I grew up watching David Letterman as a teenager in Springfield, Virginia. I had this little black-and-white television in my bedroom and would stay up every night to see him and his band. I was an aspiring rock musician, and the Late Night band in the '80s was the best rock & roll band on television. So the first time the Foo Fighters performed on Letterman's show 20 years ago, it was a huge full-circle moment. We've played it countless times since and have gotten to know him in our own special way. We mean a lot to each other. But the most special performance for us was when he had heart surgery and requested that we be the band for his first show back. "Everlong" apparently was his favorite song. And we dropped everything to do it - I think we cancelled a tour. We just felt like we had to be there. It was an honor to be asked, but we also felt obligated because he had been such a huge part of not only our formative years as teenagers but in the career of our band. That was one of the reasons why I loved Letterman's show as a kid - because he always had cutting-edge artists perform, much more than any other television show.
  It's really important that people in his position understand that they have influence over the direction of pop culture - especially musically. I remember seeing the Pixies on his show, and bands that you wouldn't see anywhere else. I really appreciated that. I loved music so much, and I was always aching to discover something new. He was the place to go for it. There's something rock & roll about Letterman - he's just America's number one smart-ass. We've done a lot of those TV shows, but nobody has the heart that he has. Not even close.