rhcp history

8/14/2019 rhcp history

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Formation and first album (19831984) A promotional flyer featuring the band from 1986.Red Hot Chili Peppers (originally Tony Flow and the Miraculously MajesticMasters of Mayhem )[2] were formed by alumni , , , and following what wassupposed to be a one time performance in 1983. [3] As Slovak was alreadycommitted to another group, , the foursome never intended to become part of the. Their first performance was at the Rhythm Lounge, to a crowd of roughly 30people. [4] One song had been created for the occasion, which involved the bandimprovising music while Kiedis rapped a poem he had written called "Out inL.A.".[5] The performance was so lively the band were asked to return thefollowing week. [4] Due to this unexpected success, the members changed the

band's name to the Red Hot Chili Peppers, playing several more shows atvarious LA clubs and musical venues. Six songs from these initial shows wererecorded onto the band's first . [6]

Several months after their first performance, the band was signed to the recordlabel . Two weeks earlier, had obtained a record deal with , and as Slovak andIrons considered the Red Hot Chili Peppers a side project, they quit to pursuetheir first project. Instead of dissolving the band, Kiedis and Flea decided torecruit new members. [7] , an acquaintance of Flea's, was asked to join the ChiliPeppers shortly thereafter. Auditions for a new guitarist produced .

[8] [9] [10] [11] [12]

[] Freaky Styley and The Uplift Mofo Party Plan (19851988)[13] [14] [15]

Cliff Martinez was dismissed from the group in the summer of 1986, with Kiedissaying that he sensed that Martinez wished to leave. The band temporarily hiredbefore Jack Irons, out of work and finally separated from other commitments,rejoined the group, to Anthony, Flea, and Hillel's great surprise. The ChiliPeppers attempted to hire to produce their third album, but he turned the offer down. The band eventually hired , who was the band's last choice. [16] Songsbegan to form quickly, and the album's shape came into view, blending the same

funk feel and rhythms as Freaky Styley , but also taking a harder, more immediateapproach to and . [17] Reuniting all four original members renewed their creativity, enlivening the recording process. [18] The Red Hot Chili Peppers' original lineup c. 1988. Left to right: Jack Irons, Flea,Anthony Kiedis, Hillel Slovak.

On , , was released, becoming the first Red Hot Chili Peppers album to appear on any chart. Although it peaked at only #148 on the ,[19] this was a significant


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success compared to the Chili Peppers' firsttwo albums.

During this period, however, Kiedis and Slovakhad both developed serious drugaddictions, [20] often abandoning the band,each other, and their significant others for days on end. Slovak's addiction led tohis death on , , not long after the conclusion of the Uplift tour. [21] Kiedis fled thecity and did not attend Slovak's funeral, considering the situation to be surrealand dreamlike. [22] Jack Irons subsequently left the group, saying that he did notwant to be part of a group where his friends were dying. [23]

[] Mother's Milk (19891990)In an attempt to cope with the death of Slovak and the departure of Irons, Kiedisand Flea temporarily employed drummer and former guitarist . Neither sparkedany notable chemistry and they were each replaced rapidly. However, Peligro's

brief tenure did have one vital, long-term consequence for the Red Hot ChiliPeppers his association with the band led an acquaintance of his, , to auditionfor the band's empty guitarist role. Frusciante was fascinated with the Red HotChili Peppers and, as a result, was particularly interested in auditioning.Following a constructive jam (which would later appear on as ""), there was aunanimous decision to accept Frusciante into the band. [24]

Three weeks prior to the beginning of recording, the band was still without adrummer, despite several auditions. Eventually, a close friend of the band toldthem about a drummer she knew, , who was so proficient on the drums he "ate[them] for breakfast". [25] Kiedis had qualms about allowing Smith to try out;however, he agreed to give him a chance. At his audition, Smith overwhelmedthe band by not only matching Flea's intricate and complex rhythm, but evenbeginning to lead him. After this successful jam session, Kiedis, Frusciante andFlea admitted Smith into the band.

