如果我把91年的BLOOD SUGAR SEX MAGIK视为RED HOT CHILI PEPPERS风格最强烈的奠定性作品,大抵没有人会有异议.当年BOLLD SUGAR SEX MAGIK的出现,就仿佛是唱片监制RICK RUBIN为他们开拓了一个新的层次,标志着他们在音乐事业上的一段新里程,或者在商业成就上而言,唱片为人津JOHN FRUSCIANTE在第二年毅然选择离队,令乐队在89年所固定下来的四位一体的阵容再度瓦解,一下子BLOOD SUGAR SEX MAGIK为CHILI PEPPERS所写下的音乐成就仿佛显得无以为继.在前JANE'S ADDICTION吉他手DAVE NAVARO加入后于四年前发表的ONE HOT MINUTE只似是乐队的一个过渡期,
CALIFORMICATION的最大意义与乐迷最引颈以待的因素,是JOHN跟乐队做出复合,让CHILI PEPPERS这个最经典的阵容重视.然而CALIFORMICATION并不是扮演着BLOOD SUGAR SEX MAGIK在多年后的延续篇.相隔了八个年头,在近作里我们听到的是乐队迈向成熟细腻的歌曲创作,构成一张CHILI PEPPERS最旋律化的著作.
命途满是得失分界线
在83年成立至今,来自加州洛杉矶的CHILI PEPPERS 已是一队有十七年历史的乐队,十七年对于一队乐队来说绝不是短暂的资历.这段漫长的岁月里,他们也仿佛曾走上了一队传奇性摇滚乐队所毕经得崎岖路途--- 毒品问题,有队员不幸逝世,乐队成员不断进进出出,或者这就是作为一队传奇?
在乐队的十七年岁月里,我们总会把歌手ANTHONY KIEDIS和原名MICHAEL BALZARY的低音吉他手FLEA重视为 CHILI PEPPERS两位一直紧守岗位的核心成员.反而乐队在多年来最大的问题,是吉他手的位置.虽然在CHILI PEPPERS的十七年历史中跟他们合作的吉他手乃有七位至多,但真正称的上是代表性的,就只有原装吉他手HILLEL SLOVAK和JOHN FRUSCIANTE两人而已----巧合的二人同时经历过一度离队当然,在相提并论底下,JOHN也比HILLEI幸运的多,至少没有为毒品而走上不归路.
HILLEL 是CHILI PEPPERS第一代作品,但在乐队在84年发表首长同名大碟时,他的岗位确实曾被JACK SHERMAN此人代替,到了灌录第二张专辑FREAKY STYLEY时,他才归队.然而到了88年6月---乐队发表了第二张专辑THE UPLIFT MOFO PARTY PLAN和经典的THEABBEY ROAD EP(以SOCKS-ON-COCKS"阳具穿袜子造型扮THE BEATLES 的ABBEY ROAD封面那张)后第二年,HILLEL因吸食过量海洛因而身亡.他的逝世亦成为当时乐队的一个沉重打击, 而鼓手JACK IRON也在其后离队,令到CHILI PEPPERS 一队陷入低潮,直到鼓手CHAD SMITH 和年轻的吉他手JOHN FRUSCIANTE加入填补了这个空缺,乐队才得以在重整阵容下而卷土重来,甚至这个公认为CHILI PEPPERS的黄金阵容
(ANTHONY/FLEA/JOHN/CHAD),亦替他们缔造了MOTHER'S MILK(89年)?
然后,JOHN因受不了作为一位ROCK STAR的成名压力而在93年毅然离队,亦再次使ANTHONY等人突然束手无策起来,甚至一度令而人酿成恶交,曾有几年时间没有交谈过.先后经过两位过客性质的吉他手暂代其岗位后,到了93年彩照来前JANE'S ADDICTION成员DAVE NAVARRON加入,继而一起灌录了ONE HOT MINUTE这张于95年面世的专辑.然而相信不少CHILI PEPPERS的追随者会发掘,DAVE一手较偏向摇滚手法的吉他演奏放在他们身上,这种流于朴实的风格虽不算好亦不算称身,令大家也对这张专辑有所保留.无形中?结果在CHILI PEPPERS于去年打算为新碟创作新歌之前,DAVE亦做出了离队的决定,而故事的发展就是JOHN被召归队而成一时佳话.
