Michael Eliot Gordon (born June 3, 1965) is an American bass guitarist and vocalist most recognized as a founding member of the band

Phish Phish is an American rock band formed in Burlington, Vermont, in 1983. The band is known for musical improvisation, extended jams, blending of genres, and a dedicated fan base. The band consists of guitarist Trey Anastasio, bassist Mike G ...

. In addition to bass, Gordon is an accomplished

banjo The banjo is a stringed instrument with a thin membrane stretched over a frame or cavity to form a resonator. The membrane is typically circular, and usually made of plastic, or occasionally animal skin. Early forms of the instrument were fashi ...

player, and is proficient at piano and guitar. He is also a filmmaker ('' Rising Low'', ''

Outside Out ''Outside Out'' is the first full-length feature film from Phish bassist Mike Gordon Michael Eliot Gordon (born June 3, 1965) is an American bass guitarist and vocalist most recognized as a founding member of the band Phish. In addition to ...

'') and author (''Mike's Corner''). He has released five solo studio albums and three studio albums with acoustic guitar pioneer Leo Kottke.

Biography

Gordon was born in

Sudbury, Massachusetts Sudbury is a town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. At the 2020 census, it had a population of 18,934. The town, located in Greater Boston's MetroWest region, has a rich colonial history. History Incorporated in 1639, the b ...

, the son of Marjorie Minkin, an abstract painter, and Robert Gordon, founder and former President and CEO of New England convenience store chain

Store 24 Tedeschi Food Shops was a chain of nearly 200 convenience stores (as of March 2015), located primarily in Massachusetts, with some stores in New Hampshire. It was acquired by 7- Eleven in May 2015, and the transaction closed in August 2015. Acc ...

. Gordon attended the

Solomon Schechter Day School of Greater Boston Newton is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. It is approximately west of downtown Boston. Newton resembles a patchwork of thirteen villages, without a city center. According to the 2020 U.S. Census, the population of Ne ...

and

Lincoln-Sudbury Regional High School Lincoln-Sudbury Regional High School (LSRHS or L-S) is a public regional high school in Sudbury, Massachusetts, with a 99% graduation-rate. The school was founded in 1954, and the building was replaced prior to the 2004–2005 academic year, wit ...

. Gordon holds a bachelor's degree in Arts (he was originally an Electrical Engineering major) from the

University of Vermont The University of Vermont (UVM), officially the University of Vermont and State Agricultural College, is a public land-grant research university in Burlington, Vermont. It was founded in 1791 and is among the oldest universities in the Unite ...

. Gordon met

Trey Anastasio Ernest Joseph "Trey" Anastasio III (born September 30, 1964) is an American guitarist, singer, and songwriter, best known as the lead guitarist of the rock band Phish, which he co-founded in 1983. He is credited by name as composer of 152 Phish o ...

, Jon Fishman, and Jeff Holdsworth while attending college at

, where the rock band

formed in 1983. He answered a posted flyer hanging in the dorms at UVM by

, looking for a bass player for a new band. Gordon played many roles in Phish. Until the band became too big for self-management, he dealt with practically all public relations and fan communication, such as answering fan mail, managing funds and booking gigs. Gordon wrote a column titled "Mike's Corner" for the band's newsletter in the 1990s. Musically, Gordon's influence is the most obvious in Phish's many different renditions of various bluegrass, calypso, and even traditional

Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

songs (Gordon is Jewish). He also contributed by singing, as well as writing lyrics. Gordon wrote 19 original Phish songs and co-authored 27 additional Phish tracks, including "Mound", "Train Song", "Round Room", "Sugar Shack," "Yarmouth Road," "555," "Say Something," "Waking Up Dead," and the band's third most-performed song historically: "

Mike's Song "Mike's Song" is a song by the rock band Phish. Originally written in 1985, and debuting that year on March 16, bass player Mike Gordon's song has been played a total of 488 times (appearing in 28.26% of all of Phish live shows), the third most pl ...

." Gordon also practices transcendental meditation.

Instruments and gear

Like Phish guitarist Trey Anastasio, Gordon used to play custom-made bass guitars built by

Paul Languedoc Paul Languedoc is an American audio engineer and luthier who is most closely associated with the rock band Phish. Professional career He was the soundman for rock group Phish prior to the band's breakup in 2004. As the band's chief sound engin ...

