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Born November 30, 1959, Mike Morgan grew up in Dallas, Texas listening to the soul sounds of Otis Redding and Wilson Pickett coming out of the family stereo. Although he played some guitar early on, it wasn't until he discovered Stevie Ray Vaughan that he seriously began his pursuit of the blues. However, as he developed as a guitarist his uniquely original style owed more of a debt to the playing of T-Bone Walker and Magic Sam, than Vaughan. In the late 1980s Morgan teamed up with vocalist Darrell Nulisch (formerly of Anson Funderburgh and the Rockets) and formed The Crawl, named after the old jukebox hit by guitar great Lonnie Brooks. Mike Morgan and The Crawl quickly established themselves as one of the best contemporary blues bands in Texas, with original songs as good as the classics they chose to cover. When Nulisch left the group in 1989, he was replaced by Kansas City native Lee McBee. McBee's impassioned vocals and solid delivery, reminiscent of the great 1960's soul singers, were a perfect match for Morgan's R&B tastes and desire for a sophisticated, ensemble sound. And with McBee's formidable harmonica chops complementing Morgan's slashing guitar riffs, the fit was flawless. Coming to the attention of Black Top Records in 1990, Mike Morgan and The Crawl released their debut album, Raw & Ready and the band quickly went from local Texas phenomenon to nationally recognized blues stars. With each subsequent release, Morgan's powerful guitar playing and The Crawl's road-proven stage shows made for one of the blues' great success stories. Their aggressive, fiery, and innovative stage shows, which feature a healthy dose of hard driving Texas blues, a touch of horn-fat Southern soul, and a splash of old-fashioned roots rock, make Mike Morgan and The Crawl one of the hottest attractions on the current blues circuit.
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