Sass Jordan Gave Taylor Hawkins His First Big Break

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How Sass Jordan Built a Career That Put Her on Arena Stages

Sass Jordan was born Sarah Jordan on December 23, 1962, in Birmingham, England. Her family moved to Montreal when she was three years old. She grew up in a home filled with classical music, but her direction changed permanently when she heard The Band’s “The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down” on the radio. Seeing David Bowie on his Diamond Dogs Tour at her first concert sealed the decision. She wanted to make rock music.

By 16, she was performing with bands in downtown Montreal clubs. She became the singer and bass guitarist for a well-known local group called The Pinups and took on session-vocalist work around the city.

Her solo debut, Tell Somebody, came out in 1988 through Atlantic Records. The title track became a hit on Canadian radio, and the album earned her the 1989 Juno Award for Most Promising Female Vocalist. She was nominated again for female vocalist of the year in 1990, 1993, and 1995.

Jordan moved to Los Angeles in 1990 and released Racine in 1992 through MCA Records. That album turned her into an international rock performer. It sold an estimated 450,000 copies worldwide and produced some of her best-known tracks: “Make You a Believer,” “You Don’t Have to Remind Me,” “I Want to Believe,” and “Goin’ Back Again.”

“Make You a Believer” peaked at No. 11 on Billboard’s Mainstream Rock Airplay chart. Billboard named Jordan its top female rock artist of 1992.

 

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Around the same time, actor Kevin Costner heard her voice on his car radio and pushed for her to be included on The Bodyguard soundtrack. She recorded the duet “Trust in Me” with Joe Cocker for the album, which spent 20 weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 and has sold more than 45 million copies worldwide.

On the back of that momentum, Jordan toured alongside Aerosmith, The Rolling Stones, AC/DC, Van Halen, and Steve Miller. These were arena-level stages, and the musicians who played behind her had to be ready for that scale.

A 22-Year-Old Drummer Working at a Music Store Got the Call

In 1994, Jordan released her third album, Rats, which she often named as her personal favorite. The album featured “High Road Easy,” her highest-charting single on the Billboard Mainstream Rock chart at No. 6, and “Sun’s Gonna Rise,” her first song on the Billboard Hot 100.

That same year, she needed a drummer for her touring band. The gig included European dates opening for Aerosmith.

Taylor Hawkins was 22 years old. Born Oliver Taylor Hawkins on February 17, 1972, in Fort Worth, Texas, and raised in Laguna Beach, California, he had been playing drums since he was a kid, inspired by Stewart Copeland of The Police, Roger Taylor of Queen, and Phil Collins.

But at that point in 1994, Hawkins was working at a music store. He was not on anyone’s radar.

In a video Hawkins later posted on YouTube, he described how it happened. Someone at the music store told him about a “cool chick” who was going on tour and needed a drummer. That cool chick was Sass Jordan.

The way Hawkins told the story onstage in Toronto in 2015, he recalled Jordan taking a chance on him: “This woman took some dips*** like me, 22-year-old who didn’t know s***, on the road.”

He also gave Jordan a specific credit that carried real weight: “Sass taught me how to be in a rock and roll band and gave me my first rock and roll check.”

A show Jordan’s band played at New York’s South Street Seaport in 1994 was eventually released nearly three decades later as Live in New York Ninety-Four, which came out on April 28, 2023. Hawkins is on drums throughout the record.

From Sass Jordan’s Band to Alanis Morissette’s World Tour

Jordan’s touring band gave Hawkins something that practice rooms and local gigs could not: professional road experience at a high level. He was playing behind a Juno Award-winning artist on stages shared with acts like Aerosmith. He learned how arena tours work, how to hold a crowd, how to manage the pace and energy of a full-length set.

That experience made Hawkins visible. And it led directly to his next job.

In 1995, Alanis Morissette was preparing to tour behind Jagged Little Pill, which became one of the best-selling debut albums in history. She needed a touring drummer. Hawkins got the audition, and he got the gig.

He toured with Morissette from 1995 through 1997, appearing in music videos and playing to audiences that were growing by the week as Jagged Little Pill continued to sell. It was during this period that Hawkins met Dave Grohl.

They would cross paths backstage at festivals around the world. The chemistry between them was obvious. As Grohl later wrote in his 2021 memoir The Storyteller, their connection was immediate and instinctive. Morissette herself noticed it. She reportedly asked Hawkins, “What are you going to do when Dave asks you to be his drummer?”

How the Foo Fighters Job Opened Up

In 1997, Foo Fighters were recording their second album, The Colour and the Shape. The sessions did not go well for the band’s original drummer, William Goldsmith. Studio tension built, and Grohl ended up re-recording many of the drum parts himself. Goldsmith left the band.

Grohl called Hawkins. According to Hawkins, the conversation was simple. Grohl asked if he knew any drummers. Hawkins volunteered himself.

“I said, ‘I heard you guys are looking for a drummer,’ and he said, ‘Well, do you know any?’” Hawkins recalled. He sensed that Morissette was moving in a more laid-back musical direction, and the timing felt right.

The band announced Hawkins as their new drummer on March 18, 1997. He first appeared with the group in the 1997 music video for “Everlong,” even though he was not the drummer who played on the studio recording.

His first full studio album with Foo Fighters was There Is Nothing Left to Lose, released in 1999. He remained the band’s drummer for more than two decades, recording nine studio albums with them and becoming one of the group’s most recognized figures alongside Grohl.

