Tag: Interview

George Tutuska lives.

The drummer who spent nearly a decade with the Goo Goo Dolls and left the Buffalo band four years ago — just as it broke into the big time — is alive, happy and making music.

“The thought of slitting my wrists never crossed my mind. Actually, it did cross my mind when I was still in the Goo Goo Dolls,” said Tutuska, 33, during his first major interview with this paper since the breakup of the band.

He now plays in a band called Bobo. It has just released a new, self-titled EP.

The annuals of rock history are filled with band splits and tales of members left behind (see Pete Best, original drummer for the Beatles). The Goos’ success seemed particularly bittersweet for Tutuska. He spent nearly one-third of his life with the band, sweating and starving as they worked their way from the local bar circuit to international acclaim.

Just as the big time beckoned in 1995, a simmering conflict between Tutuska and Johnny Rzeznik, the Goos’ lead singer and songwriter, reached full boil. The two argued about money, songwriting credits and the musical direction of the band, Tutuska said.

A few months after Tutuska was forced out, the band’s album “A Boy Named Goo” was released. It became a best seller, produced a hit single, “Name,” and eventually the CD sold more than 3 million copies.

The follow-up album, “Dizzy Up the Girl,” came out last year and is near the 3 million sales mark. The original Goos, Rzeznik and Robby Takac, along with replacement drummer Mike Malinin, have been nominated for Grammy awards, appeared on most major television networks and are one of the top touring rock acts in the world. The band recently opened for the Rolling Stones.

Tutuska, meanwhile, stayed home and learned to live without the two guys he shared his youth with while playing music.

“It was tough after the split,” he said. “I was 30 years old with nothing. I quit college to stay with this band. I couldn’t have gotten through this without my family.”

“It was the hardest thing George has had to go through,” said Nadine Tutuska, George’s wife. “The success of Johnny and Robby doesn’t bother him. What does bother him is the failed relationships. They were two people he loved very much.”

One of the hard lessons of the music business is that money, not love, is its driving force. Tutuska said he had to get a lawyer to gain his royalty rights. He said he has not spoken to Rzeznik or Takac since the split.

“They only speak through lawyers,” Mrs. Tutuska said. “Now it’s like a messy divorce.”

Tutuska was particularly upset because of the band’s lack of recognition of his contributions to their breakthrough album, “A Boy Named Goo.” Part of their legal battle was over royalty rights to those songs.

“I’m extremely proud of the music I made with the Goo Goo Dolls, but, not taking anything away from them because they are obviously successful, I don’t like the style of music they are making now,” he said in a soft voice, as a bright sun hovered over Cazenovia Park, near his home in South Buffalo.

The breakup of the Goos had as much to do with personality and ego as it did with musical philosophy, Tutuska said. “Johnny made it impossible for me to stay in the band. He portrayed me as a weak musical link.

“Johnny didn’t want to split the money and he didn’t want to give me credit for songs I did. I still feel I was robbed of my royalty rights. It all comes down to money.”

The Goo Goo Dolls have been touring in Europe. Though efforts were made through press representatives to contact them for a reply, they were unable to comment.

At the time of the split, Rzeznik told The News: “We just had differences that could not be settled. We’ve had a lot of heartaches and frustrations. We had some good times, too, but we couldn’t go on like this. We’re not happy about the split. It cast a dark shadow over everything. I wish George nothing but the best.”

Takac said: “I know George isn’t happy, but there were problems with the band and we felt this was best for all of us. We had a lot of uncomfortable feelings when we were together in the recording studio.”

Others close to the band offered some insight.

“Two of the Goo Goo Dolls wanted to be rock stars and one didn’t. The one who didn’t was George,” said a former associate from the early days. “Those two guys were willing to do anything to make it. I don’t know if George was. I do know that what happened to George bothers Johnny a lot. They went through a lot together.”

Artie Kwitchoff, now a local rock promoter, managed the Goos during the band’s early days. “They were all wild and crazy kids when they started out,” he said. “I think what happened is, they grew up and changed. Their view of music changed and their relationships changed. It happens in a lot of bands.

“I like George and I respect George. I feel the same way about Johnny and Robby.”

Tutuska, who works as a construction contractor, is lean, muscular and intense. His music bears the same qualities. He has always craved high-powered rock ‘n’ roll, with a pop flavor. His favorite bands include the Clash, Social Distortion and the Pogues.

