Frank Edwin Wright III (born on December 9, 1972), better known as Tré Cool, is an American drummer, best known as the drummer and backing vocalist for Green Day. He replaced the group's former drummer John Kiffmeyer in 1991. Cool has also played in The Lookouts, Samiam and the Green Day side-projects The Network and the Foxboro Hot Tubs.

Life and career[link]

Frank Edwin Wright III was born in Frankfurt, Germany. He lived in Willits, California with his father and his older sister Lori. His father was a helicopter pilot during the Vietnam War.^[5] Wright's closest neighbor was Larry Livermore, who at the time was the singer of the punk band The Lookouts. When Wright was 12, Livermore recruited him as the drummer of The Lookouts and gave him the name of "Tre Cool",^[5] relying on both the French word "très" (meaning "very")^[6] combined with the word "cool". However, the silent "s" has been dropped in the spelling, as a play on the "third" in his name. A common misconception is that Larry Livermore gave Tre Cool his full nickname; however, he was known as Tre long before he joined The Lookouts.^[7]

When Green Day's drummer, John Kiffmeyer, left the band, the group recruited Cool to be its drummer. In his sophomore year, Cool dropped out of high school and opted to earn a GED. He began taking classes at a local community college but would later drop out as well as the band became a more time consuming priority. During this time the band considered breaking up because it took a long time to adjust to playing with Cool.^[5] He is the godfather of lead singer/guitarist of Green Day, Billie Joe Armstrong's kids.

Cool's father was supportive and overhauled a bookmobile to transport the band. He would later say: "I watched them go from a bunch of kids to a group of musicians with work ethic", also adding: "On their first tour or two, it was more of a party than anything else. I still scratch my head and say, 'How in the hell did they make it?' They used to practice in my living room here – a lot of the songs they did on Dookie. You hear it coming together, and you don't expect people are going to go out and buy it. But when it does, you just say, 'Wow that's so cool.'"^[8]

In 1998, after Green Day won a "Moon Man" Trophy at the MTV Music Awards, Tre Cool famously scaled the Universal Globe at Universal Studios, but escaped with no punishment, only compliments and cheers. Cool has been the only person to ever do so.^[9]

Musical style[link]

Before joining Green Day, Cool employed a more intricate drumming style. He explained that "When I started, I had too many drums. I was a little reggae-happy and into fancier beats than was needed. It took me awhile to get it: Play the song, don't play the instrument. I started figuring out how to make the band a stronger unit, to make it jump."^[10] After playing with Green Day bassist Mike Dirnt, Cool adopted a more rhythmic style with less drum fills to match Dirnt's bass riffs.^[10]

Greg Kot of the Chicago Tribune referred to Cool as "Green Day's most potent weapon", adding that "His monstrous kick-drum wallop evokes John Bonham, while his manic fills make him punk's answer to Keith Moon."^[11] His stage persona has also been compared to Moon.^[12] Sound engineer Neill King, who worked with Green Day on Dookie, noted that Cool shares Moon's "wild animal approach" to playing drums, and explained that the band encountered difficulties while recording "Basket Case" due to his unpredictable style: "It’s not that Tré wasn’t a good drummer, but in terms of his performances we wanted the best of the best...So, although we wanted him to do all of his wild fills and crazy drumming, we couldn’t just let him go. He’d drift in and out of time, which is terrific live, but which was unacceptable on radio at that time."^[13]

Personal life[link]

Cool has a daughter named Ramona Isabel Wright (born January 12, 1995), named after his idol, Joey Ramone. He also has a son, named Frankito (which means "Little Frank"), born in 2001.

Singing and songwriting[link]

Cool sang and played guitar on the tracks "Dominated Love Slave" and "All by Myself", from Kerplunk and Dookie, respectively, both of which he wrote and composed (on "Dominated Love Slave", guitarist and vocalist Billie Joe Armstrong played drums). He wrote and sang the subtrack "Rock and Roll Girlfriend" from the medley "Homecoming" featured on the album American Idiot. He also sang and composed the track "DUI" ("Driving Under the Influence"), which was recorded for Green Day's fifth studio album Nimrod (1997) and was due to be released on the compilation album Shenanigans in 2002, but was omitted and can only be found online.

During a radio interview at Washington DC's alternative station DC 101, Cool sang and played acoustic guitar on a short song entitled "Like a Rat Does Cheese," a song about the pleasure of fellatio.

Several live tracks also exist, usually from around 1993, such as "Food Around the Corner", a song from the 1943 Elmer Fudd cartoon An Itch in Time. Another live track, "Billie Joe's Mom" was also recorded.

Cool had also recorded a version of Tay Zonday's "Chocolate Rain." It was posted on YouTube on August 1, 2007. His cover was mentioned in several news journals.^[14]

Discography[link]

Green Day[link]

• Kerplunk! (1992) – drums, guitar and lead vocals on "Dominated Love Slave"
• Dookie (1994) – drums, guitar and vocals on "All by Myself"
• Insomniac (1995) – drums
• Nimrod (1997) – drums
• Warning (2000) – backing vocals, drums
• American Idiot (2004) – drums, backing vocals, vocals on "Rock and Roll Girlfriend"
• Bullet in a Bible (2005) – drums, backing vocals
• 21st Century Breakdown (2009) – drums
• Awesome as Fuck (2011) – drums, backing vocals

DVD[link]

• Bullet in a Bible (film; 2005) – drums, himself, backing vocals
• Awesome as Fuck (film; 2011) – drums, himself, backing vocals

The Lookouts[link]

• One Planet One People (1987) - drums, vocals, lead vocals on "The Mushroom Is Exploding"
• Spy Rock Road (1989) - drums, lead vocals on "That Girl's from Outer Space"

Foxboro Hot Tubs[link]

• Stop Drop and Roll!!! (2008) – fanx

Other media appearances[link]

• King of the Hill (TV series; 1997) – Cane Skretteberg
• Riding in Vans with Boys (film; 2003) – himself
• Live Freaky! Die Freaky! (film; 2006) - The Maid
• The Simpsons Movie (film; 2007) – himself
• Green Day: Rock Band (video game; 2010) – himself

Equipment[link]

Cool has used drums of different companies. He currently uses Gretsch drums and Zildjian cymbals. In the past, Cool has used drums built by DW (Drum Workshop), Ayotte, Slingerland, Sherwood, Ludwig, and Leedy.

