Dave Grohl belongs to an elite, ultra-exclusive musical club—one with likely fewer than five members in history. Alongside icons like Phil Collins, Don Henley, and Karen Carpenter, he stands out as one of the rare person famous for both commanding the drums and leading on vocals.
To honor this extraordinary talent on this beautiful Chicago Monday, let’s dive into a few surprising facts about the man himself:
- An unexpected start: Long before he ever touched a drum kit, the first instrument Grohl ever learned to play was actually the trombone.
- Playing by ear: Much like the legendary jazz icon Buddy Rich, Grohl has never learned to read music. He translates everything entirely by ear.
- A true one-man band: When the Foo Fighters dropped their self-titled debut album in 1995, Grohl played every single instrument on the record himself, but for a single guitar part.
- The birth of “Sirvana”: While filming his 2013 Sound City documentary, he invited Paul McCartney to jam with former Nirvana members Krist Novoselic and Pat Smear. With McCartney fronting on a cigar-box guitar, the group wrote and recorded “Cut Me Some Slack” from scratch in a mere three hours—eventually winning a Grammy for the track.
- The show must go on: After falling off the stage and breaking his leg during a 2015 concert in Gothenburg, Sweden, Grohl didn’t just finish the set—he finished the tour. He designed a now-famous, custom light-up guitar throne so he could keep performing live while seated.
- An entire town’s tribute: In July 2015, 1,000 musicians gathered in Cesena, Italy, to simultaneously perform “Learn to Fly” in a massive effort to get the band to visit. The video went viral, capturing millions of views and prompting Grohl to respond in Italian and book a show in their town.
Take a look at the incredible moment the town came together to make it happen here.