Why Isn't Mike Stevens Famous?

If your answer to the title of this blog entry is, "You're crazy. He is famous." congratulations. Mike Stevens is pretty well known in some some musical circles, notably bluegrass in the USA and folk roots in Canada, however Mike isn't nearly as famous as he should be. It's not an overstatement to call Mike a genius and a virtuoso and a master of his instrument - the ten-hole harmonica.

I first heard about Mike when I worked for CBC Radio in Windsor Ontario in the mid 1990s. One of my colleagues mentioned that a musician, a harmonica player from Sarnia, was on a short list for a Grammy nomination. I thought, couldn't be. If somebody in our neck of the woods was that big in music, I would know about him. So much for my extensive knowledge of the local music scene.

I eventually tracked Mike down. He sent me a stack of his records (CDs) which were all bluegrass. Turns out he had already won Entertainer of the Year in the Central Canadian Bluegrass awards each  year from 1990 to 1996. He had also played the Grand Ol' Opry a couple of hundred times, often with the classic bluegrass group Jim and Jesse and the Virginia Boys. But, after I met him, I realized there was so much more to Mike musically speaking. He has a passion for the blues and some seriously twisted rock and roll. He also plays with looping and does some wondrous gymnastics with  his little ten-hole harmonica, always without a net.

It was my proudest moment arranging an interview with Mike on Morningside with Peter Gzowski back in the 90s.

Since then Mike has become a lot better known in folk and roots music circles in Canada with a couple of releases on the Borealis label. He also recently won an East Coast Music Award for his duo release with blues guy Matt Andersen called Piggyback. Matt and Mike just recorded a new record at the Banff Centre a few months ago. I heard some rough mixes and I can't wait to hear the finished product.

I can't mention Mike without mentioning one of his great accomplishments as a philanthropist - ArtsCan Circle. It's a great organization that brings music - in the form of instruments and classes -  to young people on reserves in the North.

Mike is a good friend and he isn't as famous as he should be and this blog entry is my way of making him a little better known.

Here's an added bonus for you.. Guitar god David Lindley and Mike jamming on Lindley's hit "Mercury Blues"