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
Forgive Me
Godsmack Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
How, when we learn to pray inside our demons are laughing
How long will this go on? Are we a bit much stronger?
Do you think you can save me from living this way?
I don't know how to love. I just know how to live.
All I feel is hate. Will you forgive me?
For all those things I've done, they keep on creeping by me.
And though we've changed our ways,
Still all our demons are laughing.
How long will this go on? Aren't we a bit much stronger?
I'd like to think you've came into my life to stay.
I don't know how to love. I just know how to live.
All I feel is hate. Will you forgive me?
I don't know how to breathe with you too far away.
Don't know how to love. Will you forgive me?
(Do I? Do I? Do I?)
No I can't live this way!
I don't know how to love. I just know how to live.
All I feel is pain. Will you forgive me?
I don't know how to breathe with you too far away.
I don't know how to love.
Past lives I've lived. Uncontrolled but sacred.
You've finally seen all that's left of me.
So hard to feel. So hard to breathe.
Will you forgive me?
Will you forgive me?
(Forgive me. Forgive me. Forgive me. Forgive me.)
Godsmack's song Forgive Me is a cry for help from someone who is grappling with immense feelings of pain, hate, and emptiness. The lyrics in the first stanza "There's nothing to me now. An empty shell unfolded. How, when we learn to pray inside our demons are laughing. How long will this go on? Are we a bit much stronger? Do you think you can save me from living this way?" depict a sense of hopelessness and desperation. The singer feels like there's nothing left in them and the demons inside their mind are mocking their prayers. They question how long they can endure this pain and darkness, and if anyone can rescue them from this chaos.
The second verse "For all those things I've done, they keep on creeping by me. And though we've changed our ways, Still all our demons are laughing. How long will this go on? Aren't we a bit much stronger? I'd like to think you've come into my life to stay" highlights the singer's guilt and regrets about their past mistakes. They struggle with the fact that despite their efforts to change, the demons from their past keep haunting them. They question their resilience and if they are strong enough to overcome this pain. The singer begs for forgiveness for their transgressions and wishes that the person they are addressing will stay with them through their journey towards healing.
Overall, the song portrays the complex emotionality of grappling with one's inner demons and trying to find a way towards healing. It highlights the importance of having someone who can help and support you through this journey.
Line by Line Meaning
There's nothing to me now. An empty shell unfolded.
I feel like I have lost myself completely, and I am just a hollow shell of a person.
How, when we learn to pray inside our demons are laughing
Even when we try to pray and seek redemption, our inner demons mock us and make it difficult to truly change.
How long will this go on? Are we a bit much stronger?
I am questioning how much longer I can continue living like this and wondering if I am strong enough to overcome my struggles.
Do you think you can save me from living this way?
I am hoping that someone can help me escape this way of life and find a better path.
I don't know how to love. I just know how to live.
I have never truly learned how to love someone, but I have learned how to simply survive in this world.
All I feel is hate. Will you forgive me?
I am filled with so much anger and resentment, and I am hoping that someone can forgive me for all the negative feelings I have harbored.
For all those things I've done, they keep on creeping by me.
I am haunted by the bad choices and mistakes I have made in the past.
And though we've changed our ways, Still all our demons are laughing.
Even if we try to turn our lives around, our inner demons continue to mock us and hold us back.
I'd like to think you've came into my life to stay.
I am hopeful that someone important has entered my life and will stay by my side through my struggles.
I don't know how to breathe with you too far away.
I feel like I cannot function without this person, and their absence makes things feel suffocating.
No I can't live this way!
I am at my breaking point and cannot continue living in this negative way.
All I feel is pain. Will you forgive me?
I am in so much emotional pain, and I am asking for forgiveness for the negativity that is consuming me.
Past lives I've lived. Uncontrolled but sacred.
I have lived a life of chaos and recklessness, but it has still been an important and meaningful journey.
You've finally seen all that's left of me. So hard to feel. So hard to breathe. Will you forgive me?
This person has finally seen me at my lowest, and it is difficult for me to feel and function properly. I am asking for forgiveness for my struggles.
Will you forgive me? (Forgive me. Forgive me. Forgive me. Forgive me.)
I am repeatedly pleading for forgiveness and hoping to be released from the negativity that is consuming me.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: SALVATORE P. ERNA
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind