Robby Takac

Last updated
Robby Takac
RobbyTakac.JPG
Robby Takac performing at Molson Amphitheatre on July 25, 2010.
Background information
Birth nameRobert Carl Takac Jr.
Born (1964-09-30) September 30, 1964 (age 59)
Buffalo, New York, U.S.
Origin Buffalo, New York, United States
Genres Rock, punk rock
Occupation(s) Bassist, singer, songwriter
Instrument(s) Bass, vocals
Years active1985–present
Labels Metal Blade, Warner Music, Warner Bros., Good Charamel Records
Website www.googoodolls.com

Robert Carl Takac Jr. (born September 30, 1964) [1] is an American rock bassist and vocalist. Takac is one of the founding members of the Goo Goo Dolls, along with Johnny Rzeznik.

Contents

Background

Takac was born in Buffalo, New York and grew up in the Buffalo suburb of West Seneca with his parents and younger sister. One of his grandparents was Hungarian, which is reflected by his name (originally written: Takács, which is Hungarian for 'weaver'). He graduated from West Seneca East Senior High School in 1982. He graduated from Medaille College with a Communication degree, with an emphasis on Radio Broadcasting. In his college years, he played in several bands and interned and worked at a local Buffalo radio station.

In 2008, Takac was named to the Medaille College Board of Trustees. [2]

Music career

Takac began his musical career as a member of the rock band Monarch, prior to joining the Beaumonts, which broke up in 1985. He met guitarist John Rzeznik through the Beaumonts and together they found a drummer, George Tutuska and started a band that they named the "Sex Maggots", with Takac as the lead singer and bassist. In 1986, [3] they changed their name to the more promotable "Goo Goo Dolls", and after three albums moved Rzeznik to the majority of lead vocals. In late 1994, Takac and Rzeznik fired Tutuska and in early 1995 hired Mike Malinin as a replacement. Later that year they received their first commercial success with the single "Name". The 1998 follow-up "Iris" reached number one on several charts, including the Hot 100 Airplay. [3] Goo Goo Dolls have been releasing music and touring continuously since.

In 2009, the band recorded Something for the Rest of Us in Buffalo, New York, at their studio Inner Machine Studios. That year, Takac opened the studio to the public as GCR Audio. [4]

Side projects

In 2003, Takac joined with Brian Schulmeister to form the dance music collective Amungus. [5] That same year, Takac started his own record label, Good Charamel Records, in Buffalo, New York. [6] With an initial focus on local acts, the first three bands signed to the label were Klear, The Juliet Dagger, and Last Conservative. Today the label primarily releases J-Rock music in North America by female-fronted bands such as Shonen Knife, Tsushimamire, LazyGunsBrisky, Pinky Doodle Poodle and MOLICE. [7]

In 2004, Takac founded the Music is Art Festival, a not-for-profit organization, and operates as their president. [8] MiA seeks to explore and reshape music's cultural, social, and educational impact on the community. [9] Active throughout the year, MiA is supported by a multitude of programs, concerts, and events, ranging from collecting and donating instruments to local schools, mental health awareness tours, music industry education, among others. [10]

Equipment

Takac primarily plays Yamaha BB-series bass guitars, but he has also played Fender and Zon bass guitars. [11] [12]

Discography

Goo Goo Dolls

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Goo Goo Dolls</span> American rock band

The Goo Goo Dolls are an American rock band formed in 1986 in Buffalo, New York, currently consisting of guitarist/vocalist John Rzeznik and bassist/vocalist Robby Takac.

<i>Superstar Car Wash</i> 1993 studio album by Goo Goo Dolls

Superstar Car Wash is the fourth studio album by American rock band Goo Goo Dolls, released on February 23, 1993 on Warner Bros. John Rzeznik wrote the song "We Are the Normal" with his idol, The Replacements' singer Paul Westerberg. The two corresponded by mail but never sat in a studio together. The song "Fallin' Down" was featured in the 1993 Pauly Shore movie Son In Law. Also, the song "So Far Away" was originally written and recorded with the title "Dancing In Your Blood"; the song had the same basic structure, but different lyrics, more minimal instrumentation, and a slightly different melody.

<i>A Boy Named Goo</i> 1995 studio album by Goo Goo Dolls

A Boy Named Goo is the fifth studio album by American rock band Goo Goo Dolls, released in 1995 on Warner Bros. The album was a commercial success, and was certified double-platinum by the RIAA within a year of its release. This is the last Goo Goo Dolls album with George Tutuska on drums; he was replaced by Mike Malinin just before the album was released.

