Red Hot Chili Peppers

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Red Hot Chili Peppers

The epitome of psychedelic funk fused with explosive punk-rock best describes Red Hot Chili Peppers, the band totally had a rocky start from the 80's, and had a marvelous comeback in 1999 with album Californication. Some of their successful releases are Under the Bridge and Scar Tissue. The band recently released Stadium Arcadium, an album starting to bring hits in in the modern rock scene.

About

It was in the early 1980's that the quartet composed of Michael "Flea" Balzary, Anthony Kiedis, Jack Irons and Hillel Slovak were brought together for what was an originally one-time performance in a Fairfax High School in Los Angeles, California. They were then known by the name Tony Flow and the Miraculously Majestic Masters of Mayhem.

Anthony Kiedis was a high school poet, who was convinced to put his works into music; while Hillel Slovak and Michael Bazalry were sharpening their talents in playing the bass, the guitar and the trumpet. Not long after, drummer Jack Irons entered the scene and started the story of what the world now knows as The Red Hot Chili Peppers. The combination got the spunk that made them popular in their love performances and bar stints. Not so long after they signed a contract with EMI.

Their experimental music that hybrids between funk-psychedelic-punk-rock and hip-hop did not work for them at one snap of a finger, producing two records that failed to bring to life a big hit. Slovak and Irons were definitely missed after announcing that they were going to focus on a different band called What Is This, replacements Jack Sherman on guitar and Cliff Martinez on drums took over the spot they left. Slovak and Irons returned to the Chili Peppers after What Is This broke up, and the band regained their in-concert glorious performance, hence boasting off with The Uplift Mofo Party Plan, followed by EP The Abbey Road.

As the band slowly rose up in the music scene, they lost two members: Irons announced he was going to leave the band for good, and Slovak dying secondary to drug overdose. This is followed by the success of "Higher Ground" from Mother's Milk, and era-concluding What Hits?! and Out in L.A.

Slovak is replaced by John Frusciante on guitars and the band starts to polish their music. With Blood Sugar Sex Magik, the band's effort to clean up their once primitive style makes them more visible to the fans and breakthrough ballady song Under The Bridge claims a seat in the charts. Frusciante then left the band since he did not like the direction they were going into.

The Chili Peppers went mainstream with guitarist Dave Navarro with release One Hot Minute. The band achieved the lighter, more civilized sound with socially-oriented songs "Aeroplane" and "Pea."

Promotional Photo for Stadium Arcadium

Californication was almost synonymous to the band's reunion with guitarist Frusciante and no doubt, many fans were also happy with the comeback. His talent in strumming the guitar is as good as the band's ability to awaken the then quiet alternative music scene. Their vocal and lyrical talents appeal most to the fans of the alternative scene and this time they totally sold themselves to the people.

In November of 2001, they released By The Way, an album that many fans thought seemed to be missing something but still rocketed up in the charts. It was followed by 2003's Greatest Hits compilation that every fan died to have.

In the second quarter of 2006, they again released death defying album entitled Stadium Arcadium. It owns the tracks Dani California and Snow (Hey Oh) that received massive airplay and were acclaimed for landing a spot in various charts.

The Red Hot Chili Peppers does not need a definition of where they lie in the vast range of genres in the music industry. They have formulated a style that only they can own, many can follow but by the way things are turning out, their musical prowess from the 80's is as powerful, if not greater up to this date.

Band Lineup

Present Members

Anthony Kiedis Lead vocals (1983-present)

John Frusciante Lead guitar, backing vocals (1989-1993; 1998-present)

Michael "Flea" Bazalry bass, trumpet (1983–present)

Chad Smith – drums (1989–present)

Former members

Jack Irons drums (1983-1984; 1986–88)

Arik Marshall guitar (1993)

Cliff Martinez drums (1984–86)

DeWayne “Blackbyrd” McKnight guitar (1988)

Dave Navarro guitar (1993–98)

D.H. Peligro drums (1988)

Jack Sherman guitar (1984–85)

Hillel Slovak guitar (1983–84; 1985–88) (deceased)

Jesse Tobias guitar (1993)

Awards & Certifications

Chart Toppers

News

• The Red Hot Chili Peppers will be touring with Gnarls Barkley in 2007.

Tours & Concerts

Announcements

Discography

Albums

The Red Hot Chili Peppers 1984-08-10	Freaky Styley 1985-08-16	The Uplift Mofo Party Plan 1987-09-29	Mother's Milk 1989-08-22
Blood Sugar Sex Magik 1991-09-24	One Hot Minute 1995	Californication 1999-06-08	By the Way 2002-07-09
Stadium Arcadium 2006-05-09

EPs

The Plasma Shaft

The Abbey Road EP 1988

Singles

Compilations & Live Releases

What Hits!? 1992-09-29	Out in L.A. 1994	Live Rare Remix Box 1994	Under the Covers 1998-03-31
Greatest Hits 2003-11-18	Live in Hyde Park 2004

Other artists

Similar artists

• Sublime
• Incubus
• 311
• Rage Against the Machine
• Nirvana

Influences

• The Stooges
• Minute Men
• Funkadelic
• Gang Of Four
• Parliament
• Led Zeppelin
• George Clinton

Contemporaries

• Foo Fighters
• Pearl Jam
• Korn
• No Doubt
• Limp Bizkit
• Sugar Ray

Trivia

• Slovak was not the only drug user in the band, even Kiedis was, but he battled his addiction and stayed with the band.

• The band once refused to play a set when Kiedis and a long-time antagonist Mike Patton was asked to play in the same concert. Patton mocked Kiedis, faked shooting drugs in response to the refusal.

• Flea is the voice behind Donnie in the Nickelodeon cartoon series The Wild Thornberries.

• George Clinton produced one of the earliest songs of the band "Freaky Styley".

• The 'Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame declares the Chili Peppers to be eligible to be in the list in 2009.

Reviews

• Their existence is even longer than the time I spent on this earth. Their intricate style that magically goes around the airwaves captures the taste of alternative music fans. "The Zephyr Song" is one of my favorites, the other bands that follow after them cannot compare! -Vheliefish 02:30, 12 November 2006 (PST)

External Links

• Official Site
• Red Hot Chili Peppers' My Space Profile