Hawkins, who died suddenly at the age of 50 while touring with the Foo Fighters in Colombia, has been a member of the band since 1997. His first album with them was There Is Nothing Left to Lose (1999), which reached the Top 10 in the US and UK and brought them their first Grammy Award (for best rock album). Hawkins was on drumkit for seven more Foo Fighters albums, establishing himself as one of the world’s top rock musicians, attracting dedicated hordes of fans internationally. To date they have won 12 Grammys and their consistently successful albums have reached the top of the US charts twice and the UK charts five times. Their latest album, Medicine at Midnight, is nominated for three Grammys, with the awards ceremony on April 3. In addition to his musicality, Hawkins brought humor, enthusiasm and personality to the group. In addition to singing Foo Fighters on Cold Day in the Sun and Sunday Rain, he often sang covers with the band and was a regular songwriter on their albums. Recent live shows have seen him grab the microphone to fit in Freddie Mercury’s shoes – not a job for the faint-hearted – and perform an oversized version of Queen’s Somebody to Love, as he did in his last appearance with the band at Lollapalooza Argentina on March 20. In the meantime, he was always throwing himself at work behind the drums with passionate, lightning intensity. His blond hair and athletic frame gave him the air of just out of California surfing, emphasizing his love of sleeveless T-shirts and Bermuda shorts. However, he combined the demonstration of skill with the technical ability, in combination with the knowledge and respect for the music history. He recalled watching a Queen’s concert in 1982 was a life-changing experience – “it was the beginning of my obsession with rock’n’roll and I knew I wanted to be in a huge rock band”. One of his main inspirations was Queen drummer Roger Taylor, along with Police Stewart Copeland, Phil Collins, U2 Larry Mullen and Jane’s Stephen Perkins. He also got some advice from jazz drummers Gene Krupa and Buddy Rich. Hawkins was born in Fort Worth, Texas to Terry Hawkins, a businessman, and his wife, Elizabeth Ann. He had two older brothers, Heather and Jason. The family moved to Laguna Beach, California in 1976, and Hawkins graduated from Laguna Beach High School in 1990. When he was 10, his parents bought a drum kit, which proved to be a turning point. “I was a fat, plump, stupid kid who failed at everything and nobody liked him,” he recalls later. “Then I started playing drums.” His mother was always supportive of his efforts in singing and drumming. “He was a big supporter and he told me I would make it,” he told the Sydney Morning Herald. “He reacted to Dad’s stone coldness, typical of a man in the 1970s.” He started playing with local bands and after becoming a drummer for the progressive rock band Sylvia, he became a member of the support team of singer Sass Jordan. His profile then gained momentum when he was hired to join Alanis Morissette as he toured on her groundbreaking 1995 album Jagged Little Pill (sold more than 30 million copies worldwide). Hawkins appeared in the video for You Oughta Know, the album’s first single, which helped spark his meteoric success, as well as in the You Learn video. It was while touring with Morissette that Hawkins met Dave Grohl, founder of Foo Fighters, as they often attended the same festivals. The couple immediately developed a close relationship both personally and musically, as Grohl described. “Our musical relationship – the foundation of that is our friendship, and that’s why when we go on stage and play, we’re so connected, because we’re best friends.” When the Foo Fighters needed a drummer in 1997, after William Goldsmith resigned while creating the band’s second album, The Color and the Shape, Hawkins was the obvious choice. The fact that he also had ambitions as a singer and songwriter meant that he had little hesitation in leaving his job with Morissette. In addition to his work on Foo Fighters, Hawkins released three albums with his band, Taylor Hawkins and the Coattail Riders, played covers with Chevy Metal, released an album with Birds of Satan and had another album to be released in 2022 with NHC, starring Hawkins with Dave Navarro and Chris Cheney from Jane’s Addiction. Hawkins was survived by his wife, Allison, whom he married in 2005, and their children, Oliver, Annabelle and Everly. Oliver Taylor Hawkins, drummer, singer and songwriter, born February 17, 1972. Died March 25, 2022
