Bloomfield was an indifferent student and self-described social outcast and immersed himself in the multi-cultural music world that existed in Chicago in the 1950s. He got his first guitar at age 13. Initially attracted to the roots-rock sound of Elvis Presley and Scotty Moore, Bloomfield soon discovered the electrified big-city blues music indigenous to Chicago. At the age of 14, the exuberant guitar wunderkind began to visit the blues clubs on Chicago’s South Side with friend Roy Ruby in search of his new heroes: players such as Muddy Waters, Otis Spann, Howling Wolf, and Magic Sam. Not content with viewing the scene from the audience, Bloomfield was known to leap onto the stage, asking if he could sit in as he simultaneously plugged in his guitar and began playing riffs.
Bloomfield was quickly accepted on the South Side, as much for his ability as for the audiences' appreciation of the novelty of seeing a young white player in a part of town where few whites were seen. Bloomfield soon discovered a group of like-minded outcasts. Young white players such as Paul Butterfield, Nick Gravenites, Charlie Musselwhite, and Elvin Bishop were also establishing themselves as fans who could hold their own with established bluesmen, many of whom were old enough to be their fathers.
In addition to playing with the established stars of the day, Bloomfield began to search out older, forgotten bluesmen, playing and recording with Sleepy John Estes, Yank Rachell, Little Brother Montgomery and Big Joe Williams, among others. By this time he was managing a Chicago folk music club, the Fickle Pickle, and often hired older acoustic blues players for the Tuesday night blues sessions. Big Joe Williams memorialized those times in the song "Pick A Pickle" with the line "You know Mike Bloomfield...will always treat you right...come to the Pickle, every Tuesday night." Bloomfield’s relationship with Big Joe Williams is documented in "Me And Big Joe," a moving short story detailing Bloomfield’s adventures on the road with Williams.
Bloomfield's guitar work as a session player caught the ear of legendary CBS producer and talent scout John Hammond, Sr., who flew to Chicago and immediately signed him to a recording contract. However CBS was unsure of exactly how to promote their new artist, declining to release any of the tracks recorded by Bloomfield's band, which included harp player Charlie Musselwhite.
With a contract but not much else, Bloomfield returned to playing clubs around Chicago until he was approached by Paul Rothchild, the producer of the Paul Butterfield Blues Band albums. Bloomfield was recruited to play slide guitar and piano on early recordings (later released as The Lost Elektra Sessions) which were rejected for not fully capturing the sound of the band. Although more competitors than friends ("I knew Paul [and I] was scared of him" remembered Mike), the addition of Bloomfield to the Butterfield Band provided Paul Butterfield with a musician of equal caliber -- Paul and Michael inspired and challenged each other as they traded riffs and musical ideas, one establishing a pattern and the other following it, extending it, and handing it back.
In between recording sessions with the Butterfield Band, Bloomfield backed up Bob Dylan on the classic Highway 61 Revisited album, and appeared with him at the Newport Folk Music Festival in 1965 when Dylan stunned the purist folk music crowd by playing electric rock-and-roll. Declining an offer from Dylan to join his touring band, Bloomfield and the Butter Band returned to the studio; with the addition of pianist Mark Naftalin they finally captured their live sound on vinyl.
The first two Butterfield Blues Band albums, the Dylan sessions, and the live appearances by the Butterfield Band firmly established Bloomfield as one of the most talented and influential guitar players in America. The second album featured the Bloomfield composition "East-West" which ushered in an era of long instrumental psychedelic improvisations.
Bloomfield left the Butterfield Blues Band in early 1967 ostensibly to give original guitarist Elvin Bishop, in Mike's words, "a little space." Undoubtedly he had also become uncomfortable with Paul Butterfield's position as bandleader and was anxious to lead his own band.
That band, The Electric Flag, included Bloomfield's old friends from Chicago, organist Barry Goldberg and singer/songwriter Nick Gravenites, as well as bass player Harvey Brooks and drummer Buddy Miles. The band was well received at its official debut at the Monterey Pop Festival but quickly fell apart due to drugs, egos, and poor management.
