The first of two planned tribute performances to late Foo Fighters drummer/vocalist Taylor Hawkins took place today, September 03rd, in London, England. Hosted at the Wembley Stadium, it marked the first time the Foo Fighters have been back onstage since Hawkins passed away in March of this year while on tour with the group.
The tribute performance spanned several hours and at times saw members of the Foo Fighters swept up in the emotions of the event, with vocalist/guitarist Dave Grohl at times visibly weeping onstage.
In addition to a cavalcade of stars taking to the stage, the concert also played host to a long-awaited reunion from Them Crooked Vultures, a supergroup side project of Foo Fighters vocalist/guitarist Dave Grohl, Queens Of The Stone Age vocalist/guitarist Josh Homme and Led Zeppelin bassist John Paul Jones. Geddy Lee & Alex Lifeson of Canadian prog rock legends Rush also took to the stage for a mini-reunion set of sorts with Grohl and more.
Among the impressive array of musical talent to join the band onstage were the following special guests:
- Travis Barker (Blink-182, etc.)
- Nandi Bushell
- Martin Chambers (The Pretenders)
- Chris Chaney (Jane’s Addiction, Taylor Hawkins and the Coattail Riders, etc.)
- Stewart Copeland (ex-The Police)
- Josh Freese (Devo, The Vandals, etc.)
- Liam Gallagher
- Violet Grohl
- Omar Hakim
- Justin Hawkins (The Darkness)
- Shane Hawkins
- Joshua Homme (Queens Of The Stone Age)
- Chrissie Hynde
- James Gang
- Alain Johannes
- Brian Johnson (AC/DC)
- John Paul Jones (ex-Led Zeppelin, Them Crooked Vultures)
- Kesha
- Greg Kurstin
- Geddy Lee (ex-Rush)
- Alex Lifeson (ex-Rush)
- Brian May (Queen)
- Krist Novoselic (ex-Nirvana, etc.)
- Nile Rodgers (Chic, etc.)
- Mark Ronson
- Luke Spiller (The Struts)
- Supergrass
- Roger Taylor (Queen)
- Rufus Taylor (The Darkness/Queen)
- Lars Ulrich (Metallica)
- Wolfgang Van Halen
- Chevy Metal
The setlist for the event ran through songs from various acts, many of which were personal favorites of Taylor‘s. Here’s what was played:
Foo Fighters & Liam Gallagher:
“Rock ‘n’ Roll Star” (Oasis cover)
“Live Forever” (Oasis cover)
Nile Rodgers, Chris Chaney & Omar Hakim:
“Let’s Dance” (David Bowie cover) (feat. Josh Homme)
“Modern Love” (David Bowie cover) (feat. Gaz Coombes)
Chevy Metal & The Coattail Riders:
“Psycho Killer” (Talking Heads cover)
“Children Of The Revolution” (T. Rex cover) (feat. Kesha)
The Coattail Riders, Justin Hawkins & Josh Freese:
“Louise”
“Range Rover Bitch”
“It’s Over”
Dave Grohl, Wolfgang Van Halen, Justin Hawkins & Josh Freese:
“On Fire” (Van Halen cover)
“Hot For Teacher” (Van Halen cover)
Violet Grohl, Dave Grohl, Alain Johannes, Chris Chaney, Greg Kurstin & Jason Falkner:
“Last Goodbye” (Jeff Buckley cover)
“Grace” (Jeff Buckley cover)
Supergrass:
“Richard III”
“Alright”
“Caught By The Fuzz”
Them Crooked Vultures (Josh Homme, Dave Grohl & John Paul Jones):
“Goodbye Yellow Brick Road” (Elton John cover)
“Gunman”
“Long Slow Goodbye” (Queens Of The Stone Age cover)
Pretenders & Dave Grohl:
“Precious”
“Tattooed Love Boys”
“Brass In Pocket”
James Gang:
“Walk Away”
“The Bomber: Closet Queen / Bolero / Cast Your Fate To The Wind”
“Funk #49” (feat. Dave Grohl)
Violet Grohl, Mark Ronson, Chris Chaney & Jacon Falkner:
“Valerie” (The Zutons cover)
Brian Johnson, Lars Ulrich & Foo Fighters“:
“Back In Black” (AC/DC cover) (feat. Justin Hawkins)
“Let There Be Rock” (AC/DC cover)
Stewart Copeland & Foo Fighters:
“Next To You” (The Police cover)
“Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic” (The Police cover) (feat. Gaz Coombes)
Geddy Lee, Alex Lifeson & Dave Grohl:
“2112 Part I: Overture” (Rush cover)
“Working Man” (Rush cover)
Geddy Lee, Alex Lifeson, Omar Hakim & Greg Kurstin:
“YYZ” (Rush cover)
Brian May, Roger Taylor, Rufus Taylor & Foo Fighters:
“We Will Rock You” (Queen cover) (feat. Luke Spiller)
“I’m In Love With My Car” (Queen cover)
“Under Pressure” (Queen/David Bowie/b> cover) (feat. Justin Hawkins)
“Somebody To Love” (Queen cover) (feat. Sam Ryder)
“Love Of My Life” (Queen cover) (Brian May solo)
Foo Fighters with Josh Freese:
“Times Like These”
“All My Life”
Foo Fighters with Travis Barker:
“The Pretender”
“Monkey Wrench”
Foo Fighters with Nandi Bushell:
“Learn To Fly”
Foo Fighters with Rufus Taylor:
“These Days”
“Best Of You”
Foo Fighters with Paul McCartney:
“Oh! Darling” (The Beatles cover) (feat. Chrissy Hynde & Omar Shakim)
“Helter Skelter” (The Beatles cover) (feat. Omar Hakim)
Foo Fighters with Omar Hakim:
“Aurora”
Foo Fighters with Oliver Shane Hawkins:
“My Hero”
Dave Grohl (solo):
“Everlong”
The entire event was broadcast live across several platforms, including YouTube and Paramount+. An additional tribute concert will be held at the Kia Forum in Los Angeles, CA on September 27th. Proceeds from tickets and merchandise sales for the concerts will be benefit MusiCares and Music Support. Both organizations were selected by the Hawkins family, who have given their full backing to these tribute shows.
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