Dizzy Up the Girl by Goo Goo Dolls
Dizzy Up the Girl is the sixth album by the American band The Goo Goo Dolls, released on September 22, 1998 through Warner Bros. Records. It is the band's best-known, most successful and most critically acclaimed album to date. In most parts of the world, Dizzy Up the Girl is the Goo Goo Dolls' most successful album to date, selling over 3 million copies (3x platinum certified). The success of Dizzy Up the Girl can arguably be attributed to the rock ballad "Iris", which was also included in the soundtrack album of the film City of Angels. "Iris" immediately reached #1 on the Hot 100 Airplay chart upon its release in March from the City of Angels soundtrack, and stayed on top for 18 weeks, setting a record that still stands as of June 2012. The song also reached #1 on the Billboard Modern Rock chart and the Mainstream Rock Tracks chart, along with several other charts in the U.S and U.K, and included 3 Grammy nominations. In addition to the huge success of "Iris" (US #9), Dizzy Up the Girl featured three additional top forty singles, with the songs "Slide" (US #8), "Broadway" (US #24), and "Black Balloon" (US #16). The album also produced the moderately popular song "Dizzy" (US #108), which has since become a fan favorite. Along with top forty single status, music videos for all five singles reached VH1's Top 20 Music Videos chart upon release.
Listening to this 1998 release it’s hard to believe that the Goo Goo Dolls’ sound was once clearly modeled on the loose rock & roll of the Faces and the sloppy garage grooves of the Replacements, to name but two early influences. Especially considering how their breakthrough power ballad “Name,” from their previous album <i>A Boy Named Goo</i>, was a slick example of highly evolved hard rock — an angelic love letter to pop. Like the guy at your high school reunion who looks so much better as a posh lawyer than the debate team president, the Buffalo band benefits greatly from its transformation, ultimately finding the crowd-pleasing calling it apparently should have heeded from the beginning. Following up on the success of “Name,” <i>Dizzy Up the Girl</i> features similar aching, melodic ballads in “Black Balloon” and “Iris,” the latter becoming a smash hit thanks in large part to its inclusion on the popular <i>City of Angels</i> soundtrack. But they never completely abandoned their sloppy roots — catchy, hook-laden rockers like “Dizzy,” “Slide,” and “Broadway” prove they can still turn it up — they just learned to play to their strengths. This release may be more polished and polite than their six previous efforts, but it’s no less appealing. And it earned them a whole new legion of fans in the process.
