Goo Goo Dolls (Photo by Bob Mussel)

Vocalist/guitarist John Rzeznik and bassist Robby Takac are best known as the Goo Goo Dolls. As a follow-up to 2016’s Boxes, their 11th studio album, the duo released You Should Be Happy, a five-song EP, physically on June 9 (after a May 12 digital release) via Warner Bros. Records.

John and Robby have hit the road for their Long Way Home headlining tour, accompanied by touring bandmates Brad Fernquist (guitar), Korel Tunador (keyboards), and Craig Macintyre (drums). The tour stops at Wolf Trap in Vienna, Virginia, on Tuesday, Aug. 8.

The Goo Goo Dolls have sold more than 12 million albums since releasing their self-titled debut record in 1987. The gents have scored 14 Top 10 radio hits, but without a doubt they are best remembered for their first platinum #1 hit “Iris,” found on their 1998 album Dizzy Up the Girl, and its refrain “And I don’t want the world to see me/’Cause I don’t think that they’d understand/When everything’s meant to be broken/I just want you to know who I am.”

Revisit the official music video for “Iris” by Goo Goo Dolls on YouTube:

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NdYWuo9OFAw]

While John is enormously grateful for the success of “Iris,” he takes care not to fall into a rut. He enlisted collaborators and worked to open his mind to outside influences for last year’s Boxes.

“I was listening to a lot of David Bowie and thinking about how he went from writing ‘Scary Monsters’ to ‘Let’s Dance’ and what an insane, radical change that was,” John said. “He totally reinvented himself every time. And it dawned on me that that’s what you always have to do. You have to change.”

“When you’ve been doing this as long as I have, you need outside input. Not just to keep you relevant, but to keep you sane, creative, and humble,” he added.

Don’t miss out on the opportunity to make new memories with these enduring melody makers. Buy your tickets online.

Goo Goo Dolls
w/ Phillip Phillips
Wolf Trap
Tuesday, Aug. 8
Show @7:30pm
$40-$75
All ages