American Idiot Drum Setup:

Drum Set: Ludwig Classic Maple Series Kit in Silver Sparkle Finish with Remo Drumheads

• 18"×22" Bass drum with a Clear Powerstroke 3 on batter and Ebony Powerstroke 3 (with Green Day's American Idiot logo) on reso
• 10"×14" Rack Tom with a Coated Emperor on batter and Clear Ambassador on reso
• 16"×16" Floor Tom with a Coated Emperor on batter and Clear Ambassador on reso
• 16"×18" Floor Tom with a Coated Emperor on batter and Clear Ambassador on reso
• 7"×14" Noble & Cooley Classic SS Series Snare with a Coated Powerstroke 3 on Batter and hazy snare side Ambassador on reso (Tre occasionally used a 6.5x14 Ludwig Black Beauty Snare)

• 14" K/Z Special Hi-hats
• 19" K Dark Medium Thin Crash
• 19" A Medium Thin Crash
• 22" A Ping Ride or 22" K Heavy Ride
• 21" A Sweet Ride or 20" Vintage Avedis Ride (Used as Crash). A 21" Bosphorus and a 20" K Crashride as well.
• 20" FX Oriental Classic China (Tre occasionally used the 20" FX Oriental China "Trash")

21st Century Breakdown Drum Setup

Drum Set: Leedy Custom Maple Kit in White Marine Nitron Finish with Remo Drumheads

• 16"×22" Bass drum with a Clear Powerstroke 3 on batter and Smooth White Powerstroke 3 (with Green Day's 21st Century Breakdown logo) on reso
• 09"×13" Tom with a Coated Emperor on batter and Clear Ambassador on reso
• 16"×16" Floor Tom with a Coated Emperor on batter and Clear Ambassador on reso
• 16"×18" Floor Tom with a Coated Emperor on batter and Clear Ambassador on reso
• 6.5"×14" Leedy Broadway Standard Snare with a Coated Emperor x on batter and hazy snare side Ambassador on reso

• 14" K/Z Special Hi-hats
• 19" K Dark Thin Crash
• 19" A Medium Thin Crash
• 22" A Ping Ride or 22" A Deep Ride
• 21" A Sweet Ride (Used as Crash)
• 20" FX Oriental Classic China (Tre has used the 20" but in the later shows of the 21st Century Breakdown Tour, He can be seen using the 22 Inch)

‘¡Uno!’ ‘¡Dos!’ ‘¡Tre!’ Setup:

Drum Set: Gretsch USA Custom Kit in Red with Remo Drumheads

((Drum sizes to follow))

• 14" K/Z Special Hi-hats
• 19" K Dark Thin Crash
• 19" A Medium Thin Crash
• 22" A Ping Ride or 22" A Deep Ride
• 21" A Sweet Ride (Used as Crash)
• 20" FX Oriental Classic China

See also[link]

Green Day portal

• List of drummers

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Tre Cool

• Tre Cool at the Internet Movie Database
• DRUM! Magazine's interview with Tre Cool
• Tre Cool at DrummerWorld.com
• Tre Cool at BehindTheDrums.com contains discography and equipment list
• Tre Cool at Zildjian.com
• Tre Cool biography on Green Day Authority
• YouTube Chocolate Rain as performed by Tre Cool

Billie Joe Armstrong
Armstrong performing at Madison Square Garden on July 28, 2009.
Background information
Birth name	Billie Joe Armstrong
Also known as	Wilhelm Fink Reverend Strychnine Twitch Fink
Born	(1972-02-17) February 17, 1972 (age 40) Oakland, California, U.S.
Genres	Punk rock, alternative rock, rock, pop punk, garage rock, new wave, heavy metal
Occupations	Singer, musician, songwriter, guitarist
Instruments	Vocals, guitar, piano, drums, percussion, saxophone, harmonica, mandolin, bass, violin
Years active	1987–present
Labels	Reprise, Lookout!, Adeline, Recess
Associated acts	Green Day, Pinhead Gunpowder, The Network, Foxboro Hot Tubs, The Boo
Notable instruments
Gibson USA Billie Joe Armstrong Les Paul Jr. Fernandes Stratocaster (Blue) Gibson Les Paul Junior Gibson Les Paul Custom Gibson ES-335 Gibson SG Standard Gretsch Hollowbody Fender Stratocaster Fender Telecaster Guild D55 Taylor 514C Fender Jaguar

Billie Joe Armstrong (born February 17, 1972) is an American rock musician and occasional actor, best known as the lead vocalist, main songwriter and lead guitarist for the American punk rock band Green Day. He is also a guitarist and vocalist for the punk rock band Pinhead Gunpowder and provides lead vocals for Green Day's side project Foxboro Hot Tubs.

Raised in Rodeo, California, Armstrong developed an interest in music at a young age, and recorded his first song at the age of five. He met Mike Dirnt while attending elementary school, and the two instantly bonded over their mutual interest in music, forming the band Sweet Children when the two were 15 years old. The band changed its name to Green Day, and would later achieve massive commercial success. Armstrong has also pursued musical projects outside of Green Day's work, including numerous collaborations with other musicians as well as serving as the primary vocalist for the bands Pinhead Gunpowder and Foxboro Hot Tubs.

Early life[link]

Billie Joe Armstrong was born in Piedmont, California, a small town surrounded by the city of Oakland, and was raised in Rodeo, California, as the youngest of six children to Andrew "Andy" Armstrong^[1] and Ollie Jackson.^[1] His father worked as a jazz musician and truck driver for Safeway Inc. to support his family. He died of esophageal cancer on September 10, 1982.^[1] The song "Wake Me Up When September Ends" is a memorial to his father. He has five older siblings: David, Alan, Marci, Hollie, and Anna. His mother worked at Rod's Hickory Pit^[1] restaurant in El Cerrito. Armstrong and Mike Dirnt's first live performance was at Rod's Hickory Pit in 1987; their first performance under the name Green Day was in Davis, a college town approximately an hour's drive northeast of San Francisco Bay.

