News

August 14, 2020: Upon hearing Joe Biden announce that Kamala Harris was joining him to rid our nation of the Trump administration, I created a YouTube slideshow for "People Are Saying," the first track on my new CD Vote. Check this video out as well as the video that I recently created for Dirty Little Pigs 2020, another song on Vote.

July 28, 2020: "Enough Is Enough" is the lead statement on a sign in a yard in my neighborhood. I share this sentiment and consequently have been inspired to write the songs included in the collection on my new CD, Vote! I hope that people upon hearing these tunes will share my view that our votes must be our arms in our electoral war to remove Donald Trump as president. 

May 4, 2019: Throw your hands up; jump as high as you can - crack a beer; pop some bubbly.. Join me in celebrating the completion of "Wandering the Streets", my 4th CD. Initially, I was calling the project "Curtain Call" as I truly believed it would be my last. However, as the project progressed, I had a change of heart because the quality of the work was reaching new heights. 

Consequently, while I can't say that I'll undertake another project, I can't say that I won't. Anyway, I urge you to listen to "Wandering the Streets," it truly has something for everyone as it covers a wide-range of topics, represents many genres, and accommodates various moods. As was true with my previous projects, "Wandering the Streets" displays Zan Mcleod's full range of talents as a producer, engineer, and musician, and provides an opportunity to appreciate the talents of other local musicians, namely Kristen Jones and Tad Marks.

Shortly after September 11, 2001, my "if not now, when" moment got me to resume writing music, ending a dry spell that lasted almost 30 years. 

In 1968, I began performing and writing songs and continued doing so while in college. Over time, I performed in numerous coffeehouses and a few bars in Massachusetts. Then I moved to San Francisco, fell in love, and got a “real” job. Slowly after seeing so many extremely talented performers playing on the streets, I stopped writing and looking for opportunities to play out. 

Born in 1952, I grew up in the Shadow of the Bomb, the title of a song off my debut CD, JUST REMEMBER. My formative years were the sixties: I protested the war in Vietnam, learned Transcendental Meditation, and went to the Woodstock Music and Arts Festival. These experiences profoundly affected my view of the world and my music. Having grown up listening to the political and social commentary of Bob Dylan and the romantic observations of Joni Mitchell, my objective as a songwriter has always been to write lyrics that make people think. 

As an acoustic guitarist, I was influenced by Richie Havens as well as Livingston and James Taylor. Through the years, I have developed my own percussive claw-hammer finger-picking style.

People always ask what type of music I write and play. I generally say folk-rock, but recognize that my style is broader than that and my songs deal with a wide range of topics. Consequently, I suggest people take a listen and apply their own label.