Bloomfield, weary of the road, suffering from insomnia, and uncomfortable in the role of guitar superstar, returned to San Francisco to score movies, produce other artists, and play studio sessions. One of those sessions was a day of jamming in the studio with keyboardist Al Kooper, who had previously worked with Bloomfield on the 1965 Dylan sessions.
Super Session, the resultant release, with Bloomfield on side one and guitarist Stephen Stills on side two, once again thrust Bloomfield into the spotlight. Kooper's production and the improvisational nature of the recording session captured the quintessential Bloomfield sound: the fast flurries of notes, the incredible string bending, the precise attack, and his masterful use of tension and release.
Although Super Session was the most successful recording of his career, Bloomfield considered it to be a scam, more of an excuse to sell records than a pursuit of musical goals. After a follow-up live album, he "retired" to San Francisco and lowered his visibility.
In the seventies Bloomfield played gigs in the San Francisco area and infrequently toured as Bloomfield And Friends, a group which usually included Mark Naftalin and Nick Gravenites. Bloomfield also occasionally helped out friends by lending his name to recording projects and business propositions, such as the ill-fated Electric Flag reunion in 1974 and the KGB album in 1976. In the mid-seventies Bloomfield recorded a number of albums with a more traditional blues focus for smaller record labels. He also recorded an instructional album of various blues styles for Guitar Player magazine.
By the late seventies Bloomfield's continuing drug and health problems caused erratic behavior and missed gigs, alienating a number of his old associates. Bloomfield continued playing with other musicians, including Dave Shorey and Jonathan Cramer. In the summer of 1980 he toured Italy with classical guitarist Woody Harris and cellist Maggie Edmondson. On November 15, 1980, Bloomfield joined Bob Dylan on stage at the Warfield Theater in San Francisco and jammed on "Like A Rolling Stone," the song they had recorded together 15 years earlier.
Michael Bloomfield was found dead in his car of a drug overdose in San Francisco, California on February 15, 1981.
Feel So Good
Mike Bloomfield Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Half machine
Half abstract with attractive sheen a massive dream a man with a fam to feed a tat that reads a master in japanese
That is me so you relocate and see no way to face my bushido blade finito they just stray from my evil ways you people lay before me at fetal stage
Vegito facing these niggas
Hit em' with a beam sword slash
Then I get a nigga to recieve more wrath
Better get rediculously beast your craft
Great castrate rap with a bat fake
Nigga I'm the first home and you just in last place
Mandate that you for fit, nigga my raps great and euphoric
Nigga you wack fake and too boring with it I can't wait you quarantined
What these niggas say to me
Basically amazing see the way I'm bout to burn this shit is classified in 8th degree
Wake Up
Goodmorning
The rain is pouring
Cause were taking it by storm and no remorsing
And it feels so good, it feels so good to be here So good
Man i swear it's undescribable
Like i took my life and made it mine and killed off all of the bullshit with my new rifle yo
Triumph foes with undying flow its a high to me i don't like the low so i fly and go to the sky and hope they dont shoot me down and dont try it so
Just be quiet yo
And let me hold my peice cause all that hate that people spew all day just stress me so i keep them directly where they tempt me so my best feats when i speak make them all just shut the fuck up and respect me for my speech
Man I been fucked over and over
Hated on and put down been betrayed and played by the same people that say they we dogs but look foul
Chickens bitches all just look out
But you can't see I'm no longer that kid that you thought you once knew so i feel so good and i go on
All that really matters
Is if I have my music
Cause everything will follow suit so smoothly and so fluid
It's proven that you'll kneel so look
It feels so good
The song "Feel So Good" by Mike Bloomfield is a blend of rap and soulful R&B sound, and it explores the struggles and challenges of life. The chorus of the song has a positive and upbeat vibe, as the lyrics claim that taking life by the horns and facing it with an unflinching determination will make one better, and it feels so good to finally be able to face life's hurdles. The first half of the song is a rap, and it talks about the contrast between the human and the machine. The lyrics describe the rapper as half abstract, half man and machine. He is a man with a family, and he has a master's tattoo in Japanese. In the second stanza, the rapper spits bars on how he overcomes the odds and remains undaunted despite past betrayals and backstabbings. He values his music even as he seeks to make it big, and nothing can dim his passion for music.
