Michael Barry Finnerty (born December 3, 1951) is an American

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...

guitarist, keyboardist, singer, songwriter, and arranger, known for his work as a touring and recording

session musician A session musician (also known as studio musician or backing musician) is a musician hired to perform in a recording session or a live performance. The term sideman is also used in the case of live performances, such as accompanying a reco ...

for

Miles Davis Miles Dewey Davis III (May 26, 1926September 28, 1991) was an American jazz trumpeter, bandleader, and composer. He is among the most influential and acclaimed figures in the history of jazz and 20th century music, 20th-century music. Davis ado ...

, The Crusaders, the

Brecker Brothers The Brecker Brothers were a jazz fusion music duo consisting of siblings Michael and Randy. Michael played saxophone, flute, and EWI, and Randy played trumpet and flugelhorn. The brothers attended Cheltenham High School in Wyncote, Pennsylva ...

Hubert Laws Hubert Laws (born November 10, 1939) is an American flutist, piccoloist and saxophonist with a career spanning over 50 years in jazz, classical, and other music genres. Laws is one of the few classical artists who has also mastered jazz, pop ...

, and

Ray Barretto Raymundo "Ray" Barretto Pagán (April 29, 1929 – February 17, 2006) was an American percussionist and bandleader of Puerto Rican descent. Throughout his career as a percussionist, he played a wide variety of Latin music styles, as well as Lati ...

. Finnerty is the author of books on music

improvisation Improvisation, often shortened to improv, is the activity of making or doing something not planned beforehand, using whatever can be found. The origin of the word itself is in the Latin "improvisus", which literally means un-foreseen. Improvis ...

and a semi-autobiographical novel.

Music career

Finnerty was born in San Francisco and raised on the West Coast, studying at the

San Francisco Conservatory of Music The San Francisco Conservatory of Music (SFCM) is a private music conservatory in San Francisco, California, United States. As of 2024, it had more than 440 students. History The San Francisco Conservatory of Music was founded in 1917 by Ada ...

and

University of California Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California), is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California, United States. Founded in 1868 and named after the Anglo-Irish philosopher George Berkeley ...

. He lived in

Hong Kong Hong Kong)., Legally Hong Kong, China in international treaties and organizations. is a special administrative region of China. With 7.5 million residents in a territory, Hong Kong is the fourth most densely populated region in the wor ...

with his mother in the early 1960s. When he was fourteen, he began playing electric guitar and joined a band that opened a show for

Herman's Hermits Herman's Hermits are an English rock and pop group formed in 1963 in Manchester and formerly fronted by singer Peter Noone. Known for their jaunty beat sound and Noone's often tongue-in-cheek vocal style, the Hermits charted with numerous tra ...

. On returning to San Francisco, he became friends with guitarist Jim Checkley, who invited him to join Beefy Red in 1969. He played in that band for several years. He moved to New York City after attending

Berklee College of Music Berklee College of Music () is a Private university, private music college in Boston, Boston, Massachusetts. It is the largest independent college of contemporary music in the world. Known for the study of jazz and modern Music of the United ...

for a short time in 1971. In 1974 he began playing with

Chico Hamilton Foreststorn "Chico" Hamilton (September 20, 1921 – November 25, 2013) was an American jazz drummer and bandleader. He came to prominence as sideman for Lester Young, Gerry Mulligan, Count Basie, and Lena Horne. Hamilton became a bandleader, f ...

Airto Moreira Airto Guimorvan Moreira (born August 5, 1941) is a Brazilian jazz drummer, composer and percussionist. He is married to jazz singer Flora Purim, and their daughter Diana Moreira is also a singer. Coming to prominence in the late 1960s as a membe ...

, and

Flora Purim Flora Purim (born March 6, 1942) is a Brazilian jazz singer known primarily for her work in the jazz fusion style. She became prominent for her part in Return to Forever with Chick Corea and Stanley Clarke. She has recorded and performed with ...

. In 1975 he became a member of the

Joe Farrell Joseph Carl Firrantello (December 16, 1937 – January 10, 1986), known as Joe Farrell, was an American jazz multi-instrumentalist who primarily performed as a saxophonist and flutist. He is best known for a series of albums under his own name o ...

quartet, and later in the decade played with

Tower of Power Tower of Power is an American R&B and funk based band and horn section, originating in Oakland, California, that has been performing since 1968. The band has had a number of lead vocalists, the best-known being Lenny Williams, who fronted ...

