Red Hot Chili Peppers

The Red Hot Chili Peppers (often abbreviated as RHCP) is an American band formed in Los Angeles, California, in 1983. The band's lineup has changed over the years, but currently consists of vocalist Anthony Kiedis, bassist Michael "Flea" Balzary ^{Flea (musician)} , drummer Chad Smith and guitarist Josh Klinghoffer. RCHP's musical style has fused traditional funk with elements of other genres including punk rock and psychedelic rock.

The group originally featured guitarist Hillel Slovak and drummer Jack Irons. Slovak, however, died of a heroin overdose in 1988, resulting in Irons' departure. Irons was replaced briefly by former Dead Kennedys drummer D.H. Peligro before the band found a permanent replacement in Smith, while Slovak was replaced by up-and-coming guitarist John Frusciante. This lineup recorded the band's fourth and fifth albums, Mother's Milk (1989) and Blood Sugar *** Magik (1991).

Blood Sugar *** Magik was a significant record for the band; having sold over thirteen million copies, it provided the group's initial mainstream commercial success. Frusciante grew uncomfortable with this new found success and left abruptly in the middle of the tour for the album in 1992, descending into heroin addiction. After recruiting guitarist Arik Marshall to finish the tour, Kiedis, Flea, and Smith employed Dave Navarro of Jane's Addiction for their subsequent album, One Hot Minute (1995). Although fairly successful, it did not match the critical acclaim of Blood Sugar *** Magik and sold less than half the copies of its predecessor. Shortly afterwards, Navarro departed the band due to creative differences. Frusciante, fresh out of drug rehabilitation, rejoined the band in 1998, at Flea's request. The reunited quartet returned to the studio to record Californication ^{Californication (album)} (1999), which went on to sell fifteen million units worldwide, becoming their most commercially successful album to date. It was followed three years later with By the Way (2002), which continued their success. In 2006, the group released the double album Stadium Arcadium, giving them their first American number one album.

The Red Hot Chili Peppers have won seven Grammy Awards. The band has sold over fifty-five million albums worldwide, has had eight singles in the Top 40 of the Billboard Hot 100 ^{Billboard Hot 100} (including three singles in the Top 10), five number one singles on the Mainstream Rock charts, and holds a record of eleven number one singles on the Modern Rock charts.

 
Formation and first album (1983–84)


Red Hot Chili Peppers (originally Tony Flow and the Miraculously Majestic Masters of Mayhem) were formed by Anthony Kiedis, and Flea while they attended Fairfax High School in California. Tony Flow and MMMM's first performance was at the Rhythm Lounge, to a crowd of approximately thirty people, opening for Gary and Neighbor's Voices. One song had been created for the occasion, which involved the band improvising music while Kiedis rapped a poem he had written called "Out in L.A.". Since Slovak and Irons were already committed to another group, What Is This?, it was intended to be a one time performance. However, the performance was so lively that the band was asked to return the following week.

Several months after their first performance RHCP was noticed by EMI and was signed to the record label. Two weeks earlier, What Is This? had also obtained a record deal but with MCA ^{MCA Records} . Slovak and Irons still considered the Red Hot Chili Peppers as only a side project and so they quit to focus on What Is This?. Instead of dissolving the band, Kiedis and Flea decided to recruit new members. Cliff Martinez, a friend of Flea's, was asked to join the Chili Peppers shortly thereafter. Auditions for a new guitarist produced Jack Sherman ^{Jack Sherman (guitarist)} .

Gang of Four ^{Gang of Four (band)} guitarist Andy Gill was hired to produce their first album. Despite Kiedis and Flea's misgivings, he pushed the band to play with a cleaner, crisper and more radio-friendly sound. The Red Hot Chili Peppers ^{The Red Hot Chili Peppers (album)} was released on August 10, 1984. Though the album didn't set sales records, college radio and MTV airplay helped to build a growing fan base. The album ultimately sold 300,000 copies. During the ensuing tour, continuing musical and lifestyle tension between Kiedis and Sherman complicated the transition between concert and daily band life. Sherman was fired soon after, with Slovak returning to the Chili Peppers after growing tired of What is This?.


Freaky Styley and The Uplift Mofo Party Plan (1985–88)

George Clinton ^{George Clinton (funk musician)} was selected to produce the next Red Hot Chili Peppers album, Freaky Styley. The album was recorded in Detroit's famed R&B and funky United Sound Systems studios on the edge of Wayne State University's campus. Clinton combined various elements of punk and funk into the band's repertoire, allowing their music to incorporate a variety of distinct styles. However, though the band had a much better relationship with Clinton than with Gill, Freaky Styley, released on August 16, 1985, also achieved little success, failing to make an impression on any chart. The subsequent tour was also considered unproductive by the band.

