6 Dave Grohl Quotes For Every Creative Person

Dave Grohl knows he's not the best singer-songwriter on the planet, but he certainly has a way with words. Especially when it comes to inspiring quotes. While most of them are aimed at musicians, they can also be used no matter what you do. Are you feeling a little deflated? Scroll through these classic quotes and see if inspiration strikes.

If you need a little more of Dave's wisdom, check out his SXSW keynote speech from 2013. It's essential listening for anyone who's feeling that creative funk.

Inspirational Interview - Given To Live

Christmas is a time of giving. Whether it's your time, your talents, or your money, Christmas is the season when we bless other people (although we should, admittedly, try and do it every day!). Given To Live are a project that embodies this spirit all year round by giving the gift of live music to those who may not ordinarily be able to experience it.

Recently I had the chance to chat to Given To Live's founder, Tom Pugh. Here's what he had to say. Hi Tom! Thanks for stopping by!

What was your background before you decided to start GTL?

Prior to Given To Live I had been fundraising in various capacities direct for the charity or through fundraising organisations. I am also a qualified holistic massage therapist and am re-starting practising as it's both grounding and something that I enjoy on a soul level.

How long did it take to get from the initial idea to where you are now? Was anyone else involved in the initial set up? Do you have anyone working with you now or is it just you? What’s the process behind setting up a charity?

It took five months from idea to start. I met someone who has a charity, Eudaimonia, that's purpose is to support projects to come into being. At the moment we are a project within a charity and have started taking the steps to become a charity in our own right. Currently I am alone with a few people who volunteer to help where they can and where necessary as they simply love the idea of what Given To Live is out to achieve.

How did Given To Live start and what inspired the idea? What’s the ethos behind the idea? And who’s eligible to take part?

The idea came to me after a Pearl Jam show last November and initially I thought to help fellow PJ fans who couldn't make shows through illness and crisis, knowing if someone has invested to go to a show there can be significant financial loss. Then I thought if I'm going to do this it needs to be bigger. All live music and I use the term vulnerable and excluded as to who Given To Live support to give us the opportunity to help as many as possible. This can mean elderly with dementia, survivors of domestic abuse, young carers, disability, mental health issues and so much more. I think we, as a society, often overlook or forget about so many sections of our society and I want Given To Live to be inclusive.

Music is so powerful. So many people have their own stories of why a particular song or band means something to them. Often it's a band, an album, a song, that gets people through turbulent times. I know music has saved lives.

Going to a live show is a gift that I realised I took for granted when I could go. There have been times when I couldn't go when I have been struggling and it would have been just what I needed. I want Given To Live to make live music possible for everyone and it isn't. Whether the obstacle is mental health, physical disability or financial let's make this happen.

Given To Live have had some huge successes over the previous months. How did they come about and what are your thoughts on them?

We have. The first step is receiving an application and then getting board approval. From there it comes down to sourcing tickets. The meet and greet aspect is a cherry on the top as our remit is to provide funding for tickets, transport and, if necessary, accommodation. To have meet and greets with both the Foo Fighters and Shane Filan was simply beyond my wildest expectations and I can't thank those who helped make these happen from the ground up enough. Fellow music fans with no investment other than wanting dreams to come true via social media through to management and the artists saying yes.

What inspires you to keep going?

Easy question. The looks on the faces, the messages after saying how positive an impact has had. Scarlett's mum telling me her dream was to win the lottery so she could pay for Shane Filan to shake Scarlett's hand and knowing that evening we had made a mum's dream for her daughter come true as well as Scarlett's. The joy of those who helped make it happen. It's a very humbling and beautiful experience.

Recently you were involved in a campaign to help change the secondary ticketing market for live music. What are your thoughts on this and what changes would you like to see made to the live music industry? How can people on the street get involved?

I'm 47 and remember buying tickets off touts in my younger days. I was brought up seeing my dad do this at football matches if we had no tickets so it was normal for me. And if someone wants to stand outside in the pouring rain, behaving shiftily with people mostly despising you and sell tickets I'm ok with that. There is always going to be someone who couldn't get a ticket for whatever reason and be willing to pay. It's a very old profession and it wouldn't surprise me if there were touts outside the Coliseum.

What really bothers me is now we have the internet touts are getting hold of so many tickets, bought by automated bots, that they can set the market and sell via the internet with no regulation. It means genuine fans have much less of a chance of getting tickets in a sale because up to 60% of tickets have been known to end up in the hands of touts and immediately the resale market becomes inflated. We know also some bands give tickets to touts to re-sell and that, for me, is simply fleecing your own fans.

A great campaign amongst Foo Fighters fans here in the UK happened on twitter #NoMoreTouts. This resulted in the Foo Fighters having their own #BeatTheBots where the initial onsale for their 2015 US tour was in person at the box office before there was an internet sale. This is something all bands could do. And this also bring in a sense of community that is also part of the live experience. The campaign can be found at www.foofightersuk.com

The government can also choose to regulate the secondary market. And it's as simple as that, a choice.

