Mike Scott (musician)

Mike Scott
Mike Scott performing at a 2012 concert.
Background information
Birth name	Michael Scott
Born	(1958-12-14) 14 December 1958 (age 58) Edinburgh, Scotland
Genres	Rock
Instruments	Vocals, Guitar, Piano, drums, Hammond organ, Bouzouki
Labels	Chrysalis
Associated acts	The Bootlegs, Another Pretty Face, The Waterboys

Michael 'Mike' Scott (born 14 December 1958) is a Scottish singer, songwriter and musician. He is the founding member, lead singer, guitarist and songwriter of rock band The Waterboys. He has also produced two solo albums, Bring 'em All In and Still Burning. Scott is a vocalist, guitarist and pianist, and has played a large range of other instruments, including the bouzouki, drums, and Hammond organ on his albums. Scott is also a published writer, having released his autobiography, Adventures of a Waterboy, in 2012.

Having begun a musical career in the 1970s that has continued to this day, Scott has been making "extraordinary music" since the 1980s and is well known for his radical changes in music genres throughout what he refers to as his "allegedly unorthodox" career. Scott currently lives in Dublin, Ireland.

Scott was born and raised in Edinburgh. His father, Allan Scott, left the family when Mike was ten years old, but the two were reunited in 2007.

Scott was interested in music from an early age. At age twelve, after the family had moved to Ayr, he began a serious interest in learning guitar. Scott remembers that, "from the minute [he] bought" Last Night in Soho by Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick & Tich in 1968 "knew [he] had to be in music", and mentions listening to Hank Williams as a "life-changing" experience. The next year, Scott was playing in school bands and formed the band Karma, named after the tenet in Hinduism, with a friend named John Caldwell. Karma's sound was inspired by David Bowie, The Beatles and Bob Dylan.