Classic RockJuly/August ’99 THE GOO GOO DOLLS Few bands wait around as long as the Goo Goo Dolls before they make it. Impatience, indifference or everyday commitments see most bands off before their second or third year. The Goo Goo Dolls, whether through sheer determination or blunt stupidity, have been hammering away at their own particular idea of success for over 14 years. Having formed as a three-piece in Buffalo, New York (the lineup has changed only once with a new drummer in the mid-'90s), they failed to see any real return for their hard work until 1995 with the release of 'A Boy Named Goo'. 'A Boy...' was fundamentally no different from any of their other albums, including this their latest one, except that the ultra radio-friendly single 'Name' went on to dominate the upper reaches of the American and Canadian charts for weeks. Also, vocalist John Rzeznik became a pin-up, even though there wasn't even a photo of the band on 'A Boy...'.The band subsequently shifted from three-night stints at clubs in Philadelphia and Minneapolis to theaters and arenas across the US. 'Dizzy Up The Girl' was preceded here and in America by the multi-Grammy-nominated 'Iris' single from the soundtrack to Godzilla (Err, sure!!!). It typified their highly polished - at least on their singles - sound, incorporating strings, acoustic guitar and the fleeting embrace of a mandolin. But don't be fooled by the gloss; on a good night the Goo Goo Dolls can stumble just as lustily as their one-time heroes, The Replacements. The album's opening track, 'Dizzy', a close relation to 'There You Are' off 1990's 'Hold Me Up', is an endearing enough benchmark of edgy rock and pop that typifies what they do best. There'll quite likely be a 'Best Of...' out before Christmas. Philip Wilding |