Band Celebrates 25th Year in Rock n' Roll, Recording New Album 'Something for the Rest of Us'

Needing a name for his band the night before a gig, John Rzeznik opted for the rather odd sounding moniker, Goo Goo Dolls; named after an ad for a toy in True Detective Magazine.

That was 1985 and while the band soared to international stardom nearly a decade later with the smash single, "Name" from their multi-million selling album, A Boy Named Goo, the name has since become ingrained within pop culture. Given the opportunity to do things over again, Rzeznik admits their moniker would be different.

“If I could go back to that moment, yeah I would change the name and find something with a little more gravitas,” he tells me, “but at this point, it’s a moot point – it’s irrelevant.”

Some 25 years after making their musical debut, Goo Goo Dolls have amassed a rather impressive list of accomplishments including headlining major arena tours, numerous television appearances, and racking up million of sales on the strength of durable pop hits such as "Iris" and "Slide".

But as is often the case in the business of rock and roll, there are paradigm shifts.

“There were some really low points where you sort of feel like you were backed into a corner and you don’t feel like you’re doing anything relevant and when you look at the bigger picture of what’s going on in the world, you start to wonder if you’ve really done anything with your life.

Those are moments of self doubt. There have been some low points in terms of commercial success and things like that but I think it was Alice Cooper that said, ‘If you want to be a rock star, buckle up for the ride.’ It’s just the nature of it.”

Goo Goo Dolls Recording 'Something for the Rest of Us'

With just nine releases in their storied 25-year history, Goo Goo Dolls may have their most inspired piece of work to date in Something for the Rest of Us.

It’s a recording that reflects the uncertainty of the times we’re living in and one that Rzeznik believes shows a continued progression for the group.

“I hope that’s what we’re doing,” he tells me. “We’ve gotten pretty good response to this album and I feel like we put our time in and did an awful lot of work and basically made it twice. I’m really happy with the final product and it may sound selfish, but that’s the ultimate litmus test.”