Enough has been said of the Goo Goo Dolls post-Superstar Car Wash career, but one fact remains: having producer Glen Ballard (Aerosmith, Alanis Morissette) involved to the degree he was with Let Love In locks a door that was surely closed with that aforementioned 1993 release. The latest Goo effort finds Johnny Rzeznik and Robby Takac magnifying the AOR-colored hues and introspection found on radio hits like ldquo;Black Balloon, rdquo; ldquo;Iris rdquo; and their latest chart entr e e, ldquo;Better Days. rdquo;
It only bears mentioning since this Special Edition ndash; industry speak for ldquo;we should probably beef this one up lsquo;cause this bugger rsquo;s just not selling that well rdquo; ndash; has an accompanying DVD with live performances of some of their greatest hits and music videos for ldquo;Better Days, rdquo; ldquo;Let Love In rdquo; and ldquo;Stay With You.
rdquo; It rsquo;s above average as a DVD release and the accompanying CD makes for a fair bonus mdash; and all for the same price that the original Love release was. But frankly, it doesn rsquo;t help the original release any mdash; not even contextually. The CD itself is just okay, which has been said many times before today.
This much is true: Rzeznik and Takac have morphed into a heartily capable pop act with a knack for radio hits. To wit, this Love reissue will do nothing to win over old fans of the band who liked their scrappy, Replacements-channeling and punk edge better. Newer fans, however, will surely be tickled.
For this reviewer, it rsquo;s a hefty price for a cover of Roger Hodgson rsquo;s Supertramp classic ldquo;Give a Little Bit rdquo; and an odds and ends DVD. Buy the single on iTunes and the 2004 Fourth of July CD/DVD combo, Live in Buffalo instead.
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