If
bass is the foundation of rock-n-roll, then Johnny Green is one of its master masons.
Present at the creation -- he's pals with
just about every rock artist, agent, promoter, record producer who still lives -- Green's
guitar artistry has anchored dozens of sound tracks over the last 40 years.
But he's best known as the founder and
leader of The Greenmen who performed the theme song for the Sixties' Batman series and
appeared in some of its best-remembered episodes, 27 in all. Think of green-haired
villains as the Joker's sidekicks.
Green, now 55, still travels the club
circuit with The Greenmen just as he always has, but he's never enjoyed it more, he says.
That's because he's discovered a new
singing sensation in Rhonda Marie whose bell-ringing voice has been rockin' the house at
Breezy Point Resort's Marina Restaurant and Lounge since mid-July.
She's the lead singer in the group's
high-volume "variety" show designed for the after-dinner crowd. The Greenmen
perform Monday through Saturday, starting at 9 p.m., July 17 - August 5,
2000.
If the husky power of Aretha, with a touch
of Whitney's high-pitched trumpet, describes Rhonda Marie, nothing alone can describe
Johnny Green: bass player, rock legend, promoter par excellence, record producer, booking
agent, and a vacuum cleaner of entertainment history and many of its most important
performers.
 But most of all he's a showman -- some call him
rock's version of Liberace -- and he butters his audiences with everything from rock
classics to blues to swing, punctuated with magic, Batman humor and his famous
lip-smackin' fire-eatin' act.
Expect to dance up a storm to Green's bass
-- and the fire-play of Larry Kozian of Chicago on lead guitar, Randy Daniels Beidelschies
of Columbus, Ohio on keyboards and harmonica, and Eddie Coleman of Minneapolis on drums.
Kozian is a classically trained, seasoned
guitarist who plays a mean Stevie Ray Vaughan set, with Beidelschies' south-Texas
harmonica and voice adding to the piece. Kozian then switches to his classical guitar for
a crisp rendition of "Maleguena."
Coleman entertains with a number of drum
routines that demand audience participation, and Beidelschies takes the singing lead on
many of the group's classical rock and blues pieces in The Greenmen's broad-brushed
itinerary.
Rhonda Marie turns to the keyboards and
percussion when Daniels leads, and she even brings out the old accordion from time to
time.
"The Greenmen play to the crowd as
well as any band out there," the Marina's manager Bud Stone says. "If you want
to dance the night away, The Greenmen is the group to help you do it."
Green, who makes his home in Annandale on
the west side of the Twin Cities with his wife, Jennifer, and their five children, is
showcasing his latest lead singer this summer at night spots across the Upper Midwest.
They have two CDs in the works -- one
featuring Rhonda Marie in country songs written by Kozian -- which will be released later
this year by American Classic Records. It was produced by Dick Wagner who has been behind
albums by the Pointer Sisters, Air Supply and several other headliners.
 The band's timetable suffered a brief but
painful setback when Rhonda was diagnosed with cancer. The 30-year-old singer underwent
surgery and radiation treatments at the University of Michigan recently, but reported to
Wagner's studio each night for the band's recording sessions. Her prognosis for complete
recovery is excellent and she's back in full stride with the summer tour after a two-month
recovery at home with her parents in Michigan.
The band heads for Four Bears Casino in
Bismarck for an engagement with Billy Ray Cyrus and will perform at
the Mill City Music Festival in
Minneapolis later this month, "green hair and all," Green says.
A native of Green Bay, Green came up with
the dyed-green look -- his band's trademark until about 10 years ago -- as a tribute to
his hometown and "a gimmick that brought us instant national attention in the early
rock scene," he says.
Now he relies on the emerging talents of
Rhonda Marie, a trunkful of musical themes that fit any audience, and a group of skilled
and experienced position players who say they sense a surge of even greater success for
this version of The Greenmen.
That's because of Green's extensive
network in the entertainment and recording business. Consider some career highlights for a
sense of Green's place in rock history:
Johnny Green and The Greenmen have
toured with the Rolling Stones, the Beatles and many other legends of rock;
they've been featured in concert with
Bob Hope and toured with Hope's USO troupe in Vietnam and Thailand;
they've performed for four presidents
and a governor who became president;
they headlined a tour that included
performances before the Shah of Iran and King Constantine of Greece;
and they've been a marquee attraction
for years on the Las Vegas Strip.
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