The recording of the band's fourth album was hindered by conflict with producer Michael Beinhorn, whose primary agenda was to give Frusciante's guitar playinga loud, overpowering sound, similar to the abrasive tones utilized in .[26] Thismodification caused Frusciante great discomfort, as it did not fit with his preferredstyle of guitar playing. [27]

The Chili Peppers' fourth album, was released in August 1989, and gave themtheir first top modern rock hits a tribute ballad to Slovak, "", [3] and their cover of 's "". The album reached #52 on the album charts and became the band's firstgold record. [28]

[] Blood Sugar Sex Magik (19901992)In 1990, the group switched labels to , with hired to produce their then-untitledfifth album. Rubin has produced all of the band's subsequent studio albums. Thewriting process for this album was far more productive than it had been during

Blood Sugar Sex Magik samples:

Sample of "", the first single from (1991)

Problems listening to the file? See .


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the creation of Mother's Milk , with Kiedis saying that "[every day] now, there wasnew music for me to lyricize". [29]

The band embarked on the grueling six-month process of recording a new album the long periods of rehearsal, songwriting, and the incubating of ideas butRubin wasn't satisfied with a regular recording studio, thinking the band wouldwork better in a less orthodox setting. He came across an "amazing, huge, emptyhistorically landmarked Mediterranean haunted mansion a stone's throw fromwhere we all lived." [30] For the next month or so, Frusciante, Kiedis and Flearemained in seclusion, never once leaving the house during the entire recordingprocess. Smith, however, decided not to live in the house, believing it to behaunted. [31]

The band was unable to decide on the title of the album, but to Rubin, oneparticular song title stuck out: "". Although it was not a featured song, Rickbelieved it to be "clearly the best title" they had at the time. [32]

On , , was released. "" was released as the first single; it won a award in 1992

for "Best Hard Rock Performance With Vocal"and became the band's firstnumber one single on the chart. [33][34] The ballad "" was released as the followup single, and went on to reach #2 on the chart, [34] the highest the band hasreached on that chart, [34] and became one of the band's most recognizablesongs. Other singles such as "" and "" also fared well on the charts. The albumitself was an international sensation, selling over 12 million copies and greatlybroadening the Chili Peppers' audience. [35] was listed at number 310 on the listof , and in 1992 it rose to #3 on the U.S. album charts, almost a year after itsrelease. [9]

After producing the album, the members of the band wished to release the song"Sir Psycho Sexy" as their newest single. However, Warner Bros. Recordsbelieved that the song was too graphic to be played on the radio. As a result, thesong was not released as a single.[]

The band's success and drug addiction were taking their toll on Frusciante, whoabruptly quit the band during the Blood Sugar Japanese tour in May 1992. [3] Theband headlined the festival in 1992 with replacement guitarist (who appearedwith them in fourth season finale, "", and the videos for "" and ""), and briefly withof the Los Angeles-based band Mother Tongue. Neither lasted very long, with therest of the band stating that "The chemistry wasn't right." [36] They eventuallysettled on former guitarist .

[] One Hot Minute (19931998)[37][38] [38] [39]

This iteration of the band was also featured onseveral soundtracks. "", a cover, was featuredon . The cover, "", was featured on the , andwas released as a single.

By this point Kiedis had resumed his heroin

Music sample:


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dependence. In April 1998 it was announced that Navarro had left the band dueto creative differences; Kiedis stated that the decision was "mutual." [40] Reportsat the time, however, indicated Navarro's firing came after he attended a bandpractice under the influence of drugs, which at one point involved him fallingbackwards over his own amp. [41] Kiedis has since said that though the event

should have been comical, it was instead pitiful and was the impetus for Navarro's departure. [42]

[] Californication (19982001)In the years following his departure from the band, it became public that JohnFrusciante had developed an addiction to heroin, which left him in poverty andnear death. [43] He was talked into admitting himself to Las Encinas DrugRehabilitation Center in January of 1998. [44][45] He concluded the process inFebruary of that year and began renting a small apartment in Silver Lake. [46] Heacquired many injuries/problems in the years of his addiction, some requiringsurgery, including permanent scarring on his arms, a restructured nose, and newteeth to prevent fatal infection. [47]

The newly reunited band in a promotional shot. Circa 1999.

