The Goo Goo Dolls CD Review
The Goo Goo Dolls
Let Love In
(Warner Bros.)
Well they’ve done it. Throwing their cards down and tearing off their disguises, The Goo Goo Dolls drop the charade and cover Supertramp.
It’s not as if John Rzeznik has always been a soft rock superhero. The early incarnations of his band’s style somehow landed them a deal with Metal Blade; he later fomented success by arena-sizing old Replacements formulas (which still constitute the base of Let Love In). But recording his own unimaginative take on “Give A Little Bit” feels like a surrender, as if admitting everyone was right about his credibility all along. (Adding to the pandering motif, a Goo version was already made available on 2004’s bloated, double-disc Live In Buffalo.) Rzeznik’s lyrics are equally uninspired, as seven of Let Love In‘s 10 “original” songs begin “You,” “You,” “And you,” “Your,” “Why are you,” “You,” and “You’re.” It’s always sad to see them stop trying, even after years spent dreaming they would.
— Steve Forstneger
Appearing: August 18th at First Midwest Tweeter World in Tinley Park.
