Dear Rosemary

Album: Wasting Light (2011)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • This dark, ambivalent, mid-tempo rocker is a track from the American rock band Foo Fighters' seventh studio album, Wasting Light. Dave Grohl recruited Bob Mould from one of his favorite all-time acts, Husker Du, to play guitar and sing vocals on this track. The Foo frontman told Q magazine: "It sounds like Bob and I wrote a song for Husker Du 20 years ago and the Foo Fighters are covering it."
  • Grohl told Mojo magazine how he got Mould involved on this track: "I was a huge fan of Husker Du. Their album Zen Arcade is one of the most underrated American rock 'n' roll records of all time. And only recently did I realise how much I've ripped Bob off for the last 16 years! I met him for the first time last summer and said, 'You know that I'd be nowhere and nobody without your music, right>' and he very politely nodded and said: 'I know.' We swapped phone numbers and became friends. I had this song that I imagined would be a duet between us, and he obliged. What an honor to have that sort of moment with one of your heroes."
  • Even for a Rock legend like Grohl, working with one of your all time heroes for the first time can be nerve-wracking. He told the UK Sun newspaper: "When you first meet someone you've idolized your whole life, you're just nervous. That's how I felt with Bob. You don't want to come off feeling like an awkward superfan but it's inevitable. But then those first impressions wear off and you realize he's just a nice person. And then you put on the instruments and that feeling comes back again. You want to make it right."

Comments: 1

  • Ryan from Birmingham, AlPart of it sounds kind of like the Bay City Rollers "Saturday Night" but of course the song as a whole is completely different. Dave has listed them as an influence in the past. Definitely my favorite on the album. I listen to the beginning over and over then listen for Bob's voice. I can't believe it has not been released as a single and a music video other than the contest video. Wasting Light is one of a few albums that I listen to every song on over and over in order, like Back in Black, Sgt Peppers, Appetite for Destruction, Joshua Tree, Van Halen I...
see more comments

Editor's Picks

Eric Clapton

Eric ClaptonFact or Fiction

Did Eric Clapton really write "Cocaine" while on cocaine? This question and more in the Clapton edition of Fact or Fiction.

What Musicians Are Related to Other Musicians?

What Musicians Are Related to Other Musicians?Song Writing

A big list of musical marriages and family relations ranging from the simple to the truly dysfunctional.

Bible Lyrics

Bible LyricsMusic Quiz

Rockers, rappers and pop stars have been known to quote the Bible in their songs. See if you match the artist to the biblical lyric.

Gilby Clarke

Gilby ClarkeSongwriter Interviews

The Guns N' Roses rhythm guitarist in the early '90s, Gilby talks about the band's implosion and the side projects it spawned.

Jim Adkins of Jimmy Eat World

Jim Adkins of Jimmy Eat WorldSongwriter Interviews

Jim talks about the impact of "The Middle" and uses a tree metaphor to describe his songwriting philosophy.

Chris Fehn of Slipknot

Chris Fehn of SlipknotSongwriter Interviews

A drummer for one of the most successful metal bands of the last decade, Chris talks about what it's like writing and performing with Slipknot. Metal-neck is a factor.