Foo Fighters' Pat Smear Talks Nirvana Unplugged, Skin and Bones

Foo Fighters’ Pat Smear Talks Nirvana Unplugged, Skin and Bones

2011-10-31

Story by Charles Ken

Foo Fighters axeman says he’s best known for acoustic recordings

The fanfare surrounding Foo Fighters’ latest album, Wasting Light, was made even more exciting by the return of original guitarist Pat Smear, who left the band after 1997’s blockbuster The Colour and the Shape. While fans speculated that Smear had another project in the wings, he has revealed that the exit had nothing to do with a rival band or even personality clashing. He just wanted a break.

“I wanted to do nothing, actually. I didn’t do other things. I just wanted to do nothing [and] I accomplished it for a really long time,” he told the National Post. But after a while, he started to get that urge to get back with the Foos. “I started missing it … when the next record came out. And then every time a new record would come out I would really miss it and I’d be like, ‘Aw I wish I played on that.’ So that’s how it started.”

Smear unofficially rejoined the Foo Fighters in 2007, touring with the guys and adding some guitar to 2007’s Echoes, Silence, Patience and Grace. Now, he’s once again an certified Foo, with a major hand in developing the melody-rich rock on Foo Fighters’ latest album, Wasting Light.

Playing with harder-edged bands like the Foos – and, for a short time, Nirvana — is a good fit for Smear. “I think I’m probably definitely better playing the hard rock kind of stuff,” he said. “I was laughing one day when … somebody was talking to me about the [Foo Fighters’ live acoustic] Skin and Bones DVD that they saw, and this was before we made the new record, and I was thinking, ‘Wow, I’m mostly probably known for Nirvana’s Unplugged and Foo Fighters’ Skin and Bones,’ ” he added, laughing.

“That’s so weird that there [are] a lot of people that only know me with an acoustic guitar. It’s so rare,” he said. “When we did the ‘Skin and Bones Tour,’ I didn’t even own an acoustic guitar, I had to borrow one from my friend. I probably own 100 guitars and all of them are electric.”

In other Foos news, Dave Grohl and guys recently put photos of Foo-inspired Halloween pumpkins on their official Facebook page. Check one of the photos, above. The Foos never disappoint, even when it comes to pumpkin carving!

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Charles Ken

Meet the expert - Charles Ken is a graduate of Michigan State University where he studied writing and history. He's a longtime music buff and covers classic rock for Audio Ink Radio. Contact him at ken@audioinkradio.com.