Everything about Iris Song totally explained
"
Iris" is a song by American
alternative rock band the
Goo Goo Dolls. Originally written for the
soundtrack of
1998 film
City of Angels, the song was later included on the band's sixth album
Dizzy Up the Girl. The gives a distinctive sound as it's in an odd tuning, with 5 of the 6 strings tuned to D. This gives a ringing effect similar to a 12-string guitar. Iris has been one of the Goo Goo Dolls' most defining song in terms of its contribution to the band's future success.
Origins and theme
The instrumentals in the song are heavily driven by
guitar riffs and
cellos, with a steady
drum beat beneath. The theme of these lyrics ties in directly to the film, in which an
angel falls in love with a mortal woman, and can only stay with her by giving up his angelic nature and becoming mortal.
It was the first song that the Goo Goo Dolls had been asked to write specifically for a film. Songwriter
Johnny Rzeznik has been quoted as saying he broke several years of
writer's block and several years of
sobriety simultaneously the night he wrote this track.
In the
music video the band is shown high up in
skyscrapers, watching the lives of people through telescopes. Seen throughout the video is the actor
Nicolas Cage. This theme reflects on what the angels do in the film. Interspersed throughout the video are clips from the film depicting scenes where Seth is falling in love and deciding whether or not to give up being an angel.
The song was named "Iris" by guitarist/vocalist
John Rzeznik for
Iris DeMent. Rzeznik found her name while flipping through a magazine, and thought it was a nice name, so he chose it for the song. Prior to this, some fans of the song have speculated that the title refers to the Greek messenger of the gods,
Iris. This is thought supposedly because some angels are considered messengers and this song was written for the movie
City of Angels (in which the main character
is an angel).
Reception
Upon its release, "Iris" became second of a string of hits from the film's soundtrack, . (The first was
Alanis Morissette's "
Uninvited" and the third was
Sarah McLachlan's "
Angel.") On the U.S.
Billboard Hot 100 the song peaked at number nine for five weeks, and it spent a record eighteen weeks at number one on the
Hot 100 Airplay chart. It wasn't allowed to chart on the Billboard Hot 100 until after it had peaked (amazingly when it was allowed to chart "Iris" still cracked the top 10 at #9) because no commercial single had been released. "Iris" also peaked at #8 on the Billboard Mainstream Rock and # 1 on the Billboard Modern Rock charts.
The song was also a major international hit. "Iris" spent many months in the top thirty on the Ireland singles chart, and despite never charting higher than number five, it's the thirteenth biggest-selling single there.
This song was also used in the production of
The Bear by Anton Chekov performed by Rebecca Gove and Ioannis Bakogeorgos.
Besides the song's success on the charts, "Iris" enjoyed critical acclaim. At the
41st Grammy Awards, "Iris" received nominations for "Record of the Year" and "Pop Performance by a Duo or Group." The song also garnered John Rzeznik a "Song of the Year" nomination.
Cover versions
Avril Lavigne performed the song on stage at the Fashion Rocks Awards with Goo Goo Dolls lead singer Johnny Rzeznik. It was the choice of the
first dance for her 2006 wedding with
Sum 41 lead singer
Deryck Whibley. It was most recently featured on the reality show, performed by
Ryan Star.
Irish
pop singer
Ronan Keating covered "Iris", without Rzeznik's knowledge, including it on his fourth solo album
Bring You Home (2006). It was produced by Mark Taylor and received a mixed reception from music
critics. It was released as the album's first
single in the second quarter of 2006 (see
2006 in music) in
Europe only, with the song "
All Over Again" released as the lead single in
Ireland and the
United Kingdom. The single's
video was directed by Stuart Gosling of Panda Pictures Ltd. on the helipad of the "7-star deluxe hotel"
Burj Al Arab in
Dubai. Gosling was also the video's director of photography.
New Found Glory also recorded the song for their album, "
From the Screen to Your Stereo Part II".
The song was referred to in the 2007 movie
Farce of the Penguins.
Further Information
Get more info on 'Iris Song'.
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