. Gordon played two Languedoc bass guitars, including a "dragon" bass. These bass guitars employed custom wound pickups from Mørch guitars of Denmark. Gordon began experimenting with a Modulus Quantum 5 bass guitar on stage with Phish as early as October 31, 1994. He made the switch to this instrument as his main bass at Phish's March 1, 1997, show at Markthalle in Hamburg, Germany to a Quantum 5 with two EMG DC pickups. He later acquired a TBX model which is the through-neck version of the same guitar. Gordon plays with a pick (Jim Dunlop 1.5mm triangular graphite picks) and Ken Smith Slickround™ (half flat) stringsMike Gordon's Bass Rig
Mike-gordon.com Gordon's signature sound is also attributable to an array of signal processing equipment including an ADA MB-1 pre-amp, an Ibanez flanger (used at the beginning of "Down with Disease"), a Lovetone Meatball envelope filter (also used at the beginning of "Down with Disease"), and Akai Deep Impact, an EHX Bass Micro-Synth, an EBS OctaBass and a Boss SYB-3, a Boss BF-2 flanger, an Eventide 4500 Harmonizer, an Eventide Eclipse and a Lexicon LXP-15. Gordon has used a variety of amplifier and speaker combinations including the SWR SM-900 amp/Goliath 4x10" enclosure but lately has been playing through Eden WT-800 amps, a Meyer Sound CP-10 parametric EQ, and onward toward a Meyer Sound powered speaker system (two 750P 2x18 cabs and two UPA-1Ps with 12" low frequency drivers and 3" compression drivers).

Current gear

As of December 2012, Gordon uses Source Audio Bass Envelope Filter Pro, Source Audio Bass Distortion Pro, Eventide Eclipse, Eventide Space, MXR graphic EQ, Boss graphic EQ and Electro Harmonix Super Ego, The Meatball envelope filter by Lovetone™, an Ibanez stomp box flanger, and an Eventide 4500 Harmonizer. He currently uses Eden WT 800 amp into a Meyers CP-10 parametric EQ, and onward toward a Meyers powered speaker system: One 750P 2×18 and one 750 PL 2 x 18, two UPA-1P on top. He goes straight to the Eden WT800 driving a single Eden 4×10 cab, sometimes enhancing with more Eden 18's and more power. In 2014, Gordon commissioned custom moiré instruments for himself and guitarist Scott Murawski to work with stage props being used on his 2014 Spring Tour. The guitar and bass (crafted specifically for this tour by Ben Lewry of Oakland, California's Visionary Instruments) are hollow, with LEDs inside that make them glow, and moiré screens stretched across the front. The LEDs in the guitars are manipulated by the lighting director, swapping colors and flashing patterns in response to the music. He has played banjo since 1994, performing the instrument in concert with Phish and hil Lesh(albeit an electric banjo) and in the studio on the 2007 Bernie Worrell album ''Improvisczario''.

Projects

Mike Gordon (2015–present)

His current touring band (again billed as "Mike Gordon") is Scott Murawski on guitar, Robert Walter on B3 Organ & Synth, drummer

John Morgan Kimock John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second E ...

and percussionist Craig Myers. The band has toured regularly since 2015. Gordon decided to tour as a quintet to differentiate his project's instrumentation from Phish. In April 2017, Gordon and his bandmates recorded OGOGO, Mike's fifth studio album, as a band at Q Division in Boston. “All five of us decided not to do what we had done before, but to be fresher and try to find our own voices. That started happening in a some jams... I want things to be interesting in a way that would serve the song.” The album was produced by GRAMMY Award-winning Shawn Everett and was released on September 15, 2017.

Mike Gordon (2008–2014)

His past touring band (and longest running touring project) was billed as "Mike Gordon" and included Scott Murawski on guitar, drummer Todd Isler, keyboard player Tom Cleary and percussionist Craig Myers. Gordon toured with this band from Summer 2008 through March 2014. The band made its debut late night talk-show television appearance on February 11, as musical guests on ''Late Night with Jimmy Fallon'', promoting Gordon's album ''

Moss Mosses are small, non-vascular flowerless plants in the taxonomic division Bryophyta (, ) '' sensu stricto''. Bryophyta ('' sensu lato'', Schimp. 1879) may also refer to the parent group bryophytes, which comprise liverworts, mosses, and ...

