Foo Fighters Songs That Prove The Drumming and Songwriting Skills of Taylor Hawkins

Taylor Hawkins passed away while on tour with his band Foo Fighters on March 25th, 2022. His presence in the music world will be sorely missed, so here are a few songs to remember him.

Propulsive, groove-heavy drumming highlights all the best Foo Fighters songs, inspired by leader Dave Grohl’s drumming from the first two FF albums. Since then, Hawkins had developed a signature rock-influenced style that featured an appropriate amount of syncopation and tight fills.

This song is an earlier track that defines all the signature elements of Foo Fighters, with Hawkins’ drumming staying tightly and unobtrusively attached to the guitar parts.

The 2010s saw a marked attempt at incorporating new sounds into the band’s grunge-inspired origins. “Something From Nothing” showed off greater syncopations that Hawkins would continue to explore with each passing album.

One of the most brilliant contrasts of soft and hard rock showed up in the pounding track “Run,” where Hawkins smacked the kit harder than ever before.

The verse groove of “Dear Rosemary” demonstrates yet again how Hawkins could highlight Grohl’s presence as the leader of the band while never overtaking him. The offbeat hits here are essentially perfect.

From the rock side of the double-length In Your Honor, “Free Me” uses a 3-4 time signature with a classic beat drawn from classic rock that never gets old.

This is the most creative song on the last Foo Fighters album, Medicine at Midnight, and while the surrounding music feels very original, the drums are classic for the band.

An easy yet creative beat for Hawkins’ first album with Foo Fighters, “Next Year” also hides a great drum fill.

In one of many songs that show off Hawkins’ extended role in the band, we get to hear percussion, piano, and backing vocals from this musician gone too soon from the rock world.

R.I.P. Taylor Hawkins!