Dave Grohl Recalls Shocking Final Exchange With David Bowie
Over the years, plenty of opportunities have come Dave Grohl's way, including the chances to meet some of his idols. In the latest installment of "Dave's True Stories," the Foo Fighters' frontman recalls his final exchange with one of his idols, the late David Bowie.
Grohl recalls first meeting Bowie while taking part in the musician's 50th birthday bash at Madison Square Garden, but it wasn't until years later working with onetime Bowie producer Tony Visconti that their paths would cross again.
Grohl was working on music for a movie soundtrack at the time and through Visconti was able to see if Bowie might be interested in contributing to the project.
"I casually opened my email one morning and literally gasped when I saw his name. He had actually heard the track! But, beyond that, DAVID BOWIE WRITES EMAILS!!! WHAAAT???," said Grohl. "With the excitement of a hyperactive child on Christmas morning, I held my breath and hastily opened it. If I remember correctly, it went something like this:
"Dear David, No. Love, David."
Grohl says the letter was more elaborate and Bowie was kind and complimentary, but didn't care for the genre of film. "I'm just not made for these times," said Bowie, but the singer added he'd love to work on something else someday.
Grohl replied, "Hey man, thank you for listening to the song ... I hope that you are well, and let me know if you'd ever like to make music together sometime," to which Bowie replied, "Well that's settled. Now fuck off."
The Foo Fighters frontman admits he wasn't sure how to take Bowie's reply, whether or not he was miffed or was just actually showing his wicked acerbic wit.
Grohl replied, "See you in another 17 years," to which Bowie responded, "Not if I see you first," still leaving Grohl perplexed. He responded, "What, no more birthday parties at Madison Square Garden?" with Bowie countering, "No more birthdays, I've run out of them."
The exchanges continued with Grohl inviting Bowie to his 50th and then the two of them reminiscing about the Madison Square Garden show, with Grohl finally realizing that Bowie was just giving him a bit of grief earlier.
The singer says of that final exchange with Bowie, "Hindsight is a blurry lens, I'm convinced. It's too easy to slip into dark shades of revisionism if you're not careful. Moments are moments and should be cherished as such. The world had no idea David was ill, and when he passed two days after the release of his final album, Blackstar, I looked back on my memories of him with a great sense of fondness and also deep sadness."
"Especially our last exchange. It broke my heart to re-read the line, 'No more birthdays, I've run out of them,' thinking that maybe, just maybe he knew something that we didn't," says Grohl. "And, being the gentleman that he always was, didn't want us to suffer his pain. Nevertheless, it still hurt. Nothing lasts forever, but the best things always seem to end too soon."
Read Grohl's full recollections of Bowie in his latest Dave's True Stories entry below.
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