Dave Grohl's talks estrangement from father due to musician dream

29 September 2021, 12:06

The Foo Fighters frontman and former Nirvana drummer revealed how his father wouldn't "allow" him to be a musician and their relationship became strained.

Dave Grohl has discussed how he became estranged from his father when he chose to become a musician because his father wouldn't "allow" it.

Speaking at London's Savoy Theatre this week to promote his new memoir The Storyteller: Tales Of Life And Music, he said: "Around the time of my parents’ divorce I discovered music. I learned to play the drums.

"I even tried my hand at being a promoter. I was not allowed to play music because my grades were so bad. My father would say to me, 'Don’t call yourself a musician just because you play an instrument'."

The Foo Fighters frontman added: "So I wasn’t allowed to be a musician. We had that painfully awkward conversation about what I was going to do with my life. I didn’t know what to say but I knew this was it. I wrote a runaway note. This began the separation between my father and I.

"He called me the next morning and said, 'Don’t ever do that again'. And I said, 'I don’t have to.'"

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Last week saw Nevermind celebrate its 30th anniversary and Grohl discussed the significance of the album with Radio X.

Asked how he feels the 1991 album has aged over 30 years, he told Radio X's George Godfrey: "When I think of that record, I just think of memories of making that record. So I have a different relationship with it to most people, because I remember those days we were in the studio and we were in Los Angeles and it was kinda hot and it was kinda dry and most of those songs are the third take or the second take.

"We never did more than maybe three or four takes of a song 'cause we'd rehearsed so much, but we just wanted it to sound good, you know. We didn't think we were going to be this huge band, we were just like, 'OK let's make an album that sounds really good, so when we performed it or recorded it we were just trying to make it sound good."

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"It was a happy time for the band," he added. "We had no idea what was to come next, but at that time we were kids so I have very fond memories".

He added: "I heard Smells Like Teen Spirit the other day [...] A hip-hop DJ was playing stuff and he played Smells Like Teen Spirit and I was like, 'Wow, ok'. It kind of becomes one of 'those' songs".

"Obviously I'm very proud of it," he went on. "And it's one of the greatest accomplishments of my entire life, but hopefully teenage kids will be listening to that feeling the same way we did when we wrote it 30 years ago"