Recommendations of the Editorial team
When the Red Hot Chili Peppers announced at the end of 2019 that guitarist John Frusciante would come back to the band, they fulfilled the dream of many fans.
In his two earlier phases as lead guitarist-first from 1988 to 1992, when he played on “Mother’s Milk” and “Blood Sugar Sex Magik”, and then from 1998 to 2009, while the comeback era with Californication-was a crucial creative partner.
He brought virtuoso solos, harmonious warmth and psychedelic elements into the sound of the band. Without him, the Chili Peppers also created good music. But for many fans it is the decisive element that distinguishes the “classic” phase from everything else.
“Give it away”
The black and white video for “Give It Away” by director Stéphane Sednaoui was a breakthrough for the band. It showed a rare fashionable side of the guitarist. In addition to scenes in which he acts with flags and plays together with the band, the most iconic picture is frusciant in mirrored trousers and with his Iroques at the time, while playing the guitar between his legs. The deep camera perspectives ensure psychedelic and clearly ambiguous visual language. Which basically embodies the RHCP motto.
“Pretty Little Ditty”
The most famous occupation of the Chili Peppers came together on “Mother’s Milk” from 1989. Frusciante, a great admirer of the late founding guitarist Hillel Slovak, joined the band just a few months after his drug death. He immediately expanded the group’s style beyond the radio -driven skirt. To hear on this relaxed instrumental piece, in which Flea also plays trumpet in addition to the bass. “He knows everything that I don’t know,” said Flea at the time. “Basically, I don’t know anything about music theory. But he studied her in detail. He is a very disciplined musician. Everything that interests him are his guitar and cigarettes.”
“Under the Bridge”
At the greatest hit of the Chili Peppers, frusciant is inseparable from the video. In a desert backdrop, with a hat on his head, he plays the delicate intro on a Fender Jaguar. The finger-plucked motif-according to the frusciant, a tribute to Hendrix ‘”Little Wing” intro-creates the bittersweet of the song. “My brain perceived it as a very sad song. So I thought when the text was so sad, I should write happier chords,” he said.
2007 live jam
Some of the best moments were not songs on the “Stadium Arcadium” tour. But extensive Jams, who showed the close and at the same time experimental joy of playing the band. A highlight was the final of her concert in Poland in July 2007. After “Soul to Squeeze” and “The Power of Equality”, Anthony Kiedis called for a “freestyle” session. For eight minutes, Frusciante led the audience from meditative, repeating tones to wah-wah and space guitar passages to jazzy excursions. At the climax after five minutes, he played the highest tones ecstatically with their eyes closed. So intensely that even Flea and Chad Smith almost seemed to divide.
“How deep is your love”
During the “Stadium Arcadium” tour, Frusciante often used acoustic guitar alone and interpreted the Bee-Gees classic “How deep is your love”. With velvet-soft falsett, which the Gibb brothers would have made proud, he converted the disco hit into a deep emotional ballad.
“Scar Tissue”
After Frusciante’s first exit in the early nineties, the band drove around for a long time. With all respect for Dave Navarro: With Frsuciante’s return in 1998, the balance was immediately back. The single “Scar Tissue” announced the comeback album “Californication” in May 1999. Mature, reflective. And crowned by a masterful guitar solo that paved the way to the new millennium.
“The Zephyr Song”
For the album “By the Way”, Frusciante played a major role in songwriting. He shaped the gentle melodies and melancholic choirs. Especially in the dreamy “The Zephyr Song”, which dissolves from the radio tradition and drifts into psychedelic spheres. “The writing of ‘by the way’ was one of the happiest times of my life,” he said at the time. “It was the opportunity to write better and better songs. And to improve my guitar play.”
“Stadium Arcadium”
The band’s first number one album was at the same time Frusciantes’s last prank for over a decade. With a high band morality, a double work was created full of ambition. Also inspired by friends like The Mars Volta or singers like Brandy and Beyoncé. In the studio, Frusciante layer the guitar tracks denser than before, to hear in “Dani California” or “Especialy in Michigan”. A glamorous final point – at least temporarily.