Biography
Few rock figures have managed to change both their group affiliation and their primary instrument at the same moment and achieve such immediate prominence as Dave Grohl. On January 14, 1969, Grohl came into the world in Washington, D.C., where he mastered drums and guitar on his own by absorbing heavy metal from Led Zeppelin, Kiss, Motörhead, and Black Sabbath alongside punk from Black Flag, the Germs, Bad Brains, and the Stooges. Still in his teens, he became the drummer for the independent D.C. punk band Scream and traveled internationally with them. When Scream dissolved in the late 1980s, Grohl moved to Seattle and auditioned for Nirvana, which needed a drummer. Right after he entered the lineup in late 1990, guitarist/singer/songwriter Kurt Cobain supplied the material that formed Nirvana’s major-label debut, the 1991 landmark Nevermind. Around the same period Grohl also produced and performed every part on a set of home recordings issued as the demo Pocketwatch, though that project would resurface later. Nevermind propelled Nirvana to global fame, and Grohl drew widespread notice for his economical yet forceful drumming approach. While the band tracked its next album, 1993’s In Utero, Grohl received songwriting input, earning a co-credit on the intense riff-driven “Scentless Apprentice” and laying down the understated “Marigold,” later released as the B-side of the U.K. single “All Apologies.”
Cobain’s widely reported suicide brought Nirvana to an abrupt close in April 1994. Rather than remain idle, Grohl immediately collaborated with other artists, supplying drums for the Backbeat film soundtrack and Mike Watt’s Ball-Hog or Tugboat?, serving briefly as Watt’s touring drummer, and supporting Tom Petty on Saturday Night Live. Later that year he revisited the Pocketwatch songs and created additional material, again handling every instrument himself. Uncertain at first whether the tracks would ever be released, he eventually issued them as Foo Fighters and assembled a temporary lineup that included ex-Germs/Nirvana guitarist Pat Smear plus ex-Sunny Day Real Estate members William Goldsmith on drums and Nate Mendel on bass; Grohl himself switched permanently to guitar and vocals. The self-titled 1995 Foo Fighters album succeeded commercially by blending the hard-edged punk rock of Grohl’s previous band with melodic mid-tempo pop/rock songs.
The arrival of ex-Alanis Morissette drummer Taylor Hawkins stabilized the rhythm section, yet the supporting cast around Grohl continued to shift. Each new Foo Fighters release nevertheless expanded the group’s audience. Colour and the Shape, released in 1997, marked the first fully collaborative Foo Fighters album and became an international success; two years afterward There Is Nothing Left to Lose earned broad critical praise and further established Grohl as a songwriter, singer, and guitarist rather than solely Nirvana’s former drummer. In 2000 he paused briefly to record drum parts for metal icon Tony Iommi’s self-titled solo album. Early in 2001 the Foo Fighters posted the track “The One” online. Later that year Grohl’s past resurfaced when Courtney Love, Kurt Cobain’s widow, filed suit against Grohl, Krist Novoselic, and Universal Music Group seeking control of Nirvana’s master recordings; the case lasted nearly two years. Grohl and the Foo Fighters opened 2002 by performing at the Winter Olympics. He next surprised observers by joining underground hard-rock band Queens of the Stone Age as their touring drummer, appearing on their breakthrough August 2002 album Songs for the Deaf. Foo Fighters’ One by One arrived in October and quickly generated hit singles, each paired with a Grohl-directed video. The Love lawsuit was resolved, and a single-disc Nirvana retrospective appeared at the end of 2002. In spring 2003 Grohl, Hawkins, and the rest of the Foo Fighters launched an extensive tour supporting One by One.
The follow-up album, 2005’s In Your Honor, reached number two on the Billboard chart. After issuing the live set Skin and Bones in 2006, the band assembled twelve eclectic rock songs released in 2007 as Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace. Two years later the group issued its first compilation, Greatest Hits, while Grohl formed the supergroup Them Crooked Vultures with Queens of the Stone Age’s Josh Homme and Led Zeppelin’s John Paul Jones. Foo Fighters regrouped for 2011’s Wasting Light, produced by Butch Vig and marking the recorded return of Pat Smear after a fourteen-year absence from the studio. Wasting Light debuted at number one on the Billboard chart, earned gold certification in the United States, and brought the band four additional Grammy Awards. Subsequent projects included the 2011 Record Store Day covers collection Medium Rare and the documentary Back and Forth; the band toured through 2012.
