Myke Scavone | |
|---|---|
| Born | (1949-02-04)February 4, 1949 (age 76) |
| Origin | North Plainfield, New Jersey,United States |
| Genres | |
| Instruments |
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| Years active | 1964–present |
Myke Rocco Scavone (born February 4, 1949) is an American harmonica player and vocalist best known for his work with the bandsThe Doughboys,Ram Jam andThe Yardbirds.
Scavone grew up inNorth Plainfield, New Jersey. He attendedNorth Plainfield High School, graduating as part of the class of 1966, where he would meet the other future members of his first successful band,The Doughboys.[1][2]
Scavone joined his first band, the Apollos, in December 1964. He then joined The Ascots in 1965 with another member of the Apollos, guitarist Mike Farina. The band toured the United States opening for bands such asThe Vagrants (which featuredLeslie West on guitar) andThe Hassles (which featuredBilly Joel). They changed their name to The Doughboys in 1966 and secured a contract withBell Records after winning a battle of the bands contest. Scavone was dismissed from the Doughboys in early 1968 when they decided to concentrate on instrumental music before disbanding at the end of that year.[3]
Following the disbandment of the Doughboys, Scavone began a career as a session drummer throughout the late 1960s and early 1970s. He was performing on demos for producersJerry Kasenetz andJeffry Katz when he joined the newly formedRam Jam, led by guitaristBill Bartlett, in 1977.[4] The band had found success with a cover of the song "Black Betty". Scavone performed on both of the band's albums,Ram Jam andPortrait of the Artist as a Young Ram before the band disbanded in 1978. He did not perform on the band's only hit, "Black Betty", as it had been recorded by Bill Bartlett's bandStarstruck and credited to Ram Jam following Starstruck's disbandment.[5]
Following a period of inactivity in music, Scavone joined a reformed version of The Doughboys in 2000 and still performs with them. The reunion was originally intended to be a one-off. It ended up being a full-time reunion and resulted in the recording of five new albums,Is It Now? (2007),Act Your Rage (2010),Shakin' Our Souls (2012) andHot Beat Stew (2015), "Front Street Rebels" (2017), andRunning For Covers (2019).
In 2015, Scavone joinedThe Yardbirds. He was recruited to play harmonica, percussion and backing vocals.[1] He continues to tour with them.[1]