Barry Finnerty

Michael Barry Finnerty (born December 3, 1951) is an American jazz guitarist, keyboardist, singer/songwriter and music arranger, best known for his work as a session musician for artists such as Miles Davis and The Crusaders. Finnerty is also the author of two books on music improvisation.

Early years

Finnerty is the son of actor Warren Finnerty (1925-1974) who appeared in numerous films including Cool Hand Luke (1967) and Easy Rider (1969). He was born in San Francisco and raised on the West Coast, studying at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music and University of California Berkeley.

He spent some time living in Hong Kong with his mother in the early 1960s. There, at the age of 14, he began playing electric guitar and soon joined a band that opened a show for Herman's Hermits. On returning to San Francisco, he became friends with fellow guitarist Jim Checkley, who eventually recruited him to join Beefy Red in 1969. He played in the band for several years.

Finnerty in New York City