Thad Jones Thaddeus Joseph Jones (March 28, 1923 – August 20, 1986) was an American jazz trumpeter, composer and bandleader who has been called "one of the all-time greatest jazz trumpet soloists". Early life, family and education Thad Jones was born i ...

and

Mel Lewis Melvin Sokoloff (May 10, 1929 – February 2, 1990), known professionally as Mel Lewis, was an American jazz drummer, session musician, professor, and author. He received fourteen Grammy Award nominations. Biography Early years Lewis was ...

, and

. Finnerty played and recorded with

Michael Brecker Michael Leonard Brecker (March 29, 1949 – January 13, 2007) was an American jazz saxophonist and composer. He was awarded 15 Grammy Awards as a performer and composer, received an honorary doctorate from Berklee College of Music in ...

and

Randy Brecker Randal Edward Brecker (born November 27, 1945) is an American trumpeter, flugelhornist, and composer. His versatility has made him a popular studio musician who has recorded with acts in jazz, rock music, rock, and R&B. Early life Brecker was ...

(1977–81) and The Crusaders (1979–84), in addition to touring in Europe with

Billy Cobham William Emanuel Cobham Jr. (born May 16, 1944) is a Panamanian–American jazz drummer who came to prominence in the late 1960s and early 1970s with trumpeter Miles Davis and then with the Mahavishnu Orchestra. He was inducted into the '' Mode ...

in 1980. He played and recorded with

in 1981, being featured on much of Davis's 1981 album '' The Man with the Horn'' and is mentioned in Davis's autobiography. Finnerty has worked both as a session musician and as leader of his own bands.

As author

He released his first jazz education book, ''The Serious Jazz Practice Book'', in 2006. The work was endorsed by notable musicians including

Bob Sheppard Robert Leo Sheppard (October 20, 1910 – July 11, 2010) was the long-time public address announcer for numerous New York area college and professional sports teams, in particular the New York Yankees of Major League Baseball (1951–2007), a ...

and

Dave Liebman David Liebman (born September 4, 1946) is an American saxophonist, flautist and jazz educator. He is known for his innovative lines and use of atonality. He was a frequent collaborator with pianist Richie Beirach. In June 2010, he received a ...

. Finnerty authored a follow-up work in 2008, '' The Serious Jazz Book II'', endorsed by jazz flautist

. In 2016 Finnerty released a novel loosely based on his life in New York City in the mid-90s.

Personal

Finnerty is the son of actor Warren Finnerty (1925–1974) who appeared in numerous films including ''

Cool Hand Luke ''Cool Hand Luke'' is a 1967 American Prison film, prison drama film directed by Stuart Rosenberg, starring Paul Newman and featuring George Kennedy in an Academy Awards, Oscar-winning performance. Newman stars in the title role as Luke, a pri ...

'' (1967) and ''

Easy Rider ''Easy Rider'' is a 1969 American road drama film written by Peter Fonda, Dennis Hopper, and Terry Southern. It was produced by Fonda and directed by Hopper. Fonda and Hopper play two bikers who travel through the American Southwest and the S ...

'' (1969). He is married to artist and songwriter Clarita Zarate.

Discography

* ''New York City'' (Victor, 1982) * ''Lights On Broadway'' (Morning, 1985) * ''2B Named Later'' (

Cheetah The cheetah (''Acinonyx jubatus'') is a large Felidae, cat and the Fastest animals, fastest land animal. It has a tawny to creamy white or pale buff fur that is marked with evenly spaced, solid black spots. The head is small and rounded, wit ...

, 1988) * ''Straight Ahead'' (

Arabesque The arabesque is a form of artistic decoration consisting of "surface decorations based on rhythmic linear patterns of scrolling and interlacing foliage, tendrils" or plain lines, often combined with other elements. Another definition is "Foliate ...

, 1995) * ''Space Age Blues'' (Hot Wire, 1998) * ''Manhattan Sessions Part 1'' (ESC, 2009) * ''Blues for Trane'' (Finn, 2010) * ''Nothing's Gonna Be All Right'' (Birdland, 2015)

As sideman

With

* ''Tomorrow: Barretto Live'' (Atlantic, 1976) * ''Eye of the Beholder'' (Atlantic, 1977) * ''Gracias'' (Fania, 1978) With The Crusaders * '' Street Life'' (MCA, 1979) * '' Standing Tall'' (MCA, 1981) * ''

Royal Jam ''Royal Jam'' is a live recording by the jazz-funk band The Crusaders with B.B. King, Josie James and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra. The album was recorded at London's Royal Festival Hall. Critical reception Richard S. Ginell of Allmusic clai ...

