The Music Of Mr. Zero’s fro the Past 10 Years
“The Music Of Mr. Zero’s”
WDGY Article #99 May-2019
By: RLSchwinden aka MrZerr0
In March of 2009 I had left my former “Used Entertainment” employer and some Business partners and I, founded “Mr. Zero’s Inc.” I had taken an idea from my former Supervisor, that we needed a name and a character to go with it. So I chose “Mr. Zero” for the TV Show “The Monkees” from Episode #52 “Devil and Peter Tork” from Feb 1968. Mr. Zero owned the Pawn Shop where Tork accidentally sold his soul to the Devil for the ability to play the harp. So my business partner “Comics Expert” Aaron McF. came up with the 1st mascot, in 2010 “Mr. Zero” a comic character who fights crime by throwing records at the villains, his main nemesis is “The Scratcher”. Shortly after that one of our 1st customers Peggy S. came up with “Mr. Zero” based loosely on “The Joker” in 2011, I think. I met Jose Delbo, who worked on “Yellow Submarine” & “Batman” through a fellow illustrator, in Spring 2012, I believe, and we were able to persuade him to create our most famous “Mr. Zero” based on “Beatles: Yellow Submarine”.
At some point early on, a customer was in the Shop, and began singing “My Hero, Zero” from “Grammar School Rock” by: Bob Dorough from January 1973. We decided we needed a Theme Song, so we loosely used this until my long time friend and customer Wes W. came in the shop, sometime around late 2010, I think, and asked “Did you pick the name “Mr. Zero’s” from the Keith Relf/ Yardbirds song “Mr. Zero” (a #50 hit from May 1966), I replied, “No, I am unaware of this song” But, from then on we used it, un-officially, that is ….
> 2011: Jesus Chrysler <
I met a guy named Bakko here in the store, we became fast friends in 2010, and he actually got me to sit in with his Local Original Band “Jesus Chrysler” in Oct. 2010. Unfortunately, I can not quite recall when he brought in our 1st official; original theme song “Mr. Zero’s” it was either late 2011 or early 2012. But this kicked off a trend for us. Though he is in the Band “Jesus Chrysler” I am not sure if the other members played on it or not. I did use this on my very 1st Guest Radio Show “The Pop Shop” on KAFI 90.3 fm & 106.7 am in Oct. 2012 and many other radio shows since then. We also used it as an opening theme for my Cover Band “MrZERo” a time or 2. Jesus Chrysler’s CDs are for sale at Mr. Zero’s.
> 2012: Mitch Anderson <
In late 2012, Drummer, Vocalist Dave Columbus, who I had met though a Guitarist Mitch the week we open the shop. Finally convinced me to get back into playing live music again, with Zach Plese on Guitar, who I met though his wife a customer of the store and Mitch Anderson on Guitar, Keyboards and Vocals, and I on Vocals & Bass, we formed “MrZERo” in Oct. 2012, if I am not mistaken. After a show or 2, Mitch brought up having our own Theme Song, so Mitch wrote & recorded “Gotta Check It Out MrZERo” in late 2012, I believe.
> 2013: Mark Jackson <
A year or 2 after we opened the Shop, these group of young boys from the local Catholic School, started coming in and hanging out, I dubbed them the “Stand By Me Gang” turns out 2 of them were really good musicians, Gavin on Bass and Mark J. on Guitar, their band was “Reaper” as I recall. So I asked Mark to create a new theme song for us, he brought in “The Place To Go” in late 2013.
>2014: Norrell & John 10th <
I met the “Wizard Terrance” from the band “Princess Wishing Star” very early on when the Shop opened he was looking to buy reel to reel tapes for his recording studio and gave me a autographed copy of his record featuring a cover of “The Monkees” song “Porpoise Song” so for the 5th anniversary I asked him to come up with a theme song for us. He recorded a song “I Will Be There” with Norrel & Mandy from “The Band Famous” he took that song and re-worked it into “Mr. Zero’s Record Store” in early 2014.
As we approached our 5th anniversary I wanted to make the most of it so I asked my friend John the 10th, from the band “Snellabration” who I had met though “Paul the Bookman” of the St. Paul Punk Band “Frances Gumm” if John 10th he would create a theme song for us, and so he brought to us “5 4 3 2 1 Zero” in Summer 2014. John 10, gave us a new re-mix version for our 10th anniversary in 2019.
> 2015: Westside Mikey <
In high school (West High Sioux City) I was musical friends with Mike Langley we had a band the “Magic Acid Band” at the time his Dad (Jack) won an award for a local restaurant commercial. Since Mike has released many CDs over the years, I had the idea to ask Mike to create a theme song for us. In 2015 “Westside Mikey” gave us “Mr. Zero’s, Mr. Zero’s”.
> 2016: Phil-Tyr & Wailin Gregg <
Mitch’s son Tyr was in a band with Will, in 2016 I was looking for a new theme song and I had an idea. So I came up with an outline, I wanted and R&B song with the hook-chorus “Some People Just Don’t Get It” and so, “Phil-Tyr” delivered the theme song of that very title.
