Merry Christmas

It's been about a year since Robin Zander and I started kicking around the idea for RZB.

I have been playing with Mark Hitt since 1974, Larry Hobbs since 2006 and Robin on and off for the better part of a decade.  This year we committed, gave it a name, booked some gigs and the rest you know. We are The Robin Zander Band.  From song choices to set-lists we are very much a band in the traditional sense. And I believe we have the one thing that every band needs...chemistry.  We also have another essential ingredient...FANS!  In the past year I have reconnected with old fans and friends and made some new ones.  I am grateful to you all for enjoying the music and sharing the memories.  But, most of all, I look forward to memories that are still to be made!  

With music in my heart I wish you all a
MERRY CHRISTMAS & HAPPY NEW YEAR! 
Seeya out there...

~SL

www.robinzanderband.com

The Robin Zander Band and REO Speedwagon

Below is a review from our #1 super fan Vikki B. along with a photo from our official RZB photographer Vicky Sullivan. Many thanks to you both! ~SL

I Love This Band….

I love their passion, their camaraderie, their musical drive.
I love their humor, their self-depreciation, their collaborative ambition.
I love the collective artistic experience between them and their amazing ability to intertwine it into creating a sound so rocking solid, so unique as to amaze the listener.
I love each and every one of these gentlemen, these professionals, these friends.

I Love This Band.

Tonight at Melbourne was yet another extraordinary night in the life of The Robin Zander Band. Just one more phenomenal evening in which each one of them can stand proud in the fact that they are who they are - The Robin Zander Band. That the idea they had all those months ago, to formally take themselves seriously and become who they are, was such a very, very good idea indeed.

I can just tell you that I sat back in that venue tonight and soaked up every single moment of this second special RZB event like a dry sponge - just like I did the night before.  Beside the fact that I was again completely blown away at every single sound that came from that stage tonight, I was just overcome with pride at not only what I was seeing and hearing but again at the observation that every time I see them…they raise the bar just another notch.

Robin Zander was King. And he ruled that stage with a scepter and sword in the form of his magnificent range of vocals on every song. And with an energy that flowed from the stage to the audience before it. He is the "undisputed" on so many, many levels.  Beyond fascinating-he held the crowd in the palm of his hand... As always - Amazing!

Steve Luongo was the masterful White Knight with a jousting of a performance on every song; the likes of which I had never quite seen. The beat was right. The beat was righteous.  His timing was pure perfection.  This was a very, very good night for the drummer extraordinaire!

Larry Hobbs was the Silver Knight that quietly occupied the right- hand side of the stage but that was only when he wasn't commencing to fence with the instrument in his hands on each and every song. He did not back down. He did not hold back. He gave the band's rich sound the soul that it needed at just the right time. Masterful!

Mark Hitt was as dark and vicious at times with his guitar playing as any Dark Knight would be on the jousting field, still giving every moment of every song his full, undivided attention. There is an aire of mystery to his method of delivering just the right sound at just the right time with reckless abandon. …and the audience sits in awe as it listens….spellbound.  Magical!

Rightfully adorning and adding to the assets of the RZB stage tonight were the well-known musical talents of Mr. Magic Christian and son of the King himself – the very talented and exceptional Mr. Robin Taylor Zander.

Though RZB was only slated to “open” for REO Speedwagon tonight, at many times you would not have known as such. For what was supposedly a mostly REO crowd, they sure were on their feet a lot and enlivened by who the opening band was... Safe to definitely say...REO Speed Wagon had their work cut out for them on this night- RZB had already made the audience their very own!

Go see a RZB show soon, everyone.  More dates are coming- stay tuned.  And if you have to – FLY to it. And when you do, you'll see firsthand why I say this... you will kick yourself for not doing it sooner!

Thank you for yet another unforgettable night, fellas.  And thank you for one truly exceptional weekend that will stay in the heart and on the mind of this fan for a very long time to come.

 

Oh, How I Love This Band....

Robin Zander Band Florida Shows

I'd like to thank everyone for their support and all the good vibes you send our way before, during and after every show.  We are looking forward to the Texas run next month.  We have received a lot of requests to play in "your area" and we are adding more dates and new locations all the time.  We'll get there! 

This weekend was a lot of fun.  There is nothing better than playing music with friends for people who appreciate it.  The interesting thing was we played a large venue on Friday (REH) followed by a small venue on Saturday (Hideaway) and both were equally enjoyable for completely different reasons.  It is always fun to play for thousands of fans and to feel that energy coming from the crowd.  It's also fun to play for a small group of fans and be able to see their reaction to the music. 

In either case we're playing music and loving it...it doesn't get better than that!

Seeya Out There... ~SL

Memorial Day Weekend

This holiday weekend brings some great old memories to mind. Rat Race Choir began playing the Hamptons in the early 70s at a place called Mitty's General Store. In those days the Hamptons were still a well kept summer secret of the blue blood social scene. We had a blast playing the hottest night club for the "beautiful people" all summer long. Although the venues changed over the years we continued this annual adventure and finally secured our own year round residence in South Hampton. The AC/DC lyrics "lock up your daughters, lock up your wife, lock up your back door, run for your life" seem to sum it up. Anyone that was a part of this time will remember these days with a smile... I do!

