Photos by Andrew Mather, Editor-In-Chief/Photographer
Story by Devon Seaman, Live Music Reporter
As the Goo Goo Dolls took the stage at the Uptown Theater Sunday evening, I began to freak out knowing that I would soon be hearing music from the album that I obsessed over as a teenager. “Dizzy Up the Girl” was released 20 years ago and is most definitely the crowning achievement of John Rzeznik and Robby Takac’s careers. Despite being sick, John delivered his infamous raspy vocals with tremendous enthusiasm and little effort.
The Uptown was packed with many hardcore Goo Goo fans that knew every line of every song on the album. Fans of all ages came out to the show. The crowd swayed and cheered as the band performed the album from beginning to end, flawlessly. I had the pleasure of conducting a phone interview with John Rzeznik a couple weeks ago and we discussed how much he enjoys playing to smaller crowds and how intimate and personal it can make the performance feel.
A special moment was had during “Acoustic #3”, a heartfelt song that John had written about his mother and her struggles with John’s father, but the show-stopper was their most popular power ballad “Iris” from the motion picture “City of Angels”. You hear it on the radio a million times, but nothing prepares you for that melodic guitar opener.
As the album came to an end, the band left the stage and the crew began to tear the set apart. For an encore, John graced the stage once more with guitar in hand to perform a couple of his other hits, solo. The band soon joined him back on stage for a few songs from their self-titled album, bringing the evening to a close. I have so much appreciation for the Goo Goo Dolls for sharing their timeless talent and transporting their Kansas City fans back to the late 1990’s.
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All photos © Andrew Mather
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