Armstrong's interest in music started at a young age. He attended Hillchest Elementary School in Rodeo, where a teacher encouraged him to record a song titled "Look for Love" at the age of five on the Bay Area label Fiat Records.^[1][2] After his father died, his mother married a man whom her children disliked, which resulted in Armstrong's further retreat into music. At the age of 10, Armstrong met Mike Dirnt in the school cafeteria and they immediately bonded over their love of music.^[1] He became interested in punk rock after being introduced to punk rock by his brothers.^[3] Armstrong has also cited Minneapolis-based bands The Replacements and Hüsker Dü as major musical influences.

Armstrong attended John Swett High School, also in Crockett, and later Pinole Valley High School in Pinole, California, but then dropped out to pursue his musical career.

Career[link]

Armstrong in 1994

In 1987, aged 15, Armstrong formed a band called Sweet Children with his childhood friend Mike Dirnt. In the beginning, Dirnt and Armstrong both played guitar, with John Kiffmeyer, also known as Al Sobrante, on drums,^[4] and Sean Hughes on bass. After a few performances, Hughes left the band in 1988; Dirnt then began playing bass and they became a three-piece band. They changed their name to Green Day in April 1989, allegedly choosing the name because of their fondness for marijuana.^[5] That same year, they released their debut EP 1,000 Hours through Lookout! Records. They recorded their debut studio album 39/Smooth and the extended play Slappy in 1990, which were later combined with 1,000 Hours into the compilation 1,039/Smoothed Out Slappy Hours in 1991. Tré Cool eventually became Green Day's drummer in late 1990 when Sobrante left Green Day in order to go to college. California punk band Rancid's lead singer Tim Armstrong asked Armstrong to join his band, but he refused owing to the progress with Green Day. Cool made his debut on Green Day's second album, Kerplunk. With their next album, Dookie (1994), the band broke through into the mainstream, and have remained one of the most popular rock bands of the 1990s and 2000s with over 60 million records sold worldwide.^[6] In 2009, their hit American Idiot became a musical on Broadway.^[7]

Apart from working with Green Day and side-band Pinhead Gunpowder, Armstrong has collaborated with many artists over the years. He has co-written for The Go-Go's ("Unforgiven") and former Avengers singer Penelope Houston ("The Angel and The Jerk" and "New Day"), co-written a song with Rancid ("Radio"), and sung backing vocals with Melissa Auf der Maur on Ryan Adams' "Do Miss America" (where they acted as the backing band for Iggy Pop on his Skull Ring album ("Private Hell" and "Supermarket"). Armstrong has produced an album for The Riverdales. He has also been confirmed to be part of a side project called The Network, which released an album called Money Money 2020. Money Money 2020 was released on Adeline Records, a record label co-owned by Armstrong.^[8] Armstrong also provided lead guitar and backing vocals on 3 songs for The Lookouts' final extended play IV (1989).

Hoping to clear his head and develop new ideas for songs, Armstrong traveled to New York City alone for a few weeks, renting a small apartment in the East Village of Manhattan.^[9] He spent much of this time taking long walks and participating in jam sessions in the basement of Hi-Fi, a bar in Manhattan.^[10] However, the friends he made during this time drank too much for his liking, which was the catalyst for Armstrong's return to the Bay Area.^[10] After returning home, Armstrong was arrested on DUI charges on January 5, 2003, and released on $1,200 bail.^[10]

In 2010, Armstrong joined the cast of American Idiot, which won two Tonys, for one week in the role of St. Jimmy. He replaced the original Broadway cast member Tony Vincent from September 28 to October 3. American Idiot is an adaption of Green Day's concept album of the same name.^[11][12] Armstrong returned to the role of St. Jimmy for 50 performances beginning January 1, 2011.^[13]

Instruments[link]

Armstrong performing in 2009 with a replica of "Blue".

Armstrong's first guitar was a Cherry Red Hohner acoustic, which his father bought for him. He then received his first electric guitar, a Fernandes Stratocaster that he named "Blue" when he was eleven. His mother got "Blue" from George Cole who taught Armstrong electric guitar for 10 years. Armstrong says in a 1995 MTV interview, "Basically, it wasn't like guitar lessons because I never really learned how to read music. So he just taught me how to put my hands on the thing." Cole bought the guitar new from David Margen of the band Santana. Cole gave Armstrong a Bill Lawrence Humbucking pickup and told him to install the pickup in the bridge position. After the pickup was destroyed at Woodstock '94, Armstrong then used a Duncan JB model. "Armstrong fetishized his teacher's guitar, partly because the blue instrument had a sound quality and Van Halen–worthy fluidity he couldn't get from his little red Hohner. He prized it mostly, however, because of his relationship with Cole, another father figure after the death of Andy."^[14] He toured with this guitar from the band's early days and still uses it to this day.^[15] "Blue" also appears in a number of its music videos such as "Longview", "Basket Case", "Brain Stew/Jaded", "Hitchin' a Ride", and most recently in "Minority".

Today, Armstrong mainly uses Gibson and Fender guitars. Twenty of his Gibson guitars are Les Paul Junior models from the mid- to late-1950s.^[16] His Fender collection includes: Stratocaster, Jazzmaster, Telecaster, a Gretsch hollowbody and his copies of "Blue". He states that his favorite guitar is a 1956 Gibson Les Paul Junior he calls "Floyd". He bought this guitar in 2000 just before recording their album Warning.^[17]

Armstrong also has his own line of Les Paul Junior guitars from Gibson, modeled closely after "Floyd", Armstrong's original 1956 Les Paul Junior.^[18]

He plays several other instruments as well. He recorded harmonica and mandolin parts in the past, piano parts on 21st Century Breakdown, and plays drums live from time to time.

