Some drummers just have skills, but Michael Shrieve has vision, so says Carlos Santana of Mike Shrieve, an American electronic drummer, percussionist and songwriter, best recognized for being Santana’s original drummer.
Born on July 6, 1949 in San Francisco, California, Shrieve attended Junipero Serra High School and later joined the first line-up of the band Santana at the age of nineteen. At age 20, he became the youngest man to perform at the 1969 Woodstock Festival. He helped write and produce eight albums with the band, but left in 1974 to pursue solo projects.
Since his departure from the band, Shrieve has collaborated with various artists. In 1976, he played in guitarist Pat Thralls Automatic Man. In 1983, he also became part of the band Hagar Schon Aaronson Shrieve, also known as HSAS, with vocalist Sammy Hagar, lead guitarist Neal Schon, and bassist Kenny Aaronson. The group recorded during two shows at the Warfield in San Francisco and released a semi-live album, Through the Fire, in 1984. During this year, he also played on Roger Hodgson’s first album, In the Eye of the Storm. For 5 years, Shrieve was a percussionist in Klaus Shulze’s side project Richard Wahnfried, and was able to record with him on three albums, while also working on Schulze’s first electronic music solo album, Transfer Station Blue.
Shrieves other collaborations were with Mick Jagger, the Rolling Stones, Pete Townshend, Steve Winwood, David Beal, Andy Summers, Steve Roach, Stomu Yamashta, Jonas Hellborg, Buckethead, Revolution Void, and jazz musicians Freddie Hubbard, John Laughlin, and Jaco Pastorius. . He has worked alongside artists of various genres.
Shrieve was a producer on a total of 21 albums, some of which are Douglas Septembers Ten Bulls, released in 1998, Santanas Aye Aye Aye on the 2003 album Shaman, and AriSawkaDorias Chapter One in 2006. His work on Aye Aye Aye was considered by Rolling Stone magazine as one that achieves global euphoria. Shrieves’ television and film credits include the 1982 Paul Mazursky film The Tempest, 1986’s Children of Time Square, the 1987 Curtis Hanson film The Bedroom Window, and 1990’s The Take.
In addition to writing, producing and playing on albums that have sold millions of copies worldwide, Mike Shrieve has also had his share of accolades. In 1998, he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, and in 2005, he received the Guitar Center’s first annual Lifetime Achievement Award. He is on the John F. Kennedy Middle School Alumni Wall of Fame in Redwood City, CA. Shrieve has also been cited for his exceptional work in various publications including The New York Times, Downbeat, Billboard, Modern Drummer, Musician, Drum, Paris Match, Melody Maker, and Life Magazine.
Shrieve currently lives in Seattle, Washington. He continues to compose, produce, and play drums. He currently plays with Spellbinder, a jazz/fusion group. The band performs weekly at ToST in Fremont, Seattle.
