The band has three #1 albums (Faceless, IV, The Oracle) on the Billboard 200, four Grammy nominations, and eight #1 hits on Mainstream Rock Radio. Godsmack has sold over 19 million records worldwide.
Since its inception, Godsmack has toured on Ozzfest on more than one occasion, and have toured with many other large tours and festivals, including supporting its albums with its own arena tours. In the summer of 2009, Godsmack toured as support to Mötley Crüe's Crüe Fest 2 tour.
In February 1995, Sully Erna decided to start a new band as the lead singer after playing the drums for more than 23 years, including over two years in the now-defunct band Strip Mind. His new band The Scam formed with Erna on vocals, Robbie Merrill on bass, local guitarist and friend Lee Richards on guitar, and Tommy Stewart on drums. The Scam quickly changed its name to Godsmack, after recording one demo. The newly formed band started playing small bars in their hometown of Boston, Mass.. Locally popular songs such as "Keep Away" and "Whatever" soon brought them to the top of the hit charts in the Boston/New England area.
The band's name, according to Merrill in the Smack This! DVD, was taken from the Alice in Chains' song "God Smack". However, Erna stated in a 1999 interview that "I was making fun of somebody who had a cold sore on his lip and the next day I had one myself and somebody said, 'It's a godsmack.' The name stuck. We were aware of the Alice in Chains song but didn't really think much about it. It's a cool song and the name had meaning for us".
In 1996, Tony Rombola and Joe D'Arco joined Godsmack as the guitarist and drummer, after Richards left after finding out he had a six-year-old child and Stewart left due to personal differences. In the same year the band entered the studio for the first time, recording its first CD titled "All Wound Up". The CD was recorded in just three days for $2,600.
For the next two years, the band played throughout the Boston area. Eventually Godsmack's CD landed in the hands of Rocko, the night-time DJ for Boston radio station WAAF (FM). The radio station put "Keep Away" into heavy rotation and the song rose to the number one spot at the station very quickly. Newbury Comics, a New England record store chain, agreed to sell the CD on consignment. Shortly after the success of "Keep Away", Godsmack went back into the studio and recorded a single titled "Whatever", which became the new local favorite on WAAF (FM).
In an interview Sully Erna stated, "we had been selling maybe 50 copies a month at the time WAAF picked up the album. All of a sudden we started moving over records a week. It was insane. Even crazier, I was doing all this from my bedroom. After years of grinding away, things finally started taking off."
Alice in Chains is believed to be the primary influence to Godsmack. Many believe Godsmack obtained their name from the Alice in Chains song "God Smack" off the album Dirt. In an interview with MTV upon the death of Alice in Chains lead singer Layne Staley, Godsmack frontman Sully Erna stated that Staley "was single-handedly the guy that got me to start singing." Erna went on to later confirm that indeed "God Smack" is the inspiration for the bands name and the reason their sound sounds similar to that of Alice in Chains Other bands cited by Godsmack members as their primary influences typically include Aerosmith, Led Zeppelin, Rush, Black Sabbath, ² and White Zombie. More recently, Godsmack have attempted to distance themselves from the Alice in Chains comparison with Erna stating in an interview with Matt Ashare, "I've just never really heard that in our music." In that same interview, Erna offers an alternative explanation to the origin of their band name by stating, "It happened at rehearsal when our drummer came in with a big cold sore on his lip. I was making fun of him all day because we had a photo shoot coming up. And then the next day when I came in, I had a big cold sore on my lip. So my guitar player said, See, God just smacked you for making fun of him." Nevertheless, the comparison to Alice in Chains is well documented. Sully Erna's style of singing mirrors that of Layne Staley's while the overall sound of the band's first two albums sound incredibly similar to the sound of Dirt. The logo of Godsmack is similar to the sun logo of Alice in Chains. Godsmack also released an album titled "Faceless" which is similar in name to Alice in Chain's first album Facelift. The band even transcended from their heavy sound to a more mellow acoustic sound on their album "The Other Side" in the same manner Alice in Chains did in "Jar of Flies".
In 2002, Godsmack received a Grammy nomination in "Best Rock Instrumental Performance" for the song "Vampires" from the album Awake. In 2004, they opened for Metallica, while headlining with Dropbox in the summer. They did acoustic shows for their newly released album The Other Side in the fall of 2004, while still opening for Metallica. In September 2004, Godsmack issued a live DVD titled "Changes" which the band recorded earlier that year. That same month, the group also released "Batalla de los Tambores", a live cut available only via online services such as Apple's iTunes Music Store, Real and Napster. They released their latest album 'The Oracle' on May 3rd, 2010.