George Tutuska is an American musician, best known as the former drummer of the alternative rock band Goo Goo Dolls. He grew up in South Buffalo with four sisters. He attended Medaille College in Buffalo, and was studying to become an English teacher. That was also where he met Robby Takac and formed the Sex Maggots with one of Takac’s friends, John Rzeznik.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Rzeznik</span> American singer-songwriter and record producer

John Joseph Theodore Rzeznik is an American singer-songwriter, best known as the founder, guitarist and frontman of the American rock band Goo Goo Dolls, with whom he has recorded 14 studio albums.

<i>Jed</i> (album) 1989 studio album by Goo Goo Dolls

Jed is the second studio album by American rock band Goo Goo Dolls, released on February 22, 1989 by Metal Blade Records. It was the band's first album in which John Rzeznik sang vocals for some of the tracks; the majority of the songs are sung by Robby Takac, with Rzeznik taking over for two. The album was named after painter Jed Jackson, who was Robby Takac's art teacher at Medaille College and who painted the cover artwork, which is entitled "Arkansas Sunset".

<i>Hold Me Up</i> 1990 studio album by Goo Goo Dolls

Hold Me Up is the third studio album by American rock band Goo Goo Dolls, released on October 16, 1990, by Metal Blade Records. It marked the beginning of John Rzeznik's emergence as the band's principal lead vocalist. The album features the band's first single "There You Are," which became their first music video as well. In 2017, Loudwire listed the album as one of Metal Blade's best albums.

<i>Goo Goo Dolls</i> (album) 1987 studio album by Goo Goo Dolls

Goo Goo Dolls is the eponymous debut studio album by American rock band Goo Goo Dolls, released on June 9, 1987 by Mercenary and Celluloid Records. All of the songs were sung by bassist Robby Takac, who was originally the band's lead vocalist. The album was recorded from late 1986 to early 1987 on a $750 budget at Trackmaster Audio in the band's hometown of Buffalo, New York. Later on, the band admitted in their 1999 VH1 Behind the Music special that the album was recorded under the influence of alcohol and drugs; Rzeznik stated, "[We had] a lot of beer, a lot of truck stop speed, a lot of pot...[I] don't remember a lot of it."

<i>Live in Buffalo: July 4th, 2004</i> 2004 live album by Goo Goo Dolls

Live in Buffalo: July 4th, 2004 is a live album by the American rock band Goo Goo Dolls. It includes a CD and a DVD, showing their concert in Buffalo, New York from July 4, 2004. The concert included performances of all their major hits, including "Iris", "Name", and "Slide". There are nineteen (19) songs on the DVD total, plus a studio version of their Supertramp cover, "Give A Little Bit" on the CD. The concert was shot and recorded in downtown Buffalo on Niagara Square in front of Buffalo City Hall. As for the concert itself, the performance was enigmatic, garnering comparisons to Talking Heads' Stop Making Sense from members of the band's crew. Over 60,000 fans attended the performance, braving a torrential downpour. The rain cleared in time for the Goo Goo Dolls to start the show, but during their performance of "January Friend", the rain began pouring down again, harder than before. The band played on, finishing the set, despite being pulled off stage briefly for a safety precaution and skipping three songs* that were on the original set list.

Klear is an American rock band based in Western New York. The band's debut and second album was produced by Goo Goo Dolls bassist Robby Takac and released on Takac's independent Record label.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">There You Are (Goo Goo Dolls song)</span> 1990 single by Goo Goo Dolls

"There You Are" is the debut single by the Goo Goo Dolls. It was the trio's first single and first music video released.

<i>Something for the Rest of Us</i> 2010 studio album by Goo Goo Dolls

Something for the Rest of Us is the ninth studio album by American rock band Goo Goo Dolls. It was released on August 28, 2010, in Australia and on August 31 in North America through Warner Bros. Records. The recording process took place during the spring to fall of 2009 in the GCR Audio studio in Buffalo and Paramount Studios as well as "the Ark" in Los Angeles, with producer Tim Palmer.

<i>Magnetic</i> (Goo Goo Dolls album) 2013 studio album by Goo Goo Dolls

Magnetic is the tenth studio album by American rock band Goo Goo Dolls, released in the UK on June 10, 2013, and in the US on June 11, through Warner Bros. Records. The album is available on CD, Vinyl and as a digital download.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Daughtry/Goo Goo Dolls Summer Tour</span> 2014 concert tour by Daughtry and the Goo Goo Dolls

The Daughtry/Goo Goo Dolls Summer was a co-headlining concert tour by American rock bands Daughtry and the Goo Goo Dolls. The tour was in support of their studio albums Baptized (2013) and Magnetic (2013). The tour began on June 12, 2014, and ended on August 23, 2014, but was expanded to include two more dates and ended on August 30.

