Now this is a fresh take on Led Zep! The Foo Fighters took on “Rock and Roll” at the Kennedy Center Honors, with Dave Grohl on drums and the late great Taylor Hawkins on the mic! It’s always a pleasure to hear Grohl slam the tubs, and if you haven’t seen Hawkins make his way out from behind the drums before, then you definitely want to check this out. The hard-hitting drummer is an insanely good frontman and singer, with one helluva rock and roll wail!
The Foos rocked the Led Zeppelin classic right in front of the three surviving Zep members, and seeing the huge grins on Robert Plant and Jimmy Page’s faces really said everything. The Foo Fighters played a fast, rambunctious version of the 1971 classic and really took no prisoners on the number. We rate Led Zeppelin as one of the greatest bands of all time, and the Foos certainly did justice to the tune!
Watch the video down below and don’t forget to share this beautiful song with your friends and family…
The Foo Fighters played “Rock and Roll” at the 2012 Kennedy Center Honors, which was the year Led Zeppelin was inducted. The cover proved to be quite popular online, with 16 million fans tuning into the video on The Kennedy Center’s YouTube channel. Fans loved the performance, and added comments such as “Rest in peace, Taylor Hawkins, I didn’t know he had such an amazing and unique voice” and “Dave Grohl on drums is just a complete and utter joy to watch. He’s a show in and of himself.”
It’s not the first time the Foo Fighters have performed this arrangement of “Rock and Roll.” In 2008 at Wembley Stadium, Hawkins and Grohl played the tune, with Led Zeppelin members Robert Plant and John Paul Jones handling guitar and bass duties. Grohl and Jones make for a rock-solid rhythm section, while Page really digs deep to bring a fresh and unique take on his classic guitar licks on the song.
Led Zep released “Rock and Roll” on February 21, 1972, as the second single from their fourth studio album Led Zeppelin IV. Readers might be interested to learn that the band took inspiration from the Architect of Rock and Roll, Little Richard, for the tune. Drummer John Bonham had been playing the intro to Richard’s “Keep A-Knockin’.” Page then added a guitar riff over the drum part, in the style of Chuck Berry. The combination made for a ‘50s rock and roll throwback that proved to be a smash hit among Zeppelin fans.
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