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Mick Overman is a Bay Area Legend and “Iron Man of The Road”. He’s a poet and master musician and "Bluesy Folk & Roll with Jazz Attitude" is the best description of his music and performance.

Overman has long been regarded as one of the west coast’s hardest working
(as many as 379 performances in one year) and prolific artists.

His singing and guitar playing are accurately described as "Berklee College
of Caveman".
In addition to being an impactful and dynamic solo performer Overman’s band consistently features some of the bay area’s most gifted and talented musicians.

He has been honored by the Special Awards Panel of the American Society of Composers Authors and Publishers (ASCAP) every year since 1994.

 

Mick is a great talent, a ball of fire, and a joy to perform with.
David Hayes - bassist / producer / recording artist (VAN MORRISON / SHERYL CROW / TOM WAITS / SOUTHSIDE JOHNNY & THE ASBURY JUKES / JESSE COLIN YOUNG)

...when a CD is this good, I don’t much care about the small print. ****1/2 stars Dave Good - NBC.COM

Mick Overman is a complete badass.
Nathalie Weinstein - The Daily Barometer / OSU Corvallis OR

...one of the most original and trend-free musicians on the San Francisco Bay Area music scene...a multi-textured yet acoustic oriented atmosphere that pretty much reflects the band's appealing live sound. GvonT - Sing Out!

...has now become part of the foundation of the music in the Monterey Bay. You are a major part of that. Sleepy John Sandidge - promoter/producer/host (Snazzy Productions / KPIG 107.5 FM Santa Cruz County CA)

Mick Overman is one of those unique talents...A prodigy in the musical, political and spiritual sense...with the perfection you’d expect... Dave Terpeny KyndMusic.com

Here’s a band that seems to have it all ways. They’ve got a strong spiritual bent, spinning out songs of positive intent...Mick Overman has obviously been around, and has the chops to prove it...the vision of musical seers...
Bill Bentley - Studio City Sun


...passion, efficiency, stamina and sincerity like no other...phenomenal abilities with writing and performing from the heart and soul...must see and hear for yourself... Tacoma Reporter    Tacoma WA

He's a seasoned, soulful, salt of the earth virtuoso...singing clean from the gut as if life and music naturally mix and match. CRUZAN Magazine    Santa Cruz County CA

...a natural and unpretentious voice...rambunctious slide guitar...with infectious realness he bares his soul.
Clubs and Pubs    Sonoma County CA

...pearls of originality and great songwriting...Overman may just be one of the greats.
Good Times    Santa Cruz County CA

No pretense or facade; just pure, honest music from the heart. Overman's wailing slide playing can raise hair on the back of the neck...an unsung hero of the "broken bottle". Showcase Music Times    San Jose  CA                       

...such zeal and energy that the onlooker is left breathless...soul baring sincere lyrics have earned rave reviews all around. Coast Weekly Monterey County CA

Overman's versatility and undying enthusiasm for the music shine like headlights through the morning fog. Spotlight / the Sentinel    Santa Cruz CA

...a triumph of hard work and devotion to one's art in a world of practicality and compromise. Half Moon Bay Review   Half Moon Bay CA

 

Artists Mick has appeared with:

Taj Mahal
Robben Ford
Roy Rogers & the Delta Rhythm Kings
Tab Benoit
Bill Champlin
Hot Tuna
Jeffrey Gaines
Young Dubliners
Calobo
James Thackery

Kelly Joe Phelps
Joanna Connor
Leon Russell
Eric Andersen
Kim Wilson's Blues All Stars
Mark Naftalin
Anson Funderburgh & the Rockets
Sapphire: the Uppity
   Blues Women
Harvey Mandel

David Lindley & Wally Ingram
Peter Rowan
John Stewart
Jesse Colin Young
Danny O'Keefe
Dan Hicks
Gene Clark
Country Joe McDonald
   & Barry Melton
Lou Diamond Phillips


MICK OVERMAN BIOGRAPHY

 

Mick Overman is a west coast legend. He's a poet and master musician. His music is best described as ''Bluesy Folk & Roll with Jazz Attitude'' and his guitar playing and singing as ''Berklee College of Caveman''. He has long been regarded as one of the west coast's hardest working (as many as 379 performances in one year) and prolific artists. He's an ''Iron Man Of The Road''.

Mick was born the son of a rocket scientist in Ohio and followed the aerospace boom to California at age two. His earliest musical influences were listening to Tchaikovsky's ''1812 Overture'' and Chet Atkins as well as the Kingston Trio and Cannonball Adderly. His first published work was an early 60's Haiku entitled ''Fireflies'' in the Fullerton Daily News Tribune.

Overman abandoned guitar lessons in fourth grade for little league baseball after learning ''These Boots Are Made For Walkin''' and began studying drums at age 13. Overman resumed study of the guitar around age 14 and became interested in songwriting. He became the youngest city commissioner in his hometown at age 17 when he was appointed by the Fullerton City Council to serve as youth delegate to the Human Relations Commission.

After completing high school in 3 years to get a head start on dropping out of college Mick studied music privately with his friend Marty Headman who had graduated from Boston's Berklee College of Music on the Dean's list with a degree in composing and arranging. Overman and Headman together with John Seth Sherman formed the bands ''Crosscurrent'' in Ashland Oregon and ''Caledonia'' in Missoula Montana and returned to California in 1981 to form the first version of ''Mick Overman & the Maniacs''.

Overman moved to Santa Cruz County in the Spring of 1986 with Jeanie Golino who was pregnant with their daughter Corina who was born in September of 1986. They settled in La Selva Beach (south Santa Cruz County) CA in early 1987.

Mick lived in a yellow house with a white fence ''between the ghetto and the farm'' near Freedom CA (this was the location of ''The Cave'') from 1990 until 2004. He formed Max Records and released ''Empty City'' in 1994 and ''Lucky.'' in 1996 and the all acoustic ''Mileage'' in 1998.

After performing and touring nonstop for 12 years Overman chose to detach from the business end of the music business at the dawn of the 21st Century for his artistic and spiritual and physical health. One of the many positive results of this sabbatical was the writing and recording of his 4th cd ''Authentic'' which was released in early 2002 and received considerable national radio airplay. He also studied and trained at the Berkeley Psychic Institute in Berkeley CA during this period.

Mick moved to Portland OR in early 2004 and maintains an office in La Selva Beach CA as well as the Freedom CA address of Max Records.

Overman wrote the songs he contributed to his 5th cd ''Mick Overman & The Maniacs - Good Thing Happen'' in 2004 and 2005. Much of this work was done in ''The New Cave'' which is located in the basement of his Portland OR home.

''Good Thing Happen'' was produced and recorded and mixed with the help of his band ''Mick Overman & The Maniacs'' and Cookie Marenco at her OTR Studios in Belmont CA in late 2005 and early 2006 and was released nationally in February of 2007.

Mick's new all acoustic and 6th release "Mister Double Happiness" (also produced by Cookie Marenco at OTR) is here. Radio and press copies are available upon request.

 

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