Foo Fighters joined the ranks of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as the final act enshrined during Saturday night’s induction ceremony. Following his induction into the Rock Hall as a member of Nirvana in 2014, Foo Fighters’ mastermind Dave Grohl saw his name etched into history for a second time.
But for Grohl and the rest of the band, Pat Smear’s long-overdue induction into the Hall of Fame was the biggest highlight of the evening. The 62-year-old Smear played in some of music’s most influential bands, including the Germs and Nirvana, but it wasn’t until Foo Fighters received that rightful place in the hallways of Cleveland’s Rock and Roll Hall of Fame until Smear received the recognition he long deserved.
Sir Paul McCartney was on hand to introduce Foo Fighters. In his speech, he compared his own musical journey to that of Grohl’s. “He’s just an ordinary, kind of goofy kid. And same thing happens, he falls through the same hole, and he’s in rock & roll and it’s gonna be his life. It’s gonna take over everything,” McCartney said. “And nothing was every the same again.”
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Following their acceptance speech, Foo Fighters took the stage to do what they do best: perform live. They ripped through a medley of “Best of You,” “My Hero,” and “Everlong,” before reuniting with Sir Paul for a cover of The Beatles’ “Get Back.” Watch fan-captured footage below.
Watch fan-captured footage of Foo Fighters’ performance and McCartney’s speech below.
The 36th Annual Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony took place at the Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse in Cleveland, Ohio. A pre-recorded telecast will air later this year on HBO and HBO Max.
A committee of 1,200 artists, historians, and music industry members, as well as a fan vote, determined this year’s Rock and Roll Hall of Fame class. In order to be eligible, a nominee’s first recording must have been released at least 25 years ago.
VIDEO: Paul McCartney introduzindo o Foo Fighters no Rock & Roll: Hall Of Fame (30/10) pic.twitter.com/GNo8COjHqV
— The Beatles BR 🍏🎲🌳☮️ (@TheBeatleBR) October 31, 2021
Closing the night, @PaulMcCartney (from the film “Yellow Submarine”) compares the start of Dave Grohl’s solo career (leading to @foofighters) to the beginning of Paul’s own (with 1970’s McCartney LP) @rockhall pic.twitter.com/qxRuEctWCZ
Advertisement— Kabir Bhatia (@KabirBhatiaTime) October 31, 2021
— Future Rock Legends (@futurerocklgnds) October 31, 2021
Paul McCartney and Foo Fighters perform “Get Back” pic.twitter.com/xnRLr9GTXe
— Dr. Bryan McGeary (@BMcgeary) October 31, 2021
Foo Fighters playing with Paul McCartney is perfect. pic.twitter.com/hygVPqysoU
Advertisement— Austin Kellerman (@AustinKellerman) October 31, 2021
Paul McCartney cantando “Get Back” junto com o Foo Fighters (30/10) pic.twitter.com/FMIZJnIgH3
— The Beatles BR 🍏🎲🌳☮️ (@TheBeatleBR) October 31, 2021
Read a transcription of McCartney’s full speech below:
When they asked me to do a speech, they said, “Do you want to have the autocue?” I said, “No, I’m good. I’ll look at the paper.” But I’ve been seeing everyone do these amazing speeches, I’m beginning to think I should have taken the autocue. But I didn’t, so here it goes.
OK, so me, a teenage kid in Liverpool, just an ordinary kid going to school like everybody else; and then one day, I heard some music and I fell into rock & roll. It just happened. One day. Suddenly, the world changed, and I just fell, like, through a hole in time. And suddenly, I was in rock & roll. By the same time in his life, Dave did the same kind of thing. You know, he’s just an ordinary, kind of goofy kid. And same thing happens, he falls through the same hole, and he’s in rock & roll and it’s gonna be his life. It’s gonna take over everything. And nothing was every the same again.
It’s so magical. Everyone who knows, everyone who’s connected with it, everyone who loves rock & roll. It really is a magical thing that contains so many elements – like all of the people we’ve heard tonight. I mean, it’s just unbelievable. So I feel super privileged to be here tonight, inducting these guys.
So when that happened, and I feel into rock & roll, I joined a group. My group was the Beatles. Like I say, the world changed. Dave did a similar kind of thing. He joined a group, Nirvana.
We had a great time with our groups, but eventually tragedy happened and my group broke up. Same happened with Dave. His group broke up under tragic circumstances. So the question is, what do you do now? We both were presented with that question. In my case, I said, “Well, I’ll make an album where I play all the instruments myself.” So I did that. Dave’s group broke up, what’s he do? He makes an album where he plays all the instruments himself. Do you think this guy’s stalking me?
Anyway, so me, I’m gonna name my new group, and I call them Wings. So Dave’s got the same problem, and he’s got to think of a name for the group, so he comes up with “Foo Fighters.” So now the group is formed. It’s ready to take flight. It’s Dave, Taylor [Hawkins], Nate [Mendel], Pat [Smear], Chris [Shiflett], and Rami [Jaffee] – all the members of the Foo Fighters. So here they are tonight. I was just saying to them in the dressing room, “Guys, this is it. You’re here in Cleveland, Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. And tonight, you’re gonna be inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.” I mean, it’s not just any Hall of Fame — it’s the fucking Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. OK, now they’re gonna show a little film, and this film shows the reasons why this band is one of the greatest rock & roll bands in the world. OK, let’s roll the film.