In the song "Yertle The Turtle" on their Freaky Styley album a different voice is heard saying: "Look at that turtle go bro." It was mentioned in Kiedis auto-biography Scar Tissue that the voice is of Clinton's cocaine dealer, whom he couldn't afford to pay, and offered to put him in a song instead.

The band appeared in the 1986 movie Thrashin' playing the song Blackeyed Blonde from Freaky Styley. During this time the band also appeared in the movie Tough Guys starring Burt Lancaster and Kirk Douglas, performing the song Set It Straight at a nightclub in Los Angeles.

Cliff Martinez was dismissed from the group in the summer of 1986, with Kiedis saying that he sensed that Martinez wished to leave. Jack Irons, out of work and finally separated from other commitments, rejoined the group, to Kiedis, Flea, and Slovak's great surprise. The Chili Peppers attempted to hire Rick Rubin to produce their third album, but he turned the offer down. The band eventually hired Michael Beinhorn, who was the band's last choice. Songs began 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 immediate approach to punk rock. Reuniting all four original members renewed their creativity, enlivening the recording process.


On September 29, 1987, The Uplift Mofo Party Plan was released, becoming the first Red Hot Chili Peppers album to appear on any chart. Although it peaked at only #148 on the Billboard Hot 200, this was a significant success compared to the Chili Peppers' first two albums.

During this period, however, Kiedis and Slovak had both developed serious drug addictions, often abandoning the band, each other, and their significant others for days on end. Slovak's addiction led to his death on June 25, 1988, not long after the conclusion of the Uplift tour. Kiedis fled the city and did not attend Slovak's funeral, considering the situation to be surreal and dreamlike. Jack Irons subsequently left the group, saying that he did not want to be part of a group where his friends were dying. Irons went on to become a member of Seattle grunge band Pearl Jam, however in 1998 Slovak's death was still playing on him so he quit that band too.

Three weeks prior to the beginning of recording, the band was still without a drummer, despite several auditions. Eventually, a friend of the band told them about a drummer she knew, Chad Smith, who was so proficient on the drums he "ate [them] for breakfast". Kiedis had qualms about allowing Smith to try out; however, he agreed to give him a chance. At his audition, Smith overwhelmed the band by not only matching Flea's intricate and complex rhythm, but even beginning to lead him. After this successful jam session, Kiedis, Frusciante and Flea admitted Smith into the band. Smith was told to shave his head to fit into the band's style, but was nonetheless still allowed into the band when he showed up the next day with the same bandana.

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 playing a loud, overpowering sound, similar to the abrasive tones utilized in heavy metal ^{Heavy metal music} . This modification caused Frusciante great discomfort, as it did not fit with his preferred style of playing. An example of this can be heard on the song "Nobody Weird Like Me".

The Chili Peppers' fourth album, Mother's Milk was released in August 1989, and gave them their first top modern rock hits – a tribute ballad to Slovak, "Knock Me Down",


Blood Sugar *** Magik and departure of John Frusciante (1990–92)




In 1990, the group switched labels to Warner Bros. Records, with Rick Rubin hired to produce their then-untitled fifth album. Rubin has produced all of the band's subsequent studio albums. The writing process for this album was far more productive than it had been during the creation of Mother's Milk, with Kiedis saying that "[every day] now, there was new music for me to lyricize".

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 but Rubin was dissatisfied with a regular recording studio, thinking the band would work better in a less orthodox setting. He came across an "amazing, huge, empty historically landmarked Mediterranean haunted mansion a stone's throw from where we all lived." Rubin is the current owner of The mansion ^{The Mansion} . For the next month or so, Frusciante, Kiedis and Flea remained in seclusion, never once leaving the house during the entire recording process. Smith, however, decided not to live in the house, believing it to be haunted.

The band was unable to decide on the title of the album, but to Rubin, one particular song title stuck out: "Blood Sugar *** Magik ^{Blood Sugar *** Magik (song)} ". Although it was not a featured song, Rubin believed it to be "clearly the best title" they had at the time.

On September 24, 1991, Blood Sugar *** Magik was released. "Give It Away ^{Give It Away (Red Hot Chili Peppers song)} " was released as the first single; it won a Grammy award in 1992 for "Best Hard Rock Performance With Vocal" and became the band's first number one single on the Modern Rock ^{Modern Rock Tracks} chart. the highest the band has reached on that chart, Blood Sugar *** Magik was listed at number 310 on the Rolling Stone magazine list of The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time, and in 1992 it rose to #3 on the U.S. album charts, almost a year after its release.

