Early in his rare solo acoustic headlining performance at Notes & Words 2018, Dave Grohl at once revealed his laid back humor and his insightful personal pondering on life and how it intersected with the feelings of the evening in his stream of consciousness commentary leading into one of his famous Foo Fighters songs: “As I was thinking about the setlist earlier… 15 minutes ago… [laughs] I thought that maybe that I would begin the set with this song, but then decided not to… But I think that this song is one of the ones that makes most sense tonight. I wrote this song in a period of my life where I was down… and I finally stopped and took at look at everything I had and all the things that I’d taken for granted. A wonderful home and appreciation of life, and love, and my friends. And the good things, and the good people, and the big picture and how we’re all connected in some way. I wrote this song and it’s called “Times Like These”. Every year, there is magic all around at the Notes & Words: Benefit For UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospital event, and it was off the charts again Saturday night, as per tradition. The format remained the same – entertainment including both writers and musicians on stage – and this year featured musicians Dave Grohl with Emmett Reeed and Oakland School for the Arts, as well as writer George Saunders and, as always, writer and event host Kelly Corrigan. The highlight of the evening for sure was watching Dave perform on stage with his two very talented daughters, Violet and Harper Grohl. Not just the music, but the opportunity to see a loving family share with the crowd in such an amazing, candid and joyful way. And all this good will went toward making new happy beginnings as seen with some of the real life stories shared by families who have been helped by UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospital.

What: Notes & Words: Benefit For UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospital Oakland at Fox Theater
Artist: Dave Grohl
Artist: George Saunders
Artist: Kelly Corrigan
Artist: Emmett Reed
Artist: Oakland School for the Arts
Venue: Fox Theater
Where: Oakland, California
When: May 12, 2018

You can check out my coverage of past Notes & Words events here:

Notes & Words is an annual benefit concert created to support the UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospital Oakland; the Children’s Hospital & Research Center Oakland provides the highest quality medical care to children throughout California. An intimate show, it shared many personal stories and perspectives by way of the personalities on stage as well as video presentations offering real context by showcasing some of the patients of the Children’s Hospital.

About UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospital Oakland :

100% of what we do is for the kids.

For nearly 100 years, UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospital Oakland has been delivering exceptional medical care to children from all regions of California. Parents choose Benioff Children’s Hospital because we have the best trained and most experienced specialists and because of the genuine passion with which we treat every child.

You can expect a better outcome when your treatment team includes sub-specialty, fellowship-trained physicians covering over 30 pediatric specialties. We care for tens of thousands of children each year. This means more experience, which means quality care and better outcomes.

Care from a comprehensive team of highly trained board-certified pediatric specialists, nurses, technicians, and therapists is vital to ensure the right treatment from the start. This is the work we dedicate our lives to.

Our doctors know that children can’t be treated as small adults. All our equipment is kid-sized, and we know the protocols that work best for children. They benefit from lower doses of radiation and anesthesia administered by pediatric specialists who stay abreast of the most innovative treatments.

Our trauma center in Oakland is an ACS verified Level 1 Pediatric Trauma Center (one of only five in California) and is dedicated exclusively to caring for children. We are one of a few hospitals with the specialized staff and facilities able to treat rare illnesses and health problems in children.

Children’s Hospital Oakland Research Institute

In addition to treating more kids than any pediatric hospital in the Bay Area, Benioff Children’s research center has over 300 scientists working on 150 clinical trials. Since our research center and hospital are in the same place, up-to-the-minute insights, trends and data go directly from the lab to the hospital, and vice versa. For instance, UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospital Oakland developed what are now the worldwide-protocols for treating sickle cell anemia and cerebral palsy.

Medical Education

UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospital Oakland is a nationally recognized teaching hospital. We provide accredited residency education in general pediatrics and fellowship education to pediatricians seeking subspecialty training. Benioff Children’s plays a major role in providing pediatric education to the over 300 residents and medical students a year. As a teaching facility we receive over 800 applicants a year for only 26 medical internships–so we can pick only the best.