Personal life[link]

In 1990, Armstrong met Adrienne Nesser at one of Green Day's early performances in Minneapolis, Minnesota. They married on July 2, 1994, and the day after their wedding, Adrienne discovered she was pregnant. Their first child, Joseph Marciano Armstrong, who was born on February 28, 1995, plays drums in a Berkeley-based band named Emily's Army. Their second child, Jakob Danger Armstrong, was born on September 12, 1998.^{[citation needed]} Billie Joe is the co-owner of Adeline Records, along with his wife.^[8]

Armstrong has identified himself as bisexual, saying in a 1995 interview with The Advocate, "I think I've always been bisexual. I mean, it's something that I've always been interested in. I think people are born bisexual, and it's just that our parents and society kind of veer us off into this feeling of 'Oh, I can't.' They say it's taboo. It's ingrained in our heads that it's bad, when it's not bad at all. It's a very beautiful thing."^[19] In a later interview for Out magazine's April 2010 issue, Armstrong stated: "There were a lot of people who didn't accept it, who were homophobic." Armstrong continued, saying, "The fact that it's an issue is kind of phobic within itself. At some point, you gotta think, this should be something that's just accepted." Armstrong added: "I don't really classify myself as anything. And when it comes to sex, there are parts of me that are very shy and conservative. I want to respect my wife."^[20]

Armstrong was arrested in January 2003 for drinking and driving after being pulled over for speeding.^[21] He received a breathalyzer reading of 0.17%, more than twice the nation-wide legal limit of 0.08%.^[22]

In April 2007, Armstrong and his wife Adrienne sent photos of their spring break working with Habitat for Humanity and a diary to GreenDay.net.^[23]

Armstrong supported Barack Obama during the 2008 presidential election.^[24]

On September 1, 2011, Armstrong was kicked off a Southwest Airlines flight for "saggy pants". Armstrong tweeted "Just got kicked off a Southwest flight because my pants sagged too low!" According to an eyewitness on the flight, who also happens to be a television news producer, a flight attendant asked Armstrong to pull his pants up. Armstrong said, "Don't you have better things to do than worry about that?" The flight attendant's response was, "Pull your pants up or you're getting off the plane." Southwest Airlines saw his tweet, rebooked Armstrong on another flight and released this statement, "We reached out to apologize. We followed up ... and understand from the customer the situation was resolved to his satisfaction."^{[citation needed]}

Discography[link]

This section needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (November 2010)

Awards[link]

Green Day portal

Green Day[link]

• 39/Smooth (1990) – lead vocals, guitar
• Kerplunk! (1992) – lead vocals, guitar, drums on "Dominated Love Slave"^[25]
• Dookie (1994) – lead vocals, guitar, percussion on "All by Myself" (hidden track)
• Insomniac (1995) – lead vocals, guitar
• Nimrod (1997) – lead vocals, guitar, harmonica^[26]
• Warning (2000) – lead vocals, mandolin, guitar, harmonica^[27]
• American Idiot (2004) – lead vocals, guitar
• 21st Century Breakdown (2009) – lead vocals, guitar, piano
• American Idiot: The Original Broadway Cast Recording (2010) – vocals, guitar, piano

Pinhead Gunpowder[link]

Vocals and guitar on all

• Jump Salty (1994)
• Carry the Banner (1995)
• Goodbye Ellston Avenue (1997)
• Shoot the Moon (EP) (1999)
• Compulsive Disclosure (2003)
• West Side Highway (EP) (2008)

The Network[link]

• Money Money 2020 (2003) – guitar, vocals

Foxboro Hot Tubs[link]

• Stop Drop and Roll!!! (2008) – lead vocals^[28]

Other media appearances[link]

• King of the Hill (TV series, 1997) – Face
• Haunted (TV series, 2002) – Irv Kratser (cameo)
• Riding in Vans with Boys (film, 2003) – himself
• Live Freaky! Die Freaky! (film, 2006) – "Charles Hanson"
• Tony Hawk's American Wasteland (video game, 2006) – himself
• The Simpsons Movie (film, 2007) – himself
• Heart Like a Hand Grenade (film, 2008) – himself
• Green Day: Rock Band (video game, 2010) – himself (Singing voice, archive footage, & Virtual likeness/avatar)
• American Idiot (musical) (2010, 2011) – St. Jimmy

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Billie Joe Armstrong

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Billie Joe Armstrong

• Billie Joe Armstrong at the Internet Movie Database
• Billie Joe Armstrong at Allmovie
• Billie Joe Armstrong Signature Les Paul Junior
• Billie Joe Armstrong on Twitter

This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (August 2009)

Dave Grohl
Grohl, Milton Keynes National Bowl, July 3, 2011
Background information
Birth name	David Eric Grohl
Also known as	Davy Grolton, Dale Nixon, Late! (pseudonym for his solo album Pocketwatch), and Dr. G (as Tenacious D's drummer) .
Born	(1969-01-14) January 14, 1969 (age 43) Warren, Ohio
Genres	Alternative rock, grunge, post-grunge, hard rock, heavy metal
Occupations	Musician, singer-songwriter
Instruments	Vocals, drums, guitar, bass guitar, piano
Years active	1986–present
Labels	RCA, Capitol, DGC, Dischord
Associated acts	Nirvana, Foo Fighters, Scream, Dain Bramage, Probot, Queens of the Stone Age, Them Crooked Vultures, Tenacious D, The Muppets, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers
Notable instruments
Gibson SG Custom Gibson DG-335/Trini Lopez[1] Gibson Firebird[2][3] Ampeg Dan Armstrong Plexi[4]

David Eric "Dave" Grohl (born January 14, 1969)^[5][6] is an American rock musician, multi-instrumentalist, and singer-songwriter, who is the lead vocalist, guitarist, primary songwriter and founder of the Foo Fighters, prior to which he was the drummer in the grunge band Nirvana. He is also the drummer and co-founder of the rock supergroup Them Crooked Vultures. Grohl has additionally written all the music and performed all the instruments for his short-lived side projects Late! and Probot, as well as being involved with Queens of the Stone Age numerous times throughout the past decade. He has performed session work (as a drummer) for a variety of musicians, including Garbage, Killing Joke, Nine Inch Nails, The Prodigy, Slash, Juliette Lewis, Tenacious D, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, and Lemmy Kilmister.

Early life[link]

As a child, Grohl's family relocated from Warren, Ohio, to Springfield, Virginia, a suburb of Washington, D.C. Three years later, when Grohl was six, his parents divorced,^[7] and Grohl grew up living with his mother.