I thought I'd post this article that was written a while back about RZB. ~SL Cheap Trick’s Robin Zander tours with his own band. They say that old musicians never die- they just keep looking for the next gig. The truth is there is no such thing as an old musician. Legend has it that “If you are fortunate enough to make a living playing music that you love, you’ll never really get old.” So it should come as no surprise that at 60, Robin Zander, the iconic vocalist for Cheap Trick, decided to form a new band at the age when most people begin looking into real estate in Florida for their retirement. Zander already lives in Florida and has for quite some time. Maybe that’s where the fountain of youth really is. Because “the man of 1000 voices” has stamped his name on a group of musicians now known as The Robin Zander Band. This year is the 35 anniversary of Cheap Trick’s classic “Live At Budokan” album. The hits rich rock staple was originally recorded in Japan and released on April 28, 1978. Cheap Trick will play some special dates to honor that milestone. Robin’s new band will do their own renditions of hits like “I Want You To Want Me” and “Surrender” with its familiar refrain “Mommy’s alright, Daddy’s alright…but Zander wants to dig into the Cheap Trick catalog. This will be of particular interest to Cheap Trick fans who long to hear some deep cuts that have rarely if ever been performed live. The Robin Zander Band will also perform music to celebrate the 20th anniversary of Robin’s first solo album. The new band will bring to life several songs from that record and also visit classics from Led Zeppelin, AC/DC, The Beatles and The Who. The Robin Zander Band has the horsepower to do all this and more. Zander has enlisted musicians who can perform all of these songs with credibility. Hudson Valley classic rock fans will be pleased to know that the core band includes two former members of Rat Race Choir, guitar legend Mark Hitt and drummer extraordinaire Steve Luongo. These musicians are no strangers to performing live. In addition to Rat Race Choir they have taken the stage with John Entwistle of The Who, their original project TorQue and most recently with AC/DC rockers Brian Johnson and Cliff Williams. Filling in the bottom is Larry Hobbs on bass. “The Doctor”, as Robin calls him, is also a Florida resident and a close friend of Cliff Williams who introduced Hobbs to Luongo and Hitt. After playing several one off performances together over the years, Zander and company decided to give the band a name and book some tour dates. They are looking forward to continuing to perform a well rounded set of the music that they love. 2013 & 2014 show dates to be announced. www.robinzanderband.com

The Robin Zander Band will be doing a 7:45 PM show at the venue below to say thanks to the NJ fans. So many people wrote about their disappointment that we decided to do this on the night that we would have played at The Count Basie Theater 4/6/2013. It is our way of saying we care about the fans and we thank you for your support. See you in NJ! Venue: The Brighton Bar Address: 121 Brighton Ave, Long Branch NJ, 07740 Venue Phone: (732) 229 - 9676 Venue Website: www.brightonbar.com

FYI The Red Bank NJ show at The Count Basie Theater 04/05/2013 has been postponed. More info to follow when its avalible. Thank You. THIS WILL NOT EFFECT THE NY SHOWS!

We begin doing interviews for the Robin Zander Band shows today. It is such a good feeling to be gearing up for the road again. For the past month new stage gear has been showing up. Sticks (Vater), heads (Evans), drums, (Ddrum), amps (Wizard) guitars (Dean) etc. Its like Xmas and the biggest gift of all is getting to perform for friends and fans...

One more warm up show in St. Pete, FL on Monday at the Hideaway. We'll be recording that show. Then...rehearsal one week from tonight in NYC. I am looking forward to performing in NY & NJ again and seeing all of our friends and fans there.

BB King's has just added a VIP Sound Check Party. This is going to be off the hook!!!! http://www.bbkingblues.com/bio.php?id=2571 $100 - "WHO D'KING" SOUNDCHECK VIP Includes: * Soundcheck Access At 4PM * Meet and greet w/band after soundcheck * Reserved seating in side wing * Color show poster

Rehearsal at my studio!

The Robin Zander Band: What can I say except for "I feel like a kid in a rock band." I love the interaction between the players musically and all the planning. It's like the old days when rehearsal was called practice and all you did was think of songs to play. Setting up gear and looking forward to plugging in, turning on and dropping out! Of course I beat things with a stick so there's that! FYI we've added another warm up date in St Pete, Florida on April 1st. Its called The Hideaway. We rehearsed there...only holds 100 or so. And this is NOT an April fools prank.

The Robin Zander Band a new rock formation

The past 2 months have seen a lot of musical changes for me. In addition to producing and writing with 13 year old pop singer Cody Vagle I have recently formed a new band with Robin Zander appropriately titled The Robin Zander Band. The new band includes my long time friend and band mate Mark Hitt on guitar and our TorQue bassist Larry Hobbs. The four of us have been performing together on and off for 8 years in support of many charitable causes. However, Saturday, Feb 23rd marked the first official performance of The Robin Zander Band at a small venue in Ft. Myers Florida. We played some of Robin's solo material, a few Cheap Trick songs and a lot of other material that we all enjoyed performing. The set list will grow and change as the band progresses. Everyone is in top form which makes this even more fun. I hope to see you all at future shows.

"It's About Time"

Today I started pre-production for my very adventurous drum project. I've been planning this album for about 4 years and the time is right to begin. I'll be doing tracks with a variety of talented drummers. Drum duets so to speak but VERY musical duets using some cool tricked out tech. I am very proud to have Howie Lindeman at the board. Stay "tuned..."

Happy New Year 2013.  This is the year I will begin my drum recordings with other drummers.
I am very excited about the drummers that are joining this project.  It is going to be a new adventure into drumming and should produce some interesting recordings and collaborations.  Stay "tuned" for updates and progress reports.

I will continue to work with new artists in both pop and country genres.  And of course I'll never forget my prog roots. 

Lots of music coming from The Studio At Villa Pines this year.