Mike Johnson was a long time friend of the
Fabulous Traidmarx. He was very proud to be one of the bands "original
roadies", always finding an excuse to tag along with the guys on gig
weekends and help haul equipment, set up, and tear down at the end of the
night. Thirty years later, it was Mike who opened up his arms, and the
door to his bar, the Harvest Moon in Greenville, Iowa, when the band needed
somewhere to practice before their 2001 Induction into the Iowa Rock and
Roll Hall of Fame. He let the Traidmarx come practice whenever they
needed to, and even held the Traidmarx first gigs in 30 years! It was
at Mike's establishment that the Traidmarx launched the 2nd half of their
successful career. With little coaxing, Mike even joined the Traidmarx
on stage, lending his voice to a couple of songs. A couple years later
Mike had a hand in landing the Traidmarx some more shows in Spencer, Iowa at
the Oasis. Later Mike and his wife Deb moved to Colorado to be closer
to family.
Mike Johnson passed away on February
7th, 2007 at the age of 54 after battling leukemia.
He will be greatly missed by family and friends
alike, especially his good friends, the Fabulous Traidmarx.
Thank you to all of Mike's friends and family and to our Traidmarx fans who
came out and helped make Mike's Benefit a huge success!! "The House
that Mike Built" was truly rockin' all night long!! The Traidmarx were
honored to play at such a special gig for such a special person and family.
