William Goldsmith

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Lore & Background

Goldsmith's time with Foo Fighters was brief and fraught. After joining in late October 1994 alongside bassist Nate Mendel and guitarist Pat Smear, the band toured clubs supporting Mike Watt in 1995. But as the band grew, Goldsmith felt creatively stifled: 'pretty much everything after that blew,' he said, adding 'it turned into a world-domination thing that became really creatively stifling.' He also developed carpal tunnel syndrome after the tour. The recording of the second album with producer Gil Norton was grueling — Goldsmith recalled, 'Dave had me do 96 takes of one song, and I had to do thirteen hours' worth of takes on another one. It just seemed that everything I did wasn't good enough for him, or anyone else.' The band regrouped in Los Angeles in February 1997 and re-recorded the album with Grohl on drums without telling Goldsmith. He learned from Mendel that his contribution was being replaced. Feeling betrayed, and unhappy with Grohl's suggestion he continue only as a touring drummer, Goldsmith left. He was replaced by Taylor Hawkins.

In Their Own Story

The sessions for *The Colour and the Shape* were supposed to be Goldsmith's big break. Instead, they became a marathon of frustration. In a Seattle studio with producer Gil Norton, Grohl's perfectionism drove Goldsmith to the brink: 96 takes on one song, thirteen hours on another. 'Everything I did wasn't good enough for him,' Goldsmith later said. When the band took a break, Grohl secretly overdubbed new drum parts in Los Angeles. Goldsmith only found out from Mendel. He left the band, and the finished album — released May 20, 1997 — credits him on only a few tracks: 'Doll,' 'Up in Arms' (slow intro only), 'The Colour and the Shape,' and 'Down in the Park' (on the 10th Anniversary Edition).

Reader's Guide

William Goldsmith's role in Foo Fighters is defined by a single, painful album cycle. He joined in late 1994, toured in 1995, and recorded *The Colour and the Shape* in 1996-97. His drumming appears on only four tracks of that album, and his contributions to the rest were erased. After leaving, he returned to Sunny Day Real Estate for their 1998 album *How It Feels To Be Something On* and 2000's *The Rising Tide*. He later formed The Fire Theft with Enigk and Mendel, and in 2020 his band Assertion signed to Spartan Records, releasing *Intermission* in 2021 — an album Rolling Stone named 'One of the Best Albums of 2021 So Far.' His story is one of creative conflict, resilience, and a return to the bands where he had more control.

Did You Know?

• Goldsmith was born on July 4, 1972, in Seattle, Washington.
• He formed his first band, Screaming Hormones, in fifth grade.
• Dave Grohl had Goldsmith do 96 takes of one song and thirteen hours' worth of takes on another during the *Colour and the Shape* sessions.
• Goldsmith only learned his drum parts were being replaced from bassist Nate Mendel, not from Grohl directly.
• His 2021 album *Intermission* with Assertion was named 'One of the Best Albums of 2021 So Far' by Rolling Stone.