At the age of twelve, Grohl began learning to play guitar. He quickly grew tired of lessons and instead taught himself, and began playing in bands with friends.^[5][8] A year later, Grohl and his sister spent the summer in Evanston, Illinois, at their cousin Tracy's house. Tracy introduced them to punk rock by taking the pair to shows by a variety of punk bands. His first concert was in 1982 to see Naked Raygun at The Cubby Bear in Chicago when he was 13 years old.^[9] "From then on we were totally punk," Grohl explained. "We went home and bought Maximumrocknroll and tried to figure it all out."^[8]

In Virginia, Grohl attended Thomas Jefferson High School as a freshman and sophomore. He was elected vice president of his freshman class and played bits of songs by bands like the Circle Jerks and Bad Brains over the school intercom before his morning announcements. During his junior year, Grohl and his mother decided that he should transfer to Bishop Ireton High School in Alexandria because his marijuana usage was affecting his grades.^[8]

While in high school, Grohl played in several local bands, including a stint on guitar in a band called Freak Baby. While playing in Freak Baby, he taught himself to play drums.^[5] When Freak Baby kicked out its bass player, Grohl decided to switch to drums, and the new band called themselves Mission Impossible.^[8] During his developing years as a drummer, Grohl cited John Bonham as his greatest influence, and eventually had Bonham's three-circle logo tattooed on his wrist.^[10] Mission Impossible later rebranded themselves Fast before breaking up, after which Grohl joined the post-punk-influenced hardcore punk band Dain Bramage.^[11][12]

Many of Grohl's early influences were gained at the 9:30 club, a live music venue in Washington D.C.: "I went to the 9:30 club hundreds of times. I was always so excited to get there, and I was always bummed when it closed. I spent my teenage years at the club and saw some shows that changed my life."^[13]

Musical career[link]

Scream (1986–1990)[link]

Dave Grohl with Scream, 1990.

At the age of seventeen, Grohl auditioned with local DC favorites Scream to fill the vacancy left by the departure of drummer Kent Stax. In order to be lined up for the audition, Grohl had lied about his age, claiming he was 20.^[14] To Grohl's surprise, the band asked him to join. After waffling for a brief period, Grohl accepted the offer. Grohl dropped out of high school in his junior year; he said, "I was seventeen and extremely anxious to see the world, so I did it."^[15] Over the next four years, Grohl toured extensively with the band, recording a couple of live albums (their May 4, 1990 show in Alzey, Germany being released by Tobby Holzinger as Your Choice Live Series Vol.10) and two studio albums, No More Censorship and Fumble, on which Grohl penned and sang vocals on the song "Gods Look Down".

While playing in Scream, Grohl became a fan of Melvins and eventually befriended the band. During a 1990 tour stop on the west coast, The Melvins' Buzz Osborne took a couple of his friends, Kurt Cobain and Krist Novoselic, to see the band.^[16]

Nirvana (1990–1994)[link]

A few months later, Scream unexpectedly disbanded following the departure of its bass player. Grohl called Osborne for advice, and the latter gave Grohl's phone number to Krist Novoselic, who invited Grohl to Seattle. Grohl subsequently auditioned for Nirvana, and soon joined them full-time.^[17]

At the time that Grohl joined Nirvana, the band had already recorded several demos for the follow-up to their debut album Bleach, having spent time recording with producer Butch Vig in Wisconsin. Initially, the plan was to release the album on Sub Pop, but the band received a great deal of major label interest based on the demos. Grohl spent the initial months with Nirvana traveling to various major labels as the band shopped for a deal, eventually signing with DGC Records. In the spring of 1991, the band entered the studio to record the album.

Upon its release, Nevermind exceeded all expectations and became a massive success, catapulting the band to worldwide stardom. At the same time, Grohl was struggling with his status in the band. While his drumming style was a significant element in the band's success, Grohl saw himself as just another in a long line of drummers. In his mind, Nirvana was the band that recorded Bleach; his arrival had altered that sound dramatically, and as he saw it, not necessarily in a positive way. Though Grohl had been writing songs for several years, he declined to introduce his songs to the band for fear of damaging their chemistry. Instead, he compiled and recorded them himself, releasing a cassette called Pocketwatch in 1992 on indie label Simple Machines. Rather than using his own name, Grohl released the cassette under the pseudonym "Late!".

In the later years of Nirvana, Grohl's songwriting contributions increased. In Grohl's initial months in Seattle, Cobain overheard him working on a song called "Color Pictures of a Marigold", and the two ended up working on it. Grohl would later record the song for the Pocketwatch cassette. During the sessions for In Utero, he decided to re-record the song, and the band released this version as a B-side on the "Heart-Shaped Box" single, titled simply "Marigold". Grohl also contributed the main guitar riff for "Scentless Apprentice". Cobain conceded in a late 1993 MTV interview that he initially thought the riff was "kind of boneheaded", but was gratified at how the song developed (a process captured in part in a demo on the Nirvana box set With the Lights Out). Cobain noted that he was excited at the possibility of having Novoselic and Grohl contribute more to the band's songwriting.

Prior to their 1994 European tour, the band scheduled session time at Robert Lang Studios in Seattle to work on demos. For most of the three-day session Cobain was absent, so Novoselic and Grohl worked on demos of their own songs. The duo completed several of Grohl's songs, including future Foo Fighters songs "Exhausted", "Big Me", "February Stars", and "Butterflies". On the third day of the session Cobain finally arrived and the band recorded a demo of a song later named "You Know You're Right". It was the band's final studio recording.

Foo Fighters (1994-present)[link]

Following Cobain's death in April 1994, Grohl retreated, unsure of where to go and what to do with himself. In October 1994, Grohl scheduled studio time, again at Robert Lang's Studio, and quickly recorded a fifteen-track demo. With the exception of a single guitar part on "X-Static" played by Greg Dulli of the Afghan Whigs, Grohl performed all of the instruments himself..

At the same time, Grohl wondered if his future might be in drumming for other bands. In November, Grohl took a brief turn with Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, including a memorable performance on Saturday Night Live. Petty asked him to join permanently, but Grohl declined. He was also rumored as a possible replacement for Pearl Jam drummer Dave Abbruzzese and even performed with the band for a song or two at three shows during Pearl Jam's March 1995 Australian tour. However, by then Pearl Jam had already settled on ex- Red Hot Chili Peppers drummer Jack Irons and Grohl had other solo plans in the works.

