Californication is the seventh studio
album by American
alternative rock
band
Red Hot Chili Peppers,
released on June 8, 1999 on
Warner
Bros. Records. Produced by
Rick Rubin,
Californication
marked the return of
John
Frusciante, who had previously appeared on
Mother's Milk and
Blood Sugar Sex Magik, to replace
Dave Navarro as the band's guitarist.
Frusciante's return was credited with changing the band's sound
altogether. The record was a notable shift in style from what was
produced with Navarro. The album's subject material incorporated
various sexual innuendos commonly associated with the band, and
introduced themes of lust, death, contemplations of suicide, and
drugs.
Californication produced several hits for the band,
including "
Otherside", "
Californication" and the
Grammy Award-winning "
Scar Tissue".
Californication peaked at
number three on the U.S.
Billboard 200. It is the Chili
Peppers' most commercially successful album to date, selling more
than fifteen million copies worldwide; a revitalization in
comparison to their previous album,
One Hot Minute (1995). The record marked
a change in style for the band;
Rolling Stone's Greg Tate noted that
"while all previous Chili Peppers projects have been highly
spirited,
Californication dares to be spiritual and
epiphanic."
Background
Guitarist
John Frusciante departed
from the band mid-tour in 1992, while touring their critically
acclaimed album
Blood Sugar
Sex Magik. It took over a year before the band found a new
guitarist to officially begin recording with.
Dave Navarro, formerly of
Jane's Addiction, was invited to join the
Chili Peppers after Arik Marshall, who had finished the remaining
tour dates for
Blood Sugar Sex Magik, was fired. Navarro
influenced the band's ensuing album,
One Hot Minute, by
incorporating various elements of
heavy metal and
psychedelic rock, which was something that
the Chili Peppers had not previously been notable for.
One Hot
Minute was a commercial success, selling roughly five million
copies (although a let down compared to
Blood Sugar Sex
Magik). Critics, however, dismissed the album, claiming it was
weak and unfocused. Shortly after the release of
One Hot
Minute, Navarro was fired due to internal differences.
In the years following Frusciante's departure from the Chili
Peppers, he had developed a heroin addiction that left him in
poverty and near death. He was talked into admitting himself to
drug rehabilitation in January 1998. In April 1998, following
Frusciante's three month completion, Flea visited his former
band-mate and openly invited him to re-join the band, an invitation
Frusciante readily accepted. Within the week, and for the first
time in six years, the foursome gathered to play and jump-started
the newly reunited Red Hot Chili Peppers.
Writing and composition
Much of the album was written in the band members' homes in the
summer of 1998. Kiedis and Frusciante often spent days together
discussing song creation, guitar riffs and lyrical content. Bass
and percussion aspects of the record were constructed through jam
sessions and the individual work of Flea and Smith.
Californication's lyrics were derived from Anthony Kiedis'
ideas, outlooks, and perceptions of life and its meaning.
"Porcelain" resulted after Kiedis met a young mother at the
YMCA, who was attempting to battle her alcohol
addiction whilst living with her infant daughter. Sarcasm was a
concept that Kiedis had dealt with in the past and ultimately
crafted a song around it. He was inspired by former band mate
Dave Navarro, who he considered to be
the "King of Sarcasm". Frusciante approached the guitar line
present in "Scar Tissue" as an attempt to utilize two notes that
are played far apart, but produce a "cool rhythm". He had explored
this technique on his first solo album—1994's
Niandra Lades and
Usually Just a T-Shirt. Frusciante considers "Scar Tissue"
to be a "very simple example of the technique, but I think it's a
style that sounds like me." The guitarist made use of
slide guitar playing for the two solos in the
song.
"Get On Top", a song which contains significant use of a
wah pedal, was formed after a jam session
conducted shortly after Frusciante had listened to
Public Enemy: "I came up with [the
rhythm to the song] on the way to rehearsal—just tapping it out
with my foot." The understated guitar solo played in the middle of
the song was originally intended to be more noticeable, according
to Frusciante, who was playing screaming guitar solos. He changed
his thought process after listening to
Steve Howe's guitar solo on
Yes' "
Siberian
Khatru": "the band sounded really big—and they're playing
really fast—and then this clean guitar solo comes out over on top.
It's really beautiful, like it's on its own sort of shelf. For 'Get
On Top' I wanted to play something that contrasted between the solo
and the background." "Savior", a song found towards the end of the
album, features heavy
effects, most
notably an
Electro-Harmonix Micro
Synth with 16-second
delay.
Frusciante notes that the sound is "directly inspired by
Eric Clapton's playing in
Cream. If you listen to the actual notes,
they're like a Clapton solo—they just don't sound like it because
of the effects."
