Mike McCready

Michael David McCready (born April 5, 1966) is an American musician known for being a founding member and lead guitarist of Pearl Jam. McCready was also a member of the side project bands Flight to Mars, Temple of the Dog, Mad Season, and The Rockfords. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a part of Pearl Jam in 2017 alongside the four other founding members (Jeff Ament, Stone Gossard, Dave Krusen, and Eddie Vedder), and former member Matt Cameron.

Mike McCready was born in Pensacola, Florida, but his family moved to Seattle shortly after his birth. When he was a child, his parents played Jimi Hendrix and Santana; while his friends listened to Kiss and Aerosmith, McCready would frequently play bongo drums. At the age of eleven, McCready purchased his first guitar and began taking lessons.

In eighth grade, McCready formed his first band, Warrior, whose name soon changed to Shadow. Originally a cover band playing during free periods at Roosevelt High School, the band eventually began writing original material and recording demo tapes. After high school, McCready worked at a pizza restaurant where he befriended musician Pete Droge. In 1986, Shadow relocated to Los Angeles and attempted to cut a record deal. However, according to McCready:

In 1988, Shadow returned to Seattle and split up soon afterwards. McCready lost interest in playing guitar for some time, stating that he was "so depressed about life". He cut his hair, enrolled in a local community college, and spent his nights working at a video store. He credits a friend named Russ Riedner for getting him "out of my college mode and back into playing guitar". McCready was inspired to pick up his guitar again after attending a Stevie Ray Vaughan concert at The Gorge Amphitheatre in George, Washington. McCready said:

McCready gradually went back to playing guitar and finally joined another band called Love Chile. A childhood friend, Stone Gossard, went to one of the band's shows and appreciated McCready's work after hearing him perform Stevie Ray Vaughan's "Couldn't Stand the Weather". Gossard had known McCready before high school when the two would trade rock band pictures with each other. After the demise of Gossard's band Mother Love Bone, he asked McCready if he wanted to play music together with him. After practicing with Gossard for a few months, McCready encouraged Gossard to reconnect with his fellow Mother Love Bone alum, Jeff Ament.

Biography summary from English Wikipedia, photograph via Wikimedia Commons.