When rock musician Dave Grohl set out to find a new drummer for his rookie band Foo Fighters, the odds were stacked against everyone behind the kit.
Grohl is widely considered one of the most vocally talented drummers in modern rock. Help define the spirit of a generation with Nirvana.
But he was going to be the lead in his new band – and he needed someone who wouldn’t make fans keep wishing he was stuck with the drums.
It was fair to ask whether any percussionist—no matter how grotesquely talented—could meet Grohl’s strict standards or the music industry’s unforgiving expectations.
However, Grohl found a creative partner and soul mate in Taylor Hawkins’ tough, rugged car that Alanis Morissette was riding around with.
“I was like, ‘Wow, you’re either my twin or my soul animal or my best friend,'” Grohl In an interview with a radio host last year.
The two men met backstage at a show. Grohl later followed up with a phone call and made his pitch. Hawkins had a game: “I’m your man.”
Grohl explained their kinship in his memoirs, writing: “I am not afraid to say that our encounter by chance was a kind of love at first sight, igniting a musical ‘twin flame’ that is still burning to this day.”
Hawkins, who was found dead in Columbia on Friday, has run some of the most exciting tracks in the Foo Fighters with relentless energy and broad-smiling charm, his limbs flailing with abandon.
The job—playing drums for an all-time great drummer—could inspire an ego-shattering fear, like taking the field after Serena Williams or replacing Martin Scorsese on the set.
William Goldsmith, the Foo Fighters’ first official drummer, quit the band after learning that Grohl was secretly re-recording his parts on their second record, “The Color and the Shape”.
When Hawkins joined the group shortly thereafter, he set off the hype, delighting audiences around the world with powerful solos, thrusting rhythms and an infectious enthusiasm for the ultimate performance act.
He even took turns occasionally in front of the microphone.
“I keep hearing people say that he was the only guy who could shine like that The “Drummer in band with Dave Grohl,” said Jordan Rontagh, a music writer who has contributed to Entertainment Weekly, People magazine, and other publications.
“It might have been hard to imagine going to a concert with Dave Grohl and not having him on the drums,” Rontagh said, “but Taylor never disappoints. He was the engine behind it all. What a machine.”
Hawkins had aspired to be in a rock band since he was a child. He told the Associated Press in 2009 that he was inspired by Stuart Copeland of the police, Roger Taylor of Quinn and Phil Collins.
Hawkins told the Associated Press that Collins was “one of my all-time favorite drummers.” “You know, people forget he was a great drummer as well as a nice guy in an ’80s jacket, poor guy.”
Hawkins was known for his surfing demeanor and everyone’s humility. But it became increasingly clear that Hawkins and Grohl were artistic counterparts, bound by mutual respect and a complementary drive for musical accuracy.
In one of his last interviews, with Rolling StoneHawkins described Grohl as his “big brother” and explained what he saw as the subtle difference between stunt drumming styles.
If he is a student [Led Zeppelin drummer] John Bonham, I’m a student of Stuart Copeland, told the magazine, “I mean, that’s kind of the easiest way to put it.”
In a legendary craft of epic clashes between larger-than-life characters infused with fame and fortune, the two men seemed to enjoy a hearty relationship and easy camaraderie.
At live performances, Grohl would occasionally stand behind the drums while Hawkins took the lead microphone to direct out a cover song, such as Queen’s “Somebody to Love.”
“The best part about becoming the lead singer of the Foo Fighters for just one song is that I already have the greatest rock ‘n’ roll drummer on the planet,” Hawkins said before performing the song in March. 18 concert in Chile.
Grohl was heard telling him to shut up, according to news accounts of the show.
However, Hawkins, who has spoken candidly about his experiences with drug and substance abuse, occasionally hinted at feeling out of place — and the psychological toll of the measure.
“A lot of my fears—which led to a lot of drug use—had to do with not feeling good enough to be in this band, playing drums with Dave,” Hawkins For Spin magazine in 2002.
“It was absolutely nothing Dave said,” Hawkins went on to explain, adding later, “He would have given up on me a long time ago, but he believed in me, so I could get out of that hole.”
However, in the minds of Foo Fighters fans around the world, Hawkins has done far more than expected. He has forged his permanent place in rock music: that of the happy warrior and drum talent.
“It wasn’t just his mysterious power,” Rentag said. “It was his pure joy over the kit, something he shared with Dave.
“They were soulmates.”
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