Making a Fire

"Making a Fire" is a song by American rock band Foo Fighters, the opening track on their tenth studio album, Medicine at Midnight (2021). It was released to rock radio stations on June 8, 2021, making it the album's fourth single.

"Making a Fire"
Single by Foo Fighters
from the album Medicine at Midnight
Released	June 8, 2021
Recorded	October 2019 – February 2020
Studio	Unnamed house in Encino, Los Angeles
Genre	Power pop[1]
Length	4:15
Label	RCA Roswell
Songwriter(s)	Dave Grohl Taylor Hawkins Rami Jaffee Nate Mendel Chris Shiflett Pat Smear
Producer(s)	Foo Fighters Greg Kurstin
Foo Fighters singles chronology
"Waiting on a War" (2021) "Making a Fire" (2021) "Love Dies Young" (2021)
Alternate cover
Cover art for the Mark Ronson Re-version

Release

Prior to the release of Medicine at Midnight, Foo Fighters shared a snippet of "Making a Fire", along with "Cloudspotter", on February 1, 2021.^[2] After the album's release, "Making a Fire" was included in the soundtrack for the baseball video game MLB The Show 21, released in April 2021.^[3] The song was released to rock-centric radio stations on June 8, 2021, making it the fourth single released from Medicine at Midnight.^[4] It became Foo Fighters' 11th song to reach number 1 on the Billboard Mainstream Rock Airplay chart.^[5] A re-recorded version of the song produced by Mark Ronson was released on June 25, 2021, featuring musicians from bands such as the Budos Band, Antibalas, and the Tedeschi Trucks Band.^[6]

Composition and themes

According to insider.com, "The album kicks off with the jovial tune "Making a Fire", which boasts a funky 3/4 groove. The chorus is especially catchy thanks to a gospely "na-na-na" refrain with harmonies from some female vocalists including Grohl's daughter Violet."^[7] According to Rolling Stone, the song "Making a Fire" is "brighter and more optimistic than anything they’ve ever done".^[8]

Track listing

Digital download^[9]

No.	Title	Length
1.	"Making a Fire" (Mark Ronson Re-version)	4:30

7"^[10]

No.	Title	Length
1.	"Making a Fire" (Mark Ronson Re-version)	4:30
2.	"Chasing Birds" (Preservation Hall Jazz Band Re-version)	3:38

Charts

Original version Weekly charts Weekly chart performance for "Making a Fire" Chart (2021) Peak position Canada All-format Airplay (Billboard)[11] 50 Canada Rock (Billboard)[12] 1 Ireland (IRMA)[13] [A] 85 New Zealand Hot Singles (RMNZ)[14] 6 UK Singles (OCC)[15] 52 UK Rock & Metal (OCC)[16] 1 US Hot Rock & Alternative Songs (Billboard)[17] 30 US Rock & Alternative Airplay (Billboard)[18] 1

Year-end charts Year-end chart performance for "Making a Fire" Chart (2021) Position US Hot Rock & Alternative Songs (Billboard)[19] 94 US Rock Airplay (Billboard)[20] 11

Mark Ronson Re-version

Weekly charts

Weekly chart performance for "Making a Fire" (Mark Ronson Re-version)

Chart (2022)	Peak position
UK Physical Singles (OCC)[21]	5
UK Vinyl Singles (OCC)[22]	3

Awards

Year	Award	Results
2022	Grammy Award for Best Rock Performance	Won

Notes

1. irish-charts.com incorrectly shows the charting version as being the Mark Ronson Re-Version. This is because the song charted in Ireland on February 12, 2021, which was the week after the Medicine at Midnight album was released and the Mark Ronson Re-Version was not released until June 25, 2021