This Is a Call

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"This Is a Call"
File:Foo fighters this is a call.png
Single by Foo Fighters
from the album Foo Fighters
B-side"Winnebago"
"Podunk"
ReleasedJune 19, 1995
StudioRobert Lang, Seattle
Genre
Length
  • 3:52
  • 3:45 (live at Downing)
Label
SongwriterDave Grohl
Producers
Foo Fighters singles chronology
"Exhausted"
(1995) 		"This Is a Call"
(1995) 		"I'll Stick Around"
(1995)

"This Is a Call" is a song by American rock band Foo Fighters, released as the lead single from the band's 1995 self-titled debut album. Released in June 1995, it is one of many songs Dave Grohl wrote and performed on the album when Foo Fighters was a one-man band.

Origins

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"This Is a Call" is one of the few songs on the Foo Fighters' debut album that does not date from Dave Grohl's days with Nirvana. It was a new song written in mid-1994, months after Kurt Cobain's death. Grohl married his long-time girlfriend Jennifer Youngblood and wrote the song while on honeymoon in Ireland, stating that "In that summer of 1994 I'd travelled a lot; I think I wrote 'This Is A Call' in Ireland. When I got back I booked five days in a recording studio, which seemed like an eternity, and I did the whole first Foo Fighters album in five days".[4]

Lyrics

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Dave Grohl said about the song: "The chorus says 'This is a call to all my past resignation'. It's just sort of like a little wave to all the people I ever played music with, people I've been friends with, all my relationships, my family. It's a hello, and in a way a thank you."[5]

"'This Is A Call' just seemed like a nice way to open the album, y'know, 'This is a call to all my past resignations...' I felt like I had nothing to lose, and I didn't necessarily want to be the drummer of Nirvana for the rest of my life without Nirvana. I thought I should try something I'd never done before and I'd never stood up in front of a band and been the lead singer, which was fucking horrifying and still is!"[4]

Release and reception

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On June 19, 1995, "This Is a Call" was serviced to US alternative radio and was issued commercially in the United Kingdom as a 7-inch single, 12-inch single, and CD single.[6][7] The following month, the song debuted at number 12 on the US Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart and rose to a peak of number two the following month.[8][9] The song also charted at number five on the UK Singles Chart.[10]

No music video was made for the song; however, the band played the song live on the Late Show with David Letterman in mid-1995. It was the band's first national television performance.

Other versions

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Track listings

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UK 7-inch single; French and Japanese CD single

  1. "This Is a Call"
  2. "Winnebago" (Grohl, Turner)

UK 12-inch and CD single

  1. "This Is a Call"
  2. "Winnebago"
  3. "Podunk"

Dutch and Australian CD single; New Zealand cassette single

  1. "This Is a Call"
  2. "Winnebago"
  3. "Podunk (Cement Mix)"
  • "Podunk (Cement Mix)" is seemingly the same mix and version as the standard version of "Podunk". The reason for this is unknown.

Personnel

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Charts

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Certifications

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Region Certification Certified units/sales
Australia (ARIA)[27] Gold 35,000‡
United Kingdom (BPI)[28]
Sales since 2005 		Silver 200,000‡

‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

References

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  9. ^ a b "Foo Fighters Chart History (Alternative Airplay)". Billboard. Retrieved November 13, 2016.
  10. ^ a b "Foo Fighters: Artist Chart History". Official Charts Company. Retrieved May 3, 2023.
  11. ^ "Foo Fighters – This Is a Call". ARIA Top 50 Singles. Retrieved November 13, 2016.
  12. ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
  13. ^ "Top RPM Singles: Issue 2768." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved November 13, 2016.
  14. ^ "Top RPM Rock/Alternative Tracks: Issue 8516." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved November 13, 2016.
  15. ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
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  18. ^ "The Irish Charts – Search Results – This Is a Call". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved November 13, 2016.
  19. ^ "Nederlandse Top 40 – Foo Fighters" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved November 13, 2016.
  20. ^ "Foo Fighters – This Is a Call" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved November 13, 2016.
  21. ^ "Foo Fighters – This Is a Call". Top 40 Singles. Retrieved November 13, 2016.
  22. ^ "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved May 3, 2023.
  23. ^ "Foo Fighters Chart History (Radio Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved November 13, 2016.
  24. ^ "Foo Fighters Chart History (Mainstream Rock)". Billboard. Retrieved November 13, 2016.
  25. ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
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