R.I.P., Michael Ward

Remembering the guitarist for John Hiatt's Guilty Dogs, the Wallflowers, and others.

John Hiatt played with many legendary and incredible guitarists over the years, from Ry Cooder and Sonny Landreth to David Immerglück, Doug Lancio, and scores of others. Arguably none kicked his ass as loudly or fiercely as Michael Ward, who died on April 1st at the all-too-young age of 57.

Born in Minneapolis, Ward first made waves in School of Fish, whose “3 Strange Days” was an early ‘90s alternative hit on MTV and rock radio.

From there, Ward was recruited to join Hiatt in the studio, along with drummer Brain McLeod, bassist John Pierce, and producer Matt Wallace, to record what became Hiatt’s loudest, brashest album, 1993’s Perfectly Good Guitar.

“Michael Ward played a Ferrington baritone guitar (along with the usual Les Pauls and Telecasters) through a Demeter amp, and that combination, coupled with his instinctive guitar playing and years of experience, made for a larger-than-life sound,” Wallace told me for Have a Little Faith: The John Hiatt Story. It was indeed larger-than-life. It was Neil Young-fronting-Crazy-Horse loud but with a sharper direction and intent.

Ward, bassist Davey Faragher, and drummer Michael Urbano, hit the road with Hiatt as the Guilty Dogs for the next couple of years, taping their shows and releasing them as John Hiatt Comes Alive At Budokan as well as a (superior in parts) fan club-only release, Live at the Hiatt, which was commercially released in 2006 under the Performance Classics banner. They also recorded an Austin City Limits episode. Throughout the tour, Ward and the Guilty Dogs pushed Hiatt forward and he responded by growlin’, yelpin’, dancin’, and singin’ his little ass off.

After the tour, and by the time Hiatt was about to record the follow-up to PGG (which turned out to be Walk On), Ward had moved on, joining The Wallflowers. Fronted by Jakob (son of Bob) Dylan, The Wallflowers had put out their debut a few years before to little notice. Switching labels, producers, and personnel, Michael Ward became their permanent guitarist and helped create their breakthrough, Bringing Down the Horse which has since been certified 5x platinum.

Ward stayed with Dylan & Co. through their next album, 2000’s Breach, then left for more adventures, including sessions for many pop stars from Avril Lavigne and Sara Bareilles to Gavin DeGraw. (Of the DeGraw album, Chariot, Ward was particularly proud, posting on his Instagram, “Of all the albums I’ve been lucky enough to have played on, this is the only one where I played every note of the guitar. Josh had School of Fish, Hiatt had Hiatt, Jake had Wallflowers, Ben had Ben, Eugene had Gogol, on down the line. I thank my dear producer friend Mark Endert. We had a great summer making this fine record.”)

He also became an Innocent Criminal, backing Ben Harper on a handful of acclaimed albums, including Harper’s Grammy-winning collaboration with the Blind Boys of Alabama in 2004 and 2007’s Lifeline.

An avid cyclist and guitar instructor, Ward was still active in music, with a gig for April 5th on his schedule. As it is, he leaves behind a legacy of making each band he played in, and each artist he played with, a little bolder and a little louder.