In April 1998, Flea visited his former band-mate and openly invited Frusciante tore-join the band, an invitation an emotional Frusciante readily accepted. [46] Within the week and, for the first time in six years, the reunited foursomegathered to play, and jump-started the newly reunited Red Hot Chili Peppers. [48] Anthony Kiedis said of the situation: [49]

For me, that was the defining moment of what would become the next

six years of our lives together. That was when I knew that this was thereal deal, that the magic was about to happen again. Suddenly we couldall hear, we could all listen, and instead of being caught up in our finitelittle balls of bullshit, we could all become players in that great universalorchestra again. [48]

Despite the band's elation by Frusciante's return, he was both mentally andphysically torn. Frusciante had not played in several years, having previouslysold every guitar he owned for drug money, [43] and experienced a difficult timeresuming life prior to his drug usage. His former talent did, however, resurfaceand new songs began to roll out. On , , after over a year of production andmeticulous practice, was released as the band's seventh studio album. An

almost instant achievement, [9] the album ultimately sold over 15 million copiesworldwide and became the band's most successful recording to date. [50] contained fewer rap-driven songs than itspredecessors, instead integrating textured,consistent, and melodic guitar riffs, vocals andbass-lines. [51]

Californication peaked at #3 [9] in the US andproduced three more number one modern rock

Sample of "Around the World", the second singlefrom Californication (1999), which combined hard,abrasive guitar progressions with a deeplymelodic chorus.

Problems listening to the file? See .


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hits: "", "" and "". "Scar Tissue" won the 2000 Grammy Award for Best RockSong. It was also performed at the ceremony and included a brief jam withrapper at its culmination. Other singles included "", "", and "", which broke theTop 40 modern rock charts despite not having been commercially released as asingle.

In July 1999, as part of the band's two-year long international world tour insupport of their new album, the Red Hot Chili Peppers played at . Some 10minutes before the show, they were asked by 's sister to play a cover of her brother's songs. After some hesitation, the band decided to play his classic "",which they had covered in Mother's Milk . Coincidentally, about two thirds of theway into the band's set, the closing set of the three day concert, a small fireescalated into full-fledged vandalism and resulted in the intervention of riotcontrol squads. [52]

In 2001, the Chili Peppers released their first concert DVD, . The DVD wasdirected by longtime friend , who had also produced the music videos for "" and"". The footage was taken from numerous different concerts, but wasamalgamated with transition and indistinguishable song conversions.

[] By the Way (20022005) Ticket stub from the June 19 Live in Hyde Park concert in 2004.

The band began writing their next album in early 2001 and released over a year later, on , . The album, at the time, was their most noteworthy chart debut (withover 700,000 copies sold in first week), emerging at #2, [9] and producing hitsingles "", "" , "", "", and "". It was the most subdued album they had generated to

date, focusing primarily on melodic ballads as opposed to their classic style of rap-driven funk. [53] The album was followed by an eighteen month-long worldtour. [54]

The Chili Peppers recorded two new songs, "" and "" for their album released inNovember 2003, [55] peaking at #18 on the . [9] However, "Universally Speaking"and "By the Way" were the only two songs from By the Way included in thecompilation.

The European leg of the By the Way tour produced the band's second full-lengthconcert DVD, , which was recorded during a show at in Ireland on , . The bandalso went on to release their first full-length live album, from the 2004 European

Tour, ; recorded during their performances in , , due to the concerts' highattendances. It featured two previously unheard songs, "Rolling Sly Stone" and"Leverage of Space", which are believed to have been unreleased tracks fromthe By the Way sessions. In the three evenings the band performed in HydePark, they generated an estimated $17 million, making it the highest grossingconcert at a single venue in history (moving to 2). [56]


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[] Stadium Arcadium (2006present) Red Hot Chili Peppers performing at the 2007 . From left to right, Flea, Kiedis,Smith and Frusciante.

In 2006 the band released the -winning , produced by . Although 38 songs werecreated with the intention of being released as three separate albums spaced sixmonths apart, [57] the band instead chose to release a 28-track , with theremaining ten tracks released later as B-sides. It was their first album to debut at#1 on the US charts, where it stayed for two weeks, and debuted at number onein the and 25 other countries. In the album's first week, it sold 442,000 units inthe United States alone, and over 1,100,000 worldwide, setting a personal recordfor one week sales. [9] By the end of 2006, Stadium Arcadium was named thebest-selling album of the year, with over seven million units sold, and alsorecorded the highest one week in total sales of the year. [58]

The record's first single "", was the band's fastest-selling single, debuting on topof the Modern Rock chart in the US, peaking at #6 on the , and reaching #2 in theUK.[34] "", released next, also topped the charts in 2006. "" was released in late2006, breaking multiple records by 2007. The song became their eleventhnumber one single, giving the band a cumulative total of 81 weeks at number one(all singles combined). It was also the first time three consecutive singles by theband made it to number one. [34] "" was released internationally in February 2007and has reached number 27 on the UK charts. "" was planned to be the nextsingle for the US, Canada, and Australia only, but thanks to positive feedbackfrom the music video, it was released as a worldwide single in May 2007.

