| Mike Pinera | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Carlos Michael Pinera |
| Born | 29 September 1948 Tampa, Florida, United States |
| Genres | Hard rock, heavy metal, blues-rock, rock and roll, folk rock |
| Occupations | Musician, singer, songwriter, producer |
| Instruments | Guitar, mandolin, dulcimer, theremin, bass, banjo, harmonica, dobro, sitar, keyboards, tambourine, tamboura, hurdy gurdy, pedal steel guitar |
| Years active | 1969–present |
| Labels | Atco |
| Associated acts | Blues Image, Iron Butterfly, Alice Cooper, Ramatam |
| Notable instruments | |
| Gibson ES-335[1] Gibson Les Paul Gibson EDS-1275 Fender Telecaster Danelectro Shorthorn Gibson J-200 Gibson RD Gibson Hummingbird |
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Mike Pinera (born September 29, 1948) is an American guitarist who started professionally in the late 1960s with the group Blues Image, which had a #4 hit in 1970 with their song "Ride Captain Ride". After the breakup of that group, he joined Iron Butterfly, and later formed the group Ramatam. Pinera was then the founding member of the band New Cactus, a later incarnation of the band Cactus. He was the guitarist for Alice Cooper from 1980-1983. He is currently performing with the Classic Rock All Stars.[2] Pinera met the band Renegade through their manager, Kim Richards, who also managed Pinera at the time.[3] They remained close friends and appear together in the television special "Renegade Live @ The House of Blues", which was filmed before a sold out audience at the Hollywood House of Blues.[4]
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Mike Pinera and his group Blues Image were co-founders and house band at Thee Image, a Miami Beach concert venue they opened and co-headlined on weekends.[5] Blues Image soon signed with Atlantic Records where they scored the major hit "Ride Captain Ride" which Pinera co-wrote and sang. The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) first certified Ride Captain Ride Gold on August 4, 1970.[6] "Ride Captain Ride" has been featured in television programs and on several popular music compilations offered on television, such as "Flower Power, Have A Nice Day, PBS-My Music The 70's and Sounds of the 70's." The song has now reached multi-platinum status and been included in many feature motion pictures, including Anchorman.[7]
Pinera later was employed as a session musician for Atlantic Records label mate Iron Butterfly, serving as one of four guest guitarists on their album Metamorphosis, and contributing lead vocals to several tracks. On the strength of his contributions, Metamorphosis was officially credited to "Iron Butterfly With Pinera & Rhino", and Pinera was later asked to join the group. When Doug Ingle left shortly after, Pinera served as the band's sole lead vocalist for several months, after which the band broke up. The only Iron Butterfly recording where Pinera appears as an official member is the single Silly Sally.
In 1978, Pinera's first solo album, Isla, was released. It was followed by Forever in 1979. Neither album achieved considerable sales, though Forever did give birth to the single "Goodnight My Love", which reached #70 on the Billboard charts.[8]
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