Iggy Pop, Sammy Hagar, Ian Gillian, Sam Cooke as the musical artists who have influenced him. But his favorite male singer is Ol’ Blue Eyes, Frank Sinatra. Smith loves books, and lists Go Slowly, Come Back Quickly by David Niven, My Wicked Wicked Ways by Errol Flynn and Don’t Stop the Carnival by Herman Wauk as among his favorites. Smith spends his time "raising his children, reading, surfing, traveling for pleasure, cooking and solving the New York Times crossword puzzle.

Smith zoomed to international stardom via Simply Jessie. He touches base with Filipino fans via a concert dubbed Rex Smith: Forever Rex at Araneta Coliseum on April 1 and Hard Rock Café on April 2. The Araneta concert reunites him with Filipino fans after a visit to the country in 2002 for a two-night Valentine concert also at the Big Dome.

Aside from Simply Jessie, Smith churned the hits Forever, You Take My Breath Away, Let’s Make a Memory, Foolish Heart, Everlasting Love and Could It Be Magic, among others. As a performer, Smith enjoys the distinction of being one of the few musical stars with a successful and colorful multifaceted career. He was once a teen idol, a Gilbert and Sullivan musical leading man, a TV superhero, soap opera star and Broadway musical actor and movie leading man.

He started as a rock and roll singer in the ’70s and together with his band toured with groups like Foreigner, Boston, AC/DC. He debuted in Broadway as Danny Zuko in Grease. He also received the Theater World Award for his portrayal of Frederic in The Pirates of Penzance which he reprised in the film adaptation. His other starring roles in Broadway are Human Comedy, Grand Hotel, The Scarlet Pimpernel, Annie Get Your Gun and Kiss me Kate.

He also topbilled Lincoln Center’s Anything Goes, the Kennedy Center’s West Side Story and the Canadian production of Sunset Boulevard. On television, Smith hosted Solid Gold, starred in NBC’s Street Hawk, and As the World Turns. His TV movies include Sooner or Later, Daredevil and Once in a Lifetime.