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The Foo Fighters move beyond Dave Grohl's rock 'n' roll legacy

by John Sewell

F. Scott Fitzgerald's oft-repeated passage about there being no second acts in American lives usually rings true. This is especially the case in the fickle world of big-time rock 'n' roll. However, there are rare occasions where a lucky few have managed to reinvent themselves and reclaim the limelight on their own. Such is the case of Dave Grohl, whose "new," post-Nirvana band, the Foo Fighters, has been around long enough (and successfully enough) that it is being considered on its own merits instead of in the long, dark shadow of tragic St. Kurt.

Drummer Taylor Hawkins, who has served with the Foo Fighters for around three years, says that Grohl's past history in one of the most influential bands of the '90s is an asset, not an albatross. "I really think being in the shadow of Nirvana was more of an issue before I was in the band," says Hawkins. "I think the first time out, there were plenty of skeptics. But there were also people saying, 'Hey, that's good for Dave—he needs to do something.' And he turned out to be a great songwriter and singer and guitarist.

"As far as the ghost of Nirvana, I don't think there's such a thing. I don't think there is a ghost. It's a positive thing instead, which it should be. Dave should be proud of having been in that band, and he is.

"I don't want to get too far into this because it doesn't really have much to do with me," Hawkins continues. "But, to me, there's like three amazing songwriters in the last 30 years and they are John Lennon, Roger Waters, and Kurt Cobain. Maybe the Nirvana thing will always be a stumbling block, but it's not even an issue in our minds anymore."

The band has undergone something of a transformation over the years, from a one-man show (Grohl's) to a full band with a single songwriter/arranger (again, Grohl). The latest Foo Fighters opus, There is Nothing Left to Lose, is still Grohl's baby, but the musical interaction on the album signifies that there is indeed some other input.

"Musically, the ideas are mostly based off of what Dave comes up with," says Hawkins. "I think we try to sneak in as much as we can here and there. But Dave was making the albums before any of us were in this band, so he's got the vision, usually. I think when you're making an album, the best thing you can do is to keep a clear vision. If everybody started writing it would turn into the White Album Part 20. The new album does have more of a band feel to it, and hopefully that widens our sound a little bit more. I mean, I love the first album but you can tell it's all one guy doing it."

Hawkins says that the Foo Fighters current arena tour opening for perennial favorites the Red Hot Chili Peppers is just another step in the forward progress of a band that aspires to the highest tier of the rock 'n' roll hierarchy. "The thing about doing big concerts like these with the Chili Peppers is, you really have to have your show together, which we do," he says. "I'd love to be able to do our own tour on a scale like this. I am no alterna-rocker at heart. So it's a give-and-take doing this big tour, which is opening us up to new fans. We're trying to win over more fans, and now we have more hit songs with three albums out. You need to have a lot of hit songs to do a big show like that. So in our measly 45-minute opening set, there's only like three songs that aren't hit singles."

A veteran of the road, Hawkins has been with the Foo Fighters long enough to feel stable and established. As to the frequent lineup changes amongst the ranks of Foo, he attributes the constant state of flux to "growing pains that have happened in the limelight." For Hawkins, one thing that is constant is the demand of the nomadic lifestyle and the indulgences that are part and parcel of rock 'n' roll life.

"I'd say we play around 200 shows in a year," he says. "But I do have a personal life—I have a girlfriend. Playing in a band is what I know and I've been doing it for a long time. It's not that tough.

"The hardest thing about being in a band is staying healthy, which I'm not. I'm sick as a dog, always. Fighting off colds all the time and drinking alcohol are not helpful. But, when you're on tour with Chad Smith [Red Hot Chili Peppers' drummer], you're f—-ed. He's such a funny, great, terrific guy. That's a reason we're doing this tour: because we love Chad. He's just like a big, crazy jock.

"It's so funny, because you talk to the guys in the Chili Peppers [who are all health fanatics and recovering addicts] and they hate him because he never gets sick," Hawkins continues. "He's like a big bull or something, dude. He always rages. I mean, not to the point of hurting himself, but he likes to have a good time. And the other cats in his band do yoga and meditation and stuff like that all day long, and they're fighting off colds. It's hilarious."