METAL FUNK AMERICA
无论泥巴CHILI PEPPERS的音乐风格界定为METAL FUNK也好,PUNK FUNK也好,抑或是FUNK ROCK这个最传统的称呼也好,无可否认他们那种揉合着THRASH ROCK,PUNK,FUNK,NETAL,RAP的影响而来的音乐风格,是那么无可匹敌,获誉为近代最懂得将FUNK融汇在摇滚领域的乐团,在派对中跳 SLAM DCHILI PEPPERS对于FUNK ROCK所带来的深远创造力,那固然是并非是一朝一夕的事.打从他们初出道开始,已显示出乐队本身乃拥有良好的黑人FUNK乐根基.在他们的首长同名专辑当中,亦能窥见到他们那种集合者GEORG CLINTON,SLY STONE以至BLACK FLAG的影响而来且充满初生之犊的PUNK FUNK风格,从TRUE MEN DON'T KILL COYOTES那极受来自英国朋克乐队GANG OF FOUR 成员DNDY GILL担任监制下所感染到的英式低调POST PUNK之声,到试图对CLINTION式P FUNK作坊式的GET UP AND JUMP,正反映出CHILI PEPPERS本身迥异的两种音乐个性.当然,到了第二张专辑FREAKY STYLEY力邀请到FUNKADELIC/PARLIAMENT的P FUNK大师GEORGE CLINTON出任唱片监制,是CHILI PEPPERS有史以来FUNK得最彻底的一次(尤其在铜管乐的伴奏功能上).或者他们在音乐上的优越之处,是往往有良好的唱片监制协助他们所赐.THE UPLIFT MOFO PARTY PLAN和MOTHER'S MILK式的摇滚监制MICHAEL BEINHORN让他们在FUNKY曲式更凸显出HEAVY METAL式吉他RIFF的功能.但真正得以将CHILI PEPPERS提升的,是自BLOOD SUGAR SEX MAGIK时开始合作的RICK RUBIN.RICK不但是AMERICAN RECORDINGS的老板,也是当年跟RUSSELL SIMMONS一起创办传奇性HIPHOCALIFORNICATION在内.
CALIFORNIA RED HOT+BLUE
当现年二十九岁的JOHN归队后,他在去年便再度跟ANTHONY,FLEA和CHAD这三位同样现年三十六岁的旧队友一起与FLEA的车房里JAM歌 JAM整个夏天.正如CHAD所表示过当他们四个人走在一起时,是有其化学作用所在,是独一无二的.虽然CALIFORNICAITON里的作品之创作过程是由JAMMING开始JOHN的回归,也让那种跳脱生动的FUNKY曲式重现于CHILI PEPPERS身上,似乎只有JOHN的吉他弹奏才能跟FLEA谈弹跳跳而来的FUNK BASSLINE为之最匹配,开场曲AROUND THE WORLD已激起了他们的种种浑身解术;强悍的FUNKY趋势,PUNKY吉他RIFF,RAPPIN'与之旋律化的CHORUS主唱.GET ON TCALIFORNICATION顾名思义是一张写加州情怀的唱片,但所充塞着却不是阳光海滩蓝天碧海弄潮冲浪少男少女的气息,换来确实多首BITTER -SWEET情感的曲调;阳关依旧普照,但心底里却是灰色的.
细碟歌SCAR TISSUE不难成为另一首UNDER THE BRIDGE,当ANTHONY唱到:"WITH THE BIRDS I'LL SHARE/THIS LONELY VIEW",不刻意的黯然神伤便是这样.主题曲CALIFORNICATION的忧伤情绪,OTHERSIDE得楚楚动人曲调,PRCELAIN在幽暗底回的趋势驱使下沉淀着的凄美,从没想过CHILI PEPPERS的作品可以如此听的发还有一曲SAVIOR把激昂歌唱与梦幻优美合唱伴随下这两端截然不同的旋律放在一起,在高低起伏下构成这首带有迷幻味的作品.在ROLLING STONE杂志的报道中得知这次他们还写了一首唤作"巩俐"的作品,但不见收录于碟内,可惜.
坦言ONE HOT MINUTE是一张绝对叫我听的不式味的失望制作,而CALIFORNICATION不但让我对CHILI PEPPERS重拾回信心,也使大家重新认识到成熟与重整过后的他们所散发出的音乐魅力---即使在宣传照片上他们仍是一脸玩世不恭的'讨厌'模样.
by Greg Prato
Few rock groups of the 80s broke down as many musical barriers and were as original as the Red Hot Chili Peppers. Creating an intoxicating new musical style by combining funk and punk rock together (with an explosive stage show, to boot), the Chili Peppers spawned a slew of imitators in their wake, but still managed to be the leaders of the pack by the dawn of the 21st century. The roots of the band lay in a friendship forged by three school chums, Anthony Kiedis, Michael Balzary, and Hillel Slovak, while they attended Fairfax High School in California back in the late 70s/early 80s. While Balzary and Slovak showed great musical promise (on trumpet and guitar, respectively), Kiedis focused on poetry and acting during his high school career. During this time, Slovak taught Balzary how to play bass, while the duo encouraged Kiedis to start putting his poetry to music, which he soon did. Influenced heavily by the burgeoning L.A. punk scene (the Germs, Black Flag, Fear, Minutemen, X, etc.) as well as funk (Parliament-Funkadelic, Sly & the Family Stone, etc.), the trio began to rehearse with another friend, drummer Jack Irons, leading to the formation of Tony Flow & the Miraculously Majestic Masters of Mayhem, a group that played strip bars along the sunset strip during the early 80s. It was during this time that the quartet honed their sound and live act (as they stumbled across a stage gimmick that would soon become their trademark — performing on-stage completely naked, except for a tube sock covering a certain part of their anatomy). By 1983, Balzary had begun to go by the name Flea, and the group changed their name to the Red Hot Chili Peppers.
