‘He was sunshine in human form’: Queen drummer Roger Taylor emotionally dedicates OBE to late Foo Fighters star Taylor Hawkins during investiture at Windsor Castle
Queen’s Roger Taylor dedicated his OBE to the late Foo Fighters drummer Taylor Hawkins following his investiture ceremony at Windsor Castle on Wednesday.
The rock icon, 72, was appointed Officer of the Order of the British Empire for services to music, and was one of 50-year-old Hawkins’ top influences.
Drummer Hawkins was found dead in his Four Seasons hotel room in Bogota, Colombia, on Friday, following a suspected overdose.
Describing Hawkins as ‘sunshine in human form’ and ‘one of my very greatest friends’, Roger also revealed the musician had acted as a mentor to his own son, Rufus, who is the drummer for rock band The Darkness.
Moment: Queen’s Roger Taylor dedicated his OBE to the late Foo Fighters drummer Taylor Hawkins following his investiture ceremony at Windsor Castle on Wednesday (pictured with wife Sarina)
Speaking after receiving his honour from the Prince of Wales, Roger said: ‘We’re still so upset about [Taylor’s death] and completely devastated.
‘My whole family and his whole family were very close. He was, my wife called him, sunshine in human form. He was the most wonderful man and I can’t quite believe that I’m not going to see him again.
‘He’s done a lot to help my son, who’s a great drummer, and he actually sort of mentored him. We’re going to miss him so much.’
RIP: The rock icon, 72, was appointed Officer of the Order of the British Empire for services to music, and was one of 50-year-old Hawkins’ top musical influences (pictured together in 2006)
Taylor, who is frequently ranked as one of the greatest drummers in rock history for his unique sound, said he had reacted to the news that he was being made an OBE with ‘disbelief’.
He added: ‘But it’s been a nice job.’
Along with frontman Freddie Mercury, Taylor was one of the founding members of Queen in 1970, having turned down the chance to become a drummer for Genesis the same year.
He added: ‘He was the most wonderful man and I can’t quite believe that I’m not going to see him again’ (pictured with Brian May and Dave Grohl, Pat Smear and Taylor Hawkins in 2011)
He helped pen some of the band’s biggest hits, co-writing UK number ones Under Pressure, These Are The Days Of Our Lives and Innuendo.
Queen have sold more than 300million albums worldwide.
14 years after Mercury’s death in 1991, members Roger and Brian May reformed, joined by Bad Company singer Paul Rodgers . This touring partnership continued until 2009.
Since 2011, Roger and Brian have performed with American Idol superstar Adam Lambert as Queen + Adam Lambert.
OBE: Describing Hawkins as ‘sunshine in human form’ and ‘one of my very greatest friends’, Roger also revealed the musician had acted as a mentor to his own son, Rufus, who is the drummer for rock band The Darkness
Initial results released by the Colombian Attorney General’s Office over the weekend reported ten different drugs in Hawkins’ urine, including opioids, marijuana and benzodiazepines, a class of psychoactive drugs used to combat anxiety and insomnia, when he died.
Hawkins’ heart also weighed at least 600 grams, double that of a typical man of his age, according to the early findings reported by Colombian weekly magazine, Semana.
Concerns about the drummer’s health first arose on Friday night when he began complaining of chest pains prior to a sell-out gig in Bogota.
Hotel staff called emergency services but Hawkins was unresponsive by the time security reached his room. Efforts to revive him by a private doctor and city emergency responders failed.
Suspected overdose: Initial results released by the Colombian Attorney General’s Office over the weekend reported ten different drugs in the rock icon’s urine (pictured October 2021)
Hawkins was recruited by the Food Fighters in 1997 after Dave Grohl saw him playing drums for Alanis Morissette.
No stranger to wild drug abuse, Hawkins suffered a heroin overdose in London in 2001 that left him in a coma for around a week.
In an interview last year he admitted: ‘Everyone has their own path and I took it too far. I was partying in London one night, and I mistakenly did something and it changed everything.
‘I believed the bull***t myth of live hard and fast, die young.
‘I’m not here to preach about not doing drugs, because I loved doing drugs, but I just got out of control for a while and it almost got me.’
‘Let’s take this time to heal’: The Foo Fighters have cancelled all upcoming tour dates, including shows in Australia and New Zealand, following the death of drummer Taylor Hawkins from a suspected overdose (pictured together in October 2021)
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