Roger Taylor Advised Taylor Hawkins Not To Join Guns N’ Roses

The Same Thing Happened with Roger Taylor

Foo Fighters drummer Taylor Hawkins recently revealed how he almost joined Guns N’ Roses in 1999. He was on tour with Dave Grohl and other band members in support of their third studio album There Is Nothing Left to Lose. Hawkins got a call from his mom telling him that someone from the GnR management team contacted her. He told Classic Rock, “Axl was trying to get together a new version of Guns N’ Roses, and I think he was checking around for people. They wanted to know if I would come in and try out or whatever. It was kind of otherworldly.”

He decided to ask for advice from Queen’s Roger Taylor who then proceeds to tell him how in the 1970s Taylor found himself in a similar position. Former Mott The Hoople singer Ian Hunter and guitarist Mick Ronson were forming a group and asked Taylor to join them. At the time, Queen weren’t superstars yet and while the offer was somehow tempting, Taylor decided to stay.

Hawkins added, “And he said, ‘I see you and Dave onstage and there’s something you can’t buy there. There’s something between you guys that might not be there with Axl Rose.’ And he was right.”

Roger Taylor is also featured in Hawkins’ new album Get The Money.