Song of the Day 3/28: Taylor Hawkins, “Holy Man”

The headlines said Taylor Hawkins, who died at age 50 Friday in Colombia, was the drummer for the Foo Fighters, but that only captured a portion of his talent. He sang lead and played drums in a number of side projects, including his own band, Taylor Hawkins and the Coattail Riders, and sang lead on several tracks in his years with the Foos.

In concert he and Dave Grohl would trade places for a song, usually a classic-rock cover, and Hawkins more than held his own as a frontman. A favorite was Queen’s “Somebody to Love” (Hawkins collaborated with Brian May and Roger Taylor on several projects over the years). This was his last performance, from the Lollapalooza concert in Chile a few days before his death.

The most interesting footnote in Hawkins’ career came in 2008. “Holy Man” was a song Beach Boys drummer Dennis Wilson wrote for his solo album, “Pacific Ocean Blue,” but never finished because neither he nor co-writer Gregg Jakobson could come up with lyrics. When the LP, which became a cult favorite during its decades out of print, was reissued in 2008, Jakobson commissioned Hawkins to write lyrics and sing the finished tune. May and Taylor later added parts, but the stripped-down version is better.

Here’s the first video from Hawkins’ first album with his Coattail Riders, a couple of guys he first played with in Alanis Morissette’s touring band.