Hawkins was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame with Foo Fighters in 2021.

In 2005, the British drumming magazine Rhythm voted Hawkins “Best Rock Drummer.” He also sang lead vocals on several Foo Fighters tracks, including “Cold Day in the Sun” (2005) and “Sunday Rain” (2017).

The 2015 Toronto Reunion That Brought the Story Full Circle

On July 9, 2015, Foo Fighters played the Molson Canadian Amphitheatre in Toronto. It was part of their Sonic Highways World Tour. Grohl was performing from a custom-built throne because he had broken his leg after falling off a stage in Gothenburg, Sweden, the previous month.

During the show, Hawkins introduced a surprise guest to the crowd: Sass Jordan.

He told the audience the story of how he met Jordan, how she took a chance on him when he was nobody, and how the path from her band led him to where he stood that night.

Then Grohl took over. From his throne, he told the Toronto crowd, “All roads lead to the Foo Fighters. If it weren’t for Sass Jordan, Taylor Hawkins wouldn’t be in Foo Fighters right now.”

Jordan joined the band for a performance of The Faces’ classic “Stay With Me.” It was a moment that connected the dots between a 1994 touring gig and one of the biggest rock bands of the 21st century.

Taylor Hawkins Died in 2022, Sass Jordan Died in 2026

Taylor Hawkins died on March 25, 2022, at the age of 50 while the Foo Fighters were touring South America. He was found in his hotel room at the Casa Medina hotel in Bogota, Colombia, hours before the band was scheduled to perform at the Estereo Picnic festival.

Preliminary toxicology results released by the Colombian Attorney General’s office indicated that 10 different substances were found in his system, including opioids, benzodiazepines, marijuana, and tricyclic antidepressants. Forensic examiners also found that his heart weighed approximately 600 grams, roughly twice the average for a man his age. Investigators said he suffered a cardiovascular collapse.

Hawkins is survived by his wife Alison and their three children.

Two tribute concerts were held in his memory in September 2022: one at Wembley Stadium in London and one at The Kia Forum in Los Angeles, featuring dozens of guest musicians.

Jordan continued performing and recording until 2026. Her final album, Bitches Blues, was released in 2022. In September 2026, she cancelled her remaining tour dates due to a medical issue. She died on October 2, 2026, surrounded by her family. Her family described her as “an inimitable force of nature. An irreplaceable being of light and joy.” No official cause of death was announced, though reports indicate she had been privately battling cancer.

Jordan’s Full Discography and Career Highlights

Sass Jordan’s career spanned 10 studio albums across nearly four decades.

She also served as a judge on all six seasons of Canadian Idol (2003 to 2008). Former contestants she praised included Carly Rae Jepsen and Melissa O’Neil. She played Janis Joplin in the stage production Love, Janis and joined the A Bowie Celebration: The David Bowie Alumni Tour in 2019.

Her touring band in later years, the Champagne Hookers, backed her on blues and rock dates across Canada.

Why Jordan’s Role in Hawkins’ Career Matters

Rock history is filled with these kinds of stories: the small, seemingly random break that sets a career in motion. But what makes this one stand out is how openly both Hawkins and Grohl acknowledged it.

Hawkins did not forget where he started. He talked about Jordan onstage, brought her back to perform with the Foo Fighters, and credited her with teaching him what it meant to be a professional musician.

Grohl went even further. He told a crowd of thousands that without Jordan’s decision to hire a 22-year-old kid from a music store, the Foo Fighters as they knew them would not exist.

Jordan, for her part, never made a fuss about it. She saw a talented young drummer, brought him on the road, and treated it as part of what musicians do for each other. In an interview about her career, she once described how strong musicians gravitated toward her because the music demanded commitment, feel, and energy. Hawkins clearly had all three.

The fact that both Hawkins and Jordan are now gone makes the story heavier. But it also makes the connection between them permanent.

Frequently Asked Questions

How did Sass Jordan give Taylor Hawkins his first big break?

In 1994, Jordan hired a 22-year-old Hawkins to be the drummer in her touring band. The gig included European dates opening for Aerosmith. Hawkins later credited Jordan with teaching him how to be in a professional rock band and giving him his first paycheck as a musician.

What did Dave Grohl say about Sass Jordan?

At a Foo Fighters concert in Toronto on July 9, 2015, Grohl told the crowd, “If it weren’t for Sass Jordan, Taylor Hawkins wouldn’t be in Foo Fighters right now.”

How did Taylor Hawkins go from Sass Jordan’s band to the Foo Fighters?

After touring with Jordan in 1994, Hawkins auditioned for and joined Alanis Morissette’s touring band in 1995. He toured with Morissette until 1997, when Foo Fighters needed a new drummer after William Goldsmith’s departure. Grohl asked Hawkins to join, and he accepted.

When did Sass Jordan die?

Jordan died on October 2, 2026, surrounded by her family. No official cause of death was announced, but reports indicate she had been privately battling cancer. She was 63 years old.

When did Taylor Hawkins die?

Hawkins died on March 25, 2022, at the age of 50, in Bogota, Colombia, while on tour with the Foo Fighters. Preliminary toxicology reports found 10 substances in his system, and his heart was found to weigh roughly twice the average size.

What was Sass Jordan’s biggest hit?

“Make You a Believer” from her 1992 album Racine peaked at No. 11 on Billboard’s Mainstream Rock Airplay chart. Her highest-charting rock single was “High Road Easy” from her 1994 album Rats, which reached No. 6 on the same chart.

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