The band's success and drug addiction were taking their toll on Frusciante, who abruptly quit the band during the Blood Sugar Japanese tour in May 1992. They eventually settled on former Jane's Addiction guitarist Dave Navarro, who was now ready to join the band after already turning them down once shortly after Frusciante quit.


One Hot Minute (1993–97)

Dave Navarro first appeared with the band at Woodstock '94, where they wore enormous light bulb costumes attached precariously to chrome metallic suits, making it near-impossible for them to play their instruments. The band followed up their performance at Woodstock with a brief tour which included a performance as the opening act for The Rolling Stones however according to Kiedis, opening for the Stones was a horrible expierence. 1 single, the ballad "My Friends ^{My Friends (song)} ", and enjoyed chart success with the songs "Warped" and "Aeroplane ^{Aeroplane (song)} ".

This iteration of the band was also featured on several soundtracks. "I Found Out", a John Lennon cover, was featured on Working Class Hero: A Tribute to John Lennon. The Ohio Players cover, "Love Rollercoaster ^{Love Rollercoaster#Red Hot Chili Peppers Cover} ", was featured on the Beavis and Butthead Do America soundtrack ^{Beavis and Butthead Do America#Soundtrack} , and was released as a single.

By this point Kiedis had resumed his heroin dependence. In April 1998 it was announced that Navarro had left the band due to creative differences; Kiedis stated that the decision was "mutual". Reports at the time, however, indicated Navarro's departure came after he attended a band practice under the influence of drugs, which at one point involved him falling backwards over his own amp. Kiedis has since said that though the event should have been comical, it was instead pitiful and was the impetus for Navarro's departure.


Return of John Frusciante and Californication (1998–2001)

In the years following his departure from the band, it became public that John Frusciante had developed an addiction to heroin, which left him in poverty and near death. He was talked into admitting himself to Las Encinas Drug Rehabilitation Center in January 1998. He concluded the process in February of that year and began renting a small apartment in Silver Lake. He acquired many injuries/problems in the years of his addiction, some requiring surgery, including permanent scarring on his arms, a restructured nose, and new teeth to prevent fatal infection.

promotional shot, circa 1999
In April 1998, Flea visited his friend, and former band-mate and openly invited Frusciante to re-join the band, an invitation an emotional Frusciante readily accepted. Anthony Kiedis said of the situation:



Californication peaked at #3 in the US and produced three more number one modern rock hits: "Scar Tissue", "Otherside" and "Californication ^{Californication (song)} ". "Scar Tissue" won the 2000 Grammy Award for Best Rock Song. It was also performed at the ceremony and included a brief jam with rapper Snoop Dogg at its culmination. Other singles included "Around the World ^{Around the World (Red Hot Chili Peppers song)} ", "Road Trippin'", and "Parallel Universe ^{Parallel Universe (Red Hot Chili Peppers Song)} ", which broke the Top 40 modern rock charts despite not having been commercially released as a single.

In July 1999, as part of the band's two-year long international world tour ^{Californication Tour} in support of their new album, the Red Hot Chili Peppers played at Woodstock 1999. Some 10 minutes before the show, they were asked by Jimi Hendrix's sister to play a cover of her brother's songs. After some hesitation, the band decided to play his classic "Fire ^{Fire (Jimi Hendrix song)} ", which they had covered on Mother's Milk. Coincidentally, about two thirds of the way into the band's set, the closing set of the three day concert, a small fire escalated into full-fledged vandalism and resulted in the intervention of riot control squads.

In September 2000, the Peppers were nominated for five MTV Video Music Awards, including Video Of The Year, which they again lost however they managed to win two awards for their Californication video and they performed the song as well. The Peppers were also honored with the MTV Video Vanguard Award which is given to musicians who have had a profound effect on the MTV culture.

In 2001, the Chili Peppers released their first concert DVD, Off the Map ^{Off the Map (video)} . The DVD was directed by longtime friend Dick Rude, who had also produced the music videos for "Catholic School Girls Rule" and "Universally Speaking". The footage was taken from two different concerts, but was amalgamated with transition and indistinguishable song conversions.


