Ever since the tragic passing of his Foo Fighters bandmate Taylor Hawkins back in March, Dave Grohl has, understandably, kept his public appearances to a minimum. But when he does go out on the town, he makes it count: Last night (August 16th), the musician made a surprise appearance as Los Angeles’ Largo Theater for a silly rendition of Seals and Crofts’ “Summer Breeze” with Beck, Tenacious D’s Jack Black and Kyle Gass, John C. Reilly, and producer Greg Kurstin.
This hodgepodge performance was part of an ongoing series of benefit shows hosted by Judd Apatow at the teeny, 280-capacity venue; this one was for Victims First, a fundraiser for families affected by mass casualties. Headliner Beck was the only previously-announced performer out of this crew, but for a song like “Summer Breeze,” he needed a little extra help from Black, Gass, and Reilly.
About a minute into the song, the audience got a seemingly-impromptu entrance from Grohl, who moseyed onstage to belt out the yacht-rock tune’s iconic riff in the first chorus. He then strolled offstage nonchalantly — until the next chorus, when he returned for his very important vocal duties once more. It’s quite funny, and you can watch footage of it all below.
Grohl’s first performance since Hawkins’ death was during Paul McCartney’s headlining set at Glastonbury in June. This September, the surviving Foos will play a pair of tribute shows in honor of the late drummer, and Grohl will take the stage again this November for the 2022 iteration of his VetsAid charity concert.