''. They played a small handful of dates in New England (and one date in Albany) in November and December 2011, including a show at The Egg in Albany, NY on December 11, 2011 that ended up being the focus of a live album Gordon released in 2013 simply called "The Egg". They again toured in March 2014 (and a few weekends in April) supporting Gordon's last solo album (co-written with band-mate Murawski) '' Overstep''.

Mike Gordon and Leo Kottke

In 2002, Gordon recorded the album '' Clone'' with acoustic guitarist Leo Kottke. The duo reunited in 2005 for '' Sixty Six Steps'', followed by a supporting tour. In August 2019, Gordon confirmed that he and Kottke had returned to the studio to record a new album. In August 2020, Kottke and Gordon announced the release of the album, ''Noon'', that month on Megaplum/ ATO Records. It was their first collaboration since ''Sixty Six Steps'' and Kottke's first studio album since 2005. As had been previously rumored, Phish drummer Jon Fishman appeared on several tracks.

Benevento/Russo Duo and GRAB (2004–2006)

In 2004, Gordon performed with The Benevento-Russo Duo for several shows benefiting Headcount, a voter registration organization. The trio played a number of dates in late 2004 and 2005 including the

Bonnaroo Music Festival The Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival is an American annual four-day music festival developed and founded by Superfly Presents and AC Entertainment. Since its first year in 2002, it has been held at what is now Great Stage Park on a farm in ...

in June 2005 and a New Year's Eve series of shows in Florida and the northeastern United States. Gordon has originally met Joe Russo through Ropeadope founder Andy Hurwitz from in 2003 and jammed together in a few informal settings, leading to the Headcount benefit. In summer 2006, Gordon, along with Phish bandmate Trey Anastasio, again joined the Benevento-Russo Duo for a co-headlining tour with Phil Lesh and Friends before finishing the final leg of the tour on their own. The group performed various songs from each members' catalog, as well as a handful of brand new originals. The quartet parted ways after the tour ended in July.

Other projects

Gordon has played in several side-projects apart from Phish, including Grappa Boom with Jamie Masefield of the

Jazz Mandolin Project The Jazz Mandolin Project was an acoustic jazz fusion group formed in Burlington, Vermont, by Jamie Masefield in 1993. Masefield played banjo with dixieland bands, including the Preservation Hall Jazz Band, before switching to mandolin. In 1996, t ...

, The Chieftains with Rosanne Cash, and Doug Perkins of Smokin' Grass. Gordon formed his own solo band featuring Josh Roseman, Scott Murawski, Julee Avallone, James Harvey, Gordon Stone, Jeannie Hill and Doug Belote in 2003. He released his first solo album outside of Phish in 2003, entitled '' Inside In''. In summer 2004, Gordon produced musician Joey Arkenstat's first album, ''Bane''. Gordon is also credited with providing vocals and

shofar A shofar ( ; from he, שׁוֹפָר, ) is an ancient musical horn typically made of a ram's horn, used for Jewish religious purposes. Like the modern bugle, the shofar lacks pitch-altering devices, with all pitch control done by varying ...

accompaniment. In December 2005, Gordon formed SerialPod with Anastasio and

Grateful Dead The Grateful Dead was an American rock band formed in 1965 in Palo Alto, California. The band is known for its eclectic style, which fused elements of rock, folk, country, jazz, bluegrass, blues, rock and roll, gospel, reggae, world music, ...

drummer

Bill Kreutzmann William Kreutzmann Jr. ( ; born May 7, 1946) is an American drummer and founding member of the rock band Grateful Dead. He played with the band for its entire thirty-year career, usually alongside fellow drummer Mickey Hart, and has continued to ...

. The group debuted at the 17th annual Warren Haynes Christmas Jam in

Asheville, North Carolina Asheville ( ) is a city in, and the county seat of, Buncombe County, North Carolina. Located at the confluence of the French Broad and Swannanoa rivers, it is the largest city in Western North Carolina, and the state's 11th-most populous cit ...

