How Taylor Hawkins’ death worsened Dave Navarro’s health struggle

Jane’s Addiction guitarist Dave Navarro, who recently returned to the band after a three-year battle with Long Covid, spoke about how the death of Taylor Hawkins has made his condition even more difficult.

The pair, along with touring AC/DC bassist Chris Chaney, had just completed work on the band’s debut album when Hawkins died in March 2022, four months after Navarro was diagnosed with the long-term version of the SARS-CoV-2 virus.

“I had just finished a record with Taylor Hawkins and Chris Chaney,” said Navarro Guitar World in an upcoming interview, referring to NHC’s album, which is still unreleased, although two tracks from the project were released in 2021.

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“We mixed it and mastered it – and then we lost Taylor. That was in the middle of the Covid period, and it was actually very painful for me to pick up the guitar again after that. … I didn’t pick up the guitar for about a year.”

He described Hawkins as “such an inspirational artist,” adding, “Not only was he a phenomenal drummer, but he was a great songwriter and lyricist… he was just one of those people that everyone loved. Everyone loved him.”

How Dave Navarro started playing guitar again

Navarro discussed how his grief exacerbated his viral infection, adding, “For the first year after Taylor died, I didn’t play. …Then, after about a year, I picked up the guitar, started playing some cover songs, and kind of got used to the instrument in my hand again.”

At the beginning of the year, the guitarist finally returned to the limelight with Jane’s Addiction; on July 24th, the new single “Imminent Redemption” will be released – the first recording with the original line-up since 1990.