Go ahead and try to name a more ubiquitous 90s cultural artifact than Goo Goo Dolls' "Iris." You probably can't. It’s the song that lived on every radio station for a straight year. But honestly, the soundtrack to City of Angels is so much more than just that one power ballad. It’s a weird, moody, multimillion-selling time capsule that defined an entire era of "adult contemporary" cool.
Back in 1998, people weren't just buying this CD for a single track. They were buying a vibe.
It was a strange moment for movies. City of Angels—a remake of Wim Wenders' ethereal German masterpiece Wings of Desire—turned a gritty, philosophical meditation on mortality into a glossy, rain-soaked Hollywood romance starring Nicolas Cage and Meg Ryan. The movie was polarizing. Critics were split. But the music? The music was a goddamn phenomenon.
The Song That Ate the World
We have to talk about "Iris." It’s unavoidable. John Rzeznik basically wrote a career-defining masterpiece because he was having a bit of a crisis. He was stuck in a massive bout of writer's block when he was invited to a screening of the film. He saw the movie, went back to his hotel, and wrote the song in about an hour.
It spent 18 non-consecutive weeks at number one on the Billboard Hot 100 Airplay chart. Think about that. Nearly five months of total dominance.
What's wild is how the soundtrack to City of Angels managed to bridge the gap between alternative rock and mainstream pop. "Iris" has that signature mandolin-driven urgency, but it’s the orchestration that makes it feel like a movie. It’s cinematic. It’s desperate. It feels like standing on top of a skyscraper in a duster coat, which, if we’re being real, was the peak aesthetic of 1998.
Alanis Morissette and the Sound of Mourning
If "Iris" was the longing, "Uninvited" was the ghost. Alanis Morissette was coming off the world-shattering success of Jagged Little Pill. Everyone expected more angst, more shouting. Instead, she gave us this haunting, Indian-influenced, minor-key orchestral epic.
"Uninvited" is arguably one of the best things she’s ever recorded. It’s dark. It’s thick with tension. It won two Grammys and it didn't even need a traditional music video to get played to death. It sets the tone for the entire album. While most soundtracks of the era were just a random collection of "inspired by" tracks that had nothing to do with the film, this record actually felt like the movie. It felt like Los Angeles at dusk.
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Why the Soundtrack to City of Angels Was a Curatorial Genius Move
The late Rob Cavallo, who produced a big chunk of this, really understood the assignment. You’ve got a mix of legendary icons and then-current alt-rock darlings.
Look at the tracklist. It’s not just a pop-rock fest. You have:
- U2’s "If God Will Send His Angels" (a single version that's arguably better than the album version)
- Sarah McLachlan’s "Angel" (yes, that song, before it became synonymous with those heartbreaking animal commercials)
- Peter Gabriel’s "I Dig You Out"
- Paula Cole's "I Don't Want to Wait" (well, actually she did "Feelin’ Love" for the OST, but you get the era's vibe)
Actually, Sarah McLachlan's "Angel" is a great example of the album's longevity. Before it was a meme, it was just a beautiful, sparse piano ballad that fit perfectly with the film's themes of sacrifice and the afterlife. The soundtrack to City of Angels wasn't trying to be trendy. It was trying to be timeless. It succeeded so well that it eventually went 5x Platinum in the United States alone.
The Hidden Gems You Forgot About
Everyone remembers the big three (Goo Goo Dolls, Alanis, Sarah), but the back half of the album is where the real texture is.
Gabriel’s contribution is soulful and rhythmic. Eric Clapton’s "Further Up on the Road" provides a bluesy anchor that stops the whole thing from floating away into the clouds. Then there’s Jimi Hendrix. Including "Red House" was a ballsy move for a romantic drama soundtrack, but it works. It adds a layer of grit to the otherwise ethereal atmosphere.
And let’s not forget the score by Gabriel Yared. Most people skip the instrumental tracks on soundtracks, but Yared’s work here is essential. It’s melancholic and sweeping. It’s the glue that holds the pop songs together.
The Cultural Impact of 1998
To understand why this record hit so hard, you have to remember where we were in 1998. Grunge was dead. Nu-metal was starting to bubble up with Korn and Limp Bizkit. The "Lilith Fair" sound was at its absolute peak. People wanted emotion, but they wanted it polished.