After passing the demo around, Grohl found himself with considerable major label interest. Nirvana's A&R rep Gary Gersh had subsequently taken over as president of Capitol Records and lured Grohl to sign with the label. Grohl did not want the effort to be considered the start of a solo career so he recruited other band members: former Germs and touring Nirvana guitarist Pat Smear, and two members of the recently disbanded Sunny Day Real Estate, William Goldsmith (drums) and Nate Mendel (bass). Rather than re-record the album, Grohl's demo was given a professional mix by Rob Schnapf and Tom Rothrock and was released in July 1995 as Foo Fighters' debut album.

During a break between tours, the band entered the studio and recorded a cover of Gary Numan's "Down in the Park". In February 1996, Grohl and his then-wife Jennifer Youngblood made a brief cameo appearance on The X-Files third season episode "Pusher". (The two can be spotted walking in the FBI building, just after the Pusher character has put on his phony pass. Grohl pauses to look at his watch.)

After touring for the self-titled album for more than a year, Grohl returned home and began work on the soundtrack to the 1997 movie Touch. Grohl performed all of the instruments and vocals himself, save for vocals from Veruca Salt singer Louise Post on the title track, keyboards by Barrett Jones (who also co-produced the record) on one track, and vocals and guitar by X's John Doe on "This Loving Thing (Lynn's Song)". Grohl completed the recording in two weeks, and immediately joined Foo Fighters to work on their follow-up.

In the midst of the initial sessions for Foo Fighters' second album, tension emerged between Grohl and Goldsmith. According to Goldsmith, "Dave had me do 96 takes of one song, and I had to do thirteen hours' worth of takes on another one. ... It just seemed that everything I did wasn't good enough for him, or anyone else." Goldsmith also believed that Capitol and producer Gil Norton wanted Grohl to drum on the album.^[18] With the album seemingly complete, Grohl headed home to Virginia with a copy of the rough mixes, and found himself unhappy with the results. Grohl penned a few new songs, recording one of them, "Walking After You", by himself at a studio in Washington, DC. Inspired by the session, Grohl opted to move the band, without Goldsmith's knowledge,^[18] to Los Angeles to re-record most of the album with Grohl behind the kit. After the sessions were complete, Goldsmith officially announced his departure from the band.

Speaking about the tension surrounding the departure of Goldsmith in 2011, Grohl said, "There were a lot of reasons it didn't work out... but there was also a part of me that was like, you know, I don't know if I'm finished playing the drums yet." He would also state, "I wish that I would have handled things differently..."^[19]

Dave Grohl on stage, 2006

The effort was released in May 1997 as the band's second album, The Colour and the Shape, which eventually cemented Foo Fighters as a staple of rock radio. The album spawned several hits, including "Everlong", "My Hero", and "Monkey Wrench". Just prior to the album's release, former Alanis Morissette drummer Taylor Hawkins joined the band on drums. The following September, Smear (a close friend of Jennifer Youngblood) left the band,^[7] citing a need to settle down following a lifetime of touring. Smear was subsequently replaced by Grohl's former Scream bandmate Franz Stahl. (Stahl departed the band prior to recording of Foo Fighters' third album^[7] and was replaced by touring guitarist Chris Shiflett, who later became a full-fledged member during the recording of One by One.)

Grohl's life of non-stop touring and travel continued with Foo Fighters' popularity. During his infrequent pauses he lived in Seattle and Los Angeles before returning to Alexandria, Virginia. It was there that he turned his basement into a recording studio where the 1999 album There Is Nothing Left to Lose was recorded.

In 2000, the band recruited Queen guitarist Brian May to add some guitar flourish to a cover of Pink Floyd's "Have a Cigar", a song which Foo Fighters previously recorded as a b-side. The friendship between the two bands resulted in Grohl and Taylor Hawkins being asked to induct Queen into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2001. Grohl and Hawkins joined May and Queen drummer Roger Taylor to perform "Tie Your Mother Down", with Grohl standing in on vocals for Freddie Mercury. (May later contributed guitar work for the song "Tired of You" on the ensuing Foo Fighters album, as well as on an unreleased Foo Fighters song called "Knucklehead".)

Near the end of 2001, Foo Fighters returned to the studio to work on their fourth album. After four months in the studio, with the sessions finished, Grohl accepted an invitation to join Queens of the Stone Age and helped them to record their 2002 album Songs for the Deaf. (Grohl can be seen drumming for the band in the video for the song "No One Knows".) After a brief tour through North America, Britain and Japan with the band^[7] and feeling rejuvenated by the effort, Grohl recalled the other band members to completely re-record their album at his studio in Virginia. The effort became their fourth album, One by One. While initially pleased with the results, in another 2005 Rolling Stone interview, Dave Grohl admitted to not liking the record: "Four of the songs were good, and the other seven I never played again in my life. We rushed into it, and we rushed out of it."^[20]

On November 23, 2002, Grohl achieved a historical milestone by replacing himself on the top of the Billboard Modern Rock chart, when "You Know You're Right" by Nirvana was replaced by "All My Life" by Foo Fighters. When "All My Life" ended its run, after a one week respite, "No One Knows" by Queens of the Stone Age took the number one spot. Between October 26, 2002 and March 1, 2003 Grohl was in the number one spot on the Modern Rock charts for 17 of 18 successive weeks, as a member of three different groups.

Grohl and Foo Fighters released their fifth album In Your Honor on June 14, 2005. Prior to starting work on the album, the band spent almost a year relocating Grohl's home-based Virginia studio to a brand new facility, dubbed Studio 606, located in a warehouse near Los Angeles. Featuring collaborations with John Paul Jones of Led Zeppelin, Josh Homme of Queens of the Stone Age and Norah Jones, the album was a departure from previous efforts, and included one rock and one acoustic disc.

Foo Fighters's sixth studio album Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace was released on September 25, 2007. It was recorded during a three-month period between March 2007 and June 2007, and its release was preceded by the first single "The Pretender" on September 17. The second single, "Long Road to Ruin", was released on December 3, 2007, followed by the third single, "Let It Die", June 24, 2008.

On November 3, 2009 Foo Fighters released their first Greatest Hits collection, consisting of 16 tracks including a previously unreleased acoustic version of "Everlong" and two new tracks "Wheels" and "Word Forward" which were produced by Nevermind's producer Butch Vig. Grohl has been quoted saying the Greatest Hits is too early and "...can look like an obituary." He does not feel they have written their best hits yet.^[21]

The Foo Fighters' seventh studio album, Wasting Light, was released on April 12, 2011. It is the first Foo Fighters album to reach #1 in the United States.

