Light Of My Love Lyric
From the liner notes of the 1998 release "The Best of Zebra In Black and White"
by Colin J. Hulin
I remember walking into an old school gym and hearing a barrage of wonderful sound... it was tight, lush, rocking, and loud. As I neared the stage to get a glimpse of the band generating this heat, I was amazed to see only three guys on stage. How could so much music be produced by so few?! I smiled at my girlfriend (now wife) who had brought me there, and I think she knew that I was in love... not with her, but with the band.
So began my introduction to Zebra some sixteen years ago (1982). It was a typical gig for the day - a St. Christopher's Catholic Youth dance in a New Orleans suburb. The place was packed, as usual, mostly teenage guys, too young for area bars, with a smattering of finely dressed females to keep things interesting. The band was roaring through a set of well-rehearsed originals mixed in with crowd-pleasing covers from Zeppelin, Bowie, the Moody Blues, ZZ Top, Montrose, and others.
That night was also special because Zebra was about to sign with Atlantic Records, home of Led Zeppelin, Yes, AC/DC, and other hard rock heroes of the day. After seven years of three-set gigs in clubs and gyms, the band had finally made it to the big time. The gig had the combined aura of thank you note to fans, going away party and victory lap, all rolled into one.
Fast forward to 1998, after twenty-plus years as a power rock trio, Zebra is a band of legendary status in two "hometown" areas (Louisiana and Long Island), but are woefully under-appreciated in much of the remaining rock world. We hope this retrospective collection corrects that oversight. Further, the band continues its frequent touring and a new studio offering should be released within the year.
So, if you're an old-time fan, this is the only Christmas / birthday / anniversary / bar mitzvah / graduation / Arbor Day gift you'll ever need. Indulge your friends - this is the best CD they've never heard. And if you're a newcomer - welcome to the fan club you'll never leave…
Zebra is Randy, Guy, and Felix. Randy Jackson is the lead vocalist, songwriter, and lead guitarist extraordinaire. His guitar playing and vocal stylings are reminiscent of Zeppelin's Page / Plant, with a dash of Moody Blues, Rush, and Yes thrown in for good measure. Combine all that with Jackson's own unique vision, flair, and musicianship, and you've got quite a talent. Randy's earliest musical influences were the Beatles and Led Zeppelin.
Guy Gelso, drums, percussion, and backing vocals, hits the skins with bombastic power and a precise rhythm. While Guy was also a big Zeppelin fan, his real musical influence was Jimi Hendrix, or more correctly, Mitch Mitchell, the drummer for the Jimi Hendrix Experience. Listen closely to classics like Purple Haze and you'll see why.
Felix Hanneman ties it all together on bass, keyboards and backing vocals. In concert, Felix moves comfortably between his thundering bass guitar and searing Korg synthesizer. Felix's influences were the Beatles, Stones, Bob Dylan, the Byrds, and Cat Stevens.
Felix and Randy are New Orleans natives, while Guy is a Californian, who came to New Orleans for the 1972 Mardi Gras and never left. Randy and Felix first played together in 1973 as teenagers in a five-piece band fronted by Felix called Shepherd's Bush. Once that band broke up, Randy and Guy got together and were eventually joined by Felix and a fourth member (Tim Thorson) in a band called Maelstrom. That was late 1974. When Tim left after only a few months, Zebra was born in February 1975.
"We were sitting around an uptown New Orleans bar called the Boot trying to come up with a name," recalls Randy, "after a few pitchers of beer, we saw a picture of a lady riding a Zebra (actually from a 1922 Vogue Magazine cover) on the wall, liked the image and decided that was it".
After rehearsing for several months in a French Quarter warehouse, the band quickly gained a reputation as a hard rocking cover band in the New Orleans bar and high school dance scene. Some originals, penned by Randy, were soon added to the set, which further fueled their appeal. Zebra was all over town - Rip Van Winkle's, Huck's Levee Bar, the Quarternote, Old Man Rivers, the CYO dances - playing practically every night.
Even at this early stage, the band was looking for more. Someone suggested they check out the thriving Long Island, NY rock club scene. Bands like Twisted Sister, Rat Race Choir, and the Good Rats were cranking out significant rock 'n' roll in the late 70s, playing clubs like Speaks, Hammerheads, The Mad Hatter, and Chaucers Ale House. So, Zebra played its first Long Island gig on New Year's Eve 1976, at a club called "The 1890s" in the town of Baldwin.
For several years, Zebra split gigs between Long Island - where they all eventually moved - and south Louisiana. Two demo tapes were also recorded around this time - the first in New York and later a second one in Los Angeles. Between the two, most of the songs from the first album were covered. As Zebra shopped the tapes to record labels, radio stations in both New York (WBAB-FM) and New Orleans (WRNO-FM) gave the band an important boost by airing songs from the demo. In particular, "Who's Behind the Door?" became a frequent request.
In late 1982, Jason Flom signed Zebra to a five-record deal with Atlantic, although only the first was guaranteed. The self-titled debut, Zebra, was released on March 25, 1983 and became the fastest selling debut record in Atlantic Records history, selling an amazing 75,000 copies in the first week. Talk about pent up demand! The album stayed on the Billboard charts for eight months, peaking at number 29.
Veteran producer Jack Douglas, who's prior work included Aerosmith's "Toys in the Attic" and John Lennon's "Double Fantasy" LPs, was at the helm for Zebra's first two albums. "Who's Behind the Door" and "Tell Me What You Want" were released as singles, and both were given the MTV video treatment, which was still a rather new concept at the time. From any perspective, the debut was a top-notch affair and a roaring success. One fan wrote simply, "Good riffs and kicks ass". I guess that says it all.
Then came the press. Billboard's review applauded the trio's "obvious musical prowess" and commented on its "strong regional following", but also said it "offered nothing new in terms of musical licks or ideas". It was the kind of mixed review from the music press that has hampered the band's national success, even as the "vote of the people" (record sales, concert attendance, and just plain exuberance) said otherwise. Of course, bashing hard rock and heavy metal bands was hardly a novel concept (check out any Zeppelin review written in the 1970s), so in reality, Billboard's words were rather kind.
Rolling Stone magazine, which made its 1980s editorial perspective clear when it called heavy metal music "the idiot-bastard spawn of rock, the eternal embarrassment that will not die", simply chose not to review Zebra's debut (or any other album!) at all. A strange fact considering Rolling Stone's review of virtually every major label rock release and the album's quick sales out the gate. Unfortunately, there are way too many examples of Zebra being ignored or short-changed by the national music press, primarily through a mind-numbing disease I'll call "lazy rock writer's cramp". In other words, it's easier to just call Zebra "another Zep clone" than to actually listen closely to an album or maybe, God forbid, attend a concert and see for yourself. These guys deserve better. But I digress…
Back to the Zebra album. Six songs from Zebra are found here - "Tell Me What You Want", "One More Chance", "As I Said Before", "Who's Behind the Door", "Take
NOTE: All lyrics are property and copyright of their owners. All lyrics provided for educational purposes only.
