Quick Facts
Biography
Michael Kelly "Mike" Finnigan (April 26, 1945, Troy, Ohio, United States) is an American keyboard player and vocalist, his speciality being the B3 Hammond Organ.
Life and career
He attended University of Kansas on a basketball scholarship.
Finnigan has toured and sessioned for Jimi Hendrix, Joe Cocker, Etta James, Sam Moore, Crosby Stills and Nash, Dave Mason, Buddy Guy, Manhattan Transfer, Taj Mahal, Michael McDonald, Maria Muldaur, Peter Frampton, Cher, Ringo Starr, Leonard Cohen, Tower of Power, Rod Stewart, David Coverdale, Tracy Chapman, Los Lonely Boys, and Bonnie Raitt.
He recorded two solo records in the 1970s, one with Jerry Wood. He later collaborated with two other Columbia Artists, Les Dudek and Jim Krueger, with whom he formed DFK (Dudek, Finnigan, and Krueger) in 1978. More recently, his work featured on the CD by The Finnigan Brothers (NashFilms Records), a collaboration with his younger brother Sean and founding member of Bread, Robb Royer.
He is twice a winner of a Blues Music Award (formerly W.C. Handy Award) for his work with Taj Mahal as a member of the Phantom Blues Band.
Finnigan has always been active politically and was, for several years, a regular contributor to the weblog Crooks and Liars.
In 2013 and 2014, Finnigan was nominated for a Blues Music Award in the 'Pinetop Perkins Piano Player' category.
He has been married to Candy Finnigan née: Howse (Intervention) for forty years. They have two children, Bridget and Kelly. Kelly is an equally talented Keyboard player and Singer for the San Francisco-based band Monophonics. The Finnigans live in Southern California.
Political activism
Finnigan is an active blogger, with a fondness for liberal/progressive causes and commentary.
Selected discography
- 1969: The Early Bird Cafe of the band The Serfs, Capitol Records
- Like A Rolling Stone
- Early Bird Cafe
- Little Man
- Evil Days
- You've Been Talking 'Bout Me Baby
- I'm A Man
- Leda
- All Blues
- Time's Caught Up With You
- Prologue: Mechanical Man
- 1968: Jimi Hendrix - Electric Ladyland
- 1970: The Jerry Hahn Brotherhood - The Jerry Hahn Brotherhood
- 1971: Hammond B3, Vocals on the record Whirlwind of Tom Bolin.
- 1971: keyboards, vocals on the record How Hard It Is of Big Brother and the Holding Company.
- 1972: Band Finnigan And Wood with record Crazed Hipsters
- Rock And Roll Show
- Highway
- Laughing Eyes
- Tend To Your Own Business
- Hard Times
- Lady Lady
- Death Letter
- My, My, My
- Don't Cry No More
- Down In The Flood
- 1976: Mike Finnigan - Mike Finnigan
- 1977: Peter Frampton - I'm In You
- 1977: Dave Mason - Let It Flow
- 1978: Mike Finnigan - Black & White
- 1978: Les Dudek - Ghost Town Parade
- 1978: organ, vocals (background) for Ben Sidran on record A Little Kiss in the Night
- 1979: The Dudek Finnigan Krueger Band, record Special Tour Sampler
- Gonna Move
- Central Park
- Expressway To Your Heart
- Just One Minute More
- The Words
- Run For Cover
- Trinidad
- How Long Has It Been
- Ghost Town Parade
- Friend Of Mine
- 1980 The Dudek Finnigan Krueger Band - DFK
- Angels Fall
- Just Like The Weather
- Dinkin' Alone
- I Know You're In There
- It's All About You
- Just Be Happy
- That's Wrong
- You Cut So Deep
- 1980: Member of the band Black Rose with Cher and Les Dudek
- 1978: Mike Finnigan with record Black & White, in United States at Columbia, in Netherlands at CBS
- Just One Minute More
- How Wrong Can You Be
- The Words
- Can't Keep A Secret
- I Could Never Leave You
- Sailfish
- Expressway To Your Heart
- Love Might Keep Us Forever
- Let Me Love You
- 1988: Crosby, Stills & Nash & Young - American Dream
- 1994: Crosby, Stills & Nash - After The Storm
- 2000: Tracy Chapman - Telling Stories
- 2004: Clavinet, hammond organl für The Mooney Suzuki auf Alive & Amplified
- 2005: organ piano, vocals on DVD Taj Mahal & The Phantom Blues Band Live In St. Lucia
- 2006: organ, piano, vocals for The Phantom Blues Band, record Out of the Shadows
- 2006: Keb' Mo' - Suitcase
- 2007: Joe Cocker - Hymn For My Soul
- 2007: organ, piano, vocals for The Phantom Blues Band, record Footprints
- 2010: Imus Ranch Record II - Part Time Love (with the Phantom Blues Band)
- 2010: Mike Finnigan at label Wounded Bird
- Saved By The Grace Of Your Love (David Palmer (4), William D. Smith)
- Performance (Allen Toussaint)
- Baby, I Found Out (Mike Finnigan, Roger Troy)
- The Room Nobody Lives In (John Sebastian)
- New York State Of Mind (Billy Joel)
- Ace In The Hole (Mitchell, Dempsey)
- Southern Lady (Text: Maria Muldaur, Musik Mike Hazelwood)
- Everything Will Work Out (Richard Stekol)
- Misery Loves Company (Jerry Reed)
- Holy Cow (Allen Toussaint)
- Mississippi On My Mind (Jesse Winchester)
- Willie Basse *“Break Away”, [23][24] Rock’s Cool Music Publishing, New Empire Media, (2010) Mike Finnigan on Keyboards
- 2011: Finnigan & Wood - It's Only A Rock and Roll Show (recorded 1971, previously unreleased)
- 2012: Bonnie Raitt - Slipstream
- 2013: Eric Burdon - 'Til Your River Runs Dry
- 2013: Mike Finnigan (Remastert)at WEA
- 2014: keyboards, organ, vocals (Background) für Dave Mason auf Futures Past
- 2014: piano, organ for Hilary Scott, album Freight Train Love
- "The Serfs : Early Bird Cafe". Discogs.com. Retrieved 20 January 2015.
- "Whirlwind - Tommy Bolin - Credits - AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved 20 January 2015.
- "Whirlwind - Tommy Bolin - Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards - AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved 20 January 2015.
- "Finnigan and Wood : Crazed Hipsters". Discogs.com. Retrieved 20 January 2015.
- "Dudek Finnigan Krueger Band : Special Tour Sampler". Discogs.com. Retrieved 20 January 2015.
- "Dudek Finnigan Krueger Band : DFK". Discogs.com. Retrieved 20 January 2015.
- "Black Rose". Cherworld.com. Retrieved 20 January 2015.
- "Alive & Amplified - The Mooney Suzuki - Credits - AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved 20 January 2015.
- Tim Sendra. "Alive & Amplified - The Mooney Suzuki - Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards - AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved 20 January 2015.
- ^ "Mike Finnigan - Mike Finnigan - Releases - AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved 20 January 2015.
- "Mike Finnigan : Mike Finnigan". Discogs.com. Retrieved 20 January 2015.
- "Future's Past - Dave Mason - Credits - AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved 20 January 2015.
- Thom Jurek. "Future's Past - Dave Mason - Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards - AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved 20 January 2015.
- "Hilary Scott - Freight Train Love". No Depression. 2014-11-05. Retrieved 2016-01-18.