Some songs from the album "Faceless" are also in the video game soundtrack for "Prince of Persia: Warrior Within".
Current members
* Sully Erna - Vocals, Lyrics, Guitar and Percussion.
* Robbie Merrill - Bass and Backing Vocals
* Tony Rombola - Guitars and Backing Vocals
* Shannon Larkin - Drums/Percussion
Come Together
Godsmack Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
He got joo-joo eyeball, he one holy roller
He got hair down to his knees
Got to be a joker, he just do what he please
He wear no shoeshine, he got toe-jam football
He got monkey finger, he shoot coca-cola
He say "I know you, you know me"
Come together right now over me
He bag production, he got walrus gumboot
He got Ono sideboard, he one spinal cracker
He got feet down below his knees
Hold you in his armchair you can feel his disease
Come together right now over me
He roller-coaster, he got early warning
He got muddy water, he one mojo filter
He say "One and one and one is three"
Got to be good-looking 'cause he's so hard to see
Come together right now over me
Come together
Come together
Come together
Come together
Come together right now over me
The lyrics to Godsmack's song Come Together are a reinterpretation of the classic Beatles song by the same name. The lyrics describe a character named "old flattop" who appears to be a free-spirited and eccentric person. He is described as having joo-joo eyeballs, hair down to his knees, no shoeshine, and a love for coca-cola. The song encourages listeners to come together over the old flattop, suggesting that the character is a unifying force that can bring people together.
Throughout the song, there are references to popular culture, including Yoko Ono and the walrus gumboot. The lyrics suggest that even though the character may seem strange or different, he is a unifying force that can bring people together. The song encourages listeners to embrace their differences and come together over a shared love of music and freedom.
Overall, the song Come Together is a celebration of individuality, freedom, and the power of music to bring people together. The lyrics encourage listeners to embrace diversity and to look beyond surface-level differences to find common ground with others. The song's upbeat tempo and catchy melody make it a classic rock anthem that continues to resonate with fans to this day.
Line by Line Meaning
Here come old flattop, he come grooving up slowly
A laid-back person is approaching with a sense of ease
He got joo-joo eyeball, he one holy roller
He's a bit odd and eccentric but he means well and follows a religious path
He got hair down to his knees
Long hair is something he rocks as it suits him well
Got to be a joker, he just do what he please
He's not going to change for anyone; he is himself and that's all that matters
He wear no shoeshine, he got toe-jam football
He doesn't care for fancy things like polished shoes and is content with what he has
He got monkey finger, he shoot coca-cola
He's a bit of a weirdo and does strange things but he's harmless
He say "I know you, you know me"
He's confident he can connect with anyone he comes across
One thing I can tell you is you got to be free
He believes freedom is important and should be cherished
Come together right now over me
He wants everyone to forget their differences and come together in unity
He bag production, he got walrus gumboot
He's not in it for fame or money, he's just doing what he loves
He got Ono sideboard, he one spinal cracker
He's all about supporting his family and loved ones
He got feet down below his knees
He's just like everyone else regardless of their physical attributes
Hold you in his armchair you can feel his disease
Although he's ill, he's still capable of giving and receiving love
He roller-coaster, he got early warning
His life has had its ups and downs but he's always been prepared for what was to come
He got muddy water, he one mojo filter
He's experienced a lot in life and his advice can help others through the tough times
He say "One and one and one is three"
He's a deep thinker and has his own personal philosophy on life
Got to be good-looking 'cause he's so hard to see
He's not defined by his physical appearance but by his inner qualities
Come together right now over me
He wants everyone to put their differences aside and come together for the greater good
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: John Lennon, Paul McCartney
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Andrew Pappas
I'm a massive Beatles fan and this was probably the most badass Beatles cover I've ever heard, like holy shit, dude...
Andrew Pappas
@Ross D'souza Oh yeah, Clark's version is awesome as well. Love his playing, solid cover from you as well
THE GAMER DOWN UNDER
Michael Jackson version is actually really good too.
Christoph'
@Aram Scholten It's really nothing compaired to Sully.
CHE
100%!!
malick rebenar
I’m a grandma and I’m STILL ROCKING GODSMACK!!!!!!
gemma Morgan
Rock on girl
Jerry Gurrola
Hi grandma!
Chrisie013
ROCK ON🤘ME TOO❣️
Cyndy Gough
I'm a great grandma & I'm with you on this, girlfriend....... ☮️