Tony Castellanos (guitar and vocals) and Tim Boynton (bass and vocals) founded the Zanzibar band in Miami, Florida, in 1974 for gigs at the Bahia Cabana Hotel in Ft. Lauderdale, with the addition of Rick Gritz (drums and vocals). Inspired by the likes of Bill Withers and Steely Dan, Zanzibar played a soulful series of club dates and private parties as well as a their requisite beach hotel gigs at Miami area staples like the Fontainebleau, the Eden Rock and the Marco Polo hotel.
In the late 70s, Castellanos changed the name of the band to Pazazz and, while the band was working for the Norwegian Cruise Line, he penned the band’s first single “So Hard To Find.” This and “The Right One,” written by interim drummer Al Varon, who played on the single, were recorded and readied for release on a silver Pazazz label, complete with picture sleeve. It wasn’t until Castellanos received five hundred copies of the single that he realized that the record was flawed. He demanded a second press run – this time issued on a red Pazazz label – but it too was, in Castellanos opinion, flawed. So the band decided against any sort of release, opting to gift copies of both versions to fans at their gigs.
The band split in 1981 and forgot about their single until Los Angeles record collector Mike Vegh found a random copy of the record and, impressed by the steady funk of Pazazz’s soulful disco, tracked down Castellanos and brokered the purchase of the last remaining copies of his records. Vegh connected us with the man and we’re happy to represent Pazazz’s small, but great, catalog.