22 July 3rd-July 10th, 2024 phoenixnewtimes.com PHOENIX NEW TIMES | NEWS | FEATURE | FOOD & DRINK | ARTS & CULTURE | MUSIC | CONCERTS | CANNABIS | WED 7/3 FRI 7/5 SAT 7/6 SUN 7/7 THURS 7/11 WED 7/10 JUST ABOUT HALFWAY GALACTIC HARMONY SHOWTIME @ 7PM IAN MOORE SUGAR THIEVES DUO SHOWTIME @ 8PM TAKEN BY THE HORNS SHOWTIME 8PM EN FUEGO: A CELEBRATION OR LATIN JAZZ SHOWTIME 2PM CHACHOOGA CISCO BUDGE, CLUTCH THE PEARLS, ITSOPAIC SHOWTIME 7PM CHRIS O’LEARY BAND SHOWTIME 8PM When the Music’s Over Iconic Phoenix store Ziggie’s Music has closed for good. BY BENJAMIN LEATHERMAN Z iggie’s Music is a business that’s steeped in local history. The iconic Phoenix retailer dates back decades and has been a go-to spot for genera- tions of musicians both local and nationally known, including famous names like Duane Eddy, Waylon Jennings and Dick Dale. Now, the beloved store has become history. Ziggie’s Music shut down at the end of May due to health issues affecting longtime owner Dionne Hauke. Megan Hauke, Dionne’s daughter, told Phoenix New Times via text message the closure is permanent. She says in addition to her mother’s health, issues with the property’s ownership and a downturn in business in recent years were also factors in the decision. It’s the final chapter for a business that’s been a beloved Phoenix institution for decades. Founded by Hauke’s grandfather, the late Angelo “Ziggie” Zardus, the store became renowned for its personal touch and musical instrument selection. The first Arizona store to sell Fender guitars, Ziggie’s Music has been a vital part of the Valley music scene and a gathering place for musicians. Rikk Nielsen, a longtime employee of Ziggie’s Music, says the store has earned its iconic status. “It’s been a big part of local music history,” Nielsen says. “I don’t know any musician off the top of my head who has played around town much who doesn’t know about Ziggie’s.” How Ziggie Zardus came to Phoenix The history of Ziggie’s Music spans nearly a century and is closely tied to Zardus, its namesake and founder. A Michigan native and professional accordion player, Zardus came to Phoenix in 1927 to visit his sister-in-law en route to California to play music for talkies. His granddaughter, Dionne Hauke, told Phoenix New Times in 2019 that Zardus found a reason to stay in the Valley. “He’s sitting outside on Polk Street, over by the bus station, playing his accordion and this guy comes up and says, ‘Do you want a job?’” Hauke said. It led Zardus to a gig playing accordion in a band performing at the Westward Ho and live broadcasts airing on KOY-AM. “So right off the bus, Ziggie’s got a job playing on the radio,” Hauke told New Times. “He started getting offers to play weddings and barn dances, and to teach Little Johnny to play accordion. He said, ‘I’m staying.’” The origins of Ziggie’s Music Zardus began putting down roots in the Valley. In the late 1930s, he offered accordion lessons at Dawson’s Accordion and Guitar Studio on West Adams Street. By the 1940s, though, he’d started renting space near Fourth Avenue and Washington Street. According to Hauke, he eventually expanded to selling guitars at the location years later after meeting Leo Fender, the legendary founder of Fender Guitars. “One day a guy comes in and says he’s making these guitars called Fenders, and he wonders if my grandfather wanted to sell some here,” Hauke told New Times in 2019. “So my grandfather became the first Fender dealer in Arizona, on a handshake.” In the years following the Great Depression, Zardus purchased a home on Third Street. In the mid-1950s, his brother-in-law built an addition next door that became the longtime home of Ziggie’s Music. Famous names and rock ’n’ roll rebels Over the following decades, the store was patronized by many famous names, including such music icons as Waylon Jennings, Jessi Colter, Dick Dale and Lee Hazelwood. (Hauke told New Times she once witnessed the late Sonny Bono in Ziggie’s Music speaking with her grand- father in Italian in the ’60s.) One of Ziggie’s most famous patrons was the legendary guitarist Duane Eddy. In 1957, the future Rock and Roll Hall of Famer and one-time Arizona resident purchased the orange Gretsch 6120 guitar he used to create the signature twang on his best-known hit “Rebel Rouser.” John Dixon, an Arizona music histo- rian, says Zardus reportedly let Eddy pay off the $450 guitar in installments. The gesture led to one of Arizona’s best-known rock ’n’ roll songs. “As the story goes, Duane didn’t have the money to buy the guitar all at once, so Ziggie told him, ‘This is the model you want? Just pay me every so often,’” Dixon says. “Duane’s orange Gretsch he did ‘Rebel Rouser’ on and all of his hits became so iconic it’s now out at the (Musical Instrument Museum).” Eddy became a Ziggie’s regular, as did his bassist, famed session musician Al Casey. Dixon says Casey conducted music lessons and recording sessions at the store for decades from the ’80s onward and lived in the attached residence until he died in 2006. “On Saturday afternoons, Al he’d have a jam session in his backyard and I’d go to a couple of those. I met some really good musicians there, like Alis Lesley,” Dixon says. “Ziggie’s was a connecting point for a lot of people.” ‘A real gathering place for musicians’ Dionne Hauke began running Ziggie’s in 1980 after Zardus died. She later inherited the store in 1989. Dixon says she ran it for decades with her late husband, Chuck. “Normally, Dionne would work days and then Chuck would come in at night and do the guitar, amplifier and accordion repair,” Dixon says. Nielsen says the couple kept the place focused on musicians and continued her grandfather’s traditions. “I’ve had old-timers come in and tell me stories about how Dionne would help them out. Like, ‘You got to wait until your next check to pay for the guitar? Go ahead and Angelo “Ziggie” Zardus (left), founder of Ziggie’s Music, with rock ’n’ roll legend Duane Eddy (right), who purchased his famed Gretsch guitar at the shop. (Photo courtesy of John Dixon) ▼ Music
