Michael David McCready was born on April 5,1966 and is an American musician who serves as the lead guitarist for the rock band Pearl Jam.
38 Facts About Mike McCready
2.
Mike McCready was a member of the side project bands Flight to Mars, Temple of the Dog, Mad Season and The Rockfords.
3.
Mike McCready was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of Pearl Jam in 2017.
4.
Mike McCready was born in Pensacola, Florida, but his family moved to Seattle shortly after his birth.
5.
At the age of eleven, Mike McCready purchased his first guitar and began taking lessons.
6.
In eighth grade, Mike McCready formed his first band, Warrior, whose name soon changed to Shadow.
7.
Mike McCready lost interest in playing guitar for some time, stating that he was "so depressed about life".
8.
Mike McCready cut his hair, enrolled in a local community college, and spent his nights working at a video store.
9.
Mike McCready was inspired to pick up his guitar again after attending a Stevie Ray Vaughan concert at The Gorge Amphitheatre in George, Washington.
10.
Mike McCready gradually went back to playing guitar and finally joined another band called Love Chile.
11.
Mike McCready considers this track to be one of his proudest moments.
12.
Mike McCready frequently soloed, and added a blues touch to the music.
13.
Mike McCready was replaced by Jack Irons, a close friend of Vedder and the former and original drummer of the Red Hot Chili Peppers.
14.
On February 28,2010, Mike McCready performed at the Hootenanny For Haiti at the Showbox at the Market in Seattle along with the likes of Velvet Revolver, Jane's Addiction and former Guns N' Roses bassist Duff McKagan, Fastbacks bassist Kim Warnick, Loaded and former Alien Crime Syndicate, Sirens Sister and Vendetta Red bassist Jeff Rouse as well as Truly and former Screaming Trees drummer Mark Pickerel among others.
15.
Mike McCready performed with other members of Pearl Jam on Neil Young's 1995 album, Mirror Ball, and subsequently took part in an eleven-date tour in Europe as part of Young's backing band.
16.
Mike McCready played with another side band called The Rockfords, named after one of Mike McCready's favorite TV shows The Rockford Files.
17.
In 2016 a new Mike McCready project involving Duff McKagan, Barrett Martin and Jaz Coleman called The Levee Walkers released two songs on Mike McCready's label HockeyTalkter Records.
18.
Mike McCready prefers to play "by ear" rather than from a technical standpoint.
19.
Mike McCready has cited Jimi Hendrix, Keith Richards, Pete Townshend, David Gilmour, Stevie Ray Vaughan and Eddie Van Halen as his biggest musical influences.
20.
Mike McCready is a die-hard Rolling Stones fan, and has described the band as his favorite of all time.
21.
Mike McCready is known to use a Fender Stratocaster, a Gibson Les Paul, and a Gibson Les Paul Junior.
22.
Mike McCready's first writing contribution for Pearl Jam was co-writing the music for the B-side "Yellow Ledbetter", which has since become a regular set closing song during Pearl Jam's live concerts.
23.
Mike McCready made his first lyrical contribution for the band with the track "Inside Job", which closes the band's 2006 self-titled album.
24.
Mike McCready is known to use a variety of different guitars, but during Pearl Jam's early years he used mainly Fender Stratocasters.
25.
Mike McCready has used many types of Stratocasters, vintage and modern, even including left-handed Stratocasters with reversed strings, so that the slanted bridge pickup would have more treble on the lower strings, as opposed to the intended higher strings.
26.
Mike McCready's most prized model is a slab rosewood fretboard 1960 Stratocaster, the first in a series of 1959 modeled vintage guitars, inspired by Stevie Ray Vaughan's "Number One" guitar.
27.
That same year, Fender produced a Custom Shop limited edition of the Mike McCready 1960 Stratocaster which is an accurate replica of McCready's original sunburst.
28.
Mike McCready's second most used guitar is a Gibson Les Paul.
29.
Mike McCready has only recently started to use the single pickup Gibson Les Paul Junior, which is a TV yellow 1959 model.
30.
Mike McCready was named the highest-paid guitarist in the world, earning a net of more than $82 million in 2021.
31.
On May 10,2018, Mike McCready was honored with the Stevie Ray Vaughan Award from MusiCares, for his dedication to and support of MusiCares and his commitment to helping others in the addiction recovery process.
32.
Mike McCready suffers from Crohn's disease, which he was diagnosed with at the age of 21, and has worked to bring awareness of the disease.
33.
Mike McCready endorsed President Barack Obama specifically for his health care program, the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act which mandated health insurance be available to those with pre-existing conditions.
34.
In 2012, Mike McCready made "Life is a Pre-existing Condition," a video about the importance of nationalized healthcare.
35.
Mike McCready is an avid sports fan and a lifelong supporter of Seattle Seahawks, Seattle Mariners and Seattle Sounders FC.
36.
The first came during the production of Pearl Jam's 1994 album Vitalogy, when Mike McCready was fighting drug and alcohol addiction:.
37.
Mike McCready donates to the Crohn's and Colitis Foundation regularly, participating in their flag football tournaments.
38.
In 2017, Mike McCready published a book of Polaroids he shot during his time in Pearl Jam, dating back to the early 1990s.