Michael Powers is without a doubt a true master of the blues. It was his destiny from the moment he entered the

world via Bayonne, NJ in 1952. His father, James B. Murchison, was a merchant marine who sailed around the

world before settling in Bayonne and opening a local shop. Mr. Murchison divided his time between NJ and NC

working on tobacco fields there in the summers. From early on, Michael would be familiar with the rural South, the

blues, Gospel and segregation. He would always remember the "Porch Blues". men gathering nightly on their

porches with their electric guitars and tiny amps. The Sunday Gospel, the preacher's rap, the choir of women going

into trances would also forever stay in his mind. Even when his parents separated when Michael was 5 years old, he continued

to return regularly to NC. His mother had noticed that Michael walked around with a broom pretending it was a guitar every time the Rock It Hour would be

on television. When he turned 7, Doris Powers bought her son a guitar by cashing in a book of saving stamps. Soon after, a friend

visited with a guitar and played a song. Michael rushed back to his room and played that exact tune. From then on, Doris was

convinced that her son had a special talent and imposed a strict musical routine. Every day, Michael had to listen to records and

play along with them. Doris' words 'Michael turn the record over" still echo in his ears. It would prove to be a strong influence as

Doris' favorites included Muddy Waters, Lightnin Hopkins, Jimmy Reed, Billie Holiday, John Lee Hooker.

Michael Powers was 12 when he eagerly ran across the street from the family shop in NJ to see an entertainer that played

weekly at Max's..none other than the great Jimmy Reed. At the time, Jimmy Reed was playing the harmonica, the guitar, sang,

tapped his foot as a drum while his wife was playing the tambourine and singing in harmony. Seeing Jimmy Reed was a true

revelation and influence, soon after followed by another event of importance: the first US televised performance of the Beatles.

The next great inspiration would be Jimi Hendrix. While in high school, Michael started his very first band the RB

ZigZags, followed by his joining the Adlibs as lead singer and guitar, with whom he recorded the cult hit "Boy from

NYC". The Adlibs routinely toured with the top ten bands of the country and opened, among others, for the Everly

Brothers, Kool and the Gang, then called the Soul Town Review, the Boxtops, Ritchie Havens and many Motown

artists. But a big break would come for Michael two weeks prior to graduating High School. He was hired to play for

James Cotton next tour and he left the Adlibs. Upon settling back in New York, Michael formed a new band, Moonbeam

and successfully played in the city during the heydays of the Blues Brothers, CBGB, the Ritz, the New York

Dolls. The band, which would stay together for 13 years, toured all over the country and opened for such artists as

James Brown, Bo Diddley, the Ronnettes. After the Moonbeam's breakup, Michael Powers went on solo taking further

his virtuosity and sound for both acoustic and electric guitar as well as writing powerful originals. The road to

success also led him to performances and recordings with such icons as: Chuck Berry, Johnny Winters, Robert Cray

and John Lee Hooker. Influenced by the greatest bluesmen in history, Michael Powers is one of them with his own

unique sound, style and soulful talent.