Cathal Joseph "Carl" Smyth (born 14 January 1959), also known as Chas Smash, is an English singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist.

He was the secondary vocalist, trumpet player and dancer for the English band Madness from their inception in the late 1970s until 2014.

Initially an occasional songwriter, he became a more frequent contributor and was credited as co-writer on the band's international hit "Our House".

[3] Cathal Joseph Smyth was born on 14 January 1959, in Middlesex Hospital, Fitzrovia, London, England, and grew up in Marylebone.

[5] In 1976, the North London Invaders recruited Smyth to play the bass guitar with them when he was 17, but he was replaced the following year by Gavin Rogers.

During the late 1970s, he returned to the band - which by this time had been renamed Madness - and performed as a dancer on stage at their concerts.

[11] Cathal also had a small part in Suggs' solo career, co-writing the song "Green Eyes,"[12] and he also performed backing vocals on The Lone Ranger album.

In 1999, Smyth formed and fronted the folk-influenced band The Velvet Ghost, which played at the Fleadh festival in 2000.

At the time, Smyth was rumoured to be working on several solo projects, including a dubstep album, according to Mojo.