Mike Turner
- Born: June 5, 1963
Mike Turner
Mike A. Turner is a musician and producer. He is the former lead guitarist of the band Our Lady Peace. He currently plays guitar in the Canadian band Fair Ground, with Harem Scarem guitarist Pete Lesperance.
Born on June 5, 1963, in Bradford, England, Turner grew up heavily influenced by punk rock. His first guitar was a gift from his mother on his seventeenth birthday. He played in a variety of bands during the 1980s.
Turner moved to Ontario, Canada at the age of eighteen. He studied English literature at the University of Western Ontario.
Turner placed a "Musicians Wanted" ad in NOW for his band As If. The ad was answered by Raine Maida and Our Lady Peace eventually formed.
Of the four members of Our Lady Peace, Turner was the most active with its online fans. He joined and read the Clumsy Congress (the official Our Lady Peace message board) regularly and often talked about how intelligent its members were in interviews. He occasionally posted, but never liked to sway conversation or attract attention to himself.
Turner left Our Lady Peace in December of 2001, citing musical and creative differences. Following his departure he stated that he and the band were growing in different directions.
Inspired by his work with producers Arnold Lanni (Our Lady Peace, Simple Plan, Finger Eleven) and Bob Rock (Our Lady Peace, Metallica, The Cult), he became very interested in the production side of music. Mike decided to produce and write full-time.
He established himself as a source for live recordings, using a streamlined mobile live recording rig of his own design, and he also built a private recording studio in his home, taking on projects for labels like Capitol, EMI and Sony. Turner partnered with kindred music industry veterans Mari Dew, Caryn Hanlon, and Trevor Kustiak to launch The Pocket Entertainment and The Pocket Studios in Toronto.