By the Way (2001–04)


The band began writing their next album in early 2001 with the help of Anne Morgan, and released By the Way over a year later, on July 9, 2002. It appeared that the band was well on its way to becoming legendary after By the Way continued the greatness of Californication, once again receiving 4 out of 5 stars from Rolling Stone. This album is another example of how the band continues to slightly move away from their revolutionary funk-rock-rap hybrid style of the 80's, while still maintaining those fans who were attracted by it. The album features catchy melodies, several different styles, such as the Latin gallop of "Cabron," and the ability to inspire and motivate with urgency and intensity. The album, at the time, was their most noteworthy chart debut, selling over a million copies in first week and emerging at #2 on the Billboard 200. It produced five hit singles; "By the Way ^{By the Way (song)} ", "The Zephyr Song", "Can't Stop ^{Can't Stop (song)} ", "Dosed", and "Universally Speaking", and was the most subdued album they had generated to date, focusing primarily on melodic ballads as opposed to the Chili Peppers' classic style of rap-driven funk. Frusciante also concentrated on a more layered texture on many of the songs, often adding keyboard parts (albeit, they featured very low in the mix) and also writing string arrangements for songs (such as 'Midnight' and 'Minor Thing'). The album was followed by an eighteen month-long world tour ^{By the Way Tour} .

The Chili Peppers recorded two new songs, "Fortune Faded" and "Save the Population" for their Greatest Hits ^{Greatest Hits (Red Hot Chili Peppers album)} album released in November 2003, peaking at #18 on the Billboard 200. However, "Universally Speaking" and "By the Way" were the only two songs from By the Way included in the compilation causing criticism as to why songs such as "Can't Stop" and "The Zephyr Song", which were extremely successful, were not present.

The European leg of the By the Way tour produced the band's second full-length concert DVD, Live at Slane Castle ^{Live at Slane Castle (Red Hot Chili Peppers video)} , which was recorded during a show at Slane Castle in Ireland on August 23, 2003. The band also went on to release their first full-length live album, Live in Hyde Park; recorded during their performances in Hyde Park ^{Hyde Park, London} , London. More than 258,000 fans paid over $17,100,000 in ticket sales to attend the band's three night stand at the park, a 2004 record; the event ranked #1 on Billboard's Top Concert Boxscores of 2004.

It featured two previously unheard songs, "Rolling Sly Stone" and "Leverage of Space", which are believed to have been unreleased tracks from the Greatest Hits sessions.


Stadium Arcadium (2005–07)

. From left to right: Flea, Kiedis, Smith and Frusciante
In 2006 the band released the Grammy Award-winning Stadium Arcadium produced by Rick Rubin. Although 38 songs were created with the intention of being released as three separate albums spaced six months apart, the band instead chose to release a 28-track double album, with the remaining ten tracks to be released later as B-sides, although only nine B-sides ended up released. It was their first album to debut at #1 on the US charts, where it stayed for two weeks, and debuted at number one in the UK ^{UK Albums Chart} and 25 other countries. In the album's first week, it sold 442,000 units in the United States alone, and over 1,100,000 worldwide, setting a personal record for one week sales. By the end of 2006, Stadium Arcadium was named the best-selling album of the year, with over seven million units sold, and also recorded the highest one week in total sales of the year.

The once more vulgar side of the Chili Peppers is less prevalent on this album. Rolling Stone labels this album as their most ambitious work of their career, stating that the monster 28 song album provides a taste of just about every phase of the band's work, "with their funnier funk-metal stuff to more soul-baring" songs. Professional reviews were outstanding once again, even Rolling Stone gave them 4 out of 5 stars.

The record's first single "Dani California", was the band's fastest-selling single, debuting on top of the Modern Rock chart in the US, peaking at #6 on the Billboard Hot 100, and reaching #2 in the UK. This song was also included in the movie Death Note ^{Death Note (film)} as the title theme song. The ceremony included a live performance of "Snow ((Hey Oh))", their single at the time, complete with confetti snow.


Hiatus and second departure of Frusciante (2007–2009)

Following the last leg of the tour promoting Stadium Arcadium, the band members took an extended break. Kiedis attributed this to the band being worn out from their years of nonstop work since Californication. Kiedis explained that he was preoccupied with taking care of his new son and possibly creating a short television series called Spider and Son which is set to be a recap of his autobiography, while Flea signed up for a college course in music at USC, Frusciante continued his solo career and released his solo album, The Empyrean, and Chad Smith worked with Sammy Hagar, Joe Satriani, and Michael Anthony ^{Michael Anthony (musician)} in the supergroup Chickenfoot ^{Chickenfoot (band)} , as well as on his solo project, Chad Smith's Bombastic Meatbats. The band planned to remain on hiatus for "a minimum of one year." The band's only recording during this time was in 2008 with George Clinton ^{George Clinton (musician)} (who also produced 1985's Freaky Styley) on his latest album George Clinton and His Gangsters of Love. Accompanied by Kim Manning, the band recorded a new version of Shirley and Lee's classic "Let the Good Times Roll ^{Let the Good Times Roll (Shirley and Lee song)} ".

