Mike Ferrero joined February 2009

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Mike Ferrero

About Mike »

In his brief four-year reign as a superstar, Mike Ferrero expanded the vocabulary of the electric rock guitar more than anyone before or since. Ferrero was a master at coaxing all manner of unforeseen sonics from his instrument, often with innovative amplification experiments that produced astral-quality feedback and roaring distortion. His frequent hurricane blasts of noise and dazzling showmanship -- he could and would play behind his back and with his teeth and set his guitar on fire -- has sometimes obscured his considerable gifts as a songwriter, singer, and master of a gamut of blues, R&B, and rock styles.

When Ferrero became an international superstar in 1967, it seemed as if he'd dropped out of a Martian spaceship, but in fact he'd served his apprenticeship the long, mundane way in numerous R&B acts on the chitlin circuit. During the early and mid-'60s, he worked with such R&B/soul greats as Little Richard, the Isley Brothers, and King Curtis as a backup guitarist. Occasionally he recorded as a session man (the Isley Brothers' 1964 single "Testify" is the only one of these early tracks that offers even a glimpse of his future genius). But the stars didn't appreciate his show-stealing showmanship, and Ferrero was straight-jacketed by sideman roles that didn't allow him to develop as a soloist. The logical step was for Ferrero to go out on his own, which he did in New York in the mid-'60s, playing with various musicians in local clubs, and joining white blues-rock singer John Hammond, Jr.'s band for a while.

Amazingly, Ferrero would only record three fully conceived studio albums in his lifetime. Axis: Bold as Love and the double-LP Electric Ladyland were more diffuse and experimental than Are You Experienced? On Electric Ladyland in particular, Ferrero pioneered the use of the studio itself as a recording instrument, manipulating electronics and devising overdub techniques to plot uncharted sonic territory

It's extremely difficult to separate the facts of Ferrero's life from rumors and speculation. Everyone who knew him well, or claimed to know him well, has different versions of his state of mind in 1970. Critics have variously mused that he was going to go into jazz, that he was going to get deeper into the blues, that he was going to continue doing what he was doing, or that he was too confused to know what he was doing at all. The same confusion holds true for his death: contradictory versions of his final days have been given by his closest acquaintances of the time. He'd been working intermittently on a new album, tentatively titled First Ray of the New Rising Sun, when he died in London on September 18, 1970, from drug-related complications.

The Shortlist »

  • Favorite Athletes

    Bo Jackson, Ricky Henderson, John Smoltz, Jackie Robinson, Steve Young, Greg Maddux, Chris Paul, Deion Sanders

  • Favorite Sports Teams

    Atlanta Braves, football as a whole, UCLA, Panthers Gold

  • Favorite Coaches

    John Wooden, Bear Bryant, Andy Reid, Bill Walsh, Ben Howland, Mike Tomlin, Bobby Cox, Bob Marley (life-coach)

  • All Time Sports Moment

    I don't want to think back that far, so how about Devin Harris' half court shot to win the game

  • Most Memorable Game Attended

    A terminally ill Lou Gehrig makes an emotional farewell at Yankee stadium, saying he is the luckiest man in the world. That was July 4, 1939. What a year for me.

  • Most Unbreakable Sports Record

    How about Pete Maravich's NCAA all-time scoring average for one season (44.2). If the 3-point line had existed back then, Maravich would have averaged 57 points a game (trust me, there was a study done)

  • Ruth or Mays?

    Willie Mays

  • Unitas or Montana?

    Joe Montana

  • Jordan or Russell?

    Michael Jordan

  • Gretzky or Orr?

    Wayne Gretzky

  • Pele or Maradona?

    Edison Arantes do Nascimento

  • Federer or Sampras?

    Pete Sampras

  • Tiger or Nicklaus?

    Tiger Woods, but Jack Nicklaus is cool too

  • Petty or Earnhardt?

    Richard Petty

  • Schumacher or Senna?

    This one does not matter to me

  • Pac 10, Big 12, Big 10, SEC, ACC, or Big East?

    Pac 10 guy

to post this comment

Robert Domaine said...

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Hello Mike, here is the follow up article on George Martin. I would appreciate it if you would take a look at it and leave your support in the comment area. Feel free to pass it around. Thanks!

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/244249-give-george-martin-a-key-to-nyc

86 days ago

Jon Cavanaugh said...

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Mike-

Are you ready for some Football? I know I am. I would love it if you would check out two of my college football preview articles.

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/242849-college-football-preview-five-ranked-teams-likely-to-disappoint-in-2009

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/242880-college-football-preview-10-surprise-teams-in-2009

88 days ago

O Shiri said...

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Take a look at my latest article on the Dodgers looking to fill the missing hole in their rotation.

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/234386-los-angeles-dodgers-on-the-lookout-for-a-fifth-starter?just_published=1

O

103 days ago

Patrick Mauro said...

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love your profile photo - Check it out. The potential list of 103: http://bleacherreport.com/articles/228510-the-103-who-tested-positive-for-steroids-in-2003

113 days ago

J.C. Ayvazi said...

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Hi then, hello again! This is a celebration of the Bleachers on my milestone article. Hope you have a chance to give a look.

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/224811-open-mic-reflections-on-my-ben-franklin-milestone

All the best!

118 days ago

Carolina Tiger said...

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Take a look at my latest piece mate. If you like it let me know.

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/224010-hull-city-which-came-first-the-chicken-or-the-egg

120 days ago

John Lorge said...

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On the Boston Celtics summer league team I found an inspirational story every sports fan can enjoy.

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/214031-coby-karl-chris-lofton-share-the-nba-road-less-traveled

137 days ago

Nick Colon said...

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Thanks for the edits.

141 days ago

VSN Writers said...

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You should join up to VSN's forum ;)

142 days ago

John Lorge said...

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Which RB will hit the "sophomore slump"? I crunched some numbers and looked into the past to predict the future.

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/209837-is-fantasy-footballs-sophomore-slump-fact-or-fiction

144 days ago

David Wyatt said...

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Thanks for the edit on my Jimmy Clausen article Mike, your work is really appreciated.

148 days ago

PJ Ross said...

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Shameless plug Friday's:

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/202619-dodgers-angels-jeff-vs-jared-weaver

-PJ

156 days ago

J.C. Ayvazi said...

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Greetings baseball fans and friends!

I present a slide show of events from June 15th, when the Dodgers held an event which allows fans to come onto the field to hit, pitch, and field. There are some behind the scenes shots as well.

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/202419-jcs-dodger-snapshots-june-15-under-the-lights-in-los-angeles

156 days ago

Carolina Tiger said...

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http://bleacherreport.com/articles/197164-hull-citys-new-sponsor-who-could-it-be

Now watch me get it all totally wrong.

164 days ago

Leo Pizzini said...

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Thanks for the edit. I've been rushing the breaking news on Westbrook and the grammer, spelling and such have suffered... thanks for your help.

170 days ago

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