Good Charamel Records is an indie record label based in Buffalo, New York started by Robby Takac, founding member of the American Rock band Goo Goo Dolls in 2003. Specializing in female fronted Japanese rock bands, the label began signing and releasing music in North America for local Buffalo bands as well as releasing compilations and charity discs in the Western New York area. As a result of a 2006 tour of Japan with the Good Charamel act The Juliet Dagger a relationship was struck between the legendary Osaka pop punk band Shonen Knife and Good Charamel Records, Good Charamel hosted Shonen Knife's tour of America with The Juliet Dagger and Verona Grove in 2007. In 2009 Good Charamel released Shonen Knife's "Super Group" album and began signing other Japanese rock acts, then releasing and producing music and DVDs by Japanese artists exclusively.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">GCR Audio</span> Recording studio in New York, United States

GCR Audio, formerly known as Trackmaster Audio and Inner Machine Studios, is a recording studio at 564 Franklin Street in Buffalo, New York, United States.

Scarlet White was an American rock band formed in Three Rivers, Michigan, United States, in 2008, by guitarist, Dan Hall. Hall was in several bands prior to Scarlet White, getting his passion for music after attending a Creed concert. After many line up attempts, Scarlet White consists of Dan Hall, Spencer Minor, and Erica Wallen. Scarlet White has released two studio albums, Scarlet White and The Inbetween. The Inbetween was recorded at GCR Audio Recording Studios in Buffalo, New York, owned by Robby Takac of the Goo Goo Dolls. The band released their third and final studio album in November 2017 titled The Other Side. The Other Side was also recorded at GCR Audio.

<i>Boxes</i> (Goo Goo Dolls album) 2016 studio album by Goo Goo Dolls

Boxes is the eleventh studio album by American rock band Goo Goo Dolls. It was released on May 6, 2016, through Warner Bros. Records. It marks the band's first album since A Boy Named Goo recorded without drummer Mike Malinin, who was removed from the band in 2013, and their first album to be recorded as a duo. Upon release, Boxes debuted and peaked at #27 on the Billboard 200 albums chart, with first week sales of 15,000 copies. The album marks the first studio album released by the band to not debut in the top ten since 1998's Dizzy Up the Girl.

<i>Its Christmas All Over</i> 2020 studio album by Goo Goo Dolls

It's Christmas All Over is a 2020 Christmas album from American alternative rock band Goo Goo Dolls, released on October 30, via Warner Records. It has received mixed critical reception.

<i>Chaos in Bloom</i> 2022 studio album by Goo Goo Dolls

Chaos in Bloom is the thirteenth studio album by American rock band the Goo Goo Dolls. It was released on August 12, 2022, by Warner Records.

References

  1. ↑ "Today in History - Sept. 30". ABC News. 6 November 1982. Archived from the original on 26 May 2015. Retrieved 28 August 2009.
  2. ↑ "Medaille College Board of Trustees". Medaille.edu. 2011-03-20. Archived from the original on 2011-07-23. Retrieved 2011-08-17.
  3. 1 2 "Second Cup Café: GooGooDolls". CBC News. 9 December 2006. Archived from the original on December 14, 2006. Retrieved 28 August 2009.
  4. ↑ "Goo Goo Dolls Record CD in Buffalo". WKBW-TV. 31 July 2009. Retrieved 28 August 2009.[ dead link ]
  5. ↑ "Local music does festival proud as B-52s headline an eclectic mix". The Buffalo News. 28 September 2008. Retrieved 28 August 2009.
  6. ↑ "Good Charamel Records website". Goodcharamel.com. 2011-07-19. Retrieved 2011-08-17.
  7. ↑ Jackie Backman (2004-01-09). "Goo Goo Dolls - Robby Takac". TheCelebrityCafe.com. Archived from the original on 2010-02-26. Retrieved 2011-08-17.
  8. ↑ Archived April 19, 2010, at the Wayback Machine
  9. ↑ "HARD ROCK: Concert series stages finale". Niagara Gazette. 17 August 2009. Archived from the original on 11 September 2012. Retrieved 28 August 2009.
  10. ↑ "Music is Art Festival at Albright Knox Gallery Buffalo, NY September 12, 2010". Backstageaxxess.com. 2010-09-15. Archived from the original on July 7, 2011. Retrieved 2011-08-17.
  11. ↑ Bass Artists. Yamaha Corporation of America. Archived February 24, 2008, at the Wayback Machine
  12. ↑ Robby Takac. Zon Guitars.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.