![]() “This guy spawned a generation of air drummers for decades to come.” The second, more spectacular homage arrived when he took the stage in full 1976 garb (a poufy wig and a flowy kimono) to perform a flawless cover of the raging instrumental overture to Rush’s high-prog landmark 2112 along with Dave Grohl on guitar and Nick Raskulinecz - who produced records for both Foo Fighters and Rush - on bass. “Fuckin’ Neil Peart … come on!” he enthused. On the night he helped induct Rush into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2013, Taylor Hawkins offered two beautiful tributes to one of his drumming heroes. Presenting World-Class Rush Cosplay at the Rock Hall (2013) I really admired him and he was a brilliant musician: his technique, his energy and spirited enthusiasm.” -K.G. “We put in some serious versions of these two songs. “We played ‘Rock and Roll’ with Taylor on turbocharged vocals and Dave on drums and then for ‘Ramble On,’ they swapped, with Taylor on drums and Dave Grohl on vocals,” Page wrote on Instagram following Hawkins’ death. With Grohl filling in for the late John Bonham on drums and Robert Plant absent, Taylor Hawkins mustered his best Golden God for a searing rendition of “Rock and Roll.” Where many singers lose their upper range as they enter their thirties, Hawkins (then age 36) hit Plant’s highest high notes effortlessly. Six months after Led Zeppelin’s stunning reunion at the O2, Dave Grohl reunited half of the band (guitarist Jimmy Page and bassist John Paul Jones) for an ad-hoc one-off at Wembley Stadium. A short-haired, clean-shaven, 25-year-old Hawkins is already an unstoppable dynamo, fully dialed in to the song and giving the Foos the rhythmic engine they needed to blast off into greatness. “Me making the call to Taylor to join the band: ‘We need a drummer real bad.'” You can see the instant impact Hawkins’ arrival made on the Foos in this Later … With Jools Holland performance from that same year. He knew what the dramatic turning point in the film would be, too: “You can just imagine what it would sound like,” he told Rolling Stone in 1997, doing a passable Walken impression. Grohl liked to joke that if they ever made a Foo Fighters movie, he’d want to be played by Christopher Walken. Powering the Foos Through “Monkey Wrench” (1997) ![]() But it was really one of the most fun times of my life.” -C.H. ![]() She was having to learn to be this leader on the job, which isn’t easy. “It was probably the biggest album of the year, and there was a lot of pressure on her. “She gave me a lot of space to do what I wanted,” Hawkins recalled of Morissette, whom he played with until joining the Foos in 1997. This Letterman appearance is an early example of the precision and infectious, hair-flailing enthusiasm Hawkins brought to all of his performances. Like Morissette, Hawkins at the time was a twentysomething still figuring it all out, embarking on an 18-month tour as 1995’s Jagged Little Pill turned into a gargantuan success. Hawkins’ first high-profile gig wasn’t with the Foo Fighters it was with Alanis Morissette. Backing Alanis Morissette on Letterman (1995) Here’s a look at some of Hawkins’ most memorable performances from his long career in rock. “I’d be delivering pizzas if it wasn’t for Dave Grohl.” Whenever the Foos weren’t active, Hawkins brought his everyman humility and infectious passion into other creative outlets, from goofy side projects like the “70s dirt rock cover band” Chevy Metal to more serious affairs like his new supergroup NHC with Dave Navarro and Chis Chaney. He adored his gig and seemed eternally grateful for it: “I fuckin’ love Dave Grohl,” Hawkins told the crowd at Lollapalooza Argentina just days before his tragic death. I was like, ‘Wow, you’re either my twin or my spirit animal, or my best friend!’ In the first 10 seconds of meeting him.” Those 10 seconds would turn into more than 25 years of brotherhood and rock stardom, as the pair went on to thrill huge crowds all over the world with the Foo Fighters.Īs much as Grohl was always the band’s leader, Hawkins was its heart and soul, projecting just as much charisma in his frequent vocal cameos as he did with his powerhouse drumming, and embodying the Foos’ evangelical belief in the transformative power of rock. Dude, I love your record, it’s so cool!’ He was such a spaz. “He’s like, ‘Hey, man, what’s up? I’m Taylor, I play with Alanis Morissette. ![]() “We were at some radio show backstage, and he came up with a beer in his hand,” Grohl recalled. In a 2021 interview, Dave Grohl reflected on the first time he met Taylor Hawkins. ![]()
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