Collaborations: Foo Fighters with Joe Walsh

While I was thinking of what to write about over the weekend for Monday, I came up with an idea. It’s definitely going to be a fun one and it will allow you to further delve into some songs and artists/players you might not have normally listened to. The first one I’d like to get into is the collaboration between the Foo Fighters and Joe Walsh from the Foo’s album Sonic Highways. On that album, the two collaborated on a song (the best song on the album by far too) called “Outside.” Joe Walsh is such an integral part of any band or appearance he’s ever been a part of. There is a way to how he plays and his overall vibe and style, that just makes those songs and bands great. This song is no different. His minimalist guitar solo truly sets a mood and as you listen to the song and the lyrics, you really understand why Dave Grohl had asked Joe to guest on the song. It’s one of those perfect collaborations.

 

Foo Fighters w/ Joe Walsh- Outside:

 

 

Foo Fighters- Making of Outside (from Sonic Highways DVD):

 

Best Guitar Solos: Eagles- Hotel California

A while back a friend of mine asked me to make a list of the best guitar solos of all time. I started to make a list but, I figured it would be more fun to turn this into a topic. Ironically, this morning I found myself with the song “Hotel California” in my head for some reason. So what better song to kick off this topic with one of the absolute best guitar solos of all time. Joe Walsh and Don Felder as a guitar tandem, played this one so beautifully. There is something so pure and honest about how they approached it. It’s one of those solo’s that you can hum and sing along to and someone can instantly recognize it. This is truly one of the standards for how to make a tasty solo. Sure, it’s a very over played song but, there is no doubt that it’s a classic.

 

Eagles- Hotel California (Live 1980):

 

 

Album Review: Foo Fighters- Sonic Highways

 

When a band reaches a certain point in their career it’s hard to keep things fresh and inspired. For the bands eighth album the gents in the Foo Fighters tried something different. While the idea is a great one, the final product falls a bit flat. The idea of recording a song in a different city is a great idea. Lyrically it just falls flat. The songs feel rushed and incomplete. It’s as though the thoughts were unfinished. The show on HBO is quite interesting and full of a rich musical history. In my opinion the show is way better than the album. The albums eight songs are very hit and miss. The best song I heard on the album is a song called “Outside” which features the great Joe Walsh. This is the best song on the album hands down. This album is very disjointed and not an “album.”  It’s a collection of single songs, that have no cohesiveness. Also the use of Butch Vig as a producer I think was the wrong choice. His input and methods just don’t work for what the band was trying to do, Nick Raskulinecz would have been the perfect choice. The first song “Something From Nothing” is a good track but nothing special. The whole record is nothing special. In fact I’d probably put this album towards the bottom of the list of ranking their albums. I truly thought that after how good Wasting Light was they would continue on a path similar to how that album turned out. Nice try on this one Foos.

On the scale of 1-10: I give this a 4

By: Brian Lacy