Big Al Zipper

Mike was raised in the north Florida Boggy Bayou area in the small town of Valparaiso, Florida.  He began his musical journey in 1969 with a band called Big Al Zipper.  They played teen dances and beach bars, such as the Faux Pas and Earthquake O’Runion’s around the Florida Panhandle. Big Al Zipper moved to Tallahassee in 1971.  When the Zips dissolved a year later, several of them became founding members of the Labamba Brothers Band: an original, jazz fusion group that became a staple on the concert and bar circuit throughout the southeast during the 70s.                                                                    

Labamba played concerts with George Benson, Herbie Mann, Minnie Ripperton, Stanley Turrentine, Jean-Luc Ponty, and Jimmy Buffett.  They recorded the album Out of the Blue on Sweetbay Records in 1979.  The band featured some of Tallahassee’s finest musicians:  Sammy Tedder on sax, Eddie Horan on drums, Warren Sutton on guitar, Mike Andrews on guitar, Stan Gramling on bass, and Ralph “Moogie” Stewart on percussion and vocals.  When Labamba split up in early 1979,  Mike took a hiatus from music for a couple years.  He became a public school teacher and worked part-time as a features writer and music critic for the Tallahassee Democrat. 

Flipside

In 1981 Mike became a founding member of Flipside with Ed Bradley (Smitty’s Band/Stogie), Jim Evans (Stogie), and Art Ronk (BB Jam).  After six months together, the group added Ralph Stewart (Collage/ Labamba) and guitarist, Clint Braswell.  Flipside picked up where the Labamba Brothers left off, opening shows for Spyro Gyra, Firefall, and Little Feat. They became a staple in the Panama City Beach area, playing summers at the Beach Party and Schooners.  They were also mainstays at Tommy’s Deep South Music Hall and the Pastime in Tallahassee.  In the 1983, Flipside signed with Sweetbay Records and recorded a self-titled album.  

In 1985 Ralph (Moogie) and Mike continued to play and record as the Muffin Men along with Larry “Sparky” Thorne.  A year later the trio released Having Fun on cassette only.  They recorded the basic tracks for the album in Mike’s Wiggly Field home studio.  All of the vocal, percussion, horn, and harmonica tracks were later recorded and mixed at ESP Studios with Ready Freddie Chester at the helm along with the project’s sidekick, Sparky Thorne.  Having Fun featured guest appearances by Sammy Tedder (Labamba, Riverbreeze), Pat Ramsey (Crosscut Saw) and Jeff James (Riverbreeze).   The Muffin Men disbanded in the late ’80s when Moogie and Sparky moved to Bonaire in the Dutch Antilles. 

Muffin Men at Schooners in Panama City Beach after a long hot night.

Harvest Gypsies

In the mid-90s, Mike reunited with Art Ronk, Jim Evans, and Ed Bradley to form Harvest Gypsies.  After a few years, Jim left the band and was replaced by Scott Campbell (Extra Hair/Catfish Alliance) and then Fred Chester, the former engineer at Sweetbay Studios.  Mike was a member of Harvest Gypsies for almost 20 years; the group was named at his behest in homage to a collection of essays John Steinbeck wrote for the San Francisco Chronicle about the plight of the migrant workers. Mike is politically progressive, and this often shines through in his music.  

Harvest Gypsies

In January of 2015, Mike decided to retire from the bars for a while.  He began playing house shows and listening room venues with his old Labamba Brothers’ bandmate, Warren Sutton.  This promo video was recorded at From the Heart Studios in Sopchoppy, Florida during a live listening room performance.  Mike and Warren had a nice run of shows, but they’ve been on a long break since the Corona Virus became a plague in Florida and other southern states. 

Occasionally, Mike performs with his three sons along with his good friend Ed Bradley, and his sons and nephew in the Rychlik/Bradley Family Band. This poster is from Ed and Mike’s mutual birthday party in 2016. 

These days Mike spends a lot of time in his home studio, recording and writing new material (when he’s not being a dutiful and delighted grandpa).  Mike and Sparky Thorne reunited on some studio projects, and they’ve got a lot of new material that they’ll be releasing in the coming years and months.

So stay tuned because I’ll be posting more videos and recordings, along with some old memories. 

Please use the contact link if you want to share an old memory or comment. 

I’d love to hear from you.  Peace & Love, Mike