If I asked you to make a masterpiece in 150 minutes, what would you come up with?
That was the task facing songwriters Sam Lyons, Gail Ann Dorsey, and Milwaukee’s own Steve Ziel this past June as part of a Goffin & King songwriting retreat in Memphis. The three had never met at length before, much less worked with one another. What they turned out in two and a half hours, however, was “Wide Awake,” a new single in development from the trio that recently premiered to the world.
For Ziel, the story goes much deeper than simply helping to pen a song, however. Many may remember his name from his time in Pet Engine, who he fondly refers to as “the world’s best opening act.” The band was active in the Milwaukee music scene throughout the ‘90s, and, as you might imagine, opened for some big names, most notably Oasis in 1996, as they trekked through Milwaukee in the heyday of alternative rock.
Following the breakup of the band, Ziel continued to write and record on his own, though largely keeping his music confined to unreleased studio work. It wasn’t until after a January health scare and a procedure that removed part of his colon that Ziel would eventually take the stage, for the first time, as a solo act. His return to writing and performing caught the attention of fellow songwriter and Milwaukee music mainstay Liv Mueller, who submitted his demos for the songwriting retreat, an annual event centered around Southern Grooves Studio, where a host of legendary artists have recorded, and several posthumous releases from Elvis Presley have been mixed.
“She told me ‘you’ll get an all-expenses paid trip to Memphis out of it.’” recalls Ziel. “That’s a good friend.”
After being selected to write with a nationwide talent pool, Ziel was paired up with Madison-born Sam Lyons, a solo artist who currently resides in Los Angeles, and Gail Ann Dorsey, who has a storied track record that includes performing with David Bowie, Gang of Four and many others, in addition to her solo work. While Ziel and Lyons had met on the first night of the retreat, it was when they were in the room together to write with Dorsey where things came together quickly.
“As a songwriter, you always love your newest song,” said Ziel. "I went back to the hotel and listened to it maybe 25 times trying to pick it apart."
Both he and Sam knew they were capable of writing a good song, but both were taken back that it actually happened so organically. Only four tracks from the retreat were selected to be recorded at Southern Grooves, and “Wide Awake” made the final cut.
"I've spent my whole life trying to write this song, and I realized I couldn't do it by myself” said Ziel.
The next phase for “Wide Awake,” though, is currently in development. Three different mixes of the track currently exist, including the version recorded at Southern Grooves. The Milwaukee version of the song features local mixing from Mike Bliesner, whereas a Los Angeles one features the talents of Elijah Wells. Mike Zirkel in Madison has his own mix of the song as well. The song is available from Lyons as a solo act in collaboration with Ziel’s Chrystal Gales project, and also still could be shopped to an artist for a larger release.
"There's no template for this, given the people involved with the festival. I'm super excited about this." said Ziel
Following the release of “Wide Awake,” Ziel plans to continue working with Mueller as Chrystal Gales. The band are currently building out a fuller version of their live outfit, and will begin to play out more regularly in the coming months. You can hear the Milwaukee version of “Wide Awake” here via Radio Milwaukee.
