Roger Hawkins (drummer)

{{Short description|American drummer (1945–2021)}}

{{Infobox musical artist

| name = Roger Hawkins

| image = Roger Hawkins-1980.png

| image_size =

| landscape =

| alt =

| caption = Hawkins in 1980

| birth_name =

| native_name =

| native_name_lang =

| alias =

| birth_date = {{birth date|1945|10|16}}

| birth_place = Mishawaka, Indiana, United States

| origin =

| death_date = {{death date and age|2021|05|20|1945|10|16}}

| death_place = Sheffield, Alabama, United States

| genre = Soul, R&B, Rock

| occupation = Session musician

| instrument = Drums, percussion

| years_active =

| label =

| past_member_of = Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section

| website =

}}

Roger G. Hawkins (October 16, 1945 – May 20, 2021){{cite web |url=https://www.al.com/news/2021/05/swampers-drummer-muscle-shoals-sound-studio-cofounder-roger-hawkins-has-died.html |title=Swampers drummer, Muscle Shoals Sound Studio cofounder Roger Hawkins has died |first=Matt |last=Wake |date=May 20, 2021 |website=al.com |access-date=May 21, 2021}} was an American drummer best known for playing as part of the studio backing band known as the Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section (also known as the Swampers){{Cite web|url=https://www.moderndrummer.com/2017/04/roger-hawkins-pulse-muscle-shoals/|title=Roger Hawkins: The Pulse of Muscle Shoals {{!}} Modern Drummer Magazine|website=www.moderndrummer.com|date=26 April 2017 |language=en-US|access-date=2017-05-03}} of Alabama. Rolling Stone ranked Hawkins number 31 on its list of greatest drummers.{{cite magazine | url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-lists/100-greatest-drummers-of-all-time-77933/james-gadson-29353/ | title=100 Greatest Drummers of All Time | magazine=Rolling Stone | date=31 March 2016 }}

Biography

Hawkins's drumming can be heard on dozens of hit singles, including tracks by Percy Sledge ("When a Man Loves a Woman"), Aretha Franklin ("Respect", "I Never Loved a Man (The Way I Love You)" etc.), Wilson Pickett ("Mustang Sally", "Land of 1000 Dances"), The Staple Singers, Johnnie Taylor, Bobby Womack, Clarence Carter,{{cite book |last=Jones |first=Roben |year=2010 |title=Memphis Boys: the story of American Studios |location=Jackson MS |publisher=University Press of Mississippi |pages=159–160|isbn=9781604734010}}{{cite book| last=Poe| first=Randy| title=Skydog: the Duane Allman story| year=2006| location=Milwaukee WI| publisher=Backbeat Books| isbn=978-1-6171-3487-6}} Etta James, Duane Allman, Joe Cocker, Paul Simon, Bob Seger, Bonnie Bramlett, Bobby "Blue" Bland, Boz Scaggs, Albert King, Traffic, Rod Stewart, Dan Penn, Lulu, and Willie Nelson. He also recorded with Eric Clapton in the early 80's.

{{Blockquote|text="Playing with the same guys for so long, well, it's really hard to impress Barry, David or Jimmy because they've heard me do it before. And it's the same with them. I mean, if Barry plays a hot lick, I don't congratulate him; he's supposed to do that. I don't know what it is, but when the four of us sit down to play, it's almost like a burden has been lifted from our shoulders. It's like, "Hey, we're home."{{cite book |title=The Big Beat: Conversations with Rock's Greatest Drummers |first=Max |last=Weinberg |authorlink=Max Weinberg |year=2004 |publisher=Hudson Music |page=58 |isbn=978-0634082757}}|author=Roger Hawkins}}

Hawkins died at age 75 at his home in Sheffield, Alabama.{{cite web|last=Fu|first=Eddie|title=R.I.P. Roger Hawkins, Muscle Shoals Drummer on Aretha Franklin and Percy Sledge Hits Dead at 75|url=https://consequence.net/2021/05/roger-hawkins-obituary/|work=Consequence of Sound|date=May 21, 2021|access-date=May 21, 2021}} Hawkins had suffered from numerous health problems including chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

