| His
first bass was actually a Fender Mustang guitar owned by Mike Hershey,
who he would later go on to form a band with. Mike relieved the guitar
of its top two strings and used it as a bass. A short time later,
Mike's father sprung for a Victoria P-bass copy and a Gibson amp that
he picked up at a local flea market. Michael's influences include
Electric Flag's Harvey Brooks, Cream's Jack Bruce, and his main man,
Led Zeppelin's John Paul Jones.
By 1966, Mike's family had moved from Chicago to California twice,
before finally settling in Arcadia. As a youth in Arcadia, Mike
was a promising baseball player (he played catcher), but chose not
to pursue baseball after starting highs
chool so he could devote
all of his time to playing music.
Mike's first band was Poverty's Children and featured himself on
bass and lead vocals, his brother Steve on drums and Mike Hershey
on guitar. Other early bands he played in included Black Opal, Balls
and Snake.
Snake was a three-piece rock outfit that featured Michael on lead
vocals and bass, Tony Codgen on guitar and Steve Hapner on drums.
Their set lists included tunes by ZZ
Top, Lynyrd Skynyrd
and Foghat along with their
own original tunes. Snake played the same backyard party scene that
Mammoth played (one of the Van
Halen brothers' early bands that featured Edward on lead guitar
and vocals, Alex on drums and Mark Stone on bass) and even opened
for them one night at Pasadena
High School in Pasadena, CA. That evening, Mammoth's PA system
failed and Mike lent them Snake's PA.
After high school, Michael attended Pasadena
City College where he was pursuing a degree in music and would
often pass Alex on campus while going to and from his jazz improv
class.
During
this time, Mark Stone was kicked out of Mammoth and Michael was
suggested to Edward and Alex as a replacement by a mutual friend.
They jammed in a small garage in Pasadena and even though he had
seen them perform many times before, the mighty bassist was still
blown away. After the jam session, Alex asked Mike if he'd like
to join the band, to which he replied, "Uh, yeah!"
Michael
planned on attending college in Santa Barbara, CA after his stint
at Pasadena City College,
but dropped out a few credits shy of his degree at PCC to devote
all of his time to Van Halen,
who had changed their name from Mammoth a short time earlier, due
to the fact that another band was already using the Mammoth moniker.
Van Halen assaulted the Southern
California club scene over the course of the next few years and
established themselves as one of the premiere rock and roll bands
in the area. By 1978 they'd released their first
album on the Warner
Bros. label and the rest, as they say, is history.
In
addition to his thundering bass lines, Michael's melodic and instantly
recognizable backing vocals play a huge part in the unique sound
of Van Halen. He is responsible
for many of the ear-shattering squeals and screams found throughout
the band's albums.
As
a connoisseur of Jack Daniel's
whiskey, Mike was prompted to build a bass in the shape of a Jack
Daniel's bottle at the urging of friends. The bass was originally
built as a novelty item and was assembled from various bass parts
including Kramer rear tuners by Michael, Kevin Dugan and Dave Jellison.
The pickups were built into the bridge to keep the paint job smooth
and consistent. The guitar made its debut appearance in the video
for "Panama,"
and was delivered during filming of the video at the Spectrum in
Philadelphia, PA.
The
JD bass was later donated to the Hard Rock Cafe chain, but was such
a hit, that Michael decided to build a high quality version. The
Jack Daniel's company offered
to assist with the graphics in exchange for Mike's entry into their
hall of fame. This bass was built by Jim O'Connor and the final
airbrushed graphics were done by Dan Lawrence of GMW Guitars in
Glendora, CA.
Michael's
bass solo has always been nothing short of spectacular. Over
the years, it's evolved from a mind-numbing theatric excursion to
a jaw-dropping technical display. Whether launching his bass from
the risers and stomping it into the ground, throwing in a little
humor by adding the Bonanza theme, kicking things off with Bach's
Toccata and Fugue in D Minor or the sonic crush dubbed 'Ultra Bass,'
you never know what the man is gonna throw your way. And that's
just the way he likes it. The backup Jack Daniel's bass was even
brought out of retirement on the III
Tour. Mike played it during "Somebody Get Me A Doctor" - his
solo spot that featured him on lead
vocals, which became an instant crowd favorite!
From
1994-1996, Mike also played in a side project band known as Los
Tres Gusanos. Featuring Michael on bass, Sammy Hagar on vocals and
guitar and David Lauser on drums, Los Tres Gusanos (English translation:
The Three Worms) often played at the Cabo Wabo Cantina in Cabo San
Lucas, Mexico.
Michael
has several other interests outside of music. He has a passion for
hot rods and race cars.
Some of the beauties in his stable include 1932, 1933 and 1940 Ford
hot rods. His pride and joy is the 1940, nicknamed "Ragen
'40." This custom-built Boyd convertible took 17 people nine
months
to assemble and features a Corvette LT4 engine, leather interior
and an over the edge stereo system.
The
mighty bassist also collects hot sauce and watches. He has more
than 80 watches in his collection, including more than 60 Mickey
Mouse watches and a few made by his favorite watch company: Bonneville.
Michael is married to his high school sweetheart Sue, who he began
dating in 1971. They were married in 1981 after she proposed to
him at a McDonald's drive-thru. A deeply devoted family man, Michael
spends much of his free time when not on the road with Sue and their
two daughters, Elisha and Taylor.
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