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Michael Shrieve

Over the course of his eminent career, Michael Shrieve has written, produced and played on albums that have sold millions of copies worldwide. As the original drummer for Santana, Michael at age nineteen was the youngest performer at Woodstock. He helped create the first eight albums of this seminal group, and was on the forefront of shaping a new musical era.

Michael is respected world-wide for his adventurous experimentation with the most creative and masterful musicians. No other drummer has collaborated with such longevity and sophistication alongside artists in such diverse genres as rock, jazz, electronic, DJ and world music. He is well recognized for his groundbreaking adoption of electronic percussion when it was a new medium in the 1970s.

Michael’s recording credits include the masters of popular and avant-garde music Mick Jagger and the Rolling Stones, George Harrison, Pete Townsend, Steve Winwood, Police guitarist Andy Summers, film composer Mark Isham, and such musical luminaries as John Mclaughlin, Stomu Yamash’ta, Klaus Schulze, Freddie Hubbard, Jaco Pastorius, Wayne Horvitz, Bill Frisell, Zakir Hussain, Airto Moriera and Amon Tobin. Many notable publications have cited Michael’s outstanding work: The New York Times, Downbeat, Billboard, Modern Drummer, Musician, Drum, Paris Match, Melody Maker, and Life Magazine.

Michael Shrieve also composes music for film and television. He worked with the director Paul Mazursky on the film, “The Tempest,” and scored music for Curtis Hanson’s “The Bedroom Window,” as well as numerous television movies and shows. In 2002 Michael wrote and produced the song, “Aye Aye Aye,” with Carlos Santana, which appeared on the album, “Shaman.” Rolling Stone magazine acknowledged it as one of the songs that “leaps out of the album, joyful and organic without calculation,” and achieves “globe-spanning euphoria.”

Michael continues to strive for innovative approaches to percussion-based music, and records with both renowned and emerging artists (Skerik, Jack DeJohnette, Zakir Hussain, Reggie Watts), in addition to his own band, Tangletown.

Since 1990, Michael has participated in Seattle’s Bumbershoot Festival as host, performer and curator of the popular “Bumberdrum,” which brings together a stage full of the many percussionists participating in this world-class annual art and music festival. Michael was the Musical Director for the pre-game show of Major League Baseball’s 2001 All Star Game hosted by the Seattle Mariners, which involved over 80 drummers and dancers representing numerous countries.

Michael is the past President of the Pacific Northwest Branch of the National Association of Recording Arts and Sciences (NARAS), and is currently writing the memoirs of jazz drumming legend Elvin Jones. He serves as Musical Director for Seattle Theater Group’s “More Music @ The Moore,” a program that highlights gifted young musicians from Seattle’s various cultural groups.

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Radio & Podcasts

'90s Music Revisited With Michael Shrieve, Lost Tribe And Adam Holzman

Read "'90s Music Revisited With Michael Shrieve, Lost Tribe And Adam Holzman" reviewed by Len Davis


We go back to the '90s and early 2000s with drummer Michael Shrieve, Jonas Hellborg, Shawn Lane, Lost Tribe, Adam Holzman, Vital Information and guitarist Greg Howe. Plus bassist Michael Manring, Tunnels and Tribal Tech Playlist Michael Shrieve “Baraji" from Two Doors (CMP) 00:00 Jonas Hellborg-Shawn Lane “Heretics" from Time Is The Enemy (Bardo) 06:26 Lost Tribe “Eargasm" from Lost Tribe (Windham Hill) 12:52 Adam Holzman “Maze" from Overdrive (Lipstick) 19:18 Vital Information “Cranial # 4" from Show ...

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Play This!

Michael Shrieve: Palace Of Dreams

Read "Michael Shrieve: Palace Of Dreams" reviewed by Mike Jacobs


From the dual-project, double album Two Doors (CMP, 1995) that features drummer Michael Shrieve manning the drum kit in two different trios, it's arguably the Deep Umbra disc with bassist Jonas Hellborg and guitarist Shawn Lane that is the brighter half of that binary star. Shrieve may indeed get top billing here but like so many of the tracks from that line-up's disc, “Palace Of Dreams" is a veritable showcase for the late Mr. Lane. While there are indeed flashes ...

