The four songs Dave Grohl wishes he had written: “A really timeless quality”
Dave Grohl has contributed to some of the greatest rock songs ever written. First, as the drummer of Nirvana and then as the leader of Foo Fighters, he’s established himself as a true leader of rock. But still, there are some other anthems that he wished he’d penned.
Any creative knows that feeling well. Whether it’s a lyric, a riff, part of a poem or even an idea for a painting, sometimes admiration comes along with a pang of pure envy or even annoyance as they’re left wondering, “Why didn’t I think of that?” Really, it’s a form of flattery as even the biggest and best artists in the world look towards their peers and bow to them, laying their slight jealousy at their feet as a form of praise.
The songs Dave Grohl wishes he’d penned range from the expected to the totally surprising as they stray far beyond his own realms of grunge and rock and into the world of pop. In fact, Grohl seems to wish he could transform, for one song only, into a 1980s popstar to have been able to write Kim Wilde’s ‘Kids In America’.
He tried his best when he recorded their own version of the song as a homage to his old crush. “Every punk-rock boy I knew was hopelessly in love with Kim Wilde, and so was I. That’s why I recorded my own version of ‘Kids in America’,” he said, sharing his love for the track as he added, “It’s an iconic, anthemic song from the ’80s, and I love it as much as I loved her!”
Another unexpected choice comes along with a stroke of genius. “I wish I had written Happy Birthday [to You], obviously, because I’d be making so much more money right now – it would be like owning the rights to pizza,” he said, more than aware of the fortunes writing the Happy Birthday song would reap. But along with money, he also believes that the song might bring him some respect, too, as he added, “Maybe it would get me some respect at home. I have one daughter who wants to be a musician and two [others] who look at me like I’m a fucking janitor. They’re like, ‘Oh, that’s Dad’s job. Whatever!’”
However, his other two picks are much more indicative of his musical tastes. He picked out Bad Brain’s 1982 track ‘Sailin’ On’ as one he wished he’d come up with as he recalled, “Bad Brains were America’s greatest hardcore punk-rock band in the ’80s. They were from Washington, DC, and were the best live band I’ve ever seen in my life. I was in love with their music – it was so fast, so distorted, so dissonant.” With so much admiration for the group, he clearly wished he could’ve been a part of it.
For his final choice, he picked out a true classic; ‘Imagine’ by John Lennon. But his pick connects more to a career-long sense of aspiration as he has always looked towards Lennon for guidance. “When I was young and I first started playing guitar – around the age of ten or 11 years old – I would sit and strum along to [John Lennon’s] records all day long. That’s how I learned to play guitar – John was my teacher,” he said, with ‘Imagine’ standing out as a “beautiful song with a really timeless quality.”
The four songs Dave Grohl wished he’d written:
- Kim Wilde – ‘Kids In America’
- Patty & Mildred Hill – ‘Happy Birthday to You’
- Bad Brains – ‘Sailin’ On’
- John Lennon – ‘Imagine’
