finetune artist: Mike Ness

b. Michael Ness, 3 April 1962, Stoneham, Massachusetts, USA. Ness moved to Orange County, California at an early age and as leader of Social Distortion endured plenty of hardship before getting both his musical and personal affairs in order. By the time he was 15, Ness had been thrown out of his house and, after a few stints in jail, formed Social Distortion in 1978. Over the years, his struggles with drugs almost broke up his band even as it was being recognized as the linchpin of the SoCal punk movement. Social Distortion returned to its indie roots by signing with Time Bomb Records in 1997 and, on the same label, Ness released his solo debut, Cheating At Solitaire, two years later. The star-studded set featured appearances by Bruce Springsteen, Brian Setzer, X guitarist Billy Zoom along with members of Royal Crown Review. Clinging to his blue collar roots, the singer-songwriter's dark album mixed equal parts country, rockabilly, punk and blues with cover versions of songs by Bob Dylan and Hank Williams. Five months later Ness released Under The Influences, a 13-song follow-up comprising cover versions that were taught to his band during his solo tour. Leaning heavily towards country artists, the album included songs by artists such as George Jones, Wanda Jackson, Marty Robbins, Carl Perkins, Marvin Rainwater and Wayne Walker. Following the release of these albums Ness returned to touring and recording with Social Distortion.

Listen to Mike Ness at Finetune.

Don't Think Twice
Cheating At Solitare
The Devil In Miss Jones
Ballad of a Lonely Man
Dope Fiend Blues