Top 40 US hits

class="wikitable"
Artist

! Song title

! US charts

! highest charting date

! Miscellaneous

Percy Sledge

| When a Man Loves a Woman

| #1

| April 30, 1966

|

Wilson Pickett

| Land of a 1000 Dances

| #6

| August 13, 1966

|

James & Bobby Purify

| I'm Your Puppet

| #6

| October 22, 1966

|

Wilson Pickett

| Mustang Sally

| #22

| December 10, 1966

|

Etta James

| Tell Mama

| #23

| December 30, 1967

|

Aretha Franklin

| I Never Loved a Man (The Way I Love You)

| #9

| March 18, 1967

|

Aretha Franklin

| Respect

| #1

| May 6, 1967

|

Aretha Franklin

| Chain of Fools

| #2

| December 16, 1967

|

Aretha Franklin

| Since You've Been Gone

| #5

| March 2, 1968

|

Percy Sledge

| Take Time to Know Her

| #11

| April 6, 1968

|

Aretha Franklin{{cite AV media notes|title=Queen of Soul: The Atlantic Recordings |others=Aretha Franklin |year=1992 |type=box set liner notes |publisher=Atlantic Records}}

| Think

| #7

| May 25, 1968

|

Clarence Carter

| Slip Away

| #6

| August 17, 1968

|

Wilson Pickett

| Hey Jude

| #23

| January 4, 1969

| Duane Allman, guitar

R.B. Greaves

| Take a Letter Maria

| #2

| October 25, 1969

|

The Staple Singers

| Heavy Makes You Happy

| #27

| March 20, 1971

|

The Staple Singers

| Respect Yourself

| #12

| November 13, 1971

|

The Staple Singers

| I'll Take You There

| #1

| April 15, 1972

|

Mel & Tim

| Starting All Over Again

| #19

| September 16, 1972

|

Paul Simon

| Kodachrome

| #2

| June 2, 1973

|

Paul Simon

| Loves Me Like a Rock

| #2

| August 18, 1973

|vocals by the Dixie Hummingbirds

Paul Simon

| Still Crazy After All These Years

| #40

| December 6, 1975

Bob Seger

| Mainstreet

| #24

| May 4, 1977

| Silver Bullet Band

Bob Seger

| We've Got Tonight

| #13

| November 25, 1978

| Silver Bullet Band

Bob Seger

| Old Time Rock & Roll

| #28

| May 5, 1979

| Silver Bullet Band

Collaborations

{{Div col|colwidth=30em}}

With Alabama

With Paul Anka

  • Feelings (United Artists Records, 1975)

With Patti Austin

  • Body Language (CTI Records, 1980)
  • In My Life (CTI Records, 1983)

With Joan Baez

With William Bell

  • Wow... (Stax Records, 1971)
  • Phases of Reality (Stax Records, 1972)

With Bobby Bland

  • Midnight Run (Malaco Records, 1989)
  • Portrait of the Blues (Malaco Records, 1991)
  • Sad Street (Malaco Records, 1995)
  • Blues at Midnight (Malaco Records, 2003)

With Bonnie Bramlett

  • Lady's Choice (Capricorn Records, 1976)

With Dee Dee Bridgewater

With Dianne Brooks

  • Back Stairs in My Life (Reprise Records, 1976)

With Randy Brown

  • Midnight Desire (Chocolate City, 1980)

With Shirley Brown

  • Joy & Pain (Malaco Records, 1993)

With Peabo Bryson

  • Peabo (Bullet Records, 1976)

With Jimmy Buffett

With Solomon Burke

  • King Solomon (Atlantic Records, 1968)
  • Proud Mary (Ola, 1969)

With Billy Burnette

  • Gimme You (Columbia Records, 1981)

With J. J. Cale

With Kim Carnes

With Clarence Carter

  • This is Clarence Carter (Atlantic Records, 1968)
  • Testifyin' (Atlantic Records, 1969)
  • The Dynamic Clarence Carter (Atlantic Records, 1969)

With Beth Nielsen Chapman

  • Hearing It First (Capitol Records, 1980)

With Cher

With Eric Clapton

With Jimmy Cliff

With Joe Cocker

With Ry Cooder

With Steve Cropper

  • Night After Night (MCA Records, 1982)

With Gail Davies

  • The Game (Warner Bros. Records, 1980)

With Mink DeVille

With Willy DeVille

With The Dramatics

With José Feliciano

  • Sweet Soul Music (Private Stock Records, 1976)

With Eddie Floyd

  • Soul Street (Stax Records, 1974)