The band began another international world tour in support of Stadium Arcadiumin 2006, beginning with promotional concerts in Europe and culminating in a two-month long European tour from late May to mid-July. The group then touredNorth America from early August to early November, returning to Europe later inNovember for a second leg that ran until mid-December. The Chili Peppersbegan the year of 2007 with a second North American leg, this time includingMexico in addition to the United States, from mid-January to mid-March. Thiswas followed by the band's first shows in Oceania in seven years, includingvarious cities in Australia and New Zealand, from early-to-mid April and twomonths later, and concerts in Japan in early June. The Chili Peppers recentlyfinished touring Europe for another leg from late June to late August. Theyappeared at the concert at 's on , . Throughout the course of their tour, the bandappeared at several festivals, including the , Ireland in July 2006, in August 2006in , , and a subsequent set at the in in late April 2007.

In February, 2007, the Chili Peppers won 6 : ( Stadium Arcadium ), ("DaniCalifornia"), ("Dani California"), Best Boxed Or Special Limited Edition Package(Stadium Arcadium ), (Rick Rubin) [59], and ("Dani California"). The ceremonyincluded a live performance of "", their single at the time, complete with confettisnow.


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[] Musical style

[] TechniquesKiedis provides a range of vocal styles while singing. His approach of spokenverse and "rapping" (the primary characteristic of his vocals up to )complemented with more traditional vocals have helped the band maintain arelatively consistent style. [60] Nevertheless, as the group has matured, the vocalsequences present in albums ensuing have drastically reduced the number of rapidly sung verses. By the Way only contained one song which remained true tothe rap-driven-verses and subsequent melodic choruses. [61] Kiedis' more recentstyle has been obtained through coaching throughout all nine of Red Hot ChiliPeppers' albums. [62]

[63] [64] [65]

Flea's style is an amalgamation of , , , and . [66] The groove-heavy, low-tuned

melodies, played through either normal finger style or aggressive (popping andslapping), have contributed to the Red Hot Chili Peppers' signature style. WhileFlea's slap bass style was prominent in earlier albums, later albums (post "BloodSugar Sex Magik") [66] have more melodic bass lines. He has also used on "", """" and "".

Chad Smith's in-the-pocket style of drumming adds space and allows Fruscianteand Flea to add melodies to the beats and grooves more effectively. He activelyemploys rapid successions of the bass drum - often following Flea's fast basslines - with only one bass drum pedal. This is evident in the song "The GreetingSong", where in the main riff Smith's bass drum mimics Flea's bass accents. Inaddition, a song like "" demonstrates his in-the-pocket drumming that placesfocuses on the groove over flashiness. However, Smith is known to play "flashy"fills during the band's live performances, although he has downplayed theimportance of this, stating "Playing well with others is important - not being tooflashy." [67]

While Kiedis is the lead vocalist for the band, Frusciante often contributesbacking vocals and two part harmonies to various songs. He sang lead on thechorus of such Blood Sugar Sex Magik songs as "The Power of Equality", "","Breaking The Girl" and "The Righteous and the Wicked". His is used frequently,particularly on and , though it was also used on Blood Sugar Sex Magik on thesongs "" and "". Frusciante shared lead vocal duties with Kiedis on "" from , and

has solo spots on songs such as "" and "". It has become a tradition that at somepoint during a Chili Peppers concert John performs an unaccompanied , usuallya hit from the 1960s or 1970s, or one of his own solo songs. Such songs include"" by , "" by , "" by ,"" by , "For Emily, Wherever I May Find Her" by , "" by , "" by ,"See Emily Play" by , "" by , "" by , "" by , and various songs from his soloalbums.


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[] ImprovisationImprovisation has always been a major part of the band's signature style, withearly shows composed almost entirely of improvisations. In addition, many guitar solos recorded on the current albums and played live by Frusciante areimprovised, as are several of Flea's bass solos. The band has, for most of thelast decade, opened the show with a short improvisation, always in the same keyas the initial song. Sometimes the beginnings, middle sections and/or endings of the songs are extended by long improvisations, such as "", "", "", "", "", "", "", ""and "". The group has always ended the show with a longer improvisation,usually stemming from the improvisation to "". The idea of the band improvisingat their shows stems from a request that Frusciante asked of Kiedis uponreturning to the band for "".

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