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10 Best Red Hot Chili Peppers Songs

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The Red Hot Chili Peppers have been around since ’83, back when I was a kid that didn’t know they existed. I was on a steady diet of New York Top 40 radio at the time. It would be six years before I bought Mother’s Milk based on their cover of Stevie Wonder’s “Higher Ground.” Singer Anthony Kiedis, bassist Flea, drummer Chad Smith and guitarist John Frusciante had a musical rapport that, while tapping Parliament Funkadelic, Sly & The Family Stone, and Jimmy Hendrix, forged a sound that became positively Chili Peppers.

There’s much to be said of the early records and lineups, and you’d gain hardcore points for adding tracks like “True Men Don’t Kill Coyotes” and “Get Up and Jump” to your best of list,  but this isn’t your list, is it? And while I totally dig their latest record and the work of current guitarist Josh Klinghoffer, none of those songs wound up in the top ten (though “Look Around” came close). Perhaps their next record, recorded outside the Rick Rubin comfort zone, with Danger Mouse producing, will change that. As of this writing, here are the Top 10 Best Red Hot Chili Peppers Songs.

10. Breaking the Girl / Blood Sugar Sex Magik, 1991 

“I am a man cut from the know.”

Breaking the Girl” is far removed from the Chili Peppers’ roots and a good indicator of the band they had become by ’91 – one that had loved and lost, and dealt with addiction, fame, and death in ways that permeated their sound. Blood Sugar Sex Magik was their first with Rick Rubin producing and it catapulted them into the spotlight based on radio classics like “Under The Bridge.” “Breaking the Girl” is a 6/8 time gem that’s at once haunting and strangely beautiful.

9. Venice Queen / By the Way, 2002

“Where you come from? Where you going?”

Eight albums into their career, the Chili Peppers once again employed Rubin on what should have been a number one record based on killer radio tracks like “By The Way” and “Can’t Stop.” “Venice Queen” changes gears during six minutes but never loses track of that California vibe and harmonies from the other-worldly John Frusciante. His masterful fingerprints are all over By the Way, and “Venice Queen” is a great example.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bPTBq18shxo

8. Get On Top / Californication, 1999

“You’re ill but I’m iller.”

“Get On Top” harks back to the sexy metal funk of early Chili Peppers. The rhythm never strays from the pocket with Flea, Chad and John playing with one mind. Released in ’99, Californication was the first record with Frusciante in eight years. He survived a very public addiction to heroin and came back with an infectious energy the band absorbed and turned into sunlight. Even Kiedis upped his vocal game on Californication, evident on tracks like “Scar Tissue” and “Otherside.”

7. Turn It Again / Stadium Arcadium, 2006

“Whatever light we bend.”

Stadium Arcadium is a double record by a band that couldn’t stop creating art if they wanted to. Twenty eight tracks wound up on the record, and at least nine more were recorded. The Grammy winning Stadium Ardadium was their first number one in the US and their last with the god-like Frusciante. “Turn It Again” is a quirky ditty that erupts into climaxes of Hendrix and Page inspired psychedelics, culminating in layers of guitar that threaten to melt your cerebellum.

6. Minor Thing / By the Way, 2002

“Redefine the line to make your circle sing.”

“Minor Thing” wastes no time getting under your skin. A true blend of old and new with familiar syncopated verses and a bridge/chorus that soars on the wings of its swelling background vocals. A distant solo atop fluttering notes, Flea’s pulsing bass, and Chad’s rock-solid beat keeps this track popping from the get-go. Pure Peppers.

5. Taste the Pain / Mother’s Milk, 1989

“Lovesick from you”

This track owned me back in ’89. My folks had no idea what was happening in my room as I blasted this on repeat, but it involved some freakishly uncoordinated dance moves. That kind of unhinged self expression is part of the Chili Pepper’s ethos. This was recorded before Chad joined, so drums are by Fish from Fishbone. Those trumpets by Flea are on point.

4. Dosed / By the Way, 2002

“You cut a perfect form.”

I have no clue if fans dig this song, I just know I’m infatuated with that slithering bass under a cascade of disjointed guitar parts and some of the sweetest vocal harmonies Kiedis and Frusciante ever put to tape. This is a sister track to “Scar Tissue” and I wish she had more sisters. Sounds like a totally different band, proving these guys can do anything. Perfection.

3. Give It Away / Blood Sugar Sex Magik, 1991

“Reeling with the feeling don’t stop continue.”

Their first number one single blew the doors off everything on rock radio at the time. This song is like a humongous rusty chain with gargantuan demolition balls swinging from either side. If there’s a more iconic bass line in hard rock, I can’t think of it (okay, maybe “Seven Nation Army“). A backwards solo, a Grammy winning performance, and the type of deep funk that radio hasn’t embraced since.

2. Scar Tissue / Californication, 1999

“With the birds I’ll share this lonely view.”

I can only imagine what it was like when Frusciante returned from near death and the band produced this glowing sunstone. A transcendental tour de force that couldn’t have been written by any other four guys. Not by the Beatles, Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, or Queen. Lighting in a bottle with a melancholic solo and backing vocals that feels like every sad memory you ever had watching the sun go down.

1. Suck My Kiss / Blood Sugar Sex Magik, 1991

“Most motherfuckers don’t give a damn.”

