aking their name from a classic 1981 Santana album
of the same name, consists of seven
energetic and talented musicians
who take pride in performing the music of Santana with passion,
dedication and originality. Zebop! has gained the attention of Santana
fans throughout the bay area following their performances in live
music venues, outdoor festivals, and corporate and private events.
The group was reformed in 2005 by lead guitarist Antonio
Marquez. It was his inspiration to form a tribute band to honor and
recreate the music of Carlos Santana. The foundation of the band began
with percussionist Ernesto Angulo. Ernesto, no stranger to Santana's
music has been a long time fan of Santana for quite sometime and was
a member of the now retired group called "Libre" a San Jose
based band that performed many Santana songs. It was during
his stint in "Libre" in the early 80's that Antonio and
Ernesto met and began to discuss various selections of Santana arrangements to
perform in a tribute band. Steve Vasquez a life long friend of
Antonio's was recruited for the role of lead vocals. Steve had a tremendous
experience as a vocalist and worked in Los Angeles for ten years as
a studio musician and club musician. After returning to the bay area
Steve was excited to contribute his talent and experience to his friend
Antonio's project. After a few personnel changes Zach Bonilla was
added to the group on key boards and has performed and recorded with
musicians from various groups such as Tower of Power,Santana,
Tierra, El Chicano,Doobie Brothers, Earth,Wind and Fire and Pete Escovedo
and the Escovedo family just to name a few, and as a former member
of Malo and George Santana he contributes his talent to Zebop!. Art
Padilla was asked to be part of this experience on drums and with
his expertise on various rhythyms he contributes tremendously
to the current sound of the band. Most recently added to the group
has been accomplished by bass man Phill Bjurman. Enrique Luis
(Qique) Sandoval from San Francisco's Mission District was added as
the groups new member on congas.
It
is the dedication and wealth of talent that these seven musicians
collectively contribute that make the Zebop! experience a memorable
one, keeping any crowd on their feet and moving to the music
of SANTANA.