Committed to All Children’s Health

In 2012 we delivered 139.3 million dollars of charity care and community benefits, and want to continue delivering this kind of care in the future. Because full-service hospitals just for children are extremely specialized, few communities can support one. We need your support to ensure that kids get the care they need, and that life-saving research can continue. Your donations enable us to provide essential services to the children and families of Northern California and beyond.

Our Mission

Our mission is to protect and advance the health and well-being of children through clinical care, teaching and research.

Our Vision

It’s our vision to be a leader in children’s health, achieved through:

– High quality, cost-effective, family-centered care
– Research that benefits children and adults worldwide
– Broad-based teaching and educational activities
– Child advocacy and health policy efforts

Our Values

Our values describe how we behave and what we stand for as we move forward to fulfill our mission. UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospital Oakland’s values are as follows:

RESPECT: We treat those whom we serve and those who work with us with courtesy and respect.

INTEGRITY: We act with integrity and ethical standards.

QUALITY: We provide quality care by doing the best for each patient and their family.

TEAMWORK: We work collaboratively to continuously improve patient outcomes and the satisfaction of our patients and families.

DIVERSITY: We support and sustain a community that is inclusive, diverse, and equitable.

STEWARDSHIP: We commit to being good stewards of the community and children we serve.

Prior to doors opening at Fox Theater at 7:30 for the main event, there was a VIP pre-party set up in a huge tent on 19th Street.

Inside, the floor in front of the stage that would be general admission standing at most shows at the venue was filled with white linen-covered round tables with chairs, as well as stylish tabletop lighting to create a classy atmosphere. Though it was created as a fundraiser, there was still very affordable seating up in the balcony above the stage.

Throughout the program were video presentations with real life stories about how UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospital affects people’s lives. This included the stories of Malik Ali, Monica and Aaron, Jolene Won, and more.

Note: A lot of the photography that follows was also taken by my wife, Shelley (including the image at the top of the article – my favorite shot of the night!). Her’s feature the Pixel Dust logo while mine (Jason’s) have the usual Rock Subculture logo.

Below are some general images as introduction…

Emmett Reed

Below is the overview of the Oakland School for the Arts and Chamber Choir from the official Notes & Words site:

By popular demand, we welcome back to the Notes & Words stage our favorite resident performers, The Oakland School for the Arts Chamber Choir. You may remember this talented crew from their incredible performance last year with Chris Martin. Following their collaboration on the Notes & Words stage, the Chamber Choir was invited to perform live with Coldplay at Levi’s Stadium!

Below is the overview of Emmett Reed from the official Notes & Words site:

We are proud to once again showcase an immensely talented Bay Area youth. Piedmont senior Emmett Reed is an accomplished guitarist and singer/songwriter. He sings in two choirs and continues to study guitar. Emmett enjoys recording fellow musicians in his garage music studio, the new evolution of the garage band. He hopes to study music and musical engineering in college next year as he pursues his goal of becoming an audio engineer and performer. You will be saying that you knew him when!

As always, this incredibly talented group put on some amazing performances that showcased their ability as well as versatility.

The program began with a duo performance with Kay Sibal and Emmett Reed doing covers of Maroon 5’s “Sunday Morning” and Journey’s “Don’t Stop Believin'”.

Kelly Corrigan

Below is the overview of Kelly Corrigan and her accomplishments from the official Notes & Words site:

You know her as the creative force behind Notes & Words and you love her for her clever, insightful best-selling memoirs The Middle Place, Lift, and Glitter and Glue. Her most recent release, an instant New York Times bestseller, Tell Me More: Stories About the 12 Hardest Things I’m Learning to Say, is a story-driven collection of essays on the twelve powerful phrases we use to sustain our relationships. Her books deeply resonate with readers with their delicate weave of humor and heartache. When Kelly isn’t traversing the country on book tours, interviewing thought leaders and writers for her KQED radio show, Exactly, or puzzling over the wonders of teenage daughters, you can find her in the neonatal intensive care unit holding preemie infants.

