Peck-Smyth & Off -

Peck-Smyth & Off were a Mexican art-rock band behind the 1976 album Love on Orfeón.

Members: Jimmy Smyth (guitar, vocals), Serge Peck (keyboards, vocals), Ralph Dri (bass, backing vocals), Piscuis (drums)

Background

Peck-Smyth & Off formed in Mexico around keyboardist–singer Serge Peck (Sergio Gotlib Pomerantz) and guitarist–singer Jimmy Smyth. Peck played piano from age four and gave his first recital at Sala Chopin at seven. At sixteen, he played jazz dates at the Palacio de Bellas Artes in Mexico City.

Peck wrote “My Son” in 1972 as a dedication to a future first child. He also conceived a Beatles tribute, identified as “Magical Sperms.” Smyth added themes to the English-language repertoire. The pair teamed with bassist Ralph Dri and drummer Piscuis an album on Orfeón.

Discography:

Love (1976)

References and notes

El regreso a la música de Sergio Gotlib — Arturo Perea Zuleta, October 2023. Interview covering childhood piano instruction, the Sala Chopin recital, jazz performance at Bellas Artes, and compositions dating to 1963. (Quién, p. 26)
Peck-Smyth & Off – Love — March 1, 2018. Album discussion and personnel information. A comment dated August 21, 2018, identifies Serge Peck as Sergio Gotlib and gives first-person details concerning four compositions and the 1972 origin of “My Son.” (Viaje al espacio visceral)
Progressive Rock – Peck-Smyth & Off – Love – 1976 — October 14, 2014. Personnel listing and a December 21, 2017 comment identifying Peck as Gotlib. (Pérolas do Rock’n’Roll)
Peck-Smyth & Off – Love — Reissue description identifying Peck and Smyth as the principal songwriters and confirming the English-language album recorded in 1976. (Forced Exposure / VAM Records)
Orquesta Sinfónica Nacional – Semblanza — Official institutional history establishing the succession from Orquesta Sinfónica de México to Orquesta Sinfónica Nacional. (Instituto Nacional de Bellas Artes)