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Jill’s Take on the Taylor Hawkins Tribute

By Jill Sep 7, 2022 | 9:22 PM
Raph_PH / CC

It’s taken me a bit longer than I’d planned on to write about the amazing tribute the Foo Fighters and Taylor Hawkins’ family put together in London last Saturday. I knew it would be emotional, but here I am days later on my 8 bajillionth time watching Taylor’s son Shane absolutely kill it on ‘My Hero’ while playing his dad’s kit and still absolutely lose my shit. Plus, watching Dave sing ‘Times Like These’ without Taylor for the first time to start the Foo Fighters set was heartbreaking, there is a photo of Dave with Shane at the end of the night that makes me tear up every time I see it, plus pics of the guys together that you can tell they are all struggle-bussing trying to keep it together.

Both Josh Freese and Rufus Taylor (yes, Roger Taylor of Queen’s son and a fantastic drummer in his own right. Rufus happens to be the drummer for the band The Darkness and Josh has been in everything from A Perfect Circle to Nine Inch Nails to The Offspring) each said the same thing, and they are right. They both said that Taylor would have loved this show more than anyone. So many of his heroes. So many of his friends. So many musicians he mentored. Stewart Copeland of The Police said that Taylor was a fanboy and made friends with his musical heroes. The Foo Fighters and the Hawkins family got them all together for a kickass 6 hour show. Lars Ulrich, Brian May and Roger Taylor, Paul McCartney, and Brian Johnson, just to name a few. Dave Grohl and most of the Foo were either participating or side stage for all of it. Wolfgang Van Halen managed to pay tribute to his dad and Taylor at the same time. Brian May paid tribute to both Taylor and Freddie Mercury at the same time. You know Taylor was loved to be paid tribute at the same time as Eddie Van Halen and Freddie Mercury.

The entire 6 hour celebration was joyous. It was happy. It was tearful. It was me searching for tickets to the LA show.

You can watch the full 6 hours on Hulu and Paramount+.

Here are just a couple of highlights including the photographer that caught the pic of Dave and Shane Hawkins that I adore, Shane kicking ass on ‘My Hero’, someone that combined concert footage of Taylor and Shane playing ‘My Hero’ that is so cool (note that Dave looks at them both the same way), Dave at the beginning of ‘Times Like These’,  and CBS Mornings did a cool piece covering the entire thing and interviewed a few of the artists.

 

 

Supposedly Shane told Dave that he was wearing his dad’s shorts right before the photographer took the pic of them together. How anybody knew that, I have no idea…

Who is cutting onions in here? Yes, Shane is playing Taylor’s kit while wearing Taylor’s shorts. Yes, Dave looks at Shane with the same love as he looked at Taylor, and the next video will prove it.

 

Again, I’m not crying. You’re crying.

 

I…sigh

Now for the CBS Mornings piece cause I just can’t.

 

I know this was super long, so congrats if you made it to the end. Will I ever stop talking about it? Nope, probably not. Crying about it? Probably not either. I desperately hope that it’s not the end for the Foo Fighters, but if it is, I understand. I know they’ll all find new projects I’ll fall in love with. I also know the Hawkins kids have a whole rock family of Uncles that will have their back till the end of time.