Taylor Hawkins’ seven best songs outside of Foo Fighters
To legions of music fans across the world, Taylor Hawkins will forever be remembered as the man who matched Dave Grohl beat for beat in the Foo Fighters. Grohl was a difficult man to please when it came to playing drums, mostly because he knew a thing or two about a great drum part. Grohl’s obsession with getting the perfect rhythm on tape caused him to play almost all of the drums on the Foo Fighters’ first two albums, overriding the contributions recorded by original drummer William Goldsmith during the making of The Colour and the Shape.
Hawkins didn’t have those same issues. Although he and Grohl had split drumming duties relatively evenly across 1999’s There Is Nothing Left to Lose, Hawkins was the only man behind the kit for the next two decades. Along the way, he recorded some of the band’s best drum parts, including stomping rhythms in songs like ‘Rope’, ‘Times Like These’, ‘Bridges Burning’, and ‘The Pretender’.
When Foo Fighters weren’t recording or touring, Hawkins kept himself busy with plenty of side projects. Originally, that meant playing with his own band, the Coattail Riders. But as the years went by, Hawkins found a niche as a sessions musician for some of the biggest names in music, including Ozzy Osbourne and Iggy Pop. Hawkins was drafted to play drums on the Coheed and Cambria album Good Apollo, I’m Burning Star IV, Volume Two: No World for Tomorrow and eventually logged time with everyone from Jane’s Addiction singer Perry Ferrell to Elton John.
Hawkins will always be remembered for his classic songs recorded with the Foos, but we’re looking to highlight some of his best work outside of his most well-known band. These are some of the best songs that Hawkins recorded when he wasn’t working with Grohl and the Foo Fighters.
Taylor Hawkins’ seven best songs outside of Foo Fighters:
‘You Oughta Know’ – Alanis Morissette (Live)
Hawkins didn’t appear on the classic studio version of ‘You Oughta Know’. That session was helmed by hired gun Matt Laug, alongside a host of ringers like Red Hot Chili Peppers bassist Flea, Jane’s Addiction guitarist Dave Navarro, and Tom Petty keyboardist Benmont Tench. But when it came time for Morissette to hit the road to support Jagged Little Pill, Hawkins was the man who brought the ferocious energy of the album to the live stage.
‘You Oughta Know’ is actually a bit of a tricky song to play live. Hawkins was required to find a balance between Laug’s acoustic drums and the programmed drums that fill out the track. Hawkins is subtle and even jazzy during the song’s softer verses, but once he gets the opportunity to bash away in the chorus, it’s easy to see why he was the perfect man to step into the Foo Fighters.
‘Your Shoes’ – Taylor Hawkins & the Coattail Riders
Following the tense sessions that surrounded Foo Fighters’ 2002 album One by One, it became imperative for the band members to seek outside projects for their own sanity. Hawkins found himself recording demos in 2004 when his old friend and ex-Alanis Morrissette bandmate Chris Chaney visited him. The pair began recording together, forming the core of what would become Taylor Hawkins & the Coattail Riders.
After their 2006 self-titled debut was recorded as a trio, Hawkins decided to bring in some special guests for the band’s second album, 2010’s Red Light Fever. That included Dave Grohl, The Cars guitarist Elliot Easton, and two of Hawkins’ biggest heroes – Brian May and Roger Taylor of Queen. Taylor added backing vocals to the track ‘Your Shoes’, gelling with Hawkins as two drummers/singers in harmony.
‘The Running Free’ – Coheed and Cambria
Coheed and Cambria seemed to have it all figured out in 2007. The progressive rock titans had seen their rhythm section depart a year earlier, but they found the perfect replacement drummer in Chris Pennie, former drummer for math-rock icons The Dillinger Escape Plan. But while the band were in the writing process for their fourth studio album Good Apollo, I’m Burning Star IV, Volume Two: No World for Tomorrow, Pennie’s former record label barred him from appearing on the LP.
Enter Hawkins, who agreed to play on the album and incorporate Pennie’s drum parts into the final arrangments. Hawkins even brought along future Foo Fighters keyboardist Rami Jaffe to help round out the album’s compositions. Hawkins plays some of his most complex drum patterns on No World for Tomorrow, but his most impressive might be the subtler rhythms found in ‘The Running Free’.
‘The Ballad of The Birds of Satan’ – The Birds of Satan
For every new whim, Hawkins seemingly had a new band to play with. There were the Coattail Riders, but over the years, Hawkins started a number of short-lived groups. That included the hard rock cover band Chevy Metal, the supergroup NHC with Navarro and Chaney, and even a Melvins/Pearl Jam crossover group called the Nighttime Boogie Association.
When Hawkins wanted to record a full album of progressive metal, he called on some of his friends to form The Bird of Satan. The band only recorded one self-titled album, but it’s jam-packed with some of the most frenzied playings of Hawkins’ career. It kicks off with the nearly ten-minute ‘The Ballad of The Birds of Satan’, which would probably be too self-indulgent if it didn’t kick some serious ass.
‘Night Crawling’ – Miley Cyrus
Miley Cyrus always wanted to rock. She hadn’t really gotten the opportunity to do so until 2020’s Plastic Hearts, having mostly focused on pop, electronica, and country music up to that point. In order to pull off a real rock album, Cyrus needed some real rock stars to help her record. And if you want a real rock drummer, Taylor Hawkins should always be your first call.
For his one collaboration with Cyrus, ‘Night Crawling’, Hawkins also got to share the spotlight with another all-time rock great, Billy Idol. Together, the trio blast out some seriously synth-soaked rock and roll. Cyrus puts some real grit in her voice while Idol leans on his classic punk sound, but it’s all head together with Hawkins’ pounding rhythms.
‘Range Rover Bitch’ – Taylor Hawkins
At a certain point, Hawkins decided that he wanted to work on solo material. And not just songs with the Coattail Riders: Hawkins was going to record every instrument for his truly solo EP, Kota. Along the way, Hawkins made another crucial decision. Instead of crafting hyper-serious (or at least somewhat serious) songs, Hawkins decided to go gonzo and highly humorous.
There are few earthly delights more indelible than hearing Hawkins belt out the bitter and laugh-out-loud lines he crafts in the ’80s cock-rock aping ‘Range Rover Bitch’. It’s weird to say a song like this is his best solo song, but it’s true – I defy anyone not to have a goofy fun time listening to the supremely catchy ‘Range Rover Bitch’. The song even has some famous fans, notably former Oasis frontman Liam Gallagher.
‘Comments’ – Iggy Pop
Hawkins’ final recording session wasn’t actually with the Foo Fighters or for a solo project. Instead, Hawkins was tapped by legendary punk godfather Iggy Pop to play on his 2023 album Every Loser. As he did for most of his solo work, Hawkins played piano in addition to his hard-hitting drum contributions, showing off a softer and more mature side that didn’t always come through as rock’s pre-eminent basher.
Still, it’s his drums that make the biggest impression on ‘Comments’, a track that blends Pop’s punk roots with his art-rock inclinations. Hawkins bashes out one final perfect drum performance for what would eventually become his final recording session. He goes out like he came in: playing hard and heavy.
