“That’s a long-ass song”: Watch a reluctant Dave Grohl cover Led Zeppelin’s Stairway To Heaven
Grohl threatened to “play the whole fucking thing” while waiting for an audience member to receive medical attention.
Dave Grohl of Foo Fighters. Credit: Jeff Kravitz/Getty
Foo Fighters played an impromptu cover of Led Zeppelin‘s Stairway To Heaven during their set at Eddie Vedder‘s Ohana Music Festival on October 1.
In fan-filmed footage of the moment, frontman Dave Grohl finds himself needing to think on his feet while the band’s show in Dana Point, California, was paused due to an audience member needing medical attention.
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After Grohl gets someone to attend to the situation – “Can someone go help take care of that shit?” – he then decides to “play something while you do that” to keep momentum going.
He begins playing the opening arpeggiated chord sequence to Stairway To Heaven and asks “Did you figure that shit out, or do I have to play fucking Stairway To Heaven?” As the band’s keyboardist Rami Jaffee begins playing behind Grohl, the singer adds, “Because I’ll fucking play this motherfucker, you know that right?… I might do the whole fucking thing.”
He then begins singing the song in a fairly tongue-in-cheek fashion before saying, “Can I play a Foo Fighters song now?”
When he’s told the person in trouble is doing okay and the band can resume their set, Grohl tells the audience, “Thank God, because that’s a fucking long-ass song, you know that, right? It gets awkward when it speeds up… like you’re making out and all of a sudden it speeds up, and you’re like, ‘What do I do with my girlfriend at this fucking dance now?'”
The band go on to conclude their set with Best Of You and Everlong.
Foo Fighters are currently on tour in the US, and will play a string of dates in 2024, too. For a full list of dates, head to their official website.