. In early 2006, Gordon teamed up with his mother, artist Marjorie Minkin, to present ''Another Side of In'' — a visual and audio art show featuring interactive sculptures created by Minkin and set to the music of ''Inside In''. The interactive show appeared at the

Boston Children's Museum Boston Children's Museum is a children's museum in Boston, Massachusetts, dedicated to the education of children. Located on Children's Wharf along the Fort Point Channel, Boston Children's Museum is the second oldest children's museum in the Un ...

beginning in January 2010. Later in 2006, Gordon formed a honky-tonk band called Ramble Dove, consisting of himself, Brett Hughes, Neil Cleary, Marie Claire and Scott Murawski. The band came into fruition after Gordon's long-time stint as bass guitar player in a honky-tonk band led by Brett Hughes that performed each Tuesday night at the

Burlington, Vermont Burlington is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Vermont and the seat of Chittenden County. It is located south of the Canada–United States border and south of Montreal. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the population was 44,743. It ...

, club, Radio Bean. The group performs a number of classic

country A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. It may be a sovereign state or make up one part of a larger state. For example, the country of Japan is an independent, sovereign state, whi ...

songs and a few Gordon originals, such as "Ramble Dove", "Loosening Up The Rules" and the rare Phish song "Weekly Time". In August 2006, Gordon joined the Rhythm Devils – a group featuring Kreutzmann, The Grateful Dead drummer

Mickey Hart Mickey Hart (born Michael Steven Hartman, September 11, 1943) is an American percussionist. He is best known as one of the two drummers of the rock band Grateful Dead. He was a member of the Grateful Dead from September 1967 until February 19 ...

, guitarist

Steve Kimock Steve Kimock (born October 5, 1955) is an American rock guitarist. He was a member of San Francisco Bay Area bands Zero and KVHW. His tone and some of his playing approach has been compared to Jerry Garcia, who was a friend of his, and he ha ...

and a host of backup players. On January 2, 2007, Gordon appeared with a group billed as ''The House Band'' containing many former members of The Grateful Dead playing at a party in honor of the new leadership of the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they ...

hosted by

Nancy Pelosi Nancy Patricia Pelosi (; ; born March 26, 1940) is an American politician who has served as Speaker of the United States House of Representatives since 2019 and previously from 2007 to 2011. She has represented in the United States House of ...

. The group included

Bob Weir Robert Hall Weir ( ; né Parber, born October 16, 1947) is an American musician and songwriter best known as a founding member of the Grateful Dead. After the group disbanded in 1995, Weir performed with The Other Ones, later known as The Dead ...

, Bruce Hornsby and Warren Haynes. Gordon performed at a concert in Hawaii on September 21 with Kimock and Kreutzmann and, on November 2, appeared during the second set of a Ratdog concert at the Memorial Auditorium in Burlington, Vermont, joining the band on the songs "Stuff", "Bird Song" and "Cassidy". On January 5, Gordon again teamed with Kreutzmann and Scott Murawski in Jaco, Costa Rica, for a performance at Doce Lunas, playing a range of covers and originals including "Keep on Growing" "Estimated Prophet" "Twist" and "Intensified". After this show, Gordon began a year-long retreat from public performance to focus his time on writing and recording a new album, and forming a new touring band. He joined

at the first annual Rothbury Music Festival in July during his solo acoustic set. Anastasio and

drummer Jon Fishman joined Gordon for part of his set the same day. Gordon released an album entitled '' The Green Sparrow'' on Rounder Records on August 5, 2008. On March 6, 2009, Mike reunited with

at the

Hampton Coliseum Hampton Coliseum is a multi-purpose arena in Hampton, Virginia. Construction began on May 24, 1968. The venue held its first event on December 1, 1969, with the nearby College of William & Mary playing North Carolina State University in a coll ...

