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Villa Park, Ill. —
When Mike Zatezalo of Villa Park isn’t involved in technical sales and consulting for engineering software, he morphs into a rock guitarist, whose musical roles include lead singer for Jaw Potato, performing at Miss Kitty’s Saloon in early April. The jam band, co-founded by Mike Jeffers, owner of Chicago Jazz Magazine, also features Dave Goldman on electric violin, Frank Hryniewicz on guitar, Jeffers on drums, and Adam Kraus on bass. Jeffers explains the diverse musical styles of Jaw Potato: “We might start with Tom Petty’s ‘Mary Jane’s Last Dance,’ then play Bob Marley’s ‘Could You Be Loved’ into Dick Dale’s ‘Miserlou,’ then Snoop Dogg’s ‘Gin and Juice.’” Zatezalo talks about his own eclectic life in music.
When did you first play an instrument?
I played classical piano for eight or nine years when I was a kid, (from age) 5. Then I started playing guitar when I was 13 … (you) can’t play Led Zeppelin (or Metallica) that well on the piano. I had a $10, beat-up acoustic guitar. I took some lessons; overall, I’m self-taught. A lot of theory and musical training came from the piano aspect.
What’s special about Jaw Potato?
We’re having fun reinventing songs people like to hear. All the guys are pretty good improvisers … and we share playing lead. A lot of stuff we do is taking songs that are familiar, but we’ll jam out on them quite a bit. Everybody gets a chance to stretch out a little bit. (Miss Kitty’s) is a great place. Everybody there loves music.
Describe your other musical projects.
I was in an original band called Opal Candy. I also play with Sam Cockrell. He’s been a top guy in R&B and blues around town for a long time. He actually is running the blues jam every Thursday at the Harlem Avenue Lounge in Berwyn. (It’s) my favorite blues club in Chicago. He’s a great songwriter. I fill in as a hired gun for some of the bigger local Chicago cover bands too … Alternative Theory and ‘Stache! are a few. I write an occasional, guitar-related column in the Chicago Examiner — from music theory to reviews to artist interviews. (Most) Thursdays, I’m hosting an open mike at Demito Time in Villa Park at 9 p.m. We’ve had solo acoustic guitarists to (bands) and stand-up comedy. If you have a passion or you want to get up on stage … then come on out. If I know the (song, it’s sometimes) almost like live-band karaoke. I also do some sales and marketing work for … one of my buddies; he has a company doing custom guitar amplifiers and speaker cabinets: Revolt Amps.
What keeps music such an important part of your life?
The love for it, really. (I knew) even if I wasn’t going to be some sort of rock star, I was always going to play as much as possible. I figured … as long as I had a guitar, I would be fine.
When Mike Zatezalo of Villa Park isn’t involved in technical sales and consulting for engineering software, he morphs into a rock guitarist, whose musical roles include lead singer for Jaw Potato, performing at Miss Kitty’s Saloon in early April. The jam band, co-founded by Mike Jeffers, owner of Chicago Jazz Magazine, also features Dave Goldman on electric violin, Frank Hryniewicz on guitar, Jeffers on drums, and Adam Kraus on bass. Jeffers explains the diverse musical styles of Jaw Potato: “We might start with Tom Petty’s ‘Mary Jane’s Last Dance,’ then play Bob Marley’s ‘Could You Be Loved’ into Dick Dale’s ‘Miserlou,’ then Snoop Dogg’s ‘Gin and Juice.’” Zatezalo talks about his own eclectic life in music.
When did you first play an instrument?
I played classical piano for eight or nine years when I was a kid, (from age) 5. Then I started playing guitar when I was 13 … (you) can’t play Led Zeppelin (or Metallica) that well on the piano. I had a $10, beat-up acoustic guitar. I took some lessons; overall, I’m self-taught. A lot of theory and musical training came from the piano aspect.
What’s special about Jaw Potato?
We’re having fun reinventing songs people like to hear. All the guys are pretty good improvisers … and we share playing lead. A lot of stuff we do is taking songs that are familiar, but we’ll jam out on them quite a bit. Everybody gets a chance to stretch out a little bit. (Miss Kitty’s) is a great place. Everybody there loves music.
Describe your other musical projects.
I was in an original band called Opal Candy. I also play with Sam Cockrell. He’s been a top guy in R&B and blues around town for a long time. He actually is running the blues jam every Thursday at the Harlem Avenue Lounge in Berwyn. (It’s) my favorite blues club in Chicago. He’s a great songwriter. I fill in as a hired gun for some of the bigger local Chicago cover bands too … Alternative Theory and ‘Stache! are a few. I write an occasional, guitar-related column in the Chicago Examiner — from music theory to reviews to artist interviews. (Most) Thursdays, I’m hosting an open mike at Demito Time in Villa Park at 9 p.m. We’ve had solo acoustic guitarists to (bands) and stand-up comedy. If you have a passion or you want to get up on stage … then come on out. If I know the (song, it’s sometimes) almost like live-band karaoke. I also do some sales and marketing work for … one of my buddies; he has a company doing custom guitar amplifiers and speaker cabinets: Revolt Amps.
What keeps music such an important part of your life?
The love for it, really. (I knew) even if I wasn’t going to be some sort of rock star, I was always going to play as much as possible. I figured … as long as I had a guitar, I would be fine.
