John Roy Zat

I have been performing in the San Francisco Bay Area and beyond, since the 1970's.  Kate Wolf recorded my words to the song Midnight On The Water for her second album - with me playing fiddle - and the song has since been covered by Banish Misfortune, Caroline Herring and others.  

My newest CD, WHERE ZAT, was released in November 2021.  It has gotten consistent airplay on independent radio, and has charted well on Roots Music Report and other radio playlists.  It reached #12 on the RMR "Top 50 Alt Folk Albums of 2022" -- what an honor !!     

Want to know more?  Read on.  

I am from all over.  Born in Paris, as a kid I lived in the Washington, DC area; then Saigon and Cannes; and then Bangkok -- where I first heard the Beatles and Hank Williams, and a lot of Thai pop. I finished high school in Southern California (got my first guitar) and went to college in LA (got my first fiddle). 

After college and one year as a geologist, I started playing music full time, mostly country rock and top-40.   During the 1970's and 80's, I played with numerous bands and toured in the western US.  My bands opened several times for Asleep At The Wheel, and also for Tanya Tucker and Freddie Hart.

In my 30's, I put full time music activities on hold.  I had gotten married and wanted to raise a family.   I worked residential construction; and after five years of remodeling houses, I went back to school and got a business degree.  I worked in San Francisco, as an auditor for KPMG, a large accounting firm; then as the controller at TY LIn International, an engineering firm.  I finished my corporate career as the CFO of The Asia Foundation, a non-profit focused on improving government in Asia.   I have worked with people all over the world. 

Through all of my day jobs, I kept playing music, writing songs and performing.  My bands played the San Francisco Bluegrass and Old Time Festival and the Freight & Salvage Coffeehouse on numerous occasions, and many clubs and casual functions.  

Since retiring in June 2011, I am back to making and performing music full time.  With some mileage on my chassis and a lot of this planet traveled, I can say that music is one of Nature’s laws.  Everybody is moved by music. Everyone has a favorite song, or two, or twenty. One of my greatest joys is making music and sharing songs with people; and if I haven't met you yet, I hope to before long.