This is what it would sound like if Hendrix, Black Sabbath and George Clinton had a four headed baby. Testosterone funk straight from the loins of ferocious youth. Is it really the best Chili Pepper’s song? Better than “Scar Tissue,” you may ask, or “Under the Bridge?” Who knows? I sure don’t. Lists are pointless. Suck my kiss.

 

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Rest Easy Eric Curran a.k.a M.C Krispy E

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Almost every year for the past 6 years and on the same day, I’ve posted the same pic of me in the hospital  during my temporary and untimely demise  in 2015. A few weeks after I was back to “normal”, I asked Eric “Why’d you take the pics?” And he said, “I knew you would want to write about it if you lived.” Eric was right. Eric was often right and Eric always had my best interest at heart. I am going to miss my friend.

You ever meet someone and become friends immediately?! Well this was not the case with Eric. Before he was my manager at Morgan Stanley, I would often see this 6’4″, giant white guy walk up to the only black woman at work, say something then walk away without any hint of human emotion. Naturally I thought he was a jerk until I asked her “Yo, is that dude bothering you?” She laughed and proceeded to tell me he was a great person, which I ultimately got to experience first hand. Little did I know this Italian from Staten Island was more Brooklyn than most Brooklynites.

Eric was not with the shits!! If there were ever someone who lived their life in direct, honest and no uncertain terms, that would be Eric. He would ask me questions at work like “Why are the other consultants making more money than you?” I knew the answer to that question and so did he. Eric then proceeded to increase my salary by 15K. After arguing with all our managers that “You need to hire Alfred!”, they eventually did 1 year prior to the 2015 incident. In the hospital, one of my friends asked me, “What if you didn’t have health insurance when this happened?” I would be in debt for the rest of my life is the obvious answer. I still am in debt for the rest of my life but at least, it is to those who made sure I had a more enjoyable life and for that, I will gladly repay.

My mom loved to tell me the story of how she met Eric. After they told her I was going to be in the ICU for some time, she told the doctor “Well I’m not going anywhere.” She then hears a voice from that back of the room that says “Well I’m not going anywhere either!” That was Eric and in true form, he was at that hospital every single day until I was discharged.

Eric passed away in December 2021 of stage 4 cancer. After feeling faint on his way to my bbq, he went to get checked out and was diagnosed. During the past 5 years, Eric lost his mom, twin brother and dad. I can’t even begin to imagine what that must have felt like but I’m glad that pain he was feeling is no more.

It’s been a bit difficult to deal with it to be quite honest and I’ve been writing this in my head for years but never had the bravery or grace to accept that my friend wouldn’t be here soon. I also can’t imagine what it must be like to lose your entire family nucleus unexpectedly. In true Eric fashion however, I would like this to not be about me but whomever has lost someone and has been coping. I’ve always intimated that my life would not be as enriched as it was were it not for the people in it. The problem with that is there is also no way to deny that it feels empty without those who helped craft your path. Rather than focus on the negative, I would rather focus on the examples of duty, family and emotional intelligence. All concepts reinforced by Eric that have led me to have successful relationships since I’ve put them into practice.

From being my manager to my business partner, writer, book editor, artistic director, and most importantly, my friend, I am going to miss you MC Krispy E a.k.a “Enrique Pollazo!” And although you told me Enrique means Henry in Spanish and not Eric, it was too late!

Sidebar. The day I was discharged, while everyone was deciding what was best for me, no one had remembered that I would need clothes in order to leave the hospital. Eric shows up (unasked) with all the clothes I had on the day I coded, laundered and ready to go. I don’t know what I’ve done to deserve friends like this but i need to keep doing it! Sidebar complete.

Rest in Peace Eric. “Be Good.”

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Writing Your First Book / Should I Self Publish?

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I had the distinct pleasure of  participating in a panel discussion on writing your first book, presented by the Harlem chapter of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity Inc.  Alongside Jim St. Germain, Author – A Stone of Hope: A Memoir and Dr. Keneshia Nicole Grant, Author – The Great Migration and the Democratic Party: Black Voters and the Realignment of American Politics in the 20th Century.  We opined on pain points, benefits and strategies regarding our inaugural voyages into authorship. Feel free to watch for your self and I hope this provides some insight to all those looking to make the same voyage. Enjoy!

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What the NFT is a BEEPLE?

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On March 11 this year, the digital artist Beeple sold a collage of digital images from his “Everydays” series for nearly 70 million dollars as an NFT, or non-fungible token. And if that sentence confuses you, you’re not alone.

A non-fungible token is a unit of data on a digital ledger called a blockchain, where each NFT can represent a unique digital item, and thus they are not interchangeable. NFTs can represent digital files such as art, audio, video, and other forms of creative work. While the digital files themselves are infinitely reproducible, the NFTs representing them are tracked on their underlying blockchains and provide buyers with proof of ownership.” – Wikipedia

Still confused? Let the artist himself explain it, and learn how he went from NFT newbie to making the third most expensive artwork by a living artist in three months. Not to suggest Beeple is an overnight success. The “Everydays” series alone involved creating a piece of art every day since May 1, 2007 – and he hasn’t missed a day.

Check out some of Beeple’s amazing and controversial work below.

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