It seems unlikely that the mayor of Buffalo would have proclaimed July 4th Goo Goo Dolls Day back in 1985. Of course, at the time the homegrown band was confined to the city's smaller clubs and called itself the Sex Maggots.
But almost two decades later, the Goos will indeed have their day, as proclaimed by Mayor Anthony M. Masiello, during a celebration of their music and Buffalo itself. "We got a proclamation," frontman Johnny Rzeznik says, "just like in the Wizard of Oz."
The Goos will headline the second day of a free two-day concert event, July 3rd and 4th, in downtown's Niagra Square that will also include performances by Ben Folds, Rufus Wainwright and Guster (all on the first night) along with local talent.
Though Rzeznik is a Los Angeles resident these days, he says he still makes the trek to his hometown several times a year. "I looked up the weather statistics for Buffalo," he says, "and it only has fifty-five days of clear skies per year. I got off the plane and it was cloudy and I thought, 'Thank God.' I've gotten kind of sick of the sun." And he's never away long enough to be fooled by Tinseltown's faux Buffalos. "I took my nieces on a [film studio] tour and the guide takes us by the set of Bruce Almighty and says, 'And there's Buffalo, New York.' One of the girls says, 'Where is that Uncle John?' I said, 'I don't know, but it ain't in Buffalo, honey.'"
The homecoming actually had modest roots, with the band planning to play a theater show. But a former manager-turned-promoter floated the idea of making the show an event. "The production got a little out of control," Rzeznik says with a laugh. "But I think the end result is going to be amazing. We're going to completely light up the facade of this twenty-eight-story art deco building with moving lights that make it look like the building is moving. It's gonna be a spectacle."
The Goos are planning to deliver an extended set on July 4th (followed by the obligatory Independence Day fireworks) that will be filmed for a DVD release, that will also include "a lot of the behind-the scenes stuff," Rzeznik says. "But that's boring. What we're really looking forward to us cutting a new song." The song in question is Supertramp's "Give a Little Bit." "It's a tough song to rearrange," he continues, "because it's really free-flowing. To try and tighten it is difficult, but I think we did it. Of course, we might have wrecked it too. I'll determine that later today."
The group is thinking about releasing the cover as a single, its first new radio cut since the release of Gutterflower two years ago. That album, the Goos' seventh (not counting a 2001 odds-and-ends collection), initiated a tour schedule that didn't wrap until last September. Both Rzeznik and bassist Robby Takac threw themselves into some production projects in the interim. "We kind of ran away from the band for a while," Rzeznik says. "But after some time passed, we were like, 'OK, the real world is hard. Let's get back in our bubble.'" The group has been writing material for album number eight, with plans to record this year for a 2005 release.
Rzeznik sounds keen on being back in the fold with the band after the short layoff. And a winter release for the DVD will tide fans over until a new record surfaces next year. "It's definitely nice to be back in the saddle," he says. And he's also looking forward to playing in front of potentially tens of thousands of fans in the city where the Maggots once squirmed before tens of tens instead. "It's nice to be able to share some of the spoils with the people who cared for you when you were growing up."
