By Jae-Ha Kim
Chicago Sun-Times
December 13, 1998
Johnny Rzeznik has gotten used to lingerie.
No, the lead singer and guitarist for the Goo Goo Dolls hasn’t gone Marilyn Manson on us. Rather, the photogenic musician finally has gotten used to the barrage of bras and panties that his female fans fling at him onstage every night.
“You know what’s really funny,” said Rzeznik, phoning from a music video shoot in Los Angeles. “If I was a janitor sweeping the floors somewhere, nobody would be throwing their bras at me. But because I’m in some band, they do. That’s funny, huh? I think it’s funny.”
Rzeznik is still a little uncomfortable with heartthrob status. Just a couple years ago, the Goo Goo Dolls were opening for Bush. Back then, teens used to knock on their tour bus door asking if Bush singer Gavin Rossdale could come out and play.
Nowadays, Rzeznik’s being featured in sexy fashion spreads for the likes of Rolling Stone magazine. And he’s cleaned up surprisingly well, replacing his beloved T-shirts and jeans with an expensive haircut, leather jeans and designer shirts.
“It’s no big deal,” said Rzeznik, 32. “It’s a passing thing. It’s fun to dress up every now and then. But when we’re home, we just wear jeans and T-shirts. We’re slobs at heart.”
The Goo Goo Dolls’ celebrity has been 12 years in the making. Formed by Rzeznik and bassist Robby Takac, the group also includes drummer Mike Malinin.
The road from anonymity veered with 1995’s double-platinum album “A Boy Named Goo,” and the record’s catchy single “Name.” Nonstop touring and the hit single “Iris” — which was featured prominently on the triple-platinum soundtrack to “City of Angels” — made them household names.
But to the group’s chagrin, their best-known songs were ballads.
“I’m pretty happy ’cause (the record company) is going to actually let us have a rock song” as the next single, Rzeznik said. “We’re shooting the video for `Dizzy’ now. Everybody thinks all we do are these silly love songs, which are OK. I mean I’m not saying anything bad about (those songs). But it’s just nice to do something different for a change.”
After playing a sold-out show three weeks ago at the Riviera Theatre, the Goo Goo Dolls are returning to the Chicago area Friday to perform at Q101’s sold-out Twisted 5. They’re touring to promote their current album “Dizzy Up the Girl,” which features their Top 40 hit single “Slide.”
The Goo Goo Dolls also have been handpicked by the Rolling Stones to open for the Brits at their March 26 gig at the United Center.
Not too shabby for a trio from Buffalo, N.Y., that never expected to venture far from home.
“Yeah, it’s good to bring the old guys out for one last hurrah before they pack them away in the old folks home,” Rzeznik said. “No! I’m just kidding. It’s amazing to be picked for that tour. I’m overwhelmed.
“When I was a kid bouncing on my bed playing air guitar, I didn’t pretend that I’d be playing with Mick (Jagger) and Keith (Richards). I used to pretend to be those guys. Ohmigod! Yeah. I had four older sisters who would play their music so I grew up listening to the Stones. They’re awesome. I wonder if I’m actually going to even get to meet them.”
Informed that another Stones opening act – singer Meredith Brooks of “Bitch” fame – got pelted by debris and booed offstage during a gig in Latin America, Rzeznik didn’t seem too concerned.
“I can’t imagine that somebody paying 300 bucks or whatever for a ticket is going to sit there throwing stuff at me,” he said. “They’re all lawyers and bankers. I think at worst we’ll be greeted with apathy. That’s fine. I can deal with that. But I can tell you right now that nobody I know is going to pay 300 bucks to come see us. (Laughs.) John Lennon could rise from the dead and get the Beatles back together again and I wouldn’t pay that much to see them. I couldn’t do it. I think it’s too expensive when they charge more than $20 for our shows.”
If Rzeznik takes a pragmatic approach to rock ‘n’ roll and stardom, it’s because world domination was never in his game plan. Prior to forming the Goos, he worked as an assistant plumber. He figured if the group made enough money that he could quit his day job, that was enough for him.
“We always dreamed of making a living in the band, but we never thought we’d hit it big,” Rzeznik said. “That was never really a goal of mine. It’s nice that it’s kind of happening now, but the wheels could come off anytime.”
He and Takac selected their goofy band moniker from an ad in the back of a detective magazine. They didn’t give it much thought because, they figured, who’d ever hear of them?
In an interview two years ago with the Sun-Times, both men eagerly agreed to allow readers to select a new name for them. But before the plan could be implemented, “Name” took off and the Goo Goo Dolls were famous.
“I still want to change the name of the band,” Rzeznik said. “But now I’m really stuck with it, huh?”
