Michael 'Mike' Scott (born 14 December 1958 in Edinburgh, Scotland) is the founding member and chief songwriter of rock band The Waterboys. He has also produced two solo albums, Bring 'em All In and Still Burning. Scott is an accomplished vocalist, guitarist and pianist, and has played a large range of other instruments, including the bouzouki, drums, and hammond organ on his albums.
Having begun a musical career in the 1970s which has continued to this day. Scott has been described a "madman or genius, depending on your point of view" by Peter Anderson in Record Collector magazine, and is well-known for his radical changes in music genres throughout what Scott refers to as his "allegedly unorthodox" career.
Scott is divorced (from ex-wife Irene Keogh) and is currently remarried and living in Findhorn, Scotland, when not touring with The Waterboys. This Is the Sea is the third and last of The Waterboys' "Big Music" albums. Considered by critics to be the finest album of their early rock-oriented sound, described as "epic" and "a defining moment", it was the first Waterboys album to enter the United Kingdom charts, peaking at number thirty-seven..