When Everything Feels Like The Movies

You know, every once in a while, a piece of pop culture shows up on my "For You page" or my recommended lists and I'm whisked away into a nostalgic daydream. Inevitably, this leads me through a rabbit hole that will consume more hours of my time than I'm proud to admit. (Check out some of my other posts if you don't believe me.) Well, one such piece of pop culture has been showing up quite a bit lately, and because of that, I wanted to write about it.

On September 22, 1998 the Goo Goo Dolls released their 6th studio album, Dizzy Up the Girl. The album would eventually sell over 5 million copies, making it 5x platinum certified. However, the success of the album is largely attributed to the Goo Goo Dolls' hit single, "Iris," which was written for the soundtrack of the film, City of Angels. As a single, "Iris" was released on April 1, 1998. It was ranked No. 1 on Billboard's "Top Pop Songs 1992-2012" chart, and it was certified Diamond by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) on November 15, 2024. It also happens to be one of my most favorite songs of all time. Needless to say though, that song was a massive hit, eclipsing the movie it was written for, and the decision to include it on the album proved to be a wise one. However, initially the album didn't garner a lot of interest from music critics; Rolling Stone giving it just 3 stars, and Entertainment Weekly a B-. In classic reviewer fashion though, fans loved it. And you know what? I happen to be one of those fans. The album supported the release of 5 singles spanning from 1998 to 2000.

Dizzy Up the Girl, September 1998

The second single from Dizzy Up the Girl was "Slide," released September 17, 1998. It actually preceded the album by a few days, but that didn't hurt its sales numbers. "Slide" was another massive hit for the band. It peaked No. 8 on the all-genre Billboard Hot 100 in February 1999, and became the United States’ 13th-most-successful song of 1999. RIAA awarded the song a triple-platinum certification in September 2023. To me, "Slide" has that quintessential late 90s era pop-rock sound. The song is over-produced, but in a way that iconic pop music always is. The music is so upbeat, and the melody is so happy, but that's a funny contradiction to story the lyrics are actually telling us. I just love the acoustic guitar sawing throughout the whole track. It really keeps the pace upbeat and drives that melody. Probably more than any other single on Dizzy Up the Girl, "Slide" sounds timeless to me.

"Dizzy" was the third single from the album, released on February 5, 1999. Notably, it was the shortest of the singles released from Dizzy Up the Girl, but it wasn't critically as well-received as the previous two singles. It peaked at No. 9 on the US Billboard  Modern Rock Tracks chart in May 1999. This song is first one on the album, and it's got a great punchy intro that sets a good tone for the record. The verses kind of describe a relationship that most people would probably call toxic today, and then it resolves into this fun poppy chorus with easy lyrics and a catchy melody. It's one that definitely gets stuck in your head. It's a good song, and sounds very 90s. The music video did pretty well too. I remember seeing it on MTV all the time. It stars total hottie, Shannyn Sossamon from A Knight's Tale.

The fourth single released, almost a year after the album came out, was "Black Balloon," June 7, 1999. This song has really strong lyrical content. It's about a woman struggling with heroin addiction and her lover trying to save her. Goo Goo Dolls singer, John Rzeznik, said that the song is also about "seeing someone you love that is so great just screw up so bad.” I love the musical intro to this song with the bright guitar being plucked that pings around in echoes, and then a clean acoustic guitar cuts through with the melody. It's a really good juxtaposition with what's about to happen in the lyrics. Then, it's straight to the intro, "Baby's black balloon makes her fly..." Devastating. The song reached No. 16 on the Billboard Hot 100. It also reached No. 13 and No. 28 on the US Billboard Modern Rock Tracks and Mainstream Rock Tracks charts, respectively. In Canada, it reached No. 3 on the RPM 100 Hit Tracks chart.

The fifth and final single from Dizzy Up the Girl was "Broadway," released March 27, 2000. This is truly a sad song that is dressed up like a happy song. Only this time, the lyrics tell you exactly what it is. It starts off with the chorus, a little different than the other tracks I've mentioned, and it pens the tone of the whole song. According to John Rzeznik, Broadway is a street in Buffalo, NY. There was a bar and a church on every corner, and a lot of the blue collar workers spent their free time drinking. As Rzeznik got older, he began to see the next generation falling into the same habits. The song peaked at No. 24 on the Billboard Hot 100 and coming in at No. 84 on the Billboard year-end Hot 100 singles of 2000. It also peaked at No. 7 on the Canadian RPM 100 Hit Tracks chart and No. 6 on the Icelandic Singles Chart. It was another huge hit for the Goo Goo Dolls both domestically and abroad.

It hadn't been a very long time since I'd listened through Dizzy Up the Girl because it's one the albums in my "Liked Music" playlist on YouTube Music, but since I kept seeing it pop up on my social media, I decided to give it another listen. It just really has such a good, 90s punchy pop sound. This just isn't how pop music is written anymore. These guys are songwriters. Their personal experiences and storytelling are all over this 45 minute album. Now, I can recognize that there is good and bad on this. I would even bet that some of you hate at least one of these songs I mentioned. But that's a consequence of pop music; you hear it everywhere. I'm also almost certain that the Goo Goo Dolls would have called themselves a "rock" band almost 30 years ago. In fact, the rock section was where I found this album the first time I bought it from FYE in the early 2000s. These 5 singles were everywhere in the early 2000s, and even today I hear Iris on pop radio all the time. As for the social media aspect, if you're interested, there is a Dizzy Up the Girl (Anniversary Edition) Black Balloon Vinyl LP available for pre-order for $24.98 US. The tracklist features all 13 of the original tracks. I'm not a big vinyl collector, but I own the album in every other format, so I might just have to buy it.

I don't remember my rating system, but I think you should go give this album a listen. It's 45 minutes, and it might shake up a little nostalgia for you. It did for me. Thanks for reading.