Later this year in 2016 a customer came in looking for a certain vintage toy, and we had one in the box, he decided he needed to buy this item, as he just came from shooting a local commercial he had some cash. As he walked up to the cash register he said “Whew … watch out when you come to Mr. Zero’s because you’re gonna find it” I offered “You wanna do another one (commercial)?” he agreed, so I wrote the lyrics and had the idea to do a Blues based theme, because so many customers come into the store looking for Blues records from the 30s, 40s & 50s, he came up with the music and “Wailin Gregg” gave us “When You Go To Zero’s”.
> 2017: Dennisota, Amy Fauble & PsychoGello <
Now Dennis M. had been coming to Mr. Zero’s almost from the beginning in 2010, but at some point he started to come in making up his own words to whatever song was playing over the stereo in the store. This one day he was on to something and came up with a great one, but we did not have a way to record it that day. When I got him to come back on a later date, sometime in 2017, he had forgotten the one I loved. So I had an idea. Jack White announced in the film “It Might Get Loud” from 2008 that his favorite song is “Grinnin In Your Face” from 1965 or 1943? by Son House (Mississippi: 1902-1988), I heard this and thought “What a cosmic joke, this is just barely a song, as I hardly call hand claps & foot stomps an instrument” So my idea was to create a “Song” with just as little to offer as “Grinnin In Your Face” as another joke. I talked with Dennis for a few minutes and he and I came up with “Goin Ta Mista Zero’s” by “Smokin Blind Dennisota”
In 2017 I created my WDGY Radio Show “Mr. Zero’s PsychoGello Show” I was recording at “Wishing Star Studios” in St. Paul with the “Wizard Terrance” he had written and recorded a song titled “Let’s Build A Wall Around NE Minneapolis” (https://soundcloud.com/wishingstarstudio/lets-build-a-wall) one night in Sep or Oct. 2017 I went into the studio to record a new radio show, and Terrance had re-written the song as “Mr. Zero’s In St. Paul” he brought in local artist Amy Dawn Fauble to sing the lead vocal and in Dec. 2017 it was finished.
For our 8th anniversary at Mr. Zero’s I had been bugging a local band to create a new theme song, and they came back with “You’re a musician and song writer, why don’t you make one” so I thought, “OK, I will” I thought about it a few days and decided I wanted it like 60s Pop-Rock, I kind of wrote the chord progression 1st and later wrote the lyrics and melody while I was brushing my teeth one day before work. We recorded with the studio band at “Wishing Start Studios” and released it as “Nerd Is The Word” by PsychoGello in Oct. 2017.
> 2018: Crash Jackson & PsychoGello <
In 2013 Mitch’s nephew Jackson worked here in the store we had him record a video for us doing “Not Fade Away”. Jack came into to see me one time in 2018, we were talking and I could see he had really progressed as a musician, and he was always very creative, so I asked him to come up with the new theme song, in a few weeks he delivered ”Mr. Zero’s Oh Yea” with his band “Conspiracy Business”
At the same sessions we (PsychoGello) cut “Nerd Is The Word” in Sep. 2017 we recorded an instrumental jam we titled “New American Engineer”. In Dec 2018, I recorded a vocal line for it and created a new Theme Song “Psycho Zero”
> 2019: Missy Marrz & Shock Trigger <
I met Missy in 2010 through my old neighbors of 10 years. At 1st she started out being the Model for Mr. Zero’s then one day in 2014 we were chatting between photo shoots, she picked up my White SG and sang a song she wrote titled “Recycled Words” I had no idea she was such a great musician and song writer. So after much prodding we got Missy Marrz to write and record “Mr. Zero & Me” in April 2019. I have played it many times on our Radio Shows this year. I have since produced a Demo Recording for her and performed live with her several times over the years, Missy even performed in Mr. Zero’s on “National RecordStore Day” in 2017.
One day a few years ago a guy (Tony) wondered into Mr. Zero’s, looked around and said “You sure have a lot of Tommy Bolin merchandise in this store” I responded that’s because I am from his hometown and his neighborhood” the guy answered “Me, too” I asked “What side of town as all we old time Siouxlanders do” he replied “Morningside” we began to talk about the old days back home, and became good friends. Turns out he is in a band “Shock Trigger” they asked us if they could use our Logo on their posters I said sure, can you come up with a theme song for us, Tony asked “What did you have in mind?” so I came up with an idea and wrote out the lyrics and the arrangement in a few minutes Tony took this back to the band and wrote the music & melody, and presented us with “Mr. Zero’s Zero”. We had the band “Shock Trigger” play in the store on “National Record Store Day” this year in 2019.
Now, recently Zach P. Lead guitarist of “MrZERo” has turn in a new instrumental theme to be used on our WDGY & WFNU radio shows.
There you have it folks the history of the many theme songs Mr Zero’s 55113 has used & continues to use to this day. You can hear them all, simply go to www.MrZeroS.Com – Podcast key and there is Episode #2009 which contains them all. Hear MrZerr0 on Sundays 7am on WDGY & every 3rd Monday 8:30am for “Hits And History” with Rick Burnett.
Tune in Next Time … MrZerr0
Mr. Zero’s Inc.
*Est. 2009
1744 Lexington Ave. N.
Roseville, Mn 55113
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