Background
Born in Fort Gordon, Georgia, he grew up in Springfield, Missouri and Saint St. Petersburg, Florida.
Born in Fort Gordon, Georgia, he grew up in Springfield, Missouri and Saint St. Petersburg, Florida.
Prior to 2005 he toured and performed as Michael Shaun Norton. Iron Mike is best known for his slide playing, having developed a technique pioneered by his mentor Sonny Landreth where he frets notes and plays chords behind the slide. Norton is also known for employing right hand finger tapping techniques in combination with his slide work.
Mike"s started his professional career as a session bass player in the Tampa Bay area heavy metal scene but eventually moved on to work as a roadie for several country music acts including Mel McDaniel in the early 1990s.
In 1997 Mike met Sonny Landreth and began to learn slide guitar. Iron Mike is currently considered one of the foremost practitioners of Landreth"s fret behind the slide techniques.
