’60s Rockstar Alex ‘Zack’ Zytnik Dead at 79

Alex “Zack” Zytnik, a founding member and lead guitarist for the rock band Tamam Shud, has died. Regarded as “Aussie rock royalty,” the Australian musician passed away on Friday, Nov. 1 at the age of 79, according to social media posts. His cause of death was not disclosed.

“Vale to Aussie rock royalty, Alex Zitnik (Zac) who passed away today,” Nicci Davidson announced his passing on Facebook. “Zac has left an indelible mark on the Australian classic rock scene of the 60s and 70s which brought to life the surf rock culture of Newcastle… RIP Zac you will be sadly missed but your music will live on – hopefully they’ll give you a gig in rock n’ roll heaven.”

Zytnik got his start playing lead guitar in the band The Four Strangers alongside Eric Connell on bass guitar, Dannie Davidson on drums, and Gary Johns on rhythm guitar. The group formed in Newcastle in 1964 and released just a single song, “The Rip,” before Lindsay Bjerre replaced Johns on guitar and lead vocals,” according to Howlspace. The group underwent several lineup and name changes before they took the name Tamam Shud in 1967, with Peter Barron replacing Connell on bass guitar.

Although Zytnik only remained with the band for two more years, only playing on their 1969 album Evolution, he left an indelible mark on the Australian psychedelic rock scene. Despite being recorded live-in-the-studio over a two-and-a-half-hour session, per whammo.com.au, Evolution was considered “one of the first wholly original rock albums produced in Australia” and “one of the most loved soundtracks of the period.” Film-maker Paul Witzig financed the album session Film-maker Paul Witzig financed the album session in return for being able to use four of the album’s tracks on the soundtrack to his surfing film of the same name.

Zytnik left Tamam Shud a year after Evolution’s release and was replaced by Tim Gaze for the band’s second album, 1970’s Goolutionites and the Real People. The group went on to provide songs for the soundtrack of the iconic 1972 surf film Morning Of the Earth, play at the very first outdoor rock festival The Pilgrimage of Pop, and tour before disbanding in 1972. The group later reunited in 1993 to release a third album, Permanent Culture, in 1994, but disbanded again in 1995.

According to the Daily Mail, rock historian Ian McFarlane said Tamam Shud was one of the first local bands to embrace the late 1960s psychedelic sounds of Cream, The Jimi Hendrix Experience, Pink Floyd, Eric Burdon and The (New) Animals, plus the San Francisco stylings of The Grateful Dead and their il… Tamam Shud became inextricably linked with the surfing fraternity, with audiences seemingly transfixed by the band’s enveloping acid-surf progressive rock.”