How can people get involved with Given To Live? And where can we find you online?

We're at www.giventolive.com

There you can find out more, donate and make applications.

We're tiny right now. Not really known about so sharing us and liking us on facebook is great exposure, the same with twitter- the links are on our website. Talk about us, fundraise for us. Tell bands, managers, agents about us. If people want to be involved please contact us. I am grateful for all help and suggestions.

Finally, if you could change one thing to make the world a better place, what would it be?

Due to my own personal experiences I truly believe if everyone went into weekly therapy and weekly bodywork for two years we would live in a much healthier and more conscious world. As a collective consciousness grew we would have less war, less greed, less environmental destruction. More compassion, more empathy, more joy.

So, two years weekly bodywork and therapy for everyone over the age of 14.

"One day you finally knew what you had to do, and began, though the voices around you kept shouting their bad advice -- determined to do the only thing you could do -- determined to save the only life you could save." Mary Oliver

Given To Live's next fundraisers are at Wembley on June 19th and 20th (the weekend of the Foo Fighters shows). Come along, say hi and enjoy some awesome live music before AND after you rock out with the Foos. 

 

Rae's Top 10 Christmas Videos 2014

And so it's that time of the year again when I post the Christmas videos that have made me smile, laugh, singalong, and cry. Expect songs, stories, adverts, and a couple of favourites that make the list every year. Enjoy!

And the two that make it on to my list every year just for being awesome and/or cute!

This one doesn't need a video as it was originally broadcast on BBC Radio 1 so you can have it on Soundcloud! Night Before Christmas read by Dave Grohl.

Sound City

If you're a film or music buff, chances are you've come across the stunning Sound City documentary. The film is Dave Grohl's love letter to a studio which nearly went to the wall, a building which has played host to some of the most famous musicians in history. Fleetwood Mac, Rick Springfield, Buckingham Nicks, Nine Inch Nails, REO Speedwagon, Tom Petty and, of course, Nirvana have all graced the studio.

As we were planning a trip to LA, one of our party (thanks, Kirri!) decided to get in touch with the original owners to see if we could visit and take a look around. All we were told was to turn up before mid-day.

So we did.

They've kept the famous painted sign which welcomes you to the studios. Driving beneath it, you feel a sense of calm and anticipation. How many people have driven through that driveway? How many of them are the same people you now see screaming around a stage in front of 80,000 people? How did they feel when they first arrived? Were they excited? Nervous? Inspired?

We chose to drive up the ramp and onto the parking lot on top of the building, before we realised that actually, we probably should have parked right outside the studio. Oh well...

First port of call was to knock on the door of Fairfax Recordings. The building, unlike the rest of them, is now blue (The others have retained their famous cream colouring). The door was answered by a nervous looking young man who had no idea who we were looking for but kindly allowed us to use the bathroom and clear a few bottles of water from the fridge. Finally, we discovered that Sandy, our contact, hadn't yet arrived on the site.

It was just before 11am. We were closing in on our deadline of mid-day so we decided to take a walk. We found a Denny's a short way up the road and debated what to do. We were hot, tired, and jet lagged. We'd driven for 4 hours. If we didn't get in we'd at least been on the property. We'd driven, and walked, beneath the famous sign and we'd seen a wall of records from many of the artists who'd worked there.

But... There's always a but. What if we didn't try again? We'd regret it for the rest of our lives.

We made the decision to go back and try again. Besides, there was no harm, right? So we trudged back and took another stab at the door. This time it was answered by the wonderful Sandy and we were welcomed in like long lost friends! Suddenly we were standing in the offices and looking around in awe. There were photographs mounted on wooden plaques (what people would be given before the invention of the gold record) and too many other things to take in. Much to our delight, Tom, the founder and owner, was around. Again, there was another big welcome and any nerves we'd been feeling melted away. We were happy and excited. We'd travelled half way around the world for this moment and it felt like every crazy dream you've ever had was coming true.

It was time and, with fluttering hearts, we made our way back to the blue building. The film gives you the sense that the offices and studios are in one building. They're not. You drive under the sign and find yourself in a parking lot with buildings on three sides. The front buildings house the offices while the ones in the back contain the studios. Facing the U-shaped building, the part with the drum room is to your left, while the ones straight ahead and to the right are now leased to other companies (Sandy made the comment that they've gone from leasing studios to leasing property).

We went back through the large, frosted glass door and met the young man we'd originally spoken to. Gone are the brown, carpeted walls. A few of the non-supporting walls have been knocked down to open the space up. You find yourself in a large, white area with a kitchen to your right and a snug, containing books, records, and couches, straight ahead. To your left is a large door.

