Zacharias started playing piano at age 7 and guitar at age 12. His musical background runs the gamut from R&B to Country, Soul and Jazz. His influences began with the Sons of the Pioneers, Elvis, Hank Williams, through Ray Charles to Otis Redding and Wilson Pickett--forming a rich musical foundation.
Zacharias has seen life from many sides and has knocked around in diverse vocations from merchant seaman, actor, street musician, gourmet chef to practicing criminal law, before settling on a recording career in music. Zacharias was discovered by Marvin Gaye while playing with his street band in Brussels, Belgium, and was invited to record harmonica tracks of the Gaye's final album.
Zacharias started playing music in the 70s in San Francisco. In 1980, his band took a trip to the Mardi Gras, "People overwhelmed us there. They really liked us," enthuses Zacharias. "There were people there from all over the world. Europeans told us the people would love us over there, and we should consider taking the trip."
When Zacharias did make the trip to Europe, his music really started to gel. "That's where I found my musical voice," says Zacharias. "That's where I learned the art of street theater--how to entertain people."