The chorus of the song is catchy and upbeat, and it underscores the theme of the song. Life can be messy, and it throws lots of wrenches in our paths, but it feels good to be alive and have a purpose. The rap verses delve into the thoughts and struggles of the rapper, highlighting his determination to make the most of his opportunities despite the odds stacked against him. The lyrics celebrate the human spirit and resilience in the face of life's uncertainties.
Line by Line Meaning
Half man
I am human
Half machine
I embrace technology and innovation
Half abstract with attractive sheen a massive dream
I have a big vision that is unconventional but enticing
a man with a fam to feed a tat that reads a master in japanese
I am a family man who values tradition and mastery
That is me so you relocate and see
This is who I am, take it or leave it
no way to face my bushido blade finito
You cannot withstand my power, it is final
they just stray from my evil ways you people lay before me at fetal stage Vegito facing these niggas
Others fear and avoid me because of my past actions, but I am ready to face any challenge
Hit em' with a beam sword slash
I am a skilled fighter who can defeat my enemies with precision
Then I get a nigga to recieve more wrath
I will not hold back in my retaliation against those who wrong me
Better get rediculously beast your craft
You must work hard and become exceptional in your craft to compete with me
Better get meticulously G or past
You must be very careful and strategic in your approach to succeed
Great castrate rap with a bat fake
I can take down fake rappers with ease and skill
Nigga I'm the first home and you just in last place
I am a pioneer and leader in the rap game, leaving others behind
Mandate that you for fit, nigga my raps great and euphoric
I demand that you acknowledge my greatness in rap and feel the joy it brings
Nigga you wack fake and too boring with it I can't wait you quarantined
You are uninteresting and lack talent, I can't wait for you to be isolated
What these niggas say to me Basically amazing see the way I'm bout to burn this shit is classified in 8th degree
Their words do not faze me, watch as I expertly destroy the competition
Wake Up
Rise and shine, it's a new day
Goodmorning
I greet the day with a positive attitude
The rain is pouring
It may be stormy but I am unshakable
Cause were taking it by storm and no remorsing
I am seizing opportunities and not looking back with regret
And it feels so good, it feels so good to be here So good
I am enjoying life and achieving success
Man i swear it's undescribable
I cannot fully express how amazing my life is
Like i took my life and made it mine and killed off all of the bullshit with my new rifle yo
I took control of my life, eliminating negativity and focusing on what matters
Triumph foes with undying flow its a high to me i don't like the low so i fly and go to the sky and hope they dont shoot me down and dont try it so Just be quiet yo
I relish in defeating my enemies with my unstoppable flow, but fear that they will bring me down
And let me hold my peice cause all that hate that people spew all day just stress me so i keep them directly where they tempt me
I cannot be bothered by people's negativity, so I keep them at a distance
so my best feats when i speak make them all just shut the fuck up and respect me for my speech
My words hold great power and command respect
Man I been fucked over and over Hated on and put down been betrayed and played by the same people that say they we dogs but look foul
I have experienced a lot of hardship, despite the betrayals of supposed friends
Chickens bitches all just look out
I refuse to associate with weak and fake people
But you can't see I'm no longer that kid that you thought you once knew so i feel so good and i go on
I have grown and changed, becoming better and more successful
All that really matters/Is if I have my music/Cause everything will follow suit so smoothly and so fluid/It's proven that you'll kneel so look/It feels so good
My music is my true passion and everything else in life falls into place smoothly because of it
Contributed by Ellie K. Suggest a correction in the comments below.