Host and organizer Kelly Corrigan introduced the “Words” element of the event, and read from her new book just released in January, Tell Me More. She read from the very end of the book, as well as shared some information about UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospital.

Oakland School for the Arts and Chamber Choir

Below is the overview of the Oakland School for the Arts and Chamber Choir from the official Notes & Words site:

By popular demand, we welcome back to the Notes & Words stage our favorite resident performers, The Oakland School for the Arts Chamber Choir. You may remember this talented crew from their incredible performance last year with Chris Martin. Following their collaboration on the Notes & Words stage, the Chamber Choir was invited to perform live with Coldplay at Levi’s Stadium!

This was an excellent performance that included acapella renditions of Madonna’s “Like A Prayer”, Beyonce’s “I Was Here”, as well as rap and hip hop performances including Chance The Rapper’s “First World Problems.

George Saunders

Below is an introduction of George Saunders from the official Notes & Words site:

We can’t believe our good fortune to have literary genius George Saunders join us. It seems that every time Saunders puts pen to paper he wins awards. His most recent work of fiction, Lincoln in the Bardo, is no exception, topping the New York Times Bestseller List and winning the Man Booker Prize. Saunder’s collection of short stories, Tenth of December, was selected as one of the 10 Best Books of 2013 by the New York Times Book Review. In addition to novels and short stories, Saunders has written children’s books and contributed to top magazines and newspapers. He has won the National Magazine Award for fiction four times. He is also a creative writing professor at Syracuse University for the past 20 years.

George started by saying, “I wanted to share something very helpful and inspiring but I went through all my books couldn’t find anything, so I had to settle for funny…”

He delivered, starting with an excerpt from The Semplica-Girl Diaries and then a reading of his Manifesto: A Press Release from PRKA (People Reluctant to Kill for an Abstraction).

Dave Grohl

Kelly came back on stage to introduce Dave Grohl, thrilled to say, “here are words coming out of my mouth I never thought I’d say… ladies and gentlemen, please welcome Dave Grohl!”

Below is the overview of Dave Grohl from the official Notes & Words site:

Gracing the Notes & Words stage will be 16-time Grammy-winning musician and two-time Emmy-winning director Dave Grohl. Grohl’s ascension to legendary status began in earnest as drummer for Nirvana, beginning with 1991’s generation-defining Nevermind. Since 1995, Grohl has rocked the arena, stadium and festival stages of the world as Foo Fighters frontman, while the band’s massive catalogue–including its most recent international #1 album Concrete and Gold–has sold more than 25 million copies and spawned some of the most indelible rock anthems of the last 20+ years. See for yourself why Grohl is universally hailed as rock legend, visionary director, philanthropist and both the hardest working and all around nicest rockstar on the planet, a once-in-a-lifetime intimate appearance at the Fox.

In my high school years (’87-’91) and into college, I was a huge Nirvana fan. I think I just happened to have fallen into a generation where what they did was most impactful. Younger generations today can’t really understand how much the band completely changed the musical landscape forever. There has been nothing like it since.

I was lucky enough to see the band in 1993 at their show at the Cow Palace – a benefit concert which also featured The Breeders, L7, and Disposable Heroes of Hiphoprisy. Interestingly, it was a rare benefit show featuring the band, as bassist Chris Novoselic’s parents were born in Croatia, and this was during the Croatian War of Independence (1991-1995), at a time when horrible things were happening in the country. It just so happened that all of my family on my mom’s side goes back to Croatia, and maybe a year or so before this concert took place, one of my relatives came to visit the family here for support and help. So it was really a benefit concert that hit home for me. I’ve even traveled to Croatia to visit the remains of the home where my great grandfather was born, wherein the entire town was destroyed by was in the early ’90s.

In any event, as much as I loved the band and their music, that concert gave me an added connection to Nirvana that I will never forget.

