10 Worst Burnouts In Rock History

By the time the late '90s rolled around, Pat Smear had been through his fair share of career resurrections. Ever since the dissolution of his foundational punk outfit the Germs, Smear had managed to get a new gig as the extra guitarist in Nirvana before Kurt Cobain's death. Going into another career with Foo Fighters though, the touring life proved to be the final straw.

Instead of the usual ascent to the top, Dave Grohl's outfit was back at square one, going to random clubs and playing their hearts out for a handful of people every night. Though things started to pick up steam on the album the Colour and the Shape, Smear was getting more and more out of step with the group, not really enjoying the shows whenever he played. Shortly after Taylor Hawkins was brought in as the Foos' new drummer, Smear announced that he was leaving after not wanting to go out on another tour and end up a rock and roll casualty.

While Smear left Grohl and the gang on good terms, this proved to be a leave of absence going forward. Whenever the Foos ended up coming to town with new guitarist Chris Shiftlett, Pat would appear for a one-off performance before being asked to join the band again, making the Foos a three guitar attack. Though it's a shame that Smear wasn't in it for the long haul, it's better to have him back in the fold now than to not have him at all.