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Mike McCready

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🎂 April 5, 1966 · 60📍 Pensacola, Florida, USA

Biography

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Michael David McCready (born April 5, 1966) is an American musician who serves as the lead guitarist for the American rock band Pearl Jam, a band he co-founded. He has also been a member of the side project bands Flight to Mars, Temple of the Dog, Mad Season and The Rockfords. McCready was born in Pensacola, Florida, USA, but his family moved to Seattle shortly after his birth. As a child, his parents played Hendrix and Santana, while his friends listened to KISS and Aerosmith; McCready would frequently play bongo drums. At the age of 11, McCready purchased his first guitar and began taking lessons—aiming to imitate Gene Simmons of KISS, by sticking his tongue out. Shadow split up soon afterwards, and McCready lost interest in guitar for some time, before finally joining another band called Love Chile. A high school friend, Stone Gossard, heard the band, appreciated McCready's work, and asked if he wanted to join a band he was forming. The two worked together and recruited bassist Jeff Ament. Together with drummer Dave Krusen (who would later be replaced by Matt Chamberlain, then Dave Abbruzzese, then Jack Irons, and currently Matt Cameron) and Eddie Vedder, the group formed the band Pearl Jam (originally known as Mookie Blaylock). It was during this time that McCready took a central role in the Temple of the Dog project, combining members of Soundgarden and Pearl Jam. Mikes first recording studio experience was recording the Temple of the Dog album, including an epic 4-minute-plus solo for "Reach Down." According to drummer Matt Cameron, McCready's headphone monitors flew off halfway through the recording of the solo, and he played the rest without being able to hear the backing track. McCready still considers this track to be his greatest achievement. By the end of 1991, Pearl Jam became one of the most famous modern bands with the release of Ten. McCready frequently soloed, and added a blues touch to the music (influenced by Stevie Ray Vaughan). McCready's guitar style is usually an aggressive bluesy nature, and he never plays the same solo twice. His live renditions of songs have slightly different solos due to his fondness of improvization, and sometimes he treats the crowd to a full-on improv. He is extremely energetic live, and is commonly found dashing around the stage, playing to the crowd, throwing plectrums and soloing with the guitar behind his head.

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BODY OF WORK

Mike McCready's Filmography

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Mike McCready

Biography

Mike McCready's Filmography

2025 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony

Pearl Jam: Vitalogy

Pearl Jam: Baltimore 2024

Pearl Jam: Philadelphia 2024 - Night 2

Pearl Jam: Dark Matter – Global Theatrical Experience

Pearl Jam: Chicago 2023 - Night 1

Pearl Jam: Camden, NJ 2022

Pearl Jam: Budapest 2022

Pearl Jam: Imola 2022

Pearl Jam: Oakland 2022 - Night 2

Pearl Jam: Oakland 2022 - Night 1

Pearl Jam: Gila River Arena 2022

Pearl Jam: Los Angeles 2022 - Night 1

Pearl Jam Twenty - The Fans Are Alright

Enormous: The Gorge Story

MoPOP Founders Award 2020 Honoring Alice in Chains

The Rocky Horror Musical Live Stream

All in Washington: A Concert for COVID-19 Relief

Pearl Jam: Gigaton Visual Album Experience

Pearl Jam: Gigaton Theater Experience

BOOM! A Film About the Sonics

Pearl Jam: Fenway Park 2018 - Night 1 - The Away Shows [TheSteved111]

Pearl Jam: Fenway Park 2018 - Night 1 - The Away Shows [BTNV]

Pearl Jam: Missoula 2018

Pearl Jam: Safeco Field 2018 - Night 2 - The Home Shows [BTNV]

Pearl Jam: Safeco Field 2018 - Night 1 - The Home Shows [Nugs]

Pearl Jam: Safeco Field 2018 - Night 1 - The Home Shows [BTNV]

Pearl Jam: London 2018

Pearl Jam: Rock Werchter 2018

Pearl Jam - Rome 2018

Pearl Jam: Lollapalooza Brazil 2018 [Animal]

Pearl Jam: Let's Play Two

Pearl Jam: The TV Master Archive 1992 - 2017

Pearl Jam: Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame Induction Ceremony

Temple Of The Dog

PearlJam: Wrigley Field 2016 - Night 2 [YT]

Pearl Jam: Wrigley Field 2016 - Night 2 [BTNV]

Pearl Jam: Fenway Park 2016 - Night 2

Pearl Jam: Fenway Park 2016 - Night 1

Gleason

Pearl Jam: Toronto 2016 - Night 2

Pearl Jam: Toronto 2016 - Night 1 - The Binaural Show

Pearl Jam: New York City 2016 - Night 2

Pearl Jam: New York City 2016 - Night 1

Pearl Jam: Philadelphia 2016

Pearl Jam: Philadelphia 2016 - Night 2 - The Ten Show [Nugs]

Pearl Jam: Philadelphia 2016 - Night 2 - The Ten Show [BTNV]

Pearl Jam: Philadelphia 2016 - Night 1

Pearl Jam: Hampton 2016

Pearl Jam: Greenville 2016 - The Vs. Show

Pearl Jam: Jacksonville 2016

Pearl Jam: Tampa 2016

Pearl Jam: Miami 2016

Pearl Jam: Fort Lauderdale 2016

Global Citizen Festival 2015

Pearl Jam: Global Citizens Festival - New York 2015

The Glamour & the Squalor

Pearl Jam: Milwaukee 2014 - The Yield Show

Pearl Jam: St. Paul 2014

Pearl Jam: Moline 2014 - The No Code Show [Nugs]

Pearl Jam: Moline 2014 - The No Code Show [BTNV]

Pearl Jam: Detroit 2014

Pearl Jam: Lincoln 2014

Pearl Jam: St. Louis 2014

Pearl Jam: Cincinnati 2014

Pearl Jam: Milton Keynes 2014

Pearl Jam: Leeds 2014

Pearl Jam: Vienna 2014

Pearl Jam: Seattle 2013

Pearl Jam: Vancouver 2013

Pearl Jam: Spokane 2013

Pearl Jam: Los Angeles 2013 - Night 2

Pearl Jam: Los Angeles 2013 - Night 1

Pearl Jam: San Diego 2013

Pearl Jam: See No Evil, Hear No Evil

Pearl Jam: Glendale 2013

Pearl Jam: Oklahoma City 2013