“All My Life” Lyrics & Meaning (Foo Fighters)

You may have heard that All My Life is a bit dirty.

There is some truth to that.

Dave Grohl himself has admitted to it.

But that’s not all there is to the All My Life lyrics meaning.

The song has a much more aspirational aspect, too.

You can choose to interpret it either way. Or both ways at the same time.

That’s my preference.

Keep reading to learn the two meanings to the Foo Fighters’ All My Life lyrics.

 

All My Life Lyrics And Meaning

All My Life was the first single from Foo Fighters’ fourth album, One by One, released in 2002. The song was a big hit with fans and critics alike. Since its release, it reputation has only grown and it is now considered one of the band’s best songs.

After its release, All My Life held the top spot on the Alternative Songs chart for 10 weeks and reached the 3rd spot on the Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks chart. It was a top 5 hit in the United Kingdom, as well. It also won a Grammy Award for Best Hard Rock Performance.

As mentioned, Dave Grohl has admitted that he had a particular sex act on his mind when he wrote the lyrics, but that is not the only meaning the song has. Let’s take a look at the All My Life lyrics in full, before we get into their meaning.

 

All My Life Lyrics

Intro

All my life, I’ve been searching for something
Something never comes, never leads to nothing
Nothing satisfies, but I’m getting close
Closer to the prize at the end of the rope
All night long I dream of the day
When it comes around, then it’s taken away
Leaves me with the feeling that I feel the most
Feel it come to life when I see your ghost

Verse 1

Come down don’t you resist
You’ve such a delicate wrist
And if I give it a twist
Something to hold when I lose my grip
Will I find something in there?
So give me just what I need
Another reason to bleed
One by one, hidden up my sleeve
One by one, hidden up my sleeve

Chorus

Hey, don’t let it go to waste
I love it, but I hate the taste
Weight keeping me down
Hey, don’t let it go to waste
I love it, but I hate the taste
Weight keeping me down

Verse 2

Will I find a believer?
Another one who believes?
Another one to deceive?
Over and over, down on my knees
If I get any closer
And if you open up wide
And if you let me inside
On and on, I got nothing to hide
On and on, I got nothing to hide

Chorus

Hey, don’t let it go to waste
I love it, but I hate the taste
Weight keeping me down
Hey, don’t let it go to waste
I love it, but I hate the taste
Weight keeping me down

Intro

All my life, I’ve been searching for something
Something never comes, never leads to nothing
Nothing satisfies, but I’m getting close
Closer to the prize at the end of the rope
All night long I dream of the day
When it comes around, then it’s taken away
Leaves me with the feeling that I feel the most
Feel it come to life when I see your ghost

Bridge

Then I’m done, done, on to the next one
Done, done, and I’m on to the next one
Done, done, and I’m on to the next one
Done, done, and I’m on to the next one
Done, done, and I’m on to the next one
Done, done, and I’m on to the next one
Done, done, and I’m on to the next one
Done, I’m done, and I’m on to the next—
Done, done, on to the next one
Done, I’m done, and I’m on to the next one
Done, done, on to the next one
Done, I’m done, and I’m on to the next—

Chorus

Hey, don’t let it go to waste
I love it, but I hate the taste
Weight keeping me down
Hey, don’t let it go to waste
I love it, but I hate the taste
Weight keeping me down

Done, done, on to the next one
Done, and I’m done, and I’m on to the next

 

All My Life Meaning

You may have heard that All My Life is about cunnilingus. Dave Grohl has admitted as much, saying the lyrics are about his fondness for performing oral sex on women. But they also seem to have a deeper meaning about the search for meaning and satisfaction in our lives.

And yes, perhaps Grohl was trying to connect the two. He did make it a pont to say that he gets immense satisfaction out of pleasuring a woman orally.

The song begins with the following lines:

All my life, I’ve been searching for something
Something never comes, never leads to nothing
Nothing satisfies, but I’m getting close
Closer to the prize at the end of the rope

The meaning here seems fairly clear. The singer is looking for a meaning to his life, but has not been able to find one as of yet. Whenever he gets close to finding something that gives him satisfaction, it ends up disappointing. Naturally, this could all also be a double entendre for cunnilingus.

The whole song goes that way, with some lines fitting much better into one of the meaning and others fitting better into the other. But overall, they could all work toward either meaning, which is why  I like to think Grohl had them both in mind.

And, as mentioned, perhaps he was even trying to connect them. But that is not all that important.

The chorus is a good example of a part that fits the oral sex meaning better, with the line “Hey, don’t let it go to waste.
I love it, but I hate the taste”.

Of course, this could also fit the other meaning: don’t let your life go to waste. He loves life, but acknowledges that it can leave a bad taste in your mouth.

Another example that fits the meaning of cnnilingus better comes in the second verse:

Over and over, down on my knees
If I get any closer
And if you open up wide
And if you let me inside

The meaning in that context is obvious. But again, it could fit the other context, too. It might be recounting the protagonist’s encounters with various people who don’t ultimately fulfill his desires. This could represent his journey through relationships, friendships, or experiences, in which the protagonist is seeking connection but doesn’t find lasting satisfaction.

This entire verse could also fit into a context of organized religion. Perhaps that is what finally brings some meaning and sacrifice to the singer’s life?

During the bridge, a shift in tone takes place. The protagonist becomes more introspective, possibly reflecting on the futile journey he has been on to this point in his life. It’s a moment of realization that his lifelong search might not lead him to what he thought they wanted.

Of course, he could also just be saying that, once he’s done pleasuring one woman, he moves on to the next. Ultimately, he finds no real satisfaction in that either.

Whichever meaning you choose to see in All My Life, it ultimately does not matter. What matters is that you enjoy the song. As mentioned before, I like to take both meanings. We are all searching for a meaning in life and for many, sex is that meaning. At least when they are young. Eventually you realize sex was just a diversion, as the the protagonist in the song seems to realize by the end as well.

 

All My Life Lyrics Meaning: Final Thoughts

It is important not to get too bogged down in the All My Life lyrics meaning and just enjoy the song for what it is: a great tune. Obviously, we like to know what songs we enjoy are about, but sometimes the meaning is not 100% clear.

This means we get to read into the song whatever we like. In this case, Dave Grohl did tell us one thing he had on his mind when he wrote the song, but there seem to be other meanings as well.

Again, don’t worry too much what he had on his mind and just take the lyrics however you like. And then enjoy one of the best songs Foo Fighters have given us!

If you enjoyed this analysis, we have a similar article for another of the Foo Fighters’ huge hits. Read our deep-dive into the meaning of the Everlong lyrics here.