Mighty Mike Schermer - Just Gettin' Good CD

The opening title cut of Mighty Mike Schermer’s 8th solo album and Little Village recording debut describes the 55-year-old guitarist/singer/songwriter’s musical journey perfectly. “It ain’t gettin’ old, it’s just gettin’ good!”

Recorded throughout the pandemic at Greaseland in San Jose, CA with the help of perennial Blues Award winner/nominee and multi-instrumentalist Kid Andersen, “Just Gettin’ Good” showcases Mighty Mike at his guitar-slinging, soul-singing and storytelling best. 12 original songs retain an energetic live show feel throughout, with stellar performances by some of the Bay Area’s top musicians, including bassist Steve Ehrmann (Roy Rogers, John Lee Hooker), keyboardists Tony Stead (Tommy Castro, Sly and The Family Stone) and Austin DeLone (Elvis Costello, Nick Lowe), and drummers Paul Revelli (Joe Louis Walker, Chuck Prophet) and D’mar (Little Richard, Rick Estrin and the Nightcats.) Bass legend Jerry Jemmott, vocalist John Nemeth, saxophonist Terry Hanck, and supreme vocalists The Sons of the Soul Revivers all contribute mightily in guest appearances. The knockout punch may well be delivered by Mike’s talented and beautiful partner, vocalist/percussionist Ms. Kimmy Pickens, featured in more than one Star-Is-Born musical and songwriting moment, co-writing 4 of these original witty songs with Mike that we all can cry, laugh, dance, and relate to.

Much like Schermer’s live shows, the album runs a gamut of music styles from blues to soul to funk to rock & roll, country, Americana and nearly every stop in between. “I guess my music is kinda hard to describe” Schermer laughs “but it also can’t be pigeonholed. I was born in New York, raised in New Mexico. I lived in California for half my life, and Austin, Texas for another third of it. Albert Collins made me want to play blues guitar, but guys like John Hiatt made me want to be a songwriter. Listening to Earl King taught me that I could do both!”

The French have long employed a style of cheesemaking called affinage, a careful practice that involves much more than just tossing the product into a dark cave and waiting for it to ripen. “…it is about a series of tedious, ritualized procedures…that are meant to inch each wheel and wedge toward an apex of delectability.” (Jeff Gordinier, NY Times 2011)

The same might be said of a career in roots music, where there is simply no substitute for on-the-job experience and good old fashioned hard work. Mighty Mike Schermer has definitely done the work…touring and recording for well over 30 years with such legendary figures as Elvin Bishop, Charlie Musselwhite, Marcia Ball, Bonnie Raitt, Maria Muldaur, Howard Tate, Angela Strehli, and many more. He has also carved out a solid solo career, releasing 7 critically acclaimed albums and garnering a ton of attention for his songwriting in particular. Schermer’s songs have been covered by blues award recipients Tommy Castro, Billy Price and the late Frank Bey, to name just a few. His autobiographical single “My Big Sister’s Radio” was recently hand-picked by none other than Bruce Springsteen to be included in The Boss’s “From My House to Yours” on Sirius/XM’s and is now in regular rotation! His songs and albums have been nominated for multiple awards and he has performed in all 50 US States and 25 countries around the world in a journey that is far from over.

Hot young guitar shredders get run up the industry pipeline on an almost daily basis, intoxicating fans. Fireball shots and Jager-bombs intoxicate, too. Listening to Mighty Mike Schermer is like sipping a vintage Kentucky bourbon; sweet guitar licks burn smooth, mellow and go down easy. Smoky vocals are delivered in well-chosen glassware, telling stories that warm from the bottom up and the inside out. You’ll get all you need out of one sitting, but you’ll be back tomorrow for another taste. Like barrel-aged whiskey or fine red wine…leather boots or your favorite jeans. Some things just get better with age.