Word spread quickly about the up-and-coming band, resulting in a recording contract with EMI. But before the Chili Peppers could begin work on their debut, Flea and Kiedis were dealt a disappointing blow when both Slovak and Irons announced that they were leaving to focus more on another band they were in, What Is This. With replacement members Jack Sherman (guitar) and Cliff Martinez (drums) filling in, the Peppers released their self-titled debut in 1984. But the absence of the two original members showed, as the album failed to capture the excitement of their live show. While the album didnt set the world on fire sales-wise, the group began to build a dedicated underground following with college radio buffs. By 1985, What Is This was kaput (after issuing a single self-titled album), as Slovak and Irons returned back to the Peppers, resulting in the George Clinton-produced Freaky Styley. While the album was an improvement over its predecessor, it still lacked the fire of the bands in-concert experience, a problem that would finally be solved with their next album, 1987s The Uplift Mofo Party Plan. The album was the groups first to make an impression on the charts, and they followed it up a year later with stopgap five-track release, The Abbey Road EP, in 1988. But just as the world was warming up to the Peppers, tragedy struck when Slovak died from a heroin overdose on June 25, 1988.
In the wake of Slovaks death, Irons left the group for the second and final time, while Kiedis (who was also battling drug addiction at the time) and Flea decided to soldier on. After a new lineup consisting of former Parliament guitarist Blackbyrd McKnight and former Dead Kennedys drummer D.H. Peligro didnt work out, the duo found worthy replacements in newcomers John Frusciante and Chad Smith. The new-look Chili Peppers hit pay dirt straight away, as their first album together, 1989s Mothers Milk, became a surprise hit due to MTVs exposure of their videos for a cover of Stevie Wonders Higher Ground and a song about their fallen friend Slovak, Knock Me Down, as the album was certified gold by early 1990. The group knew that their next release would be the most important one of their career, so they moved into a mansion-turned-recording studio with producer Rick Rubin to work on what would become their most successful release yet, the stripped-down Blood Sugar Sex Magik (their first for the Warner Bros. label). The album became a monster hit upon its September 1991 release (going on to eventually sell a staggering seven million copies in the U.S. alone), as it spawned such hits as Give It Away and the groups first Top Ten single, Under the Bridge.
But not all was well in the Chili Peppers camp. Like his predecessor, Frusciante had become addicted to hard drugs, and abruptly left the band mid-tour in early 1992. Undeterred, the band enlisted new member Arik Marshall, and headlined Lollapalooza II in the summer. When the band returned to the studio to work on their sixth release overall, it quickly became apparent that Marshall didnt fit in, and was replaced by Jesse Tobias. But before Tobias could record a note with the group, he was handed his walking papers as well, and former Janes Addiction guitarist Dave Navarro signed on. After a layoff of four years, the Peppers much-delayed follow-up to BSSM was released in 1995, One Hot Minute. While the album was a sizeable hit, it failed to match the success and musical focus of its predecessor, as it became apparent during the albums ensuing tour that Navarro wasnt fitting in as well as originally hoped, and left the band in early 1998.
After Frusciante had left the group, he released a pair of obscure solo releases, 1995s Niandra Lades and Usually Just a T-Shirt and 1997s Smile from the Streets You Hold, yet rumors circulated that the guitarist was homeless, penniless, and sickly with a death-defying drug habit. After checking himself into rehab and putting his demons behind him, Frusciante emerged once again refocused and re-energized, and promptly accepted an invitation to rejoin the Peppers once more. The groups reunion album, 1999s Californication, proved to be another monster success, reconfirming the Chili Peppers as one of alternative rocks top bands. The band put in a quick guest appearance on Fishbones Psychotic Friends Nuttwerx before hitting the road to support the album. The following months found the band getting involved in bizarre situations and controversies. First, their refusal to play songs from One Hot Minute during the tour was an unpopular decision with some fans and a sore spot for Dave Navarro. Next, they reignited a personal feud between Kiedis and Mr. Bungle singer Mike Patton by refusing to play a series of European concerts with Bungle. Patton responded with a tribute show for the Peppers, where Bungle mocked their stage moves, faked shooting up heroin, and imitated Kiedis comments about Patton. They also played the ill-fated Woodstock 99 festival, where their headlining performance was met with piles of burning rubble and a full-scale riot. Tours with the Foo Fighters and Pearl Jam brought them into the next year without problems, but they stepped off the road after a planned stop in Israel was halted due to security worries. They returned to the studio in November of 2001 and by the summer of 2002 they had a new album ready to drop, By the Way. Warner Brothers released a Greatest Hits compilation in 2003, followed by a chart-topping two-CD album of all-new material, Stadium Arcadium, in 2006.