That year Foo Fighters announced an indefinite break. Grohl promptly rejoined Queens of the Stone Age, drumming on their 2013 album …Like Clockwork. He also directed a documentary about the historic Los Angeles studio Sound City; the film premiered in early 2013 to favorable reviews and was accompanied by the soundtrack Sound City: Real to Reel, featuring Grohl-led sessions with various Sound City alumni plus Paul McCartney. Shortly afterward the Foo Fighters declared the hiatus over and began work on new material.
Following the releases of Sonic Highways in 2014 and Concrete and Gold in 2017, Grohl created a documentary celebrating the act of playing instruments. Titled Play, the film appeared in 2018 together with a soundtrack that included a twenty-two-minute piece performed entirely by Grohl.
Cobain’s widely reported suicide brought Nirvana to an abrupt close in April 1994. Rather than remain idle, Grohl immediately collaborated with other artists, supplying drums for the Backbeat film soundtrack and Mike Watt’s Ball-Hog or Tugboat?, serving briefly as Watt’s touring drummer, and supporting Tom Petty on Saturday Night Live. Later that year he revisited the Pocketwatch songs and created additional material, again handling every instrument himself. Uncertain at first whether the tracks would ever be released, he eventually issued them as Foo Fighters and assembled a temporary lineup that included ex-Germs/Nirvana guitarist Pat Smear plus ex-Sunny Day Real Estate members William Goldsmith on drums and Nate Mendel on bass; Grohl himself switched permanently to guitar and vocals. The self-titled 1995 Foo Fighters album succeeded commercially by blending the hard-edged punk rock of Grohl’s previous band with melodic mid-tempo pop/rock songs.
The arrival of ex-Alanis Morissette drummer Taylor Hawkins stabilized the rhythm section, yet the supporting cast around Grohl continued to shift. Each new Foo Fighters release nevertheless expanded the group’s audience. Colour and the Shape, released in 1997, marked the first fully collaborative Foo Fighters album and became an international success; two years afterward There Is Nothing Left to Lose earned broad critical praise and further established Grohl as a songwriter, singer, and guitarist rather than solely Nirvana’s former drummer. In 2000 he paused briefly to record drum parts for metal icon Tony Iommi’s self-titled solo album. Early in 2001 the Foo Fighters posted the track “The One” online. Later that year Grohl’s past resurfaced when Courtney Love, Kurt Cobain’s widow, filed suit against Grohl, Krist Novoselic, and Universal Music Group seeking control of Nirvana’s master recordings; the case lasted nearly two years. Grohl and the Foo Fighters opened 2002 by performing at the Winter Olympics. He next surprised observers by joining underground hard-rock band Queens of the Stone Age as their touring drummer, appearing on their breakthrough August 2002 album Songs for the Deaf. Foo Fighters’ One by One arrived in October and quickly generated hit singles, each paired with a Grohl-directed video. The Love lawsuit was resolved, and a single-disc Nirvana retrospective appeared at the end of 2002. In spring 2003 Grohl, Hawkins, and the rest of the Foo Fighters launched an extensive tour supporting One by One.
The follow-up album, 2005’s In Your Honor, reached number two on the Billboard chart. After issuing the live set Skin and Bones in 2006, the band assembled twelve eclectic rock songs released in 2007 as Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace. Two years later the group issued its first compilation, Greatest Hits, while Grohl formed the supergroup Them Crooked Vultures with Queens of the Stone Age’s Josh Homme and Led Zeppelin’s John Paul Jones. Foo Fighters regrouped for 2011’s Wasting Light, produced by Butch Vig and marking the recorded return of Pat Smear after a fourteen-year absence from the studio. Wasting Light debuted at number one on the Billboard chart, earned gold certification in the United States, and brought the band four additional Grammy Awards. Subsequent projects included the 2011 Record Store Day covers collection Medium Rare and the documentary Back and Forth; the band toured through 2012.
That year Foo Fighters announced an indefinite break. Grohl promptly rejoined Queens of the Stone Age, drumming on their 2013 album …Like Clockwork. He also directed a documentary about the historic Los Angeles studio Sound City; the film premiered in early 2013 to favorable reviews and was accompanied by the soundtrack Sound City: Real to Reel, featuring Grohl-led sessions with various Sound City alumni plus Paul McCartney. Shortly afterward the Foo Fighters declared the hiatus over and began work on new material.
Following the releases of Sonic Highways in 2014 and Concrete and Gold in 2017, Grohl created a documentary celebrating the act of playing instruments. Titled Play, the film appeared in 2018 together with a soundtrack that included a twenty-two-minute piece performed entirely by Grohl.
Albums
Singles
