THE FABULOUS ZARSOFF BROTHERS

Three members of The Zarsoff Bros, Izzy [Peter Knox], Bernie [Greg Deane] and Terry [Tony Verhoeven]) were playing as The Robin Lee Sinclair Band in 1979, backing singer Robin Lee Sinclair doing disco versions of every kind of song that moved. The band was very popular on the club circuit, but Izzy started to yearn for an outlet for his comedy material. The three future Zarsoffs started doing some low-key gigs away from Robin Lee Sinclair, as The Likker Act. When Robin found out, he demanded exclusive loyalty. Izzy, Bernie and Terry got pissed at the Royal Sheaf Hotel in Double Bay one afternoon and went to visit Robin. Izzy told him where to stick his exclusive loyalty, and the 1979 version of The Zarsoff Bros was born. After a few gigs, the boys decided they needed a fourth member.

There was a Bluey who rehearsed a lot with the band and did maybe one gig, but he proved to be too serious a musician and wasn’t too fond of the bizarre onstage antics of the other members. He soon departed and the real Bluey Zarsoff [Tony Grose] joined, just before the band headed to Cairns for a six-week stint at Caesars Palace. In fact, this Bluey only did one gig before Cairns, at The Bondi Tram, then fell headfirst into the mayhem. This was the 1979 version of The Zarsoff Bros because, unknown to Izzy Foreal, there was a band with this name who recorded a single '' Strike Four You're Out / Please Leave Me Alone'' in 1973. This band consisted of members from popular bands of the time, who got together to release a record under the name The Zarsoff Bros. That band never performed live as far as is known, and the whole thing was meant to be a one-off joke.

The Zarsoff name, of course, has been around as a joke for ages. Many of Izzy’s Road crew members had Zarsoff names in previous bands. In fact, Dave Ovenden, drummer with The 69ers when Izzy was known as Peter Knox and that band’s bass player, used to often call out over the microphone: “A message for Mister Bluey Zarsoff, please refrain from leaving skid marks in the car park”. Anyway, it was the 1979 Zarsoff Bros who went on to carve themselves a reputation as a rude, crude, offensive, irreverent and extremely funny band throughout the 1980s. The 1979 line up came to an end when Izzy went to Tweed Heads to play bass with Bullamakanka. After about eight months he returned to Sydney and formed the next version of The Zarsoff Bros.

This version featured Rocky [Warwick Kennington] on drums, Smokey [Gary Dale] on lead guitar , Izzy on bass and Bernie on keyboards. Bluey returned after a few months, and Rudi [Dave Wray] joined on saxophone not long after. This classic line up carved its way through the Sydney live scene for some time, creating the legend that still lives on in many drug addled minds. This lineup recorded the EP 'Nose-Pickin' Boogie' at Kanagra Studios in 1982 and it was released on the Piranah Brothers label. 

Frontman and bassist Izzy Foreal put the band to sleep some time in the early 1990s. He was asked to put a lineup together for “The Boys Are Back In Town” tours towards the end of the 1990s, which he did using various combinations of past band members. The vibe was so good that the version of the band decided to write an album of new material and continue the mayhem. So, The Legendary Zarsoff Bros were back on the road with a new second guitarist, recording a new album and touring to promote it. The last Zarsoffs gig with this line up was at the Bull N Bush (Sydney), September 22, 2001.  Rory Zarsoff [Danny Haynes] died in 2011

Members

Izzy Foreal [Peter Knox] (vocals, bass, kazoo), Arfur Zarsoff [Peter Northcott] (guitar), Bernie Zarsoff [Greg Deane] (piano, vocals, kazoo), Bluey Zarsoff [Tony Grose] (guitar, sax), Bologne Zarsoff (drums), Buster Zarsoff, Cranky Zarsoff [Peter Kekel] (keyboards), Lefty Zarsoff [Daryl McKenzie] (drums), Rocky Zarsoff [Warwick Kennington] (drums), Rory Zarsoff [Danny Haynes] (guitar, vocals), Rudi Zarsoff [Dave Wray] (saxophone), Shaggy Zarsoff (vocals, guitar, mandolin), Smoky Zarsoff [Gary Dale] (guitar), Smoky Zarsoff II [Sam See] (guitar), Squeezie Zarsoff (drums), Terry Zarsoff [Tony Verhoeven] (drums), Zippy Zarsoff [Bruce Allen] (saxophone)

SINGLES
''Handyman / Workin' It Out'' 1984 Piranha Bros 

EPs
'Bum Sweat' 1981 Piranha Brothers Records 
'Nose-Pickin' Boogie' 1982 Piranha Brothers Records 

ALBUMS
'Rude Awakening' 1984 Browneye Gramophonics

References

http://www.zarsoffbros.com/history/