I know several music lovers who relish songs of self-loathing and consider such melancholy tunes the purest incarnation of songwriting genius. One only has to look at Radiohead and their current anointing by many as “the most creative band in the world” as evidence of this. I understand there is much more to said band’s music than self-help therapy, and I get the value of cathartic songs. But it seems that most music elitists consider any song with intelligible lyrics and a recognizable chord progression to be rubbish. Isn’t there a place for music with a different kind of energy? Why does purely rocking out somehow equate to selling out?

Perhaps no one has taken self-loathing lyrics to higher highs (and lower lows) than Kurt Cobain did with Nirvana. It is both amusing and ironic then, that Dave Grohl emerged from the ashes of Nirvana to become the poster child for a much more feel-good brand of rock and roll. In fact for my money, few bands put out consistently good, pure rock music like Dave Grohl and his Foo Fighters do. And in the process, Grohl & Co. manage to stay remarkably down-to-earth and never take themselves too seriously. I find this to be a refreshing change from the self-important neurosis that often accompanies successful bands and/or their frontmen.

Following the death of Kurt Cobain, Grohl set out in 1995 to record some of the forty-something songs he had written while drumming for Nirvana. Hoping to release these songs anonymously, he chose the moniker “foo fighters” because it was a term used in World War II for unidentifiable enemy aircraft. Those recordings yielded Foo Fighters’ self-titled debut album on which Grohl sang every vocal and played almost every instrument on each track. Grohl then recruited Nate Mendel and William Goldsmith (both formerly of Sunny Day Real Estate) as well as former Nirvana guitarist Pat Smear to play with him as Foo Fighters. Foo Fighters experienced a few lineup changes in their early years before landing, in 2001, on the current quartet of Grohl, Mendel, Taylor Hawkins and Chris Shiflet.

In the almost fifteen years since Grohl recorded his first material as Foo Fighters, the band has produced six studio albums, all of which have been nominated for Grammys. Three of those albums - There is Nothing Left to Lose (2001), One by One (2004), and Echoes, Silence, Patiences, and Grace (2008) - have earned Foo Fighters Best Rock Album Grammys. The band has also released several EPs, multiple live DVDs, and a live album. Their best of album, titled Greatest Hits, releases November 3rd. It will contain all of Foo Fighters’ #1 hits plus two new songs, including Foo Fighters’ new single Wheels.

Foo Fighters’ Greatest Hits track listing:

• All My Life
• Best of You
• Everlong
• The Pretender
• My Hero
• Learn to Fly
• Times Like These
• Monkey Wrench
• Big Me
• Breakout
• Long Road to Ruin
• This is a Call
• Skin and Bones
• Wheels (New Track)
• Word Forward (New Track)

The Greatest Hits album is available in both standard and deluxe versions. iTunes also offers a slim-downed Greatest Hits EP for $5.99, for those Foo fans who already own the bulk of the hits offered on the full version. Finally, the Foo Fighters’ store offers a Greatest Hits Vinyl for $24.99.

If you’re looking for some downright good rock and roll, I challenge you to consider picking up a Foo Fighters record. Each album represents a different stage in the band’s musical arc. Greatest Hits would be a good place to start, but I think my personal favorite (and most listener-friendly) is 2001’s There’s Nothing Left to Lose. Foo Fighters will be on the rock and roll radar for a long time; make sure they’re on your radar, too.