. The band has toured regularly since Summer 2009. Gordon finished writing and recording his next solo album, ''

'', at his home studio in

Vermont Vermont () is a U.S. state, state in the northeast New England region of the United States. Vermont is bordered by the states of Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, and New York (state), New York to the west, and the Provin ...

in May 2010. The album was released by

Rounder Records Rounder Records is an independent record label founded in 1970 in Somerville, Massachusetts by Marian Leighton Levy, Ken Irwin, and Bill Nowlin. Focused on American roots music, Rounder's catalogue of more than 3000 titles includes records by Ali ...

on October 19. He explained that many of the songs on the new album "began as bass and drum jams" adding that it is "kind of bass-oriented. Not in that the bass is the lead, but that the rhythms and the patterns are bass centric. The uniqueness is centered on the bass. So the bass is the key instrument. On ''Inside In'', the pedal steel is the key instrument and if you had to say it for ''Green Sparrow'', maybe electric guitar. But this time it's the bass."

Discography

Albums

*'' Clone'' (with Leo Kottke) (October 8, 2002) *'' Inside In'' (August 19, 2003) *'' Sixty Six Steps'' (with Leo Kottke) (August 23, 2005) *'' Live From Bonnaroo 2005'' (with the Benevento-Russo Duo) (July 18, 2006, recorded live in 2005) *'' The Green Sparrow'' (August 5, 2008) *''

'' (October 19, 2010) *'' Moss Remixes'' 7" vinyl (April 16, 2011 for

Record Store Day Record Store Day is an annual event inaugurated in 2007 and held on one Saturday (typically the third) every April and every Black Friday in November to "celebrate the culture of the independently owned record store". The day brings together fa ...

) *'' The Egg'' (April 30, 2013, recorded live in 2011) *'' Overstep'' (February 25, 2014) *'' The Last Step EP'' 10" vinyl (April 7, 2015) *''

OGOGO The OGOGO is an Avant-garde jazz ensemble that formed in Los Angeles in the early 1990s. The group continues to perform and record as of 2009. Members Members of what was to become the OGOGO performed together under various band names in the earl ...

'' (September 15, 2017) *''Noon'' (with Leo Kottke) (August 28, 2020)

Live releases

*''August 29, 2008 – Fox Theatre, Boulder, CO'' *''October 3, 2009 – Town Ballroom, Buffalo, NY'' *''November 26, 2010 – Port City Music Hall, Portland, ME'' *''November 16, 2010 – The Fine Line Music Cafe, Minneapolis, MN'' *''The Egg - Recorded Live December 11, 2011 at The Egg, Albany, NY'' *''Vancouver – Recorded Live March 22, 2014 at The Rio Theatre, Vancouver, BC, Canada'' *''June 28, 2015 – Union Transfer, Philadelphia, PA'' *''February 2, 2016 – Crystal Ballroom, Portland, OR'' *''December 3, 2016 – Variety Playhouse, Atlanta, GA''

Books

*'' Mike's Corner'' (May 1997)

Films

*'' Tracking'' (

, 1994) *''

'' (2000) *'' Rising Low'' (2002) *The '' Down with Disease'' music video for Phish

Awards

*''Sixty Six Steps'' won album of the year at the 2006

Jammy Awards The Jammy Award (also known as the Jammys) is an awards show for bands typically referred to as jam bands and other artists associated with live, improvisational music, created by Dean Budnick and Peter Shapiro. The Jammys are sponsored by Rel ...

. *''Rising Low'' was the winner of the Joe Jarvis Audience Choice Award for Best Documentary at the 2002 Newport International Film Festival. *''Outside Out'' received the audience award at the

South by Southwest South by Southwest, abbreviated as SXSW and colloquially referred to as South By, is an annual conglomeration of parallel film, interactive media, and music festivals and conferences organized jointly that take place in mid-March in Austin, ...

festival.

References

External links

Mike Gordon's official website

An experiential art show by Gordon and Marjorie Minkin

"Kottke and Gordon: Calypso-Brushed Guitars"
by David Dye, from NPR's '' World Cafe'' November 24, 2005
Interview with Mike Gordon via TheWaster.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gordon, Mike 1965 births Living people American rock singers Phish members American rock bass guitarists American male bass guitarists Jewish American musicians University of Vermont alumni Jewish rock musicians Guitarists from Massachusetts 20th-century American bass guitarists Lincoln-Sudbury Regional High School alumni