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THE MARK ZEUS STORY
Having grown up in a mostly Polish-Italian neighborhood on Chicago's
Northwest side ( MZ is the son of Aloysius and Jane Zurawski,
attended St. James Grammar and Weber High schools,
Wright CC, and Northeastern IL U. with degrees in
Secondary Ed.,Speech and Performing Arts and Music Theory), Mark
officially began his music career playing weekends, as a solo,
at The Let It Be Lounge (Belmont &Narragansett) in
1976. He soon hooked up with Wright alums, Bob"Apollo"
Abplanalp (bass and vocals) and Tom O'Brien (guitar,
fiddle, and vocals), to form the band Clearwater Junction (soon
after, it became TumbleWeed). They eventually added drummer
John Kiscellus and began gigging throughout the Chicago
area playing their unique brand of Folk and Country Rock, and
high energy Bluegrass. The band evolved when Mike Carney
(drums and vocals) replaced John, and Andy Schwarz (piano)
was added. They became one of the hottest acts on the circuit
within two short years. TumbleWeed, in various evolutions thereafter,
including bassist, John Breinig, was eventually playing
the Midwest College circuit and had been a featured act at Chicagofest
'79- '81. In '81 the band's run ended, falling victim to changing
trends and hard economic times.
Throughout the TumbleWeed years, Mark continued to pursue a solo career. In 1981, he released his first album, Walkin' Away. It included the romantic acoustic number, "Another Friend", with a guest appearance by virtuoso harmonica player, Howard Levy, and a TumbleWeed recorded version of the "cosmic cowboy" tune, "Businessmen and Cowboys". Both are still staples of current Zeus shows. That album, along with various TumbleWeed demo recording, marked the beginning of Mark's long relationship with Craig Williams at Dr. Caw Recording Studios, where he has recorded a vast majority of his subsequent works.
'81 also saw Zeus become influenced by the Roots and Rockabilly revival of the period. Along with bassist, Terry Black, and guitarist, Danny (Lee) Santercola, The Westside Revolvers took to the Chicago club circuit. Performing songs of Dave Edmunds, Nick Lowe, The Rolling Stones,Carl Perkins,Elvis,Joe Ely, and other Roots-Rock legends and revivalists,they laid the ground work for the evolution of Zeus' songwriting for the remainder of the decade. Although Folk and Country were still major influences, the back to basic rock and roll approach brought additional energy to the music.
In 1983, the Revolvers reformed under the name, Strange Arrangement, which also included new veteran bassist/vocalist, Curtis Bachman, formerly of the successful Chicago band, The Buckinghams, as well as other popular Country and Roots Rock groups. This band grew beyond the basics and began including more of the diverse mix of Zeus originals.
Since the break-up of TumbleWeed, Zeus continued to maintain strong friendships with its original members. In the winter of '83-'84, Zeus, O'Brien, and Apollo began woodsheding new material in Bob's basement. Combining this new material with old "Tumble Tunes", they contacted Carney and revived the band. Soon after, they changed the band's name to A2Z, which identified the diverse mix of music, and also identified the initials of its original members. Eventually Bob needed to leave the band due to work and family commitments, and a new member,bassist Scott (Klicker) Kassal (Thunderboltz), joined on. A year later, Keyboardist, Steve Wozny began jamming with the band, completing the line-up that to this day represents the guts of A2Z.
In 1986, A2Z released a six song EP, Fresh Cuts, which featured the Zeus/O'Brien Roots-Rock anthem, "I Like Women". The song was used as a theme song for the Chicago Championship Wrestling show, and received local air play. For years to follow, A2Z continually gigged, and has, over the last 10 years, reunited regularly to perform, while its membership has gone on to also gig with a number of Chicago-based bands- most notably: O'Brien and Wozny w/ The Bad Examples; and Zeus and Klicker w/ The Excuses. Other members of the Excuses were Klicker's old friends, Jeff and Mindy Weiss, and ex-Revolver, Danny Lee.
During this time, MZ decided to return to school- soon after the passing of his father, Al, in March of '84. Al Zurawski was a fixture at Zeus gigs, and well-loved by friends and fans. His "old school" values, tempered with a progressive outlook on life, contributed to the "blue-collar" work ethic, persistence, and energy one might find in MZ. This was a turning point in Mark's life, and music. As he broadened his horizons, and experiences, his writing eventually became more reflective and philosophical. It was to become evident in his recordings during the '90s.
Zeus grew up a "jock", having been co-captain of his high school and junior college football teams. He also played basketball and baseball. In '83, he found out some old teammates, Rick Kalin, Charlie Petruzzi and Terry Coleman, were coaching the Freshman team at their high school Alma Mater. He checked out a practice and decided to join the staff as offensive-line coach. Though his buddies left, he remained on through '91, eventually taking over as a head coach.
In May '89, Mark graduated from Northeastern IL. U. with a degree in Secondary Education- Speech and Performing Arts (minor in Music). He acted in many of the school's theater productions, landing a lead role in Enemy of The People during his final semester. He became a full time English/Speech teacher at Weber the following fall.
In addition to all this, he kept up a heavy gigging schedule, and continued to write and record. In '89, he also took on hosting the open mike at the new location of one of his old haunts, The Clearwater Saloon, owned and operated by old friends, former Clearwater owner, Jim Erskine, and Willie Whitfield, former owner of another old haunt, The Iron Rail Pub. It became a gathering place for the new wave of Chicago singer/songwriters. It is where he met many of the artists he would eventually play with and/or produce. MZ also became editor of a local publication, The Pro/Am Guide, published by KC (Crystal) Wilkerson, whom he had met through The Clearwater. The magazine prided itself on providing initial publicity to emerging local artists. Mark's brother, Phil Zurawski, also contributed to the mission by including poetry information and workshop articles. Phil is an established Illinois poet, and founder of The Arlington Poetry Project.
In 1990, Zeus recorded four new songs; finished some ongoing tracks; recovered some unreleased mixes; chose two representative TumbleWeed demos; an A2Z tune; and a cut from Walkin' Away; and released the compilation album, Now and Then. The opening track, "Insecure Treasures", was written for his students (the youth generation of the '80s).The existential folk/rocker, "Middle of Your Life", celebrates the continuing rites of passage. Both of these tunes revealed the more socially aware and philosophical direction that would become the signature of Zeus' music in the '90s.
In mid 1991, the frantic pace, and rock and roll life-style, of the past few years finally caught up with Zeus. Having experienced a bout with chronic fatigue, he was forced to lighten his schedule and focus on his health. He did not return to teaching and coaching that fall and, although he continued to work his "jobbing" gigs, did not perform regularly through most of '92. However, he did continue to write, and network. In April of '92, he organized a weekly "songwriters-in-the-round" showcase series at The Clearwater. It featured a diverse mix of songsters Mark became familiar with through his associations with the local band circuits, the Pro-Am guide, The Clearwater as well as other open mikes, and production and recording contacts. In his introductions each week, he began to refer to the mix as The Chicago Songwriters Collective.
The CSC, as it is sometimes referred to, was officially founded by Zeus in November of '92. Monthly meetings followed, and events were planned and held. The first Songwriters Workshop Series was held in mid '93, and various Collective showcase performances began popping up. The list of present and past members is much too long to include here, but writers at every level of experience and development, and every conceivable musical genre, would be represented. In '98, the official website of the CSC, www.chicagosongwriters.com, was set up (and is still maintained ) by Collective member, Greg Steele. Mark chaired the organization until shortly before his move To Houston in Jan. '00. It is still growing, and has become an important"cog" in the workings of the Chicago music scene and beyond.