The Storyteller: Tales of Life and Music

Dave Grohl

Oct 2021 · Sold by HarperCollins

About this ebook

The #1 New York Times Bestseller * Named one of Variety's Best Music Books of 2021 * Included in Audible's Best of The Year list * A Business Insider Best Memoirs of 2021 * One of NME's Best Music Books of 2021

So, I've written a book.

Having entertained the idea for years, and even offered a few questionable opportunities ("It's a piece of cake! Just do 4 hours of interviews, find someone else to write it, put your face on the cover, and voila!") I have decided to write these stories just as I have always done, in my own hand. The joy that I have felt from chronicling these tales is not unlike listening back to a song that I've recorded and can't wait to share with the world, or reading a primitive journal entry from a stained notebook, or even hearing my voice bounce between the Kiss posters on my wall as a child. 

This certainly doesn't mean that I'm quitting my day job, but it does give me a place to shed a little light on what it's like to be a kid from Springfield, Virginia, walking through life while living out the crazy dreams I had as young musician. From hitting the road with Scream at 18 years old, to my time in Nirvana and the Foo Fighters, jamming with Iggy Pop or playing at the Academy Awards or dancing with AC/DC and the Preservation Hall Jazz Band, drumming for Tom Petty or meeting Sir Paul McCartney at Royal Albert Hall, bedtime stories with Joan Jett or a chance meeting with Little Richard, to flying halfway around the world for one epic night with my daughters…the list goes on. I look forward to focusing the lens through which I see these memories a little sharper for you with much excitement. 

Ratings and reviews

Punk was just more MIC rich kids like Hank Garfield "Rollins" -- following up on the '60s hippie psyop. Read Dave McGowan "Weird Scenes Inside the Canyon." These are all elite actors. Grohl, not Cobain, was the power behind the scenes in the Nirvana that got tied up with Courtney Harrison, daughter of an operative who managed spook band The Grateful Dead. No coolness. No rock. Rule.

Dave Grohl - Never let them talk you out of being who you are, how you should present yourself, what you have to say, or your belief in yourself... no matter what is happening, what anyone in your sphere is going through, what losses you feel you have taken. Rebuild. Restructure. Redesign. Remember your original intent. Keep moving creatively forward, at a pace you are comfortable with. Take breaks, though. Frequently. Touch nature for moments of quiet breathing. Laugh, love, trust in the Path you believed in enough to manifest. Blessings, #PsychicOnTheRun

David Grohl's journey is extraordinary. His path to rock god fame is testament to his commitment, respect, and loyalty to his craft, his band mates, his family and his fans. Like so many others, I was introduced to Dave's thunderous, heavy footed, drum play with Nirvana, and no matter how much I consider myself a Foo fan, it's still hard for me not to think of Nirvana when I see him. His book recounts his humble beginnings, his fascination with music, his struggles, tragedies, and triumphs. He's what you see is what you get. A man of talent and sheer will, humble and deeply grateful for his life, not without a few flaws, and wicked humor. I'm glad I got to know him better by reading his accounts of life. I'll always be a fan.Thank you, Dave, for giving us a glimpse into your life. It's been a remarkable journey. I hope there's a second one. Rock on!

About the author

DAVE GROHL is a 16-time Grammy-winning musician and 2-time Emmy-winning director.Grohl has been one of the most beloved and respected figures on the international music scene since his recorded debut with Nirvana on 1991's generation-defining Nevermind. Grohl took center stage with Foo Fighters' 1995 self-titled debut, the first album in massive 12-Grammy-winning catalogue that now includes The Colour & The Shape (1997), There Is Nothing Left To Lose (1999), One By One (2002), In Your Honor (2005), Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace (2007), Wasting Light (2011), Sonic Highways (2014), Concrete and Gold (2017) and, most recently, Medicine at Midnight (2021).Grohl has a well-earned reputation as a prolific collaborator: His various endeavors have included "Cut Me Some Slack,” written and recorded with Paul McCartney and Grohl's Nirvana bandmates Krist Novoselic and Pat Smear; Them Crooked Vultures, formed with Led Zeppelin's John Paul Jones and Queens of the Stone Age's Joshua Homme, late legends David Bowie and Lemmy Kilmister of Motorhead, as well as Mick Jagger, Neil Young, Elton John, Nine Inch Nails, Roger Taylor and Brian May of Queen, to name a few.In 2013, Grohl made his debut as a feature director/producer with the acclaimed documentary Sound City. Named for the Van Nuys CA studio where Nirvana recorded Nevermind in 1991, which would sell more than 30 million copies and transform the modern musical landscape. Premiering to unanimous raves at Sundance and achieving a 100% Rotten Tomatoes rating, Sound City focused both on the history of the legendary studio and on the ongoing fight to preserve the human element of music. Hailed by Peter Travers of Rolling Stone as an "exhilarating documentary about what makes life worth living,” by The New York Times as "candy to several generations' worth of rock fans" and NPR as "a celebration of just how unbelievably awesome it is to make rock music for a living," Sound City has since been certified as a Gold Longform Video by the RIAA, while the Sound City—Real To Reel companion album took the 2013 Grammys for Best Compilation Soundtrack for Visual Media and Best Rock Song (“Cut Me Some Slack”). Grohl also directed the eight-part HBO docuseries Foo Fighters: Sonic Highways, which premiered in October 2014 and went on to win two of the four Emmys for which it was nominated (outstanding sound mixing for nonfiction programming and outstanding sound editing for nonfiction programming). Described by Grohl as a love letter to the history of American music, Sonic Highways was comprised of eight one-hour episodes, each chronicling the creation of one song on Foo Fighters’ Sonic Highways album, each written and recorded in a different American musical landmark -- Austin, Chicago, Los Angeles, Nashville, New Orleans, New York, Seattle, and Washington, D.C.