Rodney Smith was born in a gipsy tent, in the ancient woodlands of Epping Forest, England on March 31st, 1860. His poverty-stricken family made their living by selling clothes-pegs and baskets. He  received no formal education as a child and was unable to read until he was 17 years old. While his father played the violin in local taverns for entertainment, Rodney would dance and collect the money.

At the age of 16, Rodney trusted in Christ as Saviour and vowed he would live for God. He knew that the Lord was calling him to preach, but many times he would weep and pray over his Bible, struggling with great difficulty to understand it since he could not read very well. Nevertheless, with what he could comprehend, he began to practice his preaching.

The following year, he began to work closely with William Booth of the Salvation Army, conducting evangelistic meetings and helping rescue missions wherever he was sent. Within a couple of years,  because of his roots, he became known as “Gipsy” Smith. By the age of 20, he was preaching to thousands, and soon he began to travel across the world.

Rodney Smith held evangelistic crusades in England, the United States, South Africa, Australia, New Zealand, and many other countries. During World War I, he would frequently go to the front lines and preach the saving knowledge of Christ to the thousands of troops who would assemble to hear his message of eternal hope. Though Gipsy Smith never went to school a day in his life, he influenced the lives of millions of people around the world. Young and old, rich and poor, educated and illiterate regarded him as their hero and a friend. After a full life, he died on August 4, 1947.

Throughout his itinerant preaching travels, Smith became known as the “singing evangelist” because of his strong tenor voice that easily rippled out the glorious tunes of God’s love. The following records were made from 1910-1931. (Running time: 50 minutes)