January 20, 2021 is going to be a special day—for many reasons.
First and foremost: We will be ushering in a new president. Joseph R. Biden will be inaugurated as 46th president at noon. This shift in the political landscape will be refreshing after a toxic and divisive four years of the Trump administration.
Closer to home: Mr. Billy Zenn will be celebrating his 70th birthday. On his special day, Mr. Zenn will be releasing his 5th album – Every Third Thought – on Amazon, Apple Music, iTunes, Soundcloud and all streaming platforms (Spotify, Bandcamp, etc.). At 7 pm he will air a streaming video concert of the entire album, featuring special guests Emily Schrock, Jim Lynch, Chaz Mechenbier and Jake Young, along with his Enabler band: Fred Haertel, Frank Lapinksi, Doug Edwards and yours truly. Click here for Billy Zenn.com
Billy Zenn has been an integral part of the Columbus music scene since 1970—50 years and counting. He bought his first guitar in 1964 a day after watching the Beatles on Ed Sullivan. He played in a hometown band, The Vigilantes, in Mt. Sterling—about 20 miles south of Columbus—and came to OSU in 1969 to study English. He took his first paying gig as bass player for Mel Reid—an African-American keyboardist—who showed Billy the ropes on how to thrive in the music business and front a band. They had a steady gig at Remo’s Flame Lounge in Grandview where they played every week from Thursday to Saturday. Billy cut his teeth at the venue, eventually inspiring him to drop out of school and go on the road as a touring musician.
For the better part of 15 years Billy traveled the Midwest: playing hotels, bars, restaurants, gymnasiums and house concerts with cover bands like Eddie Ray-USA, Nails, and Razzle. He toured Ohio, Michigan, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, Indiana, New York, and Kentucky from 1971 to 1986. These bands covered the jukebox hits of the time and they made a comfortable living playing other people’s music. When he wasn’t on the road his band played Columbus clubs like Sangria East and, later, Ruby Tuesday’s---with his first all-original band, Funkbunnies. Billy was steadily writing his own material, with the hopes of getting signed by a major label. Unfortunately, that never happened, but he kept writing because “it’s what we are compelled do.”
In 1986 he left the road to pursue more local pursuits, which involved being an audio engineer for Club 202 and Thirsty Ear; bassist for local musicians like Willie Phoenix and Donna Mogavero; a two-year stint as Managing Director of Actors Theatre; and even had a cameo in a big budget film called Mischief (starring Doug McKeon and Kelly Preston). He and his wife of 40 years—actress Vicky Welsh Bragg—wrote and directed their own darkly comedic feature called Road Meat (which will be available on Blu-Ray later this year). During this shift in his career, Billy was able to stitch together a living in the arts through his various pursuits for the better part of 12 years.
A seismic shift took place in the 21st century in the music industry. Record companies were the original havens for musicians to hone their craft, and practically every musician was playing and touring with the hopes of “getting signed.” With the advent of home-recording equipment and the Internet, record companies were no longer required. The new technology introduced a paradigm shift for artists: the DIY or “Indie” movement. Artists now had the ability to write, record and distribute their own music without Big Brother hovering over them. As a songwriter this was liberating; this opened up the floodgates for musicians—and other creatives—across the board.
Billy was now able to write and record his own albums without the financial assistance of a record company. His first album—Zenn & Tonic, released in late 2000 —was a rock-steady album in the genre of “Midwestern Rock”.
Another outgrowth from the DIY movement took place: Open Stages. There was an explosion of artists during this time so it became necessary to give these artists a home. “Open Mic Nights” became a mainstay in bars across the landscape, which gave artists the ability to work on their songs, attract an audience and network with other musicians.
Billy started hosting open mics at the two venues where he was running sound: Club 202 and Thirsty Ear (taking over for Donna Mogavero). These events would take place on weeknights, while weekends were reserved for local and regional acts. He would usually perform first as a soloist, then oversee the open stage for others to perform during their 15-minute window. As he liked to say: “I kept the trains running on time.”
Nobody truly realized the impact that Billy had by hosting these events. Musicians from across the spectrum would come and play, then stay and watch other performers do the same. Young and old, rich and poor, troubadour and rapper, talented and not-so-talented—all different types of musicians would attend these open mics and a true community was born. Billy added two more venues to his resume—Shrunken Head and King Avenue 5—and his open mics were iconic gathering spots for the better part of 15 years.
As Billy juggled his career as sound engineer, open-mic host and session bassist, he managed to write and record three other albums from 2001 to 2018: Forty Days, Bare Bones (solo) and Don’t I Know You? All these albums fit in the Midwestern Rock genre: with driving rhythms, electric guitars and a lot of backing vocals. He played these tunes with his bands—The Ringers and The Enablers—and hit the clubs on weekends. Additionally, Billy, Bruce Roberts, Don Groner and Clay Biggs joined forces with Barry Hayden—of Columbus’ iconic band ‘60’s The Dantes—and put together a fantastic cover band called The Professors, which covered the classics from The Stones and Beatles to The Kinks and The Who.
Along the way, he found time to produce albums for Grace Adele, Craig James Ackerman, and Mark Hunter, as well as The Professors and his own projects, with long-time producing partner, Doug Edwards.
In 2019 he began recording a collection of his most eclectic songs—a cornucopia of tunes from every decade and every style. He flirted with funk, jazz, orchestral and bluegrass, and managed to cobble together a record of disparate styles that is original, passionate and inspirational. Every Third Thought is actually a line from Prospero in The Tempest, a musing on mortality: “I shall retire me to Milan, where every third thought shall be my grave.” In my opinion this is his best work to date, because it’s a departure from the conventional Midwestern rock stylings of his previous work.
To me, it’s profoundly inspiring to see a musician churning out his best material while beginning his 7th decade. Billy has inspired literally hundreds of musicians over his career as musician, songwriter, producer and open mic host; many local artists such as Matt Monta, Derek Collins and Nick Magoteaux regard Zenn as a mentor. He has been a tour de force in Columbus dating all the back to 1969 and has done it with grace, humility and kindness. His “aw shucks” sensibility is a reflection of his Mt. Sterling roots—Billy lives a quiet, humble life simply doing what he loves. He comes from the “Greatest Generation” of Rock and Roll, in fact—humble, down-to-earth people who simply make the music they love for fans who love them in return.
CD RELEASE: EVERY THIRD THOUGHT
January 20, 2021
Billy Zenn – bass, vocals / Fred Haertel – acoustic guitar, backing vocals / Frank Lapinski – drums, backing vocals
Doug Edwards – six and twelve-string electric guitars / Pete Vogel – keyboards
Special guests: Emily Schrock – backing vocals / Lydia Brownfield – acoustic guitar/vocals / Jeff Dalrymple – acoustic guitar/vocals
Jim Lynch – electric guitar / Jake Young – banjo / Willie Phoenix – electric guitar / Chaz Mechenbier – slide guitar
Rob Mottice – percussion / John Allen – double bass / Chris Shaw – violin, viola