Dave Grohl has turned into a prolific storyteller while self-isolating. The latest tale from his “Dave’s True Stories” Instagram account recalls the time Foo Fighters and Pantera played Ozzfest in 1998, and a subsequent road trip that ended miserably.
Foo Fighters were called in to replace Korn’s slot on a bill filled with mostly heavy metal acts. To top it off, Grohl and company had the daunting task of following Pantera’s electrifying set.
In his story, Grohl recalls seeing Pantera “completely destroying the stage”, calling their set a “force of f**cking nature.” He got so lost in the moment before realizing that Foo Fighters had to follow Pantera. “Unfortunately, that euphoric feeling immediately disappeared the second they finished and the crowd roared like a blood thirsty Roman coliseum,” writes Grohl. “We were dead meat. Dead. F**cking. Meat.”
Following their sets, Grohl hung out backstage with Pantera, an experience he recalls fondly: “Anyone who ever had the honor to hang out with Pantera knows that it was not for the faint of heart. First of all, there was never a band more welcoming, more hospitable, more down to earth than Pantera. It didn’t matter who you are, what you did, where you were from, they would welcome you in, stuff a beer in your hand, a shot in your mouth, and make you laugh harder than you’ve ever laughed before (until you wound up barfing it all back up and having the most soul-crushing hangover of your life the next morning).”
After some cocktails with Dimebag Darrell and Vinnie Paul, the bands were set to go their separate ways when Vinnie handed Grohl a business card, inviting him to Pantera’s strip club — The Clubhouse — on the outskirts of Dallas.
“‘Dude, next time your in Dallas, you gotta come by the Clubhouse.’ I looked at the card, and to my amazement (but not surprise) they had THEIR OWN STRIP CLUB. Now, some rock stars have expensive cars. Some have castles. … But, a f**king strip club? That takes the cake. That’s like me owning a Starbucks coffeeshop. Danger.”
Soon after, Grohl and Foo Fighters drummer Taylor Hawkins took a cross-country road trip, making a detour through Dallas to hang with Pantera at The Clubhouse. Unfortunately, Grohl lost his wallet along the way and things didn’t go as planned when he and Hawkins got to the strip club. However, there was a silver lining that happened 10 years later. It all reads better with Grohl’s own words, so check out his full story in the Instagram slides below.
Beyond the story of the road trip, Grohl looks back at his buddies in Pantera with great fondness. “Dime and Vinnie have since passed on to the great gig in the sky, but every moment I have of them is a joyous one. I’m so lucky and honored to have known them, even just a little. They are missed by many, but their legacy lives on. Crank some Pantera and raise a shot of Crown for them. They would have been your friends, too.”
Dave Grohl with @Pantera backstage at #Ozzfest 1998 pic.twitter.com/QaFIAUniET
— OzzFest (@TheOzzFest) January 26, 2019
Dave Grohl Recounts Wild Story Involving Pantera, a Strip Club, and a Road Trip Gone Bad
Jon Hadusek