Other projects[link]

Apart from his main bands, Grohl has been involved in other music projects. In 1992, Grohl played drums on Buzz Osborne's Kiss-styled solo-EP King Buzzo, where he was credited as Dale Nixon, a pseudonym that Greg Ginn adopted to play bass on Black Flag's My War. Grohl also released the music cassette Pocketwatch under the pseudonym Late! on the now defunct indie label, Simple Machines.

In 1993, Grohl was recruited to help recreate the music of The Beatles' early years for the movie Backbeat.^[22] Grohl played drums in an "all-star" lineup that included Greg Dulli of the Afghan Whigs, indie producer Don Fleming, Mike Mills of R.E.M., Thurston Moore of Sonic Youth, and Dave Pirner of Soul Asylum. A music video was filmed for the song "Money (That's What I Want)" while Grohl was with Nirvana on their 1994 European tour, footage of Grohl was filmed later and included.

Later in 1994, Grohl played drums on two tracks for Mike Watt's Ball-Hog or Tugboat?. In early 1995, Grohl and Foo Fighters played their first US tour opening for Watt, and helped make up Watt's supporting band. Nicknamed the "Ringspiel" tour, Watt's band featured Grohl and William Goldsmith on drums, Eddie Vedder and Pat Smear on guitar, and Watt on bass.

Grohl at the Roskilde Festival in 2005

During the early 2000s, Grohl spent time in his basement studio writing and recording a number of songs for a "metal" project. Over the span of several years, Grohl recruited his favorite metal vocalists from the 1980s, including Lemmy of Motörhead, Conrad "Cronos" Lant from Venom, King Diamond, Scott Weinrich, and Max Cavalera of Sepultura, to perform the vocals for the songs. The project was released in 2004 under the moniker Probot.^[23][24]

Also in 2003, Grohl stepped behind the kit to perform on Killing Joke's second self-titled album. The move surprised some Nirvana fans, given that Nirvana had been accused of stealing the opening riff of "Come as You Are" from Killing Joke's 1984 song "Eighties". However, the controversy failed to create a lasting rift between the bands. Foo Fighters covered Killing Joke's "Requiem" during the late 1990s, and were even joined by Killing Joke singer Jaz Coleman for a performance of the song at a show in New Zealand in 2003.

Grohl lent his drumming skills to other artists during the early 2000s. In 2000, Dave played drums and sang on a track, "Goodbye Lament", from Tony Iommi's album Iommi. In 2001, Grohl performed on Tenacious D's debut album, and appeared in the video for lead single "Tribute" as a demon. He later appeared in the duo's 2006 movie Tenacious D in The Pick of Destiny as the devil in the song Beelzeboss, and performed on its soundtrack. In 2002, Grohl helped Chan Marshall of Cat Power on the album You Are Free and played with Queens of the Stone Age on their album Songs for the Deaf. Grohl also toured with the band in support of the album, delaying work on the Foo Fighters' album One by One. In 2004, Grohl drummed on several tracks for Nine Inch Nails' 2005 album With Teeth. He also drummed on the song "Bad Boyfriend" on Garbage's 2005 album Bleed Like Me. Most recently, he recorded all the drums on Juliette and the Licks's 2006 album Four on the Floor^[25] and the song "For Us" from Pete Yorn's 2006 album Nightcrawler. Beyond drumming, Grohl contributed guitar to a cover of Neil Young's "I've Been Waiting For You" on David Bowie's 2002 album Heathen.

In June 2008, Grohl was Paul McCartney's special guest for a concert at the Anfield football stadium in Liverpool, in one of the central events of the English city's year as European Capital of Culture.^[26] Grohl joined McCartney's band singing backup vocals and playing guitar on "Band on the Run" and drums on "Back in the U.S.S.R." and "I Saw Her Standing There".^[27] Grohl also performed with McCartney at the 51st Grammy Awards, again playing drums on "I Saw Her Standing There". Grohl also helped pay tribute to McCartney at the 2010 Kennedy Center Honors along with No Doubt, Norah Jones, Steven Tyler, James Taylor, and Mavis Staples. He sang a duet version of "Maybe I'm Amazed" with Norah Jones on Dec. 5 2010.^[28]

Grohl played drums on the tracks 'Run With The Wolves' and 'Stand Up' on The Prodigy's^[29] 2009 album Invaders Must Die.

In July 2009, it was revealed that Grohl was recording with Josh Homme and John Paul Jones as Them Crooked Vultures.^[30] The trio performed their first show together on August 9, 2009 at Metro in Chicago.^[31] The band played their first UK gig on August 26, 2009, with a surprise appearance at Brixton Academy in London, supporting the Arctic Monkeys. The band released their debut album Them Crooked Vultures on November 16, 2009 in the UK and November 17, 2009 in the US. Grohl has recently^[when?] been involved in producing emerging Brit-rock outift A Band Called Bert, notably on the track "It's Over Now".

On February 6, 2010, Grohl performed with his band Them Crooked Vultures the songs "Mind Eraser, No Chaser" and "New Fang" as musical guests on Saturday Night Live. Dave Grohl appeared as an old punk rock drummer reuniting the group "Crisis of Conformity" after 25 years in a skit later on in the episode.^[32]

On October 23, 2010, Grohl performed with Tenacious D at Blizzcon. He appeared as the drummer for the entire concert, and a year later he returned with Foo Fighters and played a another set there, this time as guitarist and vocalist.^[33][34]

Also in 2010, Grohl helped write and performed on drums for "Watch This" with guitarist Slash and Duff McKagan on Slash's self titled album that also included many other famous artists.

In October 2011, Grohl temporarily joined Cage the Elephant as a replacement on tour after drummer Jared Champion's appendix burst.^[35]

Grohl is directing a documentary about Sound City Studios, the Van Nuys studio where Nevermind was recorded that shut down its music operations in 2011.^[36]

Equipment[link]

With Them Crooked Vultures[link]

Drums[link]

DW Jazz Series in Lazer Blue Lacquer with Chrome hardware.

