Formerly the drummer for Nirvana and the frontman of Foo Fighters, Dave Grohl is one of the most influential rock musicians of the last 20 years. He has been the one to look up to due to his musical taste. Dave has cultivated the rock culture where people are more open to what they like and want.
Dave Grohl has always escalated toward sharing his favorite subjects. More importantly music. In his long career, Grohl has always talked about the music he loves. He has been sincere in the way he picks his songs and best genres. His humble adoration of John Bonham songs, and The Beatles is a wild example of how much songs, records, and artists mean to him. Also, in his career, he once talked about his favorite metal songs of all time. Let’s take a turn and have a look at it.
It all happened during a conversation with Q and is collected on the Foo Archive. There is Dave’s recollection of his favorite metal songs. The list comprises big-time players like Megadeth, Pantera, and Slayer and he also has given homage to the father of the genre like Led Zeppelin.
The first one on the list of ‘In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida’ by Iron Butterfly. He reflects back on his older days and says, “What I consider to be one of the first metal songs. The riff and the groove are dirgy and sinister. The whole track is so spooky and haunting. I heard it as a young kid and it freaked me out. It reminded me of bad things and still does.”
The one that follows afterward is Wake Up Dead by Megadeth. With the split of Dave Mustaine in the early 80s from Metallica, the sound he went on to produce later was next level. With the formation of Megadeth and this track, he says it was amazing. Also, in the video where the band plays on a cage in stretch pants, he recalls, “Doh, I’m tellin’ ya, it was a headbanger’s fantasy.”
The list continues on, but one band which has a drastic effect on him was Black Sabbath. He has commented about Ozzy Osbourne time again on what kind of musical journey he really had. He selects the track ‘Symptom of the Universe’ as his favorite. He said, “One of the first fast heavy metal riffs. Everyone would know that riff if you played it on any set-list anywhere in the world. I don’t put Sabbath on much these days, but when you hear this you realize that this is the swamp from whence much metal crawled.”
His list contained some of the best bands from around the world with the inclusion of bands like Judas Priest, Pantera, Slayer, Metal Church, and Motorhead. He explained the song which will always be n the list is ‘Ace of Spades’ by Motorhead. He says, “You could delete all the other 19 records but still retain the blueprint for metal from this. This is metal DNA! Beyond the speed, the riff, and Lemmy… it’s the attitude. I first heard this on Don Kirschner’s Rock Concert before I’d listened to punk rock. There was nothing glamorous about it – it was dark and mean and intense as f***.”
Here is the full list of Dave Grohl’s favorite metal songs of all time.
Dave Grohl’s Favorite Metal Songs
- ‘In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida’ by Iron Butterfly
- ‘Wake Up Dead’ by Megadeth
- ‘Breakin’ The Law’ by Judas Priest
- ‘Piranha’ by Exodus
- ‘Highway Star’ by Deep Purple
- ‘Stand Up & Shout’ by Dio
- ‘Psychotic Reaction’ by Trouble
- ‘Way She Fly’ by The Obsessed
- ‘Hog Leg’ by The Melvins
- ‘Black Dog’ by Led Zeppelin
- ‘I’m Broken’ by Pantera
- ‘Metal Church’ by Metal Church
- ‘We Gotta Know’ by The Cro-Mags
- ‘Thrashing Rage’ by Voivod
- ‘Roots Bloody Roots’ by Sepultura
- ‘A Corpse Without Soul’ by Mercyful Fate
- ‘Master Of Puppets’ by Metallica
- ‘Symptom Of The Universe’ by Black Sabbath
- ‘Raining Blood’ by Slayer
- ‘Ace Of Spades’ by Motorhead
Dave’s taste has most probably changed since this list was from a long time ago. But he did talk about Led Zeppelin and said that there is one entry that will not move from its place. He mentioned ‘Black Dog.’ He commented, “This is what Led Zeppelin were all about in their most rocking moments, a perfect example of their true might. John Bonham played the drums like someone who didn’t know what was going to happen next – like he was teetering on the edge of a cliff.”
