UpLiftMoFoParTribe

homage to one of the greatest bands ever...

I had a chance to catch one of their earlier shows w/ Hillel Slovak

The UpLiftMoFoPlayPlan...get up and jump! :)

20 things about the Red Hot Chilli Peppers

1. The band was originally a garage band called ‘Anthem’. This originated back in High School (Anthony, Flea and Slovak all went to Fairfax High School).

2. The original line-up included "Antwan The Swan" (b. Anthony Kiedis, 1st November 1962, Grand Rapids, Michigan, USA; vocals), "Flea" (b. Michael Balzary, 16 October 1962, Melbourne, Australia; bass), Hillel Slovak (b. 31 March 1962, Israel, d. 25 June 1988; guitar) and Jack Irons (b. California, USA; drums).

3. Flea left the band to join punk band ‘Fear’, and Slovak and Irons joined ‘What is this?’, bringing an end to ‘Anthem’. Flea later returned and the band was renamed as the Red Hot Chili Peppers in 1983. (They’ve been around for almost 19 years!!). They scored a recording contract with EMI Records America. However, Irons and Slovak were still under contract with their new band, and the RHCP debut album had to be recorded by Kiedis and Balzary with Jack Sherman on guitar and Cliff Martinez on drums. Slovak returned for the second album. Irons also later returned to complete the original ‘Anthem’ line-up.

4. Slovak died from a heroin overdose in June 1988, the same year their ‘Abbey Road’ EP was released. Following this, an upset Irons left and John Frusciante (b. 5 March 1970, New York, USA; guitar) and Chad Smith (b. 25 October 1962, St. Paul, Minnesota, USA; drums) joined the band. Single ‘Knock me Down’ was a tribute to Slovak.

5. Frusciante left in May 1992 and was replaced by various guitarists before Dave Navarro (b. David Michael Navarro, 7 June 1967, Santa Monica, California, USA) settled in, just in time for their album ‘One Hot Minute’ - released in 1995. In 1998, Navarro left and Frusciante returned (Whew! This band has been through some major changes!!).

6. Anthony and Flea have always been the core members of the band. Anthony is from Native American Indian descent (Apache tribe).

7. The RHCP logo (an asterisk) is ‘the star of infinity’.

8. Many members who have been part of the RHCP have been in/gone on to other famous bands such as Jack Irons (Drummer: Pearl Jam), Dave Navarro (Guitarist: Jane’s Addiction, Porno for Pyros)

9. The RHCP are great fans of getting tattoos. Here are some of them…
Flea has a tattoo of Jimi Hendrix on his left arm and L-O-V-E on his knuckles. Anthony Kiedis has a tattoo of the RHCP logo on his wrist, and Inca Falcon design on his back and tattoos on his lower arms that mean ‘Two in Love’. John has a tattoo of an octopus on his arm. To get accepted in the band, members have to get a tattoo of a circular Aztec symbol.

10. The Chili Peppers hit our shores in May 1996 as part of an Australia and New Zealand Tour. They came again in January 2000 for the Big Day Out (I’m proud to say I was there – it was an awesome show!)

11. Although they were already becoming popular, ‘BloodSugarSexMagik’ was their real claim to fame in the charts, and sold over 2 million copies. ‘One Hot Minute’ did rather disappointingly and failed to grab the attention of fans (though did rather well later on). Their eighth album ‘Californication’ brought back chart success again in 1999.

12. Thanks to the success of the Californication album, the RHCP won a Grammy Award in 2000 for Scar Tissue (Best Rock Song). The album also landed the band a Grammy in 2001 for Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal.

13. The RHCP are notorious for their antics both on and off stage. These include performing semi/totally naked, harassing female fans, and heroin addictions (leading to the death of Slovak and the almost death of Anthony).

14. Chad has a child called Manon. He once set a world record for playing the biggest drum set ever (308 pieces).

15. Flea rode in the ambulance with River Phoenix on the night of his death. He has a daughter called Clara who sang in the RHCP single ‘Aeroplane’. He can also play the trumpet.

16. Anthony and Flea have tried their hand at acting. Anthony acted under the pseudonym Cole Dammit (?!? Not too sure about this one…). Movies include:
• Flea made a cameo appearance in ‘Back to the Future 3’, as a tattooist in the movie ‘Son in Law’.
• Anthony was in the movie ‘Point Break’.
• Both Anthony and Flea were hippies in the movie ‘The Chase’.

17. Discography:
By the Way 2002 (due for release beginning of July)
Californication 1999 (Other Side, Scar Tissue, Californication)
One Hot Minute 1995 (Aeroplane)
Out in L.A. 1994
(Greatest Hits 1994)
(What Hits!? 1992)
BloodSugarSexMagik 1991 (Under the Bridge)
Mother’s Milk 1989
The Uplift Mofo Party Plan 1988
(Abbey Road. EP 1988)
Freaky Styley 1985
Red Hot Chili Peppers 1984

Soundtracks RHCP songs have been on include…Twister, Beavis and Butthead do America, Wayne’s World, The Coneheads. Their songs have also appeared on HEAPS of compilations.

18. The RHCP genre has been described as a mix of funk, punk, rap, metal and rock with a whole heap of soul.

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