Mike Armando, still playing after all these years.

Mike Armando was born in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, New York City. My family moved to Woodhaven, Queens, NY which is part of NYC in the early 1950’s. My father Anthony was a hard worker; he worked construction. He worked long hours to support his family. My mother was a homemaker who took care of me and my sister Lisa. My mother loved to sing and had a beautiful voice and played some piano.

During the 1960’s I took accordion lessons. I played accordion for about four years then I moved on to the guitar which my mother encouraged me to play. The accordion music which I played back then was not popular back in the day, but guitar was becoming more popular in music. I started out playing rock music like the Cream, The Rolling Stones and was in a few local bands. What really got me into the guitar big time and wanting to become a musician is when I started listening to blues music. The Paul Butterfield Blues Band, Muddy Waters, Albert King and many more blues artists from that era. When I first heard the blues I said to myself that is the music I want to play. It had a feeling and it told a story. I started to copy solos from guitarists like Mike Bloomfield, Albert King, B.B. King and others until I was able to come up with my own guitar style, a mixture of jazz and blues playing. I started practicing the guitar 8 hours a day until I knew I was ready to get out and play for people.

Mike joined Screamin’ Jay Hawkins band full time around the latter part of 1975. I also played with him early around 1971 and 1972, but not steady. But in 1975; that is when we had the full band together and that was Screamin’ Jay Hawkins band. I got to play in Screamin’ Jay Hawkins Band by being contacted by Robert Cutarella who was the musical director of talent for MCA Records back in the day. Robert called me and said Screamin’ Jay Hawkins needed a guitarist and I want you to audition for him. I told him yes and then I went to Screamin’ Jay Hawkins apartment in NYC and auditioned. He liked my guitar playing and hired me. During that time Hawkins needed a drummer also so I got my brother in law Augie Fesler to join the band who was a great drummer. From that day on we toured with Screamin’ Jay Hawkins and the band really played some great shows. Hawkins was happy to have a band of his own now.

Albums produced by Mike Armando

• Half Steppin (1973): His own jazz/blues album, one of the first releases on MJA Records.
• Better Believe It (1990s): A CD by Grammy winner Fred Lipsius of Blood, Sweat & Tears. A track from this album was distributed worldwide by MCA Records.
• In The Moment (2012): An album by Mike Armando, Andrew Golba, and Ra-Kalam Bob Moses.
• The Count Down (2014): His own solo album, featuring musicians like Boris Kurganov and Ra-Kalam Bob Moses.
• Waltz for Sharon Stone: A CD by drummer Artt Frank, which Armando also produced.
• Three Artt Frank CDs: Mike Armando produced all three of Artt Frank's CDs on the MJA label.
• The Final Answer to Everything: A release on the MJA label for artist David Allan Gross.
• Other artists produced for the MJA label
  Armando's website notes that he has produced 15 CDs on the MJA label, including for the following artists:
  • Nancy Monroe
  • Chris Clark
  • Pat Morrissey
  Website: https://mjajazz.wixsite.com/mi...
• mja Records: https://mjajazz.wixsite.com/mj...

Career and Legacy

• Early Career: Armando grew up in Brooklyn and Woodhaven Queens, NY, and served in the U.S. Navy during the Vietnam War, continuing to play music when possible. He developed his jazz and blues style by frequenting New York City jazz clubs.
• Screamin' Jay Hawkins: He gained prominence as the guitarist for the legendary Screamin' Jay Hawkins. A notable incident occurred in 1976 when Hawkins was burned by flaming props during a performance, and Armando continued to play at Hawkins' instruction. Armando's experiences with Hawkins are detailed in the book I Put A Spell On You: The Bizarre Life of Screamin' Jay Hawkins by Steve Bergsman.
• Resurrection Band: After Hawkins' death, Armando formed "The Resurrection of Screamin' Jay Hawkins Band" to honor and preserve the artist's legacy, performing classics such as "I Put A Spell On You" and "Alligator Wine".
• Solo Work and Production: Armando has produced 15 albums on his own mja label, working with Grammy Award winners such as Fred Lipsius from Blood, Sweat & Tears. He has released his own jazz/blues albums, including The Count Down and singles like "Funk a Lunk".
• Collaborations: He has shared stages and worked in the studio with a range of major musical acts and respected musicians, including the 5 Satins, Eddie Gomez, Mike Stern, and Artt Frank.