'' (MCA, 1982) * ''Live in Japan'' (GRP, 1993) With

Jun Fukamachi was a Japanese jazz fusion composer, arranger, and keyboardist. He played with The Brecker Brothers and Steve Gadd and released albums for Polydor and Toshiba in the 1970s. Early life and career At the age of 3, Fukamachi began to learn pian ...

* ''The Sea of Dirac'' (Kitty, 1977) * ''Evening Star'' (Kitty, 1978) * ''On the Move'' (Alfa, 1978) With others *

, '' Heavy Metal Be-Bop'' (Arista, 1978) * Brecker Brothers, '' Straphangin''' (Arista, 1981) *

& Eliane Elias, ''Amanda'' (Passport, 1985) * Coati Mundi, ''The Former 12 Year Old Genius'' (Virgin, 1983) *

, ''Live: Flight Time'' (Sandra, 1981) *

Jorge Dalto Jorge Dalto (July 8, 1948 – October 27, 1987) was a pop, jazz and Afro-Cuban music pianist from Argentina, and the former musical director and keyboardist (together with Ronnie Foster) for George Benson, contributing the acoustic piano intro a ...

, ''Rendez-Vous'' (Eastworld, 1983) *

, '' The Man with the Horn'' (Columbia, 1981) *

Eliane Elias Eliane Elias (born 19 March 1960) is a Brazilian jazz pianist, singer, composer and arranger. Biography Elias was born in São Paulo, Brazil, on 19 March 1960. She started studying piano when she was seven, and at age twelve she was transcribing ...

, ''Cross Currents'' (Denon, 1988) * Jose Fajardo, ''El Talento Total'' (Zeida 1977) * Hiroshi Fukumura, ''Hot Shot'' (Morning 1985) *

Wilton Felder Wilton Lewis Felder (August 31, 1940 – September 27, 2015) was an American saxophone and bass player, and is best known as a founding member of the Jazz Crusaders, later known as the Crusaders. Felder played bass on the Jackson 5's hits "I Want ...

, ''Gentle Fire'' (MCA, 1983) *

Roy Gaines Roy James Gaines (August 12, 1937 – August 11, 2021) was an American Texas blues and electric blues guitarist, singer and songwriter. He wrote and recorded the song "A Hell of a Night", which was first issued on his 1982 album ''Gainelining''. ...

, ''Gainelining'' (Red Lightnin' 1981) * Roy Gaines, ''Roy Gaines with Crusaders Crew'' (P-Vine 1982) * Steve Grossman, ''Perspective'' (Atlantic, 1979) *

, ''

Peregrinations ''Peregrinations'' is an album by American jazz drummer Chico Hamilton featuring performances recorded in 1975 and originally released on the Blue Note label.

'' (Blue Note, 1975) *

Tom Harrell Tom Harrell (born June 16, 1946) is an American jazz trumpeter, flugelhornist, composer, and arranger. Voted Trumpeter of the Year of 2018 by ''Jazz Journalists Association'', Harrell has won awards and grants throughout his career, including mul ...

, ''Aurora'' (Adamo, 1976) *

Roy Haynes Roy Owen Haynes (March 13, 1925 – November 12, 2024) was an American jazz drummer. In the 1950s, he was given the nickname "Snap Crackle" for his distinctive snare drum sound and musical vocabulary. He is among the most recorded drummers in ja ...

, ''The Island'' (Explore 2007) *

Terumasa Hino is a Japanese jazz trumpeter. He is considered one of Japan's finest jazz musicians. His instruments include the trumpet, cornet, and flügelhorn. Early life He was born in Tokyo, Japan, and his father was a trumpeter and tap dancer. Hino start ...

, ''Double Rainbow'' (CBS/Sony 1981) *

Stix Hooper Nesbert "Stix" Hooper (born August 15, 1938) is an American drummer and founding member of The Crusaders (Houston group), The Crusaders. Career Hooper developed an interest in music, drums, and percussion at an early age. Starting in middle sc ...

, ''The World Within'' (MCA, 1979) *

, ''New Life'' (A&M, 1976) *

Patrick Juvet Patrick Juvet (21 August 1950 – 1 April 2021) was a Swiss model and singer-songwriter, who had a string of hit records in Europe. While his early career was focused on making pop records, he found international success as a disco music perf ...

