Thanks for visiting my site.  Maybe a few things of interest.

 Back at Arrivederci on Friday 2/24 with guitarist Chuck Everett and pianist Matthew Lotz .

 I will be performing at Tony Starlight's on Wed. March 7th with pianist Marcus Harbaugh and bassist Craig Snazzelle.

 Check out the video section on this page. A few independent film makers have chosen my music as the sound track for their short films. There is also a clip of pianist Joe Millward and I performing in the KMHD studio on Lynn Darroch's show "Bright Moments.

He said it, I didn't!

"For my money Mike is Portland's finest male jazz singer. After successful performances of the Chet Baker songbook and Mike's own show entitled "Under The Influence" where he sings everything from Do-Wop to Van Morrison, I'm very excited to hear his treatment of the Frank Sinatra songbook. This night will be a great night of vocal with some of the best songs ever written."  Tony Starlight

If you are not familiar with Tony Starlight's, please check it out.  Tony offers a nice range of jazz offerings five nights per week.  This is a true supper club and the menu is first rate!  Tony is one of the "good guys' in our business, is really supportive of local musicians and deserves ours.  I know that you can't be everywhere, but if you haven't checked out Tony Starlight's please do so soon.  www.tonystarlight.com

It has been brought to my attention that both of my Cd's are still getting quite a bit of air play on  KMHD, KBOO and KPSU. Thanks to all of the disc jockeys that help to keep the "dream" alive.

I have been playing at a cool wine bar in Milwaukie called Arrivederci once in awhile  with a couple of my Pressure Point band mates Chuck Everett on guitar and Matt Lotz on piano. We pretty much play what we want and hope folks like it! Arrivedeci boasts a casual atmosphere, great food, and one of the best wine selections in the area! www.arrivederciwine.com.

Please check out  "Salvation Begins"  and "The Prayer"  in the audio samples section.  Both of these songs are very meaningful and personal to me as one speaks of my own journey in coming to Christ and the other came from an opportunity to be a part of the worship team at Southlake church in West Linn. 

If you love Salsa dancing (and who doesn't like salsa and dancing?) you should definitely check out  Vie De Bohem on Tuesday nights. My daughter Lynn and her husband Mark have been generating some serious interest for their Tuesday Night Salsa series. Muy bien!  Vie de Boheme Winery
1530 SE 7th Avenue, Portland OR 97214
Tel: 503-360-1233
E-mail: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

Some past highlights!!

My concert trip to Japan in 2005  still rates as a major highlight. I had the pleasure of performing two dates at The Mamo Club in Gifu, Japan. This is a little hole in the wall jazz club that has seen the likes of Sonny Stitt, Howard Roberts, and recently Nicholas Payton, who performed there the weekend after me. I was thrilled to play with a local trio called The Kanpei Trio. The owner was a delightful gentleman who informed me that he used to play guitar in a country western band in Osaka in the 60's. One of the most indelible memories of the trip will be singing Buck Owens songs and drinking Suntory whiskey with the owner of this great little jazz club in Japan. The musicians were first rate and we had a ball despite the language barrier. The audiences were very responsive and we were treated like stars. When I returned to Portland, I had a gig with a great trio where were politely ignored. Back to reality.

Still makes me chuckle!

On the lighter side, it was brought to my attention that somehow I was brought up in a Kurt Elling blog. The blog started out complimenting my CD and then deteriorated into a name calling session with variations of my name not heard since grade school. I was compared to a bad Justin Timberlake impersonator and a Harry Connick Jr. wannabe. At first I didn't quite know what to think. The obvious question is why would these folks be discussing me in the first place? As the 'discussion' continued, the bloggers turned on each other. It is my contention that drugs, alcohol, and computers don't mix very well. You 'gotta' love it!

 Grandpa update:  We were blessed on 8/15/11 with the birth of our second grandaughter Emily May Winkle.  Her older sister Anna is now three years old!  Whoohoo!  I'm in the grandpa bidness and bidness is good!!