At last.. I bring to you, the full video of the memorial for our friend Mike Mitchell of the Kingsmen, which took place on September 26, 2021 in Portland, Oregon.
Here tis…
This video production was created in conjunction with our good friend and associate producer David Jester of Pro Video Productions, PDX.
David’s got a long history with Mike and the Kingsmen, and here’s his story..
The first time I met Mike Mitchell was in 1983, when I was hired by Monte Von Struck to produce “LOUIE LOUIE” for MTV…
I had only been producing videos for 5 years and I was a little starstruck that I was working with the Kingsmen.
The band’s casual demeanor put me at ease and they let me know they were willing to do anything I asked them to do to make a good video…
I recorded 16 takes at the Toga Party from all different angles…
The band must’ve been pretty burnt out by the end of the day but they were still cordial and having fun..
Mike was very nice to me even though I kept requesting “one more take”…
He was always a super gentleman and as I recorded them many more times over the coming years, he was one of the nicest guys that I ever met…
He always made me feel like I was a special friend and that really meant a lot to me…
Over the years the Kingsmen performed for free, at several benefits that I helped to produce, including one for Gary Ewing…
Mike was always a fun guy to hang out with and I’m going to miss him a lot…
From left to right: Jack Ely, Bob Nordby, Lynn Easton and Mike Mitchell
Here’s a photo of the video team with the event producer – Terry Currier of Music Millenium / Oregon Music Hall of Fame. Terry is holding the LOUIE LOUIE plaque (2nd one) that was removed from the studio location (Burnside && 13th) after vandals almost stole that one too …
Here’s David’s 1983 music video of the Kingsmen – the Delta House clip!