With its historical rock subject and all-star list of names, Dave Grohl’s Sound City: Reel To Real, a documentary about the LA studio of the same name is pegged to take its place in the pantheon of the greatest rock movies of all time, and given the big names already involved (everyone from Tom Petty to Trent Reznor) it should come as no surprise that the soundtrack to the feature-length film should kicks serious amounts of ass.
As it turns out, the Paul McCartney-fronted Nirvana reunion that took place at last week’s 12.12.12. benefit concert in Madison Square Garden was actually a result of new studio sessions between Macca and the surviving members of the grunge band, put together for Grohl’s new rockumentary.
The 70-year-old ex-Beatle, along with Dave Grohl, Krist Novoselic, and Pat Smear, debuted their new swampy blues number, ‘Cut Me Some Slack’, at the all-star charity concert, with the makeshift supergroup repeating their trick for SNL over the weekend (as Alan Cross points out on his blog); but the track was originally written and recorded for Grohl’s Sound City documentary – and it seems it was only the tip of the all-star collab iceberg.
As Pitchfork reveals, the complete 11-song tracklist for the Foos frontman’s movie reads like a rock fan’s wet dream. Grohl has reached deep into his little black book of A-lister contacts of artists to help record new collaborations to celebrate the legendary Sound City studios in California where many of them recorded, including members of Rage Against The Machine, Cheap Trick, Fleetwood Mac, Nine Inch Nails, and Queens OF The Stone Age.
Drummer Brad Wilk and bassist Tim Commerford, the incendiary rhythm section of Rage Against The Machine and Audioslave, feature alongside legendary producer Chris Goss and Grohl on a track titled ‘Time Slowing Down’, while Fleetwood Mac’s own gold dust woman, Stevie Nicks, features on ‘You Can’t Fix This’ with Rami Jaffee (best known as the keyboardist for The Wallflowers).“Given the big names already involved [in the doco] it should come as no surprise that the soundtrack to the feature-length film should kicks serious amounts of ass.”
Grohl’s close mate and QOTSA frontman Josh Homme also makes several appearances across the album, including jamming with long-time musical cohort Alain Johannes on ‘A Trick With No Sleeve’, and Chris Goss on ‘Centipede’.
There’s also a track called ‘Mantra’ featuring the holy trinity of Dave Grohl, Josh Homme and Nine Inch Nails/How To Destroy Angels frontman Trent Reznor, which could well be an indicative taste of the forthcoming Queens Of The Stone Age album which features the Foos frontman in the drum stool as well as the Nine Inch Nails linchpin.
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Bizarrely, the album also features an Australian musician in the tracklist, with ‘Jessie’s Girl’ hit-maker Rick Springfield jamming with the Foo Fighters (with Pat Smear substituting for Chris Shiflett) on a track called ‘The Man That Never Was.’
The Sound City: Real To Real soundtrack is now available for pre-order through iTunes ahead of its March 12, 2013 release date via Grohl’s own label Roswell Records. But the McCarntey/Grohl/Novoselic/Smear track ‘Cut Me Some Slack’ is available for download now (with the studio version leaking online, which you can hear up top).
The film itself is also expected around the same time next year, and just as the soundtrack is a star-studded collection of music’s big names, Grohl’s directorial debut also rounds up a jaw-dropping list of interviewees including Neil Young, Tom Petty, John Fogerty, Frank Black, Lindsey Buckingham, Rick Rubin, Lars Ulrich and many more.
Which all should give Grohl plenty to talk about when he appears as a keynote speaker at Austin, Texas’ influential industry gathering SXSW. Given that the conference kicks off on March 12th 2013, with Grohl’s keynote address taking place on March 14th – it pretty much all but confirms that Sound City: Real To Reel will be making its worldwide debut at the annual music, film, and industry event.
You can gawp at the tracklisting for the Sound City soundtrack, and scope the teaser trailer below:
Sound City – Real To Reel tracklisting:
01 Dave Grohl, Peter Hayes, and Robert Levon Been: “Heaven and All”
02 Brad Wilk, Chris Goss, Dave Grohl, and Tim Commerford: “Time Slowing Down”
03 Dave Grohl, Rami Jaffee, Stevie Nicks, and Taylor Hawkins: “You Can’t Fix This”
04 Dave Grohl, Nate Mendel, Pat Smear, Rick Springfield, and Taylor Hawkins: “The Man That Never Was”
04 Alain Johannes, Dave Grohl, Lee Ving, Pat Smear, and Taylor Hawkins: “Your Wife Is Calling”
06 Corey Taylor, Dave Grohl, Rick Nielsen, and Scott Reeder: “From Can to Can’t”
07 Alain Johannes, Chris Goss, Dave Grohl, and Joshua Homme: “Centipede”
08 Alain Johannes, Dave Grohl, and Joshua Homme: “A Trick With No Sleeve”
09 Paul McCartney, Dave Grohl, Krist Novoselic, and Pat Smear: “Cut Me Some Slack”
10 Dave Grohl, Jessy Greene, Jim Keltner, and Rami Jaffee: “Once Upon a Time… The End”
11 Dave Grohl, Joshua Homme, and Trent Reznor: “Mantra”
