Robin Wayne Zander (born January 23, 1953) is an American musician who is the lead singer and rhythm guitarist for the rock band Cheap Trick. Zander joined Cheap Trick in 1974 and, as of 2025, remains a member of the band. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2016 as a member of Cheap Trick. Zander is also a solo artist.
Early life
Zander was born in Beloit, Wisconsin, and grew up in nearby Loves Park, Illinois.
He learned to play the guitar by age 12.
Zander graduated from Harlem High School in Machesney Park, Illinois.
After playing in high school bands in the 1960s,
he joined Brian Beebe to form the folk duo Zander & Kent in the early 1970s.
Music career
Cheap Trick
In 1974, Zander accepted an invitation to join Cheap Trick.
Along with Zander on lead vocals and rhythm guitar,
the band consisted of guitarist
Rick Nielsen, bassist
Tom Petersson, and drummer Bun E. Carlos.
Cheap Trick's 1979 album,
Cheap Trick at Budokan, catapulted the band to stardom.
The band reached the Top 10 in the U.S. charts in 1979 with "I Want You to Want Me" and topped the charts in 1988 with "The Flame".
Cheap Trick has performed more than 5,000 shows
and has sold more than 20 million albums.
Zander was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of Cheap Trick in 2016.
As of 2025, he is still the lead singer of the band.
Other work
Zander released the solo album
Robin Zander in 1993.
On September 30, 2016, Los Angeles rock band Steel Panther released a cover version of Cheap Trick song "She's Tight" (from Cheap Trick's 1982 album One On One), which features Zander in the music video.
Artistry and influence
Zander is a tenor.
His singing has been described as "jaw-dropping" and "supremely virtuosic".
In a 2014 piece entitled "Unsung Heroes: The 10 Most Underrated Classic Rock Singers", Dan Tucker of VH1.com described Zander as having "range, style and attitude."
Zander's vocal style has influenced many other rock singers, from 1980s (such as Joe Elliott of Def Leppard, Vince Neil of Mötley Crüe, Axl Rose of Guns N' Roses, Bret Michaels of Poison, and Sebastian Bach of Skid Row) to 1990s punk rock (such as Billie Joe Armstrong of Green Day) to alternative rock singers (such as Billy Corgan of The Smashing Pumpkins, Eddie Vedder of Pearl Jam, Kurt Cobain of Nirvana, and Scott Weiland of Stone Temple Pilots).
Personal life
Zander and his first wife, Karen, had a son Ian, and a daughter, Holland.
As of 2018, Zander lives in Safety Harbor, Florida
Solo discography
Albums
-
Robin Zander (1993)
-
Countryside Blvd (2011)
Singles
-
"In This Country" (1987), from the soundtrack to Over the Top.
-
"You Send the Rain Away" (1987) duet with Rebbie Jackson,
-
"Surrender to Me" with Ann Wilson (1988), from the soundtrack to Tequila Sunrise, #6 Billboard's Hot 100 Chart,
-
"I've Always Got You" (1993), #13 Billboard's Mainstream Rock, from the album Robin Zander.
External links