• 5" X 8" Concert tom
• 5" X 10" Concert tom
• 16" X 24" Bass drum
• 9" X 13" Rack tom
• 16" X 16" Floor tom
• 16" X 18" Floor tom
• 16" X 20" Gong Drum
• 6.5" X 14" Aluminum Snare drum

Cymbals[link]

Zildjian

• 15" K Light Hi-hats
• 20" A Custom EFX
• 24" ZHT Ride
• 20" A Custom Crash
• 19" K Custom Hybrid China
• 20" A Custom Rezo Crash

Sticks[link]

Zildjian

• Dave Grohl Artist Series (16 3/4" X 0.600")

Percussion[link]

LP

• LP hi hat tambourine
• LP drum kit tambourine

Drumheads[link]

Remo

• Coated Emperor (on Toms)
• Clear Powerstroke 3 (on Bass)
• Coated Emperor X Black Dot (on Snare)

Hardware[link]

DW 9000 Series including:

• 9000 Floating Rotor Single Pedal
• 9500D 3-Leg Rotating Hi-hat Stand
• 9100AL Air Lift Drum Throne

With Foo Fighters[link]

Guitars[link]

• 2006 Gibson DG335 (x2) - Grohl's main guitars for almost all Foo Fighters shows. The one in "Pelham Blue" is tuned to E standard, while the black one is tuned to drop D.
• 2005 Gibson Firebird Studio - Main guitar used during the In Your Honor era. Pelham Blue and Black models. Used for Stacked Actors, Grohl owns many more Firebirds.
• 1965 Gibson Trini Lopez - Used during the One By One era
• 1967 Gibson Trini Lopez - Used for Walk video, Finished in rare "Pelham Blue".
• 1990 Gibson Les Paul Custom (x2) - Used from 1995–1999, two black, one white.
• 1994 Gibson SG (x4) - Used from 1995–2000, two white, one black, one sunburst.
• 1992 Gibson Explorer (x4) - Used from 1994–2001, three in black, one in white.
• 2002 Ampeg Lucite "Clear" Dan Armstrong (x4) - Main guitar used during the One By One era.^[37]

Amps[link]

• Fender Tonemaster (x2)
• Custom Audio Electronics 100 watt Custom (x2)
• Hiwatt Custom 100
• Mesa Boogie Road King (x2)
• Mesa Boogie Dual Rectifier (x2)
• Vox AC-30

Cabinets[link]

• Fender Tonemaster 4x12 (x2)
• Mesa Road King 4x12 (x2)

Effects[link]

• Boss DD3 Delay
• Boss TU2 Tuner (x2)
• MXR Phase 90
• MXR Smart Gate (x2)
• Voodoo Labs PedalPower
• Voodoo Labs Amp Switcher
• Shure UR4 Wireless
• ProCo Rat Distortion

Personal life[link]

Grohl has been married twice. He was first married to photographer Jennifer Youngblood from 1993 to 1997. After their divorce, Grohl had relationships with Winona Ryder, Louise Post from Veruca Salt, and solo artist and Hole bassist Melissa Auf Der Maur. There have also been claims of having a relationship with Christina Aguilera. Grohl has denied this however.^[38]

He then went on to marry Long Island native Jordyn Blum on August 2, 2003, at their home in Los Angeles. Guests included Clive Davis, Jack Black, and former Nirvana bandmate Krist Novoselic. On April 15, 2006, their daughter Violet Maye was born in Los Angeles, being named after Grohl's maternal grandmother. Earlier that year, Foo Fighters bandmate Taylor Hawkins told MTV, "We're going to be touring Europe in January and February, but we've got to be home by March, because Dave and his wife are having a baby," he said, adding, "but I probably wasn't supposed to tell you that." Grohl said that he had been playing music to his unborn child, saying "she 'likes' The Beatles. Doesn't really get down to The Beach Boys. Digs Mozart." On April 17, 2009, Grohl's second child, daughter Harper Willow, was born.^[39]

Grohl has been vocal in his views on drug misuse, contributing to a 2009 anti-drug video for the BBC. "I have never done cocaine, ever in my life. I have never done heroin, I have never done speed," he said in a 2008 interview, adding that he had stopped smoking marijuana and taking acid at the age of 20. In the BBC video he said "I've seen people die. It ain't easy being young, but that stuff doesn't make it any easier".^[40]

In May 2006, Grohl sent a note of support to the two trapped miners in the Beaconsfield mine collapse in Tasmania, Australia. In the initial days following the collapse, one of the men requested an iPod with Foo Fighters album In Your Honor, to be sent down to them through a small hole. Grohl's note read, in part, "Though I'm halfway around the world right now, my heart is with you both, and I want you to know that when you come home, there's two tickets to any Foos show, anywhere, and two cold beers waiting for yous. Deal?"^[41] In October 2006, one of the miners took up his offer, joining Grohl for a drink after Foo Fighters acoustic concert at the Sydney Opera House.^[42] Grohl wrote an instrumental piece for the meeting, which Grohl pledged he would include on the band's next album.^[43] The song, titled "Ballad of the Beaconsfield Miners," appears on Foo Fighters' 2007 release Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace, and features Kaki King.

In August 2009 Grohl was given the key to the city of Warren, Ohio and performed the songs "Everlong", "Times Like These", and "My Hero". A roadway in downtown Warren named "David Grohl Alley" has been dedicated to him with murals by local artists.^[44][45]

In 2000 while on tour with Foo Fighters in Australia, Grohl was arrested by Australian police while driving a scooter for driving under the influence following a concert on the Gold Coast in Queensland. He was fined $400 and had his Australian driving permit revoked for three months. Following the incident Grohl stated: "So, people, I guess if there's anything to learn here, it's: don't drive after a few beers, even if you feel entirely capable like I did."^[46][47]

Discography[link]

Filmography[link]

Film[link]

Notes[link]

References[link]

• Azzerrad, Michael (1993). Come as You Are: The Story of Nirvana. Doubleday. ISBN 0-385-47199-8. 

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Dave Grohl

Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Dave Grohl

• Official website (Foo Fighters)
• Dave Grohl at the Internet Movie Database
• Dave Grohl Band Discography
• Courtney Love crazy accusations on what-music.com
• Live Review at ArtistDirect.com