Hawkins was, in fact, ready to jump in that red Dodge van. Grohl told Entertainment Weekly, “I went over to his little house in Topanga Canyon, he sat down and played for three seconds, and the first time he hit a snare drum, I knew it. I swear to God. I was like, ‘That’s all I need to f****** hear. I love you as a person. You’ve just given me hearing damage for the rest of my life in three seconds. You have to be in the band.'”
According to Bloomberg, In his 2021 book, “The Storyteller,” Grohl described Hawkins as his “brother from another mother, my best friend, a man for whom I would take a bullet.” The two were very close personally and it allowed for a solid working relationship to boot. Hawkins’ talent also helped propel the band to new heights, with Hawkins first appearing on tour with the band to promote “The Colour And The Shape” then in the studio on every single one of the band’s albums starting with “There Is Nothing Left To Lose.”
His relationship with Grohl is the reason Hawkins decided to give it a go with Foo Fighters. “I think it had more to do with our personal relationship than anything musical,” Grohl said in an interview with KLOS’s Matt Pinfield. “To be honest, it still does. Our musical relationship — the foundation of that is our friendship, and that’s why when we jump up onstage and play, we’re so connected because we’re like best friends.”