Album Review

Stomu Yamash'ta: Seasons: The Island Albums (1972-1976)

Read "Seasons: The Island Albums (1972-1976)" reviewed by Maurizio Comandini


Stomu Yamash'ta è un celebre percussionista giapponese, nato a Kyoto, in Giappone nel 1947. Figlio del direttore della Filarmonica di Kyoto, ha studiato musica all'Università di Kyoto e al Berklee College of Music. Ancora giovanissimo venne notato dal grande direttore d'orchestra Seiji Ozawa e si mise in evidenza come performer di assoluto valore in contesti legati alla musica giapponese tradizionale e di avanguardia, incorporando suggestioni provenienti dalla musica elettronica. Nel 1969 si esibisce con la Chicago Symphony Orchestra diretta dal ...

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Album Review

Michael Shrieve: Michael Shrieve's Spellbinder

Read "Michael Shrieve's Spellbinder" reviewed by Doug Collette


Despite a varied series of projects, prolific master drummer Michael Shrieve has maintained a comparatively low profile since his days as a member of the original Santana band. But with the reunion of that ensemble, the time's certainly right for him to step directly into the limelight with Spellbinder, which, even it doesn't exhibit the same deep-rooted fire and ingenuity of Shrieve's higher-profile ensemble, is almost as challenging as it is accessible. As great a name as is ...

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Album Review

Michael Shrieve's Spellbinder: Michael Shrieve's Spellbinder

Read "Michael Shrieve's Spellbinder" reviewed by Dan Bilawsky


Drummer Michael Shrieve's Spellbinder is not your garden variety group. It's a beast of band that slams, seduces, grooves, jams, and rocks in high gear. Should we expect anything less from the rhythmic motor behind Santana? While Shrieve is best known as the driving force behind that legendary outfit, both in its original Woodstock-era state and in its current reunited form, he's put his drums to good use in a variety of other contexts over the years. ...

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Album Review

Michael Shrieve's Spellbinder: Live At Tost

Read "Live At Tost" reviewed by Douglas Payne


Drummer Michael Shrieve was the rhythmic force behind the classic Santana band (1969-74) and the one Carlos Santana credits with introducing the guitarist to the music of Miles Davis and John Coltrane--quite something, since the guitarist has paid homage to both jazz legends many times since. Shrieve went onto to many other gigs that mixed the propulsive fury of rock with the challenging musicianship of jazz, including stints with Stomu Yamashta, the Rolling Stones, Klaus Schulze and others.Ever ...

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Performance / Tour

Michael Shrieve Resumes Monday Night Residency Tonight

Michael Shrieve Resumes Monday Night Residency Tonight

Source: Seattle Jazz Scene

Drummer Michael Shrieve and his group Spellbinder resume their Monday night residency at White Rabbit, which is the new club in the space formerly occupied by Tost.

Every Monday, The White Rabbit, 9:30pm 513 N 36th St Suite E Seattle, WA, 98103

Also, Shrieve was recently voted the the #10 Drummer of All Time by the readers of Rolling Stone magazine.

10. Michael Shrieve The musical highlight of the original Woodstock concert in 1969 ...

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Recording

Stomu Yamasta/Steve Winwood/Al DiMeola/Michael Shrieve- Go and Go Live Sessions

Stomu Yamasta/Steve Winwood/Al DiMeola/Michael Shrieve- Go and Go Live Sessions

Source: All About Jazz

2005 Release, available only as an import Stomu Yamashta who was an exceptional percussionist and keyboardist from Berklee had an great inclination for fusion, jazz rock in mid-seventies, put this over the top group of exceptional and equally adventurous musicians featuring Steve Winwood (ex- Traffic, Blind Faith, Spencer Davis Group) and Michael Shrieve (Santana, Jonas Hellborg/Shawn Lane); guitarist Al DiMeola, bassist Rosko Gee (ex-Can, Traffic) and Klaus Schulze on the synthesizers. ! This has been a classic record and thankfully ...

"I owe Michael a lot; He's the one who turned me onto John Coltrane and Miles Davis. I just wanted to play blues until Michael came. He opened my eyes and my ears and my heart to a lot of things. Some drummers only have chops, but Michael Shrieve has vision. Michael is like a box of crayons; he has all the colors." Carlos Santana

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Music

Recordings: As Leader | As Sideperson

Seasons: The Island...

Cherry Red Records
2022

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Michael Shrieve's...

Colorburst Soundfield Records, LLC
2016

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Spellbinder Live At...

Creative Sources
2008

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Live At Tost

Colorburst Soundfield Records, LLC
2008

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Two Doors "In The...

Creative Sources
1995

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Two Doors

Creative Sources
1995

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