There are few musicians with a collaboration repertoire as strong as Dave Grohl’s. His tremendous reputation as the former drummer of the grunge outfit Nirvana and the driving force behind Foo Fighters has drawn the attention of some equally big personalities. Grohl has co-written a song with Paul McCartney and played on a David Bowie record. He even turned down an offer to be Tom Petty’s drummer.
Among his many creative collaborations and partnerships, just one artist stands out as the most brilliant artist the drummer has ever worked with. Despite his admiration for the Liverpudlian lyricist, and much to the chagrin of Beatles fans, it’s not McCartney. Instead, Grohl handed down that honor to pianist Norah Jones.
In 2005, the two worked together on a single for the Foo Fighters‘ album In Your Honour. The project, as usual, has a few famous guest performers, like Led Zeppelin’s John Paul Jones. However, Grohl was significantly more pleased by Jones. “Norah is without a doubt the most talented musician I’ve ever been around in my life,” he once told The Independent on Sunday. “That includes some heavyweights.”
She was clearly up against some heavyweights, easily defeating Bowie and the Beatles. However, Jones did not admire Grohl one-sidedly. She once revealed that she had been a fan of the musician for “a long time” during a conversation with Billboard. “I thought, ‘Am I finally going to get to rock?'” she said of receiving a call from Foo Fighters member Dave Grohl.
Her expectations of rocking out with Dave Grohl were destroyed as the Foo Fighters had a slightly gentler song in mind for the pianist. The two collaborated on ‘Virginia Moon,’ a far slower and more hidden piece than Grohl’s fans may be used to hearing from him. However, it is a beautiful one nonetheless. It’s easy to see why Jones’ coordinated vocals and tender instrumentation captivated Grohl.
“She was unimaginable,” he said, “perfect pitch, perfect timing, perfect placement, and perfect playing.” The situation completely took us aback. She did two takes and that was the end of it. “We were in and out in an hour and a half.” Her musical ability and personality captivated Grohl. He described her as “sweet as sugar” and, perhaps most crucially for a musician in the studio, “a good hang.”
The touching track displays Grohl’s softer side and showcases the collision of two musical greats. Jones, who is both humble and accomplished, appears to be deserving of Grohl’s praise. Check out ‘Virginia Moon’ by Foo Fighters, featuring Norah Jones, below.
