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Mick Karn

ミック・カーン / みっく・かーん

American bassist

July 24, 1958 – January 4, 2011 ・ Nicosia, Cyprus

  • bassist
  • composer
  • musician

My Take

Mick Karn was genuinely one of a kind — a Greek Cypriot kid born in Nicosia who ended up rewriting what a bass guitar could do in a pop context. His fretless bass work with Japan is the thing that still stops you cold when you hear it: those liquid, singing lines on tracks like "Ghosts" or "Visions of China" don't sound like bass, they sound like a whole second lead voice winding through the mix. He wasn't just keeping the rhythm section together; he was composing in real time, every note bending into the next with this deeply melodic sensibility you almost never heard in new wave. It's genuinely sad that he left us on January 4, 2011, at only 52 — his solo work and collaborations showed there was so much more in him. A real original, and one of the most underappreciated bassists the 1980s produced.

Overview

Andonis Michaelides (Greek: Αντώνης Μιχαηλίδης; 24 July 1958 – 4 January 2011), better known as Mick Karn, was a Greek Cypriot musician who rose to fame as the bassist for the art rock and new wave band Japan. His distinctive fretless bass guitar sound and melodic playing style were a trademark of the band's sound.

1. Profile

Name (English)
Mick Karn
Name (Japanese)
ミック・カーン
Reading
みっく・かーん
Born
July 24, 1958 – January 4, 2011
Zodiac / Chinese zodiac
Leo / Dog
Origin
Nicosia, Cyprus
Blood type
Private
Height
Private
Agency
Private
Occupation
bassist / composer / musician

2. Background

Elementary school
Private
Junior high
Private
High school
Private
University
Private

3. Relationships

Spouse
Private
Children
Private
Parents
Private
Siblings
Private

4. Personality

Motto

Private

7. About this entry

Tags

  • bassist
  • composer
  • musician
Last updated
2026-06-02

Facts are limited to publicly available information up to 2024; non-public items are marked "Private / Unknown". English text is machine-assisted (facts translated by Sonnet, "My Take" written by Opus 4.8). The Japanese page is the source of record.