Dave Grohl

David Eric Grohl (born January 14, 1969) is an American rock musician, multi-instrumentalist, singer, songwriter, and producer. He is best known as the former drummer for the grunge band Nirvana and the founder and frontman of the rock band Foo Fighters, of which he is the lead vocalist, one of three guitarists, and primary songwriter.

Quotes

What's the last thing a drummer says in a band?
"Hey guys, why don't we try one of my songs?
- "Give the Drummer Some," www.fooarchive.com (1995)

"Masturbation is one of the safest ways to explore your own sexuality."
- Sex in the 90s, Part IX: The Safest Sex of All

Rock stars suck. Man, I'd be so embarrassed at being called a rock star. A lot of those connotations aren't conductive to my lifestyle. I don't do drugs, I don't fuck groupies, I don't spend all my money on limos and mansions and cocaine. I have a car and a small house and I go on tour and go to bed early and wake up and have tea. I'm a worker, man. I don't think many people see me as a rock star; hopefully they see me as a normal person. 'Musician' would be just fine.
- Quoted in Big Mouth Strikes Again. Kerrang! (September 28, 2002).

Kerrang!: The last time Grohl really thought about death was also the last time he cried. On that occasion he was sitting in a Los Angeles bar, when a fellow foot soldier of the grunge wars walked in. It was Jerry Cantrell, seeking to drown his sorrows on the night that former Alice In Chains vocalist Layne Staley died in his Seattle home.

Grohl: I didn't know those Alice In Chains guys too well, but for some reason it just broke my heart. I got really upset as I talked to him. It seemed like such a shame that another musician had died of a drug overdose.

Kerrang!: There's a long pause, and Dave Grohl asks for another cup of coffee from the Eurostar waiter, before he continues.

Grohl: In 1994 when Kurt died I realised that the most important thing is life and family and love and happiness. When I was 17 or 18, rock was the most important thing to me, but life is a lot bigger than any band you'll have in Kerrang magazine, bigger than any record the Foo Fighters will ever make. Don't get me wrong, I'm very passionate and devoted to what I do, my heart is filled with this band, but this is not my entire life. The Foo Fighters just made their best record, I'm so excited and very proud and I can't wait to see what happens with the album, but more than that I can't wait to see what's going to happen with the rest of my life.

Quoted in Big Mouth Strikes Again. Kerrang! (September 28, 2002).

I still dream about Kurt. Every time I see him in a dream, I’ll be amazed and I get this feeling that everyone else thinks he’s dead. It always feels totally real, probably because I’m a very vivid dreamer. But, in my dreams, Kurt’s usually been hiding - we’ll get together and I’ll end up asking him, ‘God, where have you been?’
Quoted in Dave Grohl: I still dream about Kurt Cobain. NME (October 31, 2007).

One thing I did before Nirvana became popular was I stopped doing drugs.

By the time I was 20, I just stopped doing that stuff because it didn't make me feel emotionally, mentally or physically healthy.

I have a drink every now and again, sure, but if you want to weather a career like I've done, you can't do this shit half-assed.

It's challenging and you have to try and keep your head - there's a lot going on around you all the time and with time you get better at keeping on top of it all.

Quoted in Dave Grohl: 'We've never been a cool band'. Sydney Morning Herald (December 27, 2017).

Perez [Hilton]: Are you drunk right now?
Grohl: No, I gotta play.
Perez: Britney Spears has been getting wasted all the time, hasn't stopped her.
Grohl: Yeah, but she doesn't have to sing live.
- Quoted in Shirley Halperin, "My Summer With the Foo Fighters," Entertainment Weekly (2007-09-21)

Around the time that I recorded the first Foo Fighters tape, I was reading a lot of books on UFO’s. … So, since I had recorded the first record by myself, playing all the instruments, but I wanted people to think that it was a group, I figured that FOO FIGHTERS - WW2 term for UFO’s - might lead people to believe that it was more than just one guy. Silly, huh? Had I actually considered this to be a career, I probably would have called it something else, because it’s the stupidest fucking band name in the world.
- Quoted in Clash Music, "Foo Fighters on Their Band Name" Clash Music (2010-01-11)

I'd like to imagine I won't end up in hell, but I think I've done too much acid and listened to too much death metal to sit on a cloud next to God with angels floating above my head.
- Maxim Magazine (January 2008)

About Dave Grohl

Why doesn't Dave Grohl run for President? I think he'd be good, he seems a very organised man. He has about 12 fingers in about 50 pies, and they're all great pies, and great fingers. What I'm saying is that we really respect that band, and I fucking love him!
- Chris Martin, quoted on www.foofighters.com (2002) [1]

I love his voice (Dave) and the song writing is scary; it's phenomenal. He's the most inspirational guy out there for me now.
- Mark DiCarlo, quoted on www.foofighters.com (2000) [2]