When thinking of the Foo Fighters, there's one song that stands at the top of them all, "Learn to Fly."
It's one that was heavily played on the radio in 1999-2000, at a very crucial point in my hockey career. There would be days and nights where I'd be in the car with my father, and that song would come on – it holds a special memory for me. So, hearing that as their second song on Night Two at Wrigley Field with my father was a one of a kind moment of nostalgia.
If I've learned anything after seeing the Foo Fighters, it's that their shows are some of the most uplifting, invigorating, and marveling of any kind. "Night two," as Grohl screamed numerous times throughout the evening, would prove to be the better of the two-night performance. And trust me, that's not a biased opinion – the bandmates said it themselves, including drummer, Taylor Hawkins.
The setlist itself had songs representing every album the group created, In Your Honor, Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace, One By One, Wasting Light, There Is Nothing Left to Lose, and others. The audience also was treated to a cover of Alice Cooper's "Under My Wheels," pieces of Chicago's "25 or 6 to 4," and David Bowie's "Under Pressure."
While covers like these are fun, it's no reason for the group to stray away from their music – especially a song like DOA, which I would've loved to hear, but didn't. That's probably my complaint of the evening, besides the opener, but we won't even go there.
The spectacle of the evening came when Grohl paraded down the catwalk into the crowd and began a solo take, just him and his blue Gibson DG-335, singing "My Hero." A description of this moment won't ever do justice for what people in that crowd saw with their own eyes while singing as loud as they could. Then the song would resume with the rest of the band in full force to bring this spectacle moment to a close.
And if that wasn't enough, drummer, Taylor Hawkins did a not-so-common drum solo with thanks to a hydraulic platform which elevated him several feet in the air. Not quite as glamorous as the Travis Barker airlift solos with Blink 182, but damn good enough. Hawkins is a hell of a talented drummer.
What many may not know is how gifted his voice range is, especially for an arena rock tour. A nice vocal solo, singing backup vocals throughout the evening, and taking the stage to deliver "Under Pressure" in red zebra compression pants were some of his bigger highlights to the evening.
Fans cheered to an energetic show, composed of a 22 songs (a few covers and improvs), a switcheroo between Grohl and Hawkins, and most importantly beautiful weather. In fact, the weather couldn't have been any more perfect than it was. Low 70's, with sun and a cool breeze off of our lovely Lake Michigan.
"Oh Night Two, you're so good," exclaimed Grohl as he poured a red solo cup of water over his body after their third song, "The Pretender." Dad and I were glad to be a part of Night Two, and I am sure every fan in that stadium would agree.