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The soundtrack to City of Angels provided a safe harbor for people who weren't into the growing aggression of the late 90s music scene. It was sophisticated. It was the kind of CD you’d see in every college dorm room and every suburban soccer mom’s SUV.
It was also one of the last "must-own" soundtracks. Within a few years, Napster would change everything. The idea of buying a physical disc for 12 curated songs started to fade. This was the twilight of the mega-soundtrack era, standing alongside The Bodyguard, Titanic, and Garden State as a cultural touchstone.
Technical Mastery and Production
If you listen to the album today on a good pair of headphones, the production holds up incredibly well. There’s a certain "width" to the sound.
The strings on "Uninvited" aren't just background noise; they’re aggressive. They’re biting. The mix on "Iris" is a masterclass in building tension—starting with that iconic acoustic guitar tuning (it's in BDDDDD, for the guitar nerds out there) and building into a wall of sound.
Most movie tie-in albums felt like cash grabs. This one felt like a curated art gallery.
Misconceptions About the Album
One big mistake people make is thinking this was an "alt-rock" album. It really wasn't. It was a "Triple-A" (Adult Album Alternative) powerhouse. It appealed to the people who liked Radiohead but also liked Celine Dion. That’s a very difficult needle to thread.
Another misconception? That the songs were written specifically for the movie. While some were, others were existing tracks or reworked versions. U2’s track was originally on Pop, but the version on the soundtrack to City of Angels was stripped back and made more "celestial" to fit the movie’s aesthetic.
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How to Revisit the Music Today
If you’re going to dive back in, don’t just shuffle it on Spotify.
- Listen in order. The flow from the dark intensity of Alanis to the yearning of Goo Goo Dolls is intentional.
- Pay attention to the lyrics. These songs deal with some pretty heavy stuff—loss, the desire to be "real," the pain of human existence. It’s surprisingly deep for a Hollywood blockbuster tie-in.
- Watch the movie again (maybe). Okay, the movie hasn't aged quite as well as the music. Nic Cage's "staring" can be a bit much. But the music makes the scenes feel ten times more impactful than they actually are.
Actionable Takeaways for Music Fans and Collectors
If you're a vinyl collector, look for the 2017 or 2020 reissues. The original pressings are rare and pricey, but the newer 180g versions capture the dynamic range of those orchestral arrangements much better than a low-bitrate stream ever will.
For songwriters, study "Iris." Look at how Rzeznik uses a non-standard tuning to create a drone effect that makes the song sound massive even before the drums kick in. It’s a lesson in how to create atmosphere without overcomplicating the melody.
The soundtrack to City of Angels remains a high-water mark for the industry. It proved that you could sell millions of records without pandering to the lowest common denominator. It was moody, it was expensive-sounding, and it was deeply, unashamedly emotional.
Honestly, we don't really get soundtracks like this anymore. Nowadays, it's all "curated playlists" that feel disjointed. There was something special about a single vision—even if that vision was "angels in trench coats crying over Meg Ryan"—that brought together the biggest artists in the world to create a singular, cohesive mood.
It’s been over 25 years, and yet, when those first few notes of "Iris" or "Angel" play, everyone in the room still knows exactly where they were when they first heard them. That's not just marketing; that's just good music.
Final Thoughts on the Legacy
The album didn't just sell copies; it influenced the "Sound of Los Angeles" in cinema for years to follow. It showed that a soundtrack could be a character in itself. Whether you love the film or find it a bit cheesy, you can't deny the sheer gravitational pull of this collection of songs.
If you want to understand the late 90s, skip the history books and just put on this CD. It tells you everything you need to know about the era's heart, its production polish, and its obsession with the bittersweet.
Next Steps for Music Enthusiasts:
Check out the "Iris" 25th Anniversary live recordings to see how the song has evolved. Then, go find the original Wings of Desire soundtrack—composed largely by Jürgen Knieper—to see the stark, avant-garde contrast to the Hollywood version you know and love. Comparing the two is a fascinating look at how different cultures interpret the same "heavenly" themes through sound.