, ''Lady Night'' (Casablanca, 1979) *

Masabumi Kikuchi was a Japanese jazz pianist and composer known for his unique playing style. He worked with many diverse musicians, including Sonny Rollins, Miles Davis, McCoy Tyner, Elvin Jones, Gary Peacock and Paul Motian, and collaborated with Gil Evans and ...

, ''Susto'' (CBS/Sony 1981) *

, ''

Romeo & Juliet ''The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet'', often shortened to ''Romeo and Juliet'', is a Shakespearean tragedy, tragedy written by William Shakespeare about the romance between two young Italians from feuding families. It was among Shakespeare's ...

'' (Columbia, 1976) * Hubert Laws, ''Say It with Silence'' (CBS, 1978) *

Didier Lockwood Didier Lockwood (11 February 1956 – 18 February 2018) was a French violinist. He played in the French rock band Magma in the 1970s, and was known for his use of electric amplification and his experimentation with different sounds on the electri ...

, ''The Kid'' (MPS, 1983) *

Teruo Nakamura was a Taiwanese soldier of the Imperial Japanese Army who fought for Japan in World War II and did not surrender until 1974. He was the last known Japanese holdout to surrender after the end of hostilities in 1945. Military service Nakamura ...

, ''Big Apple'' (Agharta, 1979) * Teruo Nakamura, ''Super Friends'' (Eastworld, 1985) * Opa, '' Magic Time'' (Milestone, 1977) *

Noel Pointer Noel Pointer (December 26, 1954 – December 19, 1994) was an American jazz violinist and record producer, whose life inspired a music foundation. Career Pointer made his solo debut at the age of 13, performing Vivaldi with the Symphony of the ...

, ''Feel It'' (Soul Music.com, 1979) *

Joe Sample Joseph Leslie Sample (February 1, 1939 – September 12, 2014) was an American jazz keyboardist and composer. He was one of the founding members of The Jazz Crusaders in 1960, whose name was shortened to "The Crusaders" in 1971. He remained a p ...

, ''Rainbow Seeker'' (ABC, 1978) * Joe Sample, ''Oasis'' (MCA, 1985) *

John Serry Jr. John Serry Jr. (born John Serrapica Jr.; January 19, 1954) is an American jazz pianist and composer, as well as a composer of contemporary classical music works that feature percussion, on which he also doubles.''Deomocrate and Chronicle'' July ...

, ''Exhibition'' (Chrysalis, 1979) * Steve Smith, ''Fiafiaga'' (Columbia, 1988) * SOS All-Stars, ''New York Rendezvous'' (Chase 1987) *

John Stubblefield John Stubblefield (February 4, 1945 – July 4, 2005) was an American jazz saxophonist, flautist, and oboist. Early life Stubblefield was born and raised in Little Rock, Arkansas. He studied music at the Association for the Advancement of Crea ...

, ''Sophisticated Funk'' (Cheetah, 1990) *

Syreeta Syreeta Wright (born Rita Wright, February 28, 1946 – July 6, 2004), known mononymously as Syreeta, was an American singer-songwriter, best known for her music during the early 1970s through the early 1980s. Wright's career heights were songs ...

, ''Set My Love in Motion'' (Tamla, 1981) *

Taj Mahal The Taj Mahal ( ; ; ) is an ivory-white marble mausoleum on the right bank of the river Yamuna in Agra, Uttar Pradesh, India. It was commissioned in 1631 by the fifth Mughal Empire, Mughal emperor, Shah Jahan () to house the tomb of his belo ...

, ''Evolution'' (Warner Bros., 1978) *

Vital Information Steve Smith and Vital Information is an American jazz fusion group led by drummer Steve Smith. The first line-up of Vital Information — Steve Smith (drums), Tim Landers (bass), and Dave Wilczewski (sax) — met in 1971 during their high s ...

, ''Global Beat'' (Columbia, 1986)

References

* Barry Finnertyat

Allmusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...

* Mark Gilbert, "Barry Finnerty". '' Grove Jazz'' online

External links

Official site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Finnerty, Barry 1951 births Living people Jazz musicians from San Francisco American jazz guitarists American jazz keyboardists American session musicians Arabesque Records artists 20th-century American guitarists Guitarists from California University of California, Berkeley alumni