A 16 Year Old Dave Grohl Plays Drums in His 1985 Band

Classic footage shot by musician Sohrab Habibion shows Dave Grohl at the age of sixteen playing drums in his then DC area punk band Mission Impossible in 1985. His talent was evident even then and continues to impress in the 30 years since.

The clip begins with Dave already behind the camera 30 years ago. This was shot by Sohrab Habibion whose documenting of shows during that period was substantial.

Habibion was known as the guy with a camera at that time.

I started videotaping shows in 1985. Mostly Saturday or Sunday afternoon gatherings at grim bars in bedraggled parts of D.C., where business owners were willing to host loud music for a few hours of potential drink sales. Or the events were at community centers in suburban stretches of Bethesda and Chevy Chase – safe havens for curious teens to learn about Apartheid, farm sanctuaries and nuclear disarmament.

Habibion has donated much of his documentary footage to the DC Punk Archive at the DC Library.

In support of the Washingtoniana mission to collect, preserve and provide access to primary source materials that document the history and culture of local D.C., we have established a DC Punk Archive in within the People’s Archive at DC Public Library. We

Here’s more footage of Mission Impossible.