He has more interests than rock music — he also enjoys writing, jazz and painting.

Bobo features Tutuska and some of his old musical friends, including Frank Sterlace, Tim Byrne, Marc Hunt and Jimmer Phillips, who was once an original member of the band that became known as the Goo Goo Dolls. Bobo plays a power pop sound that is accessible yet powerful.

Tutuska had played with a band called Hula after leaving the Goos, but seems to have found a niche with Bobo. The band is making the best music of Tutuska’s post-Goo Goo Dolls career.

“George lends stability to this band,” said Greg Genco of P22/Atom Smash Records, the independent label that released the EP. “He leads with his drumming and personality.”

Tutuska emphasizes the band more than himself: “I hate to be the focal point. Bobo isn’t my band, it’s a band I’m in.”

Now that Tutuska is back with a band and the music he loves, his goals are different than they were a decade ago.

“Sure, I’d like to get a platinum album with Bobo,” Tutuska said. “But I’d rather be happy.”

Taken from here. Archived version here.

The Goo Goo Dolls, Buffalo’s most influential young rock band, is breaking up its original lineup after nearly a decade together. And the timing couldn’t be worse.

The band is scheduled to release a national album and single in March for Warner Bros. Records. George Tutuska, drummer for the band, says he has been forced out of the trio. Remaining members Johnny Rzeznik and Robby Takac — both guitarists — intend to continue the group, and a replacement drummer has yet to be named.

The split is causing shock waves on the Buffalo music scene.

The Goo Goo Dolls are one of the few local acts to record for a major national label and still live in the city.

They have been together since 1986, and the new album represents a crucial point in the band’s career that may determine the Goo Goo Dolls’ future as a national act.

“I’m still shocked,” a crestfallen Tutuska said in an interview with The Buffalo News this weekend.

“I didn’t leave of my own accord. Anyone who knows the band is aware of what’s going on. I put the last 10 years of my life into that band, and it really hurts. That’s all I can say.”

There has been a long-simmering dispute among the group. It had apparently been building over the past year and came to a boil this month, when Tutuska reportedly was told to leave.

“We just had differences that could not be settled,” Rzeznik said. “We’ve had a lot of heartaches and frustrations. We’ve had some good times, too, but we just couldn’t go on like this.”

Takac agreed.

“There were problems, internally, within the group,” he said. “We had a lot of uncomfortable feelings that we encountered when we all got together in the recording studio. I think a lot of it is due to the fact we’ve been together for so long.”

The split comes with the future looking bright for the band. Chris Mundy of Rolling Stone wrote in 1993 that stardom is “close at hand” for the Goo Goo Dolls. Rocker Paul Westerburg said the Dolls “have a great future.”

A Warner Bros. spokesman said, “We think the new album has a chance to be the biggest one this band has made.”

It took eight years for the Goo Goo Dolls to reach this point, and that’s an eternity for a rock band to stay together.

The Goo Goo Dolls started playing in local clubs in 1986 and won a huge following with their blue-collar, hard-driving sound. In 1989, the band produced an independent album, “Goo Goo Dolls,” that established it as one of Buffalo’s most original groups.

The Goos signed with Metal Blade Records, a subsidiary of Warner’s, and released two critically acclaimed albums, “Jed” (1989) and “Hold Me Up” (1992).

In 1993, the Goo Goo Dolls moved to the major label and released “Superstar Car Wash” for Warner. publications such as Rolling Stone, the Chicago Tribune and the Los Angeles Times raved about the album, but it failed to make a dent nationally.

Many of the Goos’ longtime fans criticized the album for being too soft and pop-oriented. Rzeznik later complained that Warner Bros. made the band change producers on the record, and decided who would produce the video. Warner Bros. also selected the first single, “We Are the Normal,” an introspective soft number instead of the band’s trademark thrash pop sound.

The failure of “Superstar” to become a big hit apparently created a tense atmosphere for the band members while they were working on the new album. Sources close to the band say there have been a number of clashes in the recording studio and ongoing battles over “differences” among group members over music and lyrics.

“The last album caused a lot of tension,” a record industry source said. “That has put more pressure on all of them for the new album. It’s a shame, because it’s a great record.”

The album, called “A Boy Named Goo,” features a much harder sound and deeper lyrics than the last one. It was produced by Lou Giordano, who has worked with such national acts as Sugar, the Smithereens and Husker Du.

The first single to be released next month is “The Only One.”