With Aretha Franklin

With Glenn Frey

With Art Garfunkel

With Barry Goldberg

  • Barry Goldberg (Atco Records, 1974)

With James Govan

  • I'm in Need (Charity, 1987)

With John P. Hammond

  • Southern Fried (Atlantic Records, 1971)
  • Can't Beat the Kid (Capricorn Records, 1975)

With Ronnie Hawkins

  • Ronnie Hawkins (Cotillion Records, 1970)

With Levon Helm

With Loleatta Holloway

With Etta James

With Margie Joseph

  • Margie Joseph Make a New Impression (Volt Records, 1971)

With Nick Kamen

  • Nick Kamen (WEA, 1987)

With Albert King

With Julian Lennon

With Lulu

With Mary MacGregor

With Lonnie Mack

With Mac McAnally

With Delbert McClinton

  • Second Wind (Capricorn Records, 1978)
  • The Jealous Kind (Capitol Records, 1980)
  • Plain from the Heart (Capitol Records, 1981)

With Mel and Tim

  • Starting All Over Again (Stax Records, 1972)
  • Mel & Tim (Stax Records, 1973)

With Frankie Miller

  • Standing on the Edge (Capitol Records, 1982)

With Ronnie Milsap

With Jackie Moore

  • Make Me Feel Like a Woman (Kayvette, 1975)

With Willie Nelson

With Laura Nyro

With The Oak Ridge Boys

With Odetta

With Danny O'Keefe

  • Danny O'Keefe (Cotillion, 1970)

With Tony Orlando

  • Tony Orlando (Elektra, 1978)

With Dan Penn

  • Nobody's Fool (Bell Records, 1973)
  • Do Right Man (Sire Records, 1994)
  • Blue Nite Lounge (Dandy Records, 2000)
  • Something About the Night (Dandy Records, 2016)

With Wilson Pickett

With Don Preston

  • Been Here All The Time (Shelter Records, 1974)

With Primal Scream

With Eddie Rabbitt

With Helen Reddy

With Little Richard

With Johnny Rivers

  • The Road (Atlantic Records, 1974)
  • Borrowed Time (RSO Records, 1980)

With Linda Ronstadt

With Billy Joe Royal

With Calvin Russell

  • Calvin Russell (Last Call Records, 1997)
  • Sam (Last Call Records, 1999)

With Leon Russell

With Boz Scaggs

With Bob Seger

With Joe Simon

  • Easy to Love (Spring Records, 1977)

With John Simon

  • John Simon's Album (Warner Bros. Records, 1970)

With Paul Simon

With Percy Sledge

  • The Percy Sledge Way (Atlantic Records, 1967)
  • I'll Be Your Everything (Capricorn Records, 1974)

With Mavis Staples

With The Staple Singers

With Starland Vocal Band

  • 4 X 4 (Windsong, 1980)

With Candi Staton

  • Candi (Warner Bros. Records, 1974)

With Cat Stevens

With B. W. Stevenson

  • Rainbow Down the Road (Amazing Records, 1990)

With Rod Stewart

With Billy Swan

  • Four (Columbia Records, 1977)

With The Sweet Inspirations

With Keith Sykes

  • The Way That I Feel (Midland Records, 1977)

With Alex Taylor

With Kate Taylor

With Traffic

With Vaya Con Dios

With Wendy Waldman

  • Gypsy Symphony (Warner Bros. Records, 1974)

With Tony Joe White

{{div col end}}

Notes

  • {{cite book |title=The Big Beat: Conversations with Rock's Greatest Drummers |first=Max |last=Weinberg |authorlink=Max Weinberg |year=2004 |publisher=Hudson Music |pages=44–59 |isbn=978-0634082757}}
  • {{cite book |title=The Billboard Book of Top 40 Hits |first=Joel |last=Whitburn |authorlink=Joel Whitburn |year=1992 |publisher=Billboard Books |isbn=978-0823082803}}
  • {{cite AV media notes|title=Muscle Shoals Sound |others=Various Artists |year=1993 |type=liner notes |publisher=Rhino Records |id=R2-71517}}
  • {{cite AV media notes|title=The Exciting Wilson Pickett |others=Wilson Pickett |year=2002 |type=liner notes |publisher=Atlantic Records}}
  • {{cite AV media notes|title=Greatest Hits |others=Bob Seger |year=1994 |type=liner notes |publisher=Capitol Records}}

References

{{Reflist}}