"Wheels" is a single by American

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...

band

Foo Fighters Foo Fighters are an American rock band formed in Seattle in 1994. Foo Fighters was initially formed as a one-man project by former Nirvana drummer Dave Grohl. Following the success of the eponymous debut album, Grohl (lead vocals, guitar) re ...

. The single premiered on radio on September 23, 2009, though the single was officially released six days later.

Background

The song had its live premiere at the

White House The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. It is located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., and has been the residence of every U.S. president since John Adams in 1800. ...

as part of an

Independence Day An independence day is an annual event commemorating the anniversary of a nation's independence or statehood, usually after ceasing to be a group or part of another nation or state, or more rarely after the end of a military occupation. Man ...

celebration honoring military service members. The song "Wheels", alongside the song "Word Forward", was recorded for the band's ''

Greatest Hits A greatest hits album or best-of album is a type of compilation album that collects popular and commercially successful songs by a particular artist or band. While greatest hits albums are typically supported by the artist, they can also be crea ...

'' album with producer

Butch Vig Bryan David "Butch" Vig (born August 2, 1955) is an American musician, songwriter, and record producer, best known as the drummer and co-producer of the alternative rock band Garbage and the producer of the diamond-selling Nirvana album ''Neve ...

. Both songs were written during the ''

Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace ''Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace'' is the sixth studio album by American rock band Foo Fighters, released on September 25, 2007, through Roswell and RCA Records. The album is noted for a blend of regular rock and acoustic tracks with shifting ...

'' tour and had their first versions recorded at Grand Master Studios in

Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywood, ...

in 2008, later being recorded at the Foo Fighters's own Studio 606 in Los Angeles. Lead vocalist

Dave Grohl David Eric Grohl (born January 14, 1969) is an American musician. He is the founder of the rock band Foo Fighters, in which he is the lead singer, guitarist, and principal songwriter. Prior to forming Foo Fighters, he was the drummer of gru ...

invited Vig to work on the songs while at a party, and the successful outcome led Grohl to invite him to produce the band's next album ''

Wasting Light ''Wasting Light'' is the seventh studio album by American rock band Foo Fighters, released on April 12, 2011, through Roswell and RCA Records. Wanting to capture the essence of their earlier work and avoid the artificiality of digital recording, ...

''.

Reception

Critical

''Benjamin Sheehan'' from ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

'' magazine says: "The song has a

Weezer Weezer is an American rock band formed in Los Angeles, California, in 1992. Since 2001, the band has consisted of Rivers Cuomo (vocals, guitar, keyboards), Patrick Wilson (drums, backing vocals), Scott Shriner (bass guitar, keyboards, backing v ...

-meets-

The Fray The Fray is an American rock band from Denver, Colorado, formed in 2002 by schoolmates Isaac Slade and Joe King. Their debut album, ''How to Save a Life'' released in 2005, was certified double platinum by the RIAA and platinum in Australia, ...

vibe, and it flies out of the gate with feedback-laden riffs, well-timed stutter stops and a gentle balance of electric and acoustic guitars. Four-chord loops nicely underscore Grohl's frustration as he mourns life's failure to meet his expectations. Grohl sings during the opening verse, 'I wanted something better, man/I wished for something new'. For an act of this stature and talent, it's hard not to agree just a little". Alternatively, ''

Pitchfork A pitchfork (also a hay fork) is an agricultural tool with a long handle and two to five tines used to lift and pitch or throw loose material, such as hay, straw, manure, or leaves. The term is also applied colloquially, but inaccurately, to th ...

'' described the song as: "particularly aggravating, sounding something like a half-hearted attempt at a country-rock crossover."

Commercial

The song debuted at #73 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, which was their highest charting Billboard Hot 100 single since their 2007 hit " The Pretender". The song topped the

Hot Rock Songs Hot Rock & Alternative Songs (formerly known as Rock Songs and Hot Rock Songs) is a record chart published by ''Billboard'' magazine. From its debut on June 20, 2009, through October 13, 2012, the chart ranked the airplay of songs across alternati ...

charts for two consecutive weeks.

Music video

A music video was directed by Sam Brown, featuring the band performing in an old warehouse. The video premiered in the early hours of October 1, 2009 on ''

AMTV ''AMTV'' (formerly known as ''Music Feed'', sometimes known as ''AMTV's Music Feed'') is a television program on MTV in the United States, first aired unofficially as a sneak preview on March 26, 2009, and launched officially on March 30, 2009. It ...

''.

Track listing

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Wheels (Foo Fighters Song) 2009 singles Foo Fighters songs Songs written by Dave Grohl Rock ballads 2009 songs Song recordings produced by Butch Vig RCA Records singles Songs written by Taylor Hawkins Songs written by Nate Mendel Songs written by Chris Shiflett