I actually last saw Foo Fighters perform in 2013, at the release of Dave Grohl’s amazing documentary, Sound City. Following the theatrical premiere, he put on an amazing live concert with some of the artists featured in the film, and it took place at the Hollywood Palladium. The line-up included Alain Johannes, Chris Goss, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, Lee Ving, Rick Nielsen, Rick Springfield, John Fogerty, and Stevie Nicks! Incredible show. (see full review and photos)

So somehow, yet again, I had the honor of attending yet another special show with Dave Grohl involved with this headlining appearance at Notes & Words on Saturday night.

Performers:

Dave Grohl (vocals, guitar)
Violet Grohl (vocals)
Harper Grohl (drums, backing vocals)

Humble as always, Dave came out onto the stage saying “…it is an absolute pleasure and honor to be here, I have to say I’m a little nervous because the opening acts were really good.”

Right away he mentioned that his entire family was there with him tonight, but I don’t think many imagined how it ultimately would bring such life and emotion into the actual performance.

Dave confessed, “I don’t normally do solo acoustic shows. I think I’ve maybe done one? I’m used to noise. Amps. But I have some songs that I’ve written. This one I usually play at the end of the night, but I think it works perfectly fine at the beginning.”

Things then kicked off with an amazing acoustic version of “Everlong”.

Throughout his set, Dave had the crowd laughing with his quips and stories in-between songs, at one point sarcastically declaring “I’m going solo! That’s it, I’m goin’ solo!”

One song he performed was “Cold Day in the Sun” written and sung by Foo Fighters drummer Taylor Hawkins. Dave asked those in attendance to film it and put it on YouTube (saying Taylor “hates attention”) only to screw up the song early on and restart.

Dave shared that he brought three generations of Grohls to celebrate the event, including his mom who watched from the audience. He even sang “My Hero” as a tribute and gave much praise to his mother on the eve of Mother’s Day and again, brought the laughs with some anecdotes as well.

Eventually it all came around to his adorable daughters…

Violet joined her dad on stage first, as Dave explained, “Violet was the first one, to tell anyone, that she’s the best singer. You even said it to me once. I remember you saying… I said something about singing and she said, ‘dad, you’re not even the best singer in the family…’ and she’s right.”

She went on to prove this true with an incredible cover of Adele’s “When We Were Young”. Her voice is truly amazing – her transitions through her range are beautiful and it is obvious she was born with not just a true gift with her vocal abilities, but an unreal calm and sweetness in her delivery that just made her performance all the more special.

Next, Dave proclaimed, “there are more Grohl’s” and announced, “Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome Harper Grohl!”

Younger sister Harper took to the drum kit at stage left that dwarfed her…

Dave explained that he cast his daughters in the music video for “The Sky Is a Neighborhood”, and quipped “…it’s funny they do whatever you ask them to do, when you’re the director.”

Dave’s humor has passed down to Violet, as she cut in with “It’s a different story at home…”

I really love that song, and they proceeded to do an acoustic version of “The Sky Is a Neighborhood” with the girls on backing vocals. Honestly, they should really put this out as a digital download – it was amazing.

The Oakland School for the Arts and Chamber Choir then joined them on stage for a rocking cover of Queen’s “We Will Rock You”, with Violet on lead vocals. Amazing.

Setlist:

Everlong (Foo Fighters song)
Learn to Fly (Foo Fighters song)
Times Like These (Foo Fighters song)
Cold Day in the Sun (Foo Fighters song)
My Hero (Foo Fighters song)
Best of You (Foo Fighters song)
When We Were Young (Adele cover) (Violet Grohl on lead vocals)
The Sky Is a Neighborhood (Foo Fighters song) (Violet Grohl and Harper Grohl on backing vocals)
We Will Rock You (Queen cover) (Violet Grohl on lead vocals, Harper Grohl on drums)

After Party

Following the pre-party and the main event, the organizers held an after party in the tent adjacent to the Fox Theater, with DJs.

Those wearing the special headphones could only hear the music, so walking in, you see people dancing but hear no music whatsoever! You could change “channels” and switch back and forth between different DJs sets.

As with last year, I really can’t recommend enough supporting UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospital Oakland. Be sure to check out their website at:

give.ucsfbenioffchildrens.org

Jason DeBord