Big Me

"Big Me"
Single by Foo Fighters
from the album Foo Fighters
Released	February 25, 1996
Format	CD White Vinyl (7")
Recorded	January 1995
Genre	Alternative rock
Length	2:13
Label	Roswell/Capitol
Writer(s)	Dave Grohl
Foo Fighters singles chronology
"For All the Cows" (1995) "Big Me" (1996) "Alone + Easy Target" (1996)

"Big Me" is the fourth major single, released in 1996, by the Foo Fighters from their self-titled debut album Foo Fighters.^[1] The song became a crossover hit for the band on pop radio during the spring of 1996, when it reached #13 on the Billboard Hot 100 Airplay.

Music video

"Big Me" was nominated for 5 VMAs at the 1996 MTV Video Music Awards, winning only "Best Group Video". The video, which parodies the Mentos ad campaign, was filmed on location in Sydney, Australia.

The song became well known for its music video, which parodies Mentos advertisements, turning them into commercials for "Footos."^[2] The concept came from director Jesse Peretz, who had originally pitched the idea to another band, and the Foo Fighters accepted as according to Grohl, "We had some difficulty finding a treatment that would suit the song, which is this short, tongue-in-cheek, ridiculously candy-coated pop tune. We didn't want to make this big, pretentious portrait video. We wanted to make fun of ourselves and the song." The video made its MTV debut on February 14, 1996, and quickly became a Buzz Bin clip.^[3]

The video's success led to many fans throwing Mentos at the band whenever they played the song live.^[4] For an extended period of time, the band did not play the song live due to this, as Grohl cited: "We did stop playing that song for a while because, honestly, it's like being stoned. Those little … things are like pebbles – they hurt." The band only started to change its mind after Weezer started performing "Big Me" during the Foozer tour both bands did together.^[5][6]

Singles

CD single

1. "Big Me"
2. "Floaty (BBC Evening Session Recording 23 November 1995)"
3. "Gas Chamber (BBC Evening Session Recording 23 November 1995)" (cover of a song by Angry Samoans)
4. "Alone + Easy Target (BBC Evening Session Recording 23 November 1995)"

7" White Vinyl

1. "Big Me"
2. "Floaty (BBC Evenning Sessions Recording)
3. "Gas Chamber (BBC Evenning Sessions Recording) (cover of a song by Angry Samoans)

Maxi CD single

1. "Big Me"
2. "Winnebago"
3. "How I Miss You" (features Dave Grohl's sister Lisa on bass^[4] and Mike Nelson on drums)
4. "Podunk"
5. "Ozone" (Ace Frehley cover)
6. "For All the Cows" (live at the Reading Festival, August 26, 1995)
7. "Wattershed" (live at the Reading Festival, August 26, 1995)

Chart positions

Other versions

• A version recorded at Wisseloord Studios in Hilversum, Netherlands on November 22, 1999 for the RTL 5/Kink FM 2 Meter Sessions programme was released on the CD1 version of the "Next Year" single.
• An acoustic version recorded on August 2006 at Pantages Theatre was released on Skin and Bones.
• A version recorded at the Live Room of Studio 606 West in Northridge, Los Angeles on September 5, 2007 for Walmart's Soundcheck series was released on the Maxi CD version of the "Long Road to Ruin" single. A video version is available on the Soundcheck website.
• A Muzak Version can be heard when Dave first enters the elevator in the music video for "Monkey Wrench".

Covers

• The song was covered by Sahara Hotnights in 2009 on their album Sparks.
• After Weezer covered this song often during the 2005 Foozer tour, the band brought it back into their live lineup. It was played during the encore of their Echoes tour. An acoustic version of the song was released on the band's 2006 live CD, Skin and Bones. This version featured Dave singing the song with Petra Haden.
• Canadian singer Kate Rogers covered the song on her 2005 record Seconds.
• An easy listening version of the song by The Moog Cookbook was featured in the Grohl-directed video for their song "Monkey Wrench".^[10]
• Mateo Messina composed an arrangement of the song for 2011 film Young Adult.

References

1. ↑ Foo Fighters - Big Me discogs.com. Retrieved 20 April, 2013.
2. ↑ Peretz Has Lighthearted Approach, Billboard
3. ↑ Foo Fighters Make 'Big', Fresh Clip, Billboard
4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 Foo Fighters Dicionary
5. ↑ Q&A With Dave Grohl of the Foo Fighters, Associated Press
6. ↑ Don't Throw Mentos - Foo Fighters, Big Me Live
7. ↑ Irish Chart Archive - user must do an artist search for "Foo Fighters" irishcharts.ie. Retrieved 20 April, 2013.
8. ↑ Foo Fighters - UK Singles Chart Archive official charts.com. Retrieved 20 April, 2013.
9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 9.3 Foo Fighters - Billboard Charts. allmusic.com. Retrieved 20 April, 2013.
10. ↑ "The Foo Fighters And The Moog Cookbook Find Love In An Elevator". Yahoo! Music. May 20, 1997. Retrieved January 3, 2013. 

External links

• "Big Me" Official music video on YouTube
• Walmart Soundcheck - Foo Fighters