

In October 2012, "Iris" was ranked number one on Billboard 's "Top 100 Pop Songs 1992–2012" chart, which ranked the top songs of the first 20 years of the Mainstream Top 40/Pop Songs chart. The song was ranked at number 39 on Rolling Stone 's list of the 100 greatest pop songs. The single was certified septuple platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America on June 30, 2022.

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 Johnny Rzeznik a "Song of the Year" nomination. Elsewhere, the song became a number-one hit in Italy (for two weeks), Australia (for five weeks), and Canada (for eight weeks), and it reached the top 10 in Flanders and the Netherlands.īesides the song's success on the charts, "Iris" enjoyed critical acclaim. In May 2013, the song charted at number 12 after it was covered by Britain's Got Talent contestant Robbie Kennedy.

On October 2, 2011, after performances by auditionees on The X Factor, the song re-entered the UK Singles Chart at number three. The song initially peaked at number 50 in the United Kingdom in August 1998 before rising to number 26 the following year. It peaked at number five on the Irish Singles Chart and has since become the 19th biggest-selling single of all time in Ireland. The Goo Goo Dolls performed "Iris" on October 20, 2001, at Madison Square Garden as part of The Concert for New York City to raise money for victims of the September 11 attacks. The song spent a then-record 17 weeks at number one on the Billboard Adult Top 40 chart (beating No Doubt's 15-week run at number one with " Don't Speak" in 1996–97). The song was the band's second number one hit on the Modern Rock Tracks chart, following their 1995 hit " Name." "Iris" stayed at number one for five weeks on the Alternative Songs chart and also hit number one on the Mainstream Top 40 chart for four weeks. On the Mainstream Rock Tracks chart, "Iris" peaked at number eight. As a result, the song debuted and peaked at number nine and stayed on the chart for 14 weeks. In December 1998, just after the song's airplay had peaked, the rules changed to allow airplay-only songs onto the chart. However it was not allowed to chart on the Billboard Hot 100 because no commercial single had been released. The song debuted at number 66 on the Billboard Hot 100 Airplay chart on April 18, 1998, and eventually spent a then-record of 18 weeks at number one in Hot 100 Airplay. (The first was Alanis Morissette's " Uninvited" and the third was Sarah McLachlan's " Angel").

Upon its release, "Iris" became second of a string of hits from the film's soundtrack, City of Angels: Music from the Motion Picture. Rzeznik named the song after country folk singer-songwriter Iris DeMent, after he noticed her name in a concert listing in the LA Weekly newspaper. Speaking with Songwriting Magazine, Rzeznik said that further inspiration for the song came from the fact that he wanted to be on a soundtrack album with U2, Peter Gabriel and Alanis Morrisette. And I think, 'Wow! What an amazing thing it must be like to love someone so much that you give up everything to be with them.' That's a pretty heavy thought." This guy is completely willing to give up his own immortality, just to be able to feel something very human. "I was thinking about the situation of the Nicolas Cage character in the movie. In a 2013 interview with Songfacts, lead singer Rzeznik explained how he wrote the song: Shortly afterwards that same day, John Rzeznik called Rob with a song he had written called "Iris", a power ballad. The following morning Morissette called Rob, and asked him to produce the song " Uninvited" which she had written afterwards as a demo. Bob took Alanis Morissette whilst Rob took the Goo Goo Dolls. Composition Īfter completing the first-edit on the film City of Angels, co-producer Bob Cavallo and his son Rob Cavallo, also a music producer, decided to take along musical artists to a viewing to create the soundtrack. "Iris" is the Goo Goo Dolls' signature song and has received critical acclaim, being described as a "ubiquitous" staple for the band's live sets. The song reached number one in Australia, Canada, and Italy, number three in the United Kingdom, number nine on the US Billboard Hot 100, and has become one of Ireland's best-selling singles of all time. "Iris" has contributed greatly to the band's success. The song was released as a single on April 1, 1998. Originally written for the soundtrack of the 1998 film City of Angels, the song was later included on the band's sixth album, Dizzy Up the Girl. " Iris" is a song by American alternative rock band Goo Goo Dolls. From the album Dizzy Up the Girl and City of Angels