The band’s change in status could hurt the new album. The Goo Goo Dolls will have to tour and promote the album with a new lineup. Rzeznik is determined to succeed.

“We’re still really passionate about our music,” Rzeznik said. “Me and Robby are going to go on, and the label is supporting the album. We love music, and that’s the most important thing.”

Takac said: “We haven’t given up on the record. We’ll do whatever we have to to make it work. If it becomes a big hit, all of us, including George, can make money.”

The Goo Goo Dolls’ last public appearance was a New Year’s Eve show at Blind Mellons.

“It was was an emotional night for all of us,” Rzeznik said.

Both Rzeznik and Takac were in a somber mood as they talked about the split.

“We’re not happy about what happened. It has cast a dark shadow over everything, but we have to keep going,” Rzeznik said. “I wish George nothing but the best.”

Takac said the band has yet to begin its search for a drummer.

“This has all just happened. We haven’t had a chance to resolve anything,” he said. “We’re not out to dis George or anything. I know he’s not happy, but this was probably the best thing for all of us.”

Taken from here. Archived version here.

Axed drummer George Tutuska talks about past with the Goo Goo Dolls; future with Bobo

Few bands have ever attained fame without making a few personnel changes along the way. Go down the list: The Beatles, Nirvana, Pearl Jam and, um, Spinal Tap, all had different members by the time their first record was certified platinum – or in the case of Tap, aluminum. Coincidentally, in all four cases, the drummers were the first to go. However, in none of the aforementioned cases did the drummer get ousted nearly a decade after he helped form the band and less than a year before they hit paydirt. That’s what happened to original Goo Goo Dolls drummer George Tutuska.

“I have no resentment toward [the Goo Goo Dolls’] continued success,” says Tutuska from his Buffalo home. “The only thing that bothers me to this very day is I never got my due as a songwriter and most people think, ‘So what, they fired the drummer; it’s just the drummer.’ If I could give people a list of songs I wrote, I think it would shock them.”

Following the completion of the Goos’ A Boy Named Goo (1995), Tutuska was fired from the band by frontman Johnny Rzeznik. Tutuska said he’d previously told band management he wouldn’t tour behind the album unless Rzeznik agreed to split royalties evenly among the three members, a practice Tutuska claims the band had engaged in since the release of their 1987 self-titled debut. During pre-production for Goo, Tutuska had been rattled to the core by news that Rzeznik purportedly was hoarding royalties for the Superstar Car Wash single “Fallin’ Down.” “I said, ‘John, I’m kinda interested. I talk to friends all over the country and everyone tells me they hear [“Fallin’ Down”] on the radio,’ and I said, ‘John, I haven’t gotten one [royalty] check for that.’ And he said, ‘I got a confession to make. I’ve been getting checks for the last two years on this song.’ And obviously, at that point, the shit hit the fan.”

Tutuska was fired from the band just shy of A Boy Named Goo’s release and replaced by Mike Malinin. The album, on the strength of the hit single “Name,” was a runaway success and has since sold one-and-a-half million copies in the U.S. alone. Though Tutuska still receives royalty checks from that album and the previous four albums, he still feels shortchanged by the perception he was merely a third wheel among the trio. “Up until A Boy Named Goo I had written probably well over half the lyrics and I collaborated on music, but we split everything,” Tutuska claims. A lot of the songs that had gotten airplay I’d written the lion’s share of, but I had taken my third and now he wanted everything.” (For the record, the Goo Goo Dolls camp had no comment on Tutuska’s allegations.)

While Tutuska concedes “no matter what I say, it can come across as sour grapes,” he has been busy juggling two careers: one as the drummer of the quintet Bobo and another as the co-owner of a home improvement company in Buffalo. “I’m not embarrassed by it,” he says. “In fact, I’m proud of it. I’m a pretty good carpenter and I do a lot of things that I’m proud of, but I really want to get back to just playing music.” Bobo (the second band Tutuska’s formed since his departure from the Goo Goo Dolls) has released a six-song EP on the Buffalo-based P22 Records. They’ve apparently also sealed a deal to contribute a song to a future USA Networks movie based on the story of Mary Kay LeTourneau, the Washington area school teacher convicted of second-degree child rape of a sixth-grade male student.

Overall, Tutuska says, “I really am a happy person and I really am an active musician so I try to concentrate on what I’m doing instead of what I’ve done.”

Taken from here. Archived version here.