In May 2009, Kiedis, Flea, and Smith performed under the name The Insects along with Ron Wood, Josh Klinghoffer and Ivan Neville at the fifth annual MusiCares event honoring Kiedis. He was honored with the Stevie Ray Vaughan Award for his dedication and support of the MusiCares MAP Fund and for his commitment to helping other addicts with the addiction and recovery process. John Frusciante was unable to attend due to commitments in Europe at the time.

In December 2009, Frusciante revealed that he had left the Red Hot Chili Peppers before the start of 2009. Frusciante explained on his MySpace page that there was no drama or anger about him leaving the band this time and that the other members were very supportive and understanding. Frusciante felt his musical interests had led him in a different direction and that he needed to fully focus his efforts on his solo career.


Tenth album and new guitarist Josh Klinghoffer (2009-present)

The Red Hot Chili Peppers have been back in the studio working on a new album since October 2009. Their next album should be released sometime in late 2010, according to Chad Smith. Speaking to Clash ^{Clash (magazine)} magazine in October 2009, Smith said that the album could be finished "Some time next year, maybe this time [next year]". The band made their live comeback on January 29, 2010, paying tribute to Neil Young with a cover of "A Man Needs a Maid ^{A Man Needs a Maid (song)} " at MusiCares. Josh Klinghoffer, who toured as a second guitarist with the Peppers on their Stadium Arcadium tour, filled in on guitar for the MusiCares performance. On February 8, 2010, Klinghoffer was confirmed by Chad Smith as a full-time replacement for Frusciante. Smith said that with a new guitarist the sound on the next album is going to be different from Stadium Arcadium.
Techniques

Kiedis provides a range of vocal styles while singing. His approach of spoken verse and "rapping" (the primary characteristic of his vocals up to Blood Sugar *** Magik) complemented with more traditional vocals have helped the band maintain a relatively consistent style. Nevertheless, as the group has matured, the vocal sequences present in albums starting from Californication ^{Californication (album)} have drastically reduced the number of rapidly sung verses. By the Way only contained two songs which remained true to the rap-driven-verses and subsequent melodic choruses. Kiedis' more recent style has been developed through coaching throughout all nine of Red Hot Chili Peppers' albums.

Hillel Slovak's style was strongly based on blues and funk. Early replacements, including former guitarist John Frusciante, based their style significantly on Slovak's.

John Frusciante brought a more melodic and textured sound to more recent albums such as By the Way, Californication and Stadium Arcadium. This contrasts with his previous abrasive approach in Mother's Milk, as well as his dry, funky and more docile arrangements on Blood Sugar *** Magik.

Dave Navarro brought an entirely different sound to the band during his tenure, with his style based on heavy metal ^{heavy metal music} , progressive rock and psychedelia.

Flea ^{Michael Balzary} 's bass guitar style is an amalgamation of funk, psychedelic, punk ^{punk rock} , and hard rock. The groove-heavy, low-tuned melodies, played through either finger style or slapping ^{slap bass} , have contributed to the Red Hot Chili Peppers' signature style. While Flea's slap bass style was prominent in earlier albums, later albums (post "Blood Sugar *** Magik") teenage angst and good-time aggression, various ***ual topics and the link between *** and music, political and social commentary (Native American issues in particular), romance, loneliness, globalization and the cons of fame and Hollywood, poverty, drugs, alcohol, dealing with death, and California.*Anthony Kiedis – lead vocals (1983–present)>
*Michael "Flea" Balzary ^{Flea (musician)} – bass guitar, trumpet, backing vocals (1983–present)>
*Chad Smith – drums, percussion (1988–present)>
*Josh Klinghoffer – guitar, backing vocals (2010-present)>*The Red Hot Chili Peppers ^{The Red Hot Chili Peppers (album)} (1984)
*Freaky Styley (1985)
*The Uplift Mofo Party Plan (1987)
*Mother's Milk (1989)
*Blood Sugar *** Magik (1991)
*One Hot Minute (1995)
*Californication ^{Californication (album)} (1999)
*By the Way (2002)
*Stadium Arcadium (2006)
*TBA (2010)