You're taken to the door and let in. Your head snaps back and your jaw hits the floor. This is the room you've heard so much about. This is the room which is famed for recording drums in (bands, most notably Metallica, have done “blind tests” on such rooms. A piece of drum sound is recorded and sent back to the band. They then choose where to records based on that sound. Metallica recorded “Death Magnetic” at Sound City based purely on the snippet they heard).

And it's not changed. From the black and white photos you've seen, to the film, to actually standing in it, not one inch of it has been altered. No one knows exactly why the room sounds like it does. Some attribute it the building once having been used for making amplification. Others say it's because of whatever was used in the brickwork. Whatever it is, the room has a presence.

The door's closed behind you and a pressure closes around you. Your ears pop. Part of it is to do with it being a studio and it needing to be somewhat soundproof. The rest of it I can only place on the people who have passed though it. Their essence, their blood, sweat, and tears have soaked into the walls and left behind an undeniable presence. You can feel them in the air and see their ghostly images wandering back and forth. As my brother said, rooms like that have a personality all of their own. It's an inspiring place and I'm not sorry to say that I cried while I was there. I could have spent many days just sitting in that room and soaking up the atmosphere. I feel that some of my best work would have come from just being there and I'm desperately trying to cling on to the feelings and emotions which barreled through me.

Typical f-ing drummer. Just stands around and lets everyone else set up for them!

The control room, compared to many, feels basic. It was refreshing, a beautiful break from the constant glare of computers. Again, it's remained the same as it's always been. The famous Neve desk is no longer there, having been bought by Grohl when the studio was closing down. They do have another analogue desk and, much to my excitement, a two inch tape machine. I hadn't seen one of those since my early film-making days and I stared at it like a long lost friend. 

We were blessed to be witnesses to a hundred different stories of the people who've been through the studio. We learned a lot and I'm forever grateful to Sandy and Tom for letting us invade their space for an hour. Tom returned to see us off and handed out hugs and smiles like they were candy. It was an experience which I hope, one day, to relive. Fingers crossed, our musical family will wind up there one day. Until then, I'll hold on to my photos, my Sound City shirt (Thanks, Sandy!), my DVD, and my precious memories. Next time, I hope to be working there, with the people who feel like a home away from home. A family, bonded together by their love of music.

In 2011, Sound City ceased commercial operations. Thanks to the film, and the resurgence in interest, the studios are now operated by Fairfax Recordings. The famous drum room is still there. It's still analogue (but they do have a ProTools rig). The Neve desk, which features so heavily in the documentary it's pretty much the main character, is now owned by Grohl. So you'll have to go and knock on his front door if you want to use that.

If you haven't seen the film, go and watch it. It really is a love letter, not just to the studio, but to music in general.

 http://buy.soundcitymovie.com/

More of Rae's Sound City photos.

Rae's Christmas Videos 2013

It's that time of the year again! Here's my selection of Christmas videos for this year. Enjoy!

And this one will always make it in to my Christmas list, just for being cute!

I hope you all have a wonderful Christmas season! Thank you for your ongoing love and support. I really do appreciate it! Thank you!

Haters Gonna Hate

Doubters.

Don't you love 'em?

I've had my fair share of them. I still get them from time to time. Right from when I was in school, I had people telling me my dreams were worthless. Heck, I had people tell me I was worthless. And those words are soul destroying. They tear your very person apart and leave seeds of doubt and pain in your very being.

Words have power. Immense power. It's why they're written down by people, by the religious and non-religious alike. And I think people forget this. They forget that their words have the power to build someone up or completely and utterly destroy their world.

It's taken me a long time to see past the doubters. It's taken me a long time to give them the finger and say "Fuck 'em" and live my life how I want to live. It's my decision to follow my dreams not theirs. It's my choice in what I want to create in this world.

And it's your choise to. Seriously, I know it hurts. I know you can see their words are ingrained on your eyes and in your mind. They'll stay there forever. Some of the words of the people who have put me down remain with me to this day. But now I see them as encouragement to keep going, rather than to give up and fade away.

You're not worthless. You are someone. You're here for a reason, even if you don't discover that reason until you're 80. Heck, you may never discover that reason until you're on your death bed and a thought comes to mind. You have a reason for living. Put your hand on your chest. Feel your heart beating. THAT'S your reason for living. Live your life however the heck you want to live it. You want to be a musician, a writer, a nurse, a doctor, a train driver, whatever? Go and do it! Never give up on that dream! And never, ever let anyone else talk you in to giving up.

A couple of days ago I was having one of my "I'm hopeless. Everything I do is crap" days. Oddly, at the same time, I came across the following set of gifs (if anyone knows the video it's from, send me the link and I'll edit this part out). Now I'm passing them on to you. You can do whatever you want to take. Some may say it takes talent. But if you've got the determination, you can go far.