The hit "Around the World", which harkens back to the Chili
Peppers' funk-influenced sound, was constructed by Frusciante at
his home. The rhythm and beat, however, are intricate; this
required him to play the song with the rest of the band rather than
alone, in order for them to understand it. The bass lick was
composed in "maybe 15 minutes," according to Frusciante: "Flea is
the best bass player in the world. His sense of timing and the way
he thinks is so crazy." The title track of the album was among the
most difficult for the band to complete. Frusciante felt compelled
to write an appropriate guitar ensemble that would appropriately
compliment the poignant lyrical content, but encountered
difficulty. The song was barely making progress, and would have
been scrapped had it not been for Kiedis' urgency to include it on
the album. Frusciante completed the final riff two days prior to
recording, after drawing inspiration from
The
Cure's soundtrack song to "
Carnage
Visors".
The title track was intended to represent
Californian lifestyles, and more specifically, the "fake" nature
which is associated with much of Hollywood
. It makes various references to other
musicians, such as
Kurt Cobain of
Nirvana, and uses numerous imagery to
capture the evocative nature of California.
The record was a change of style for the Chili Peppers, especially
compared to their previous album,
One
Hot Minute, which combined various elements of
psychedelic rock and
hard rock. Although
Californication still
contained elements of their once ubiquitous "punk funk" sound (such
as "Purple Stain", "Get On Top", "I Like Dirt", "Around the World",
and "Right on Time"), it leaned towards more melodic riffs (for
example, "
Scar Tissue" and "
Otherside") and focused on songs with implemented
structure rather than
jams.
Promotion and release
Rick Rubin had produced their two
previous albums. However, The Chili Peppers decided to look for
other producers for
Californication.
David Bowie had shown great interest in working
with the band and asked to produce the album; however, the Chili
Peppers chose to remain with Rubin for
Californication.
Rubin had, in the past, granted the Chili Peppers creative freedom
on their recording material; this was something they thought
necessary for the album to be unique, and could only occur with his
return.
Recording took place at Cello Studios in
Los
Angeles
. In early 1999, following the recording
process, the band played "Scar Tissue", "Otherside", and
"Californication" to their managers, and it was decided that "Scar
Tissue" would be the lead single for the album. To support their
reunited line-up, the band played various
proms
across the country in order to promote
Californication. It
sprouted a competition, which called upon high school students to
write essays on "...how they could make their schools better,
safer, happier, more rocking places, so that they didn't have to go
to school afraid. If you wrote the essay, you got a free ticket to
the show."
Californication was released on June 8, 1999, debuting at
#5 but peaking at #3 on the
Billboard
Top 200. In Europe, the album peaked at #5 on the UK Top 40, #1
on the Finnish, Austrian, Swedish and New Zealand charts, and #2 on
the French Top 40. It was
certified gold just over a month later,
on July 22, 1999, and its continuing sales have resulted in it
being certified five-times multi-platinum. In March 2006, the Red
Hot Chili Peppers' albums were made available to purchase on the
iTunes Music Store. Albums bought
there included new previously unreleased tracks ("Fat Dance", "Over
Funk", and "Quixoticelixer").
Critical reception
Californication gained positive critical acceptance in
contrast to its less popular predecessor,
One Hot Minute,
and was a greater success worldwide.
Rolling Stone credited Kiedis for his
drastically improved vocals: "[his] vocal cords have apparently
been down to some crossroads and over the rehab, and returned with
heretofore unheard-of range, body, pitch, soulfulness, and melodic
sensibility." Songs such as "Otherside" and "Porcelain" were called
"
Pumpkins-esque", while the
album as a whole was "epiphanal" and that the "RHCP furthermuckers
are now moving toward funk's real Holy Grail: that salty marriage
of esoteric mythology and insatiable musicality that salvages
souls, binds communities and heals the sick." Other critics
credited the album's success to the return of Frusciante.
Allmusic's Greg Prato said that the "obvious reason
for [the band's] rebirth is the reappearance of guitarist John
Frusciante", considering him to be the "quintessential RHCP
guitarist". The album as a whole was "a bona fide Chili Peppers
classic".
Entertainment
Weekly also credits Frusciante with transforming the
band's sound into a "more relaxed, less grating, and, in their own
way, more introspective album than ever before". Mark Woodlief of
Ray Gun commented that
"'This Velvet Glove' strikes an intricate balance between a lush
acoustic guitar foundation and anthemic rock," Woodlief continued
"the disco intro to 'Parallel Universe' gives way to a scorching
Western giddy-up motif in the chorus, and Frusciante's Hendrix-like
excursions at the song's close."
While many critics found the band's new sound refreshing,
NME criticized the Chili Peppers for
rarely utilizing their trademark funk sound, asking: "Can we have
our brain-dead, half-dressed funk-hop rock animals back now,
please? All this false empathy is starting to make my removed rib
tingle."
Pitchfork, while considering the album a triumph
over
One Hot Minute, felt
Californication lacked
the funk that was ever-present in
Blood Sugar Sex Magik.
It went on to scrutinize some lyrics for being overly sexual, but
also considered Frusciante to be "the best big-time American rock
guitarist going right now."
The album received criticism for what Tim Anderson of
The Guardian called "excessive compression
and distortion" in the process of digital mastering.
Stylus Magazine labeled it as one of
the victims of the
loudness war and
commented that it suffered from digital clipping so much that "even
non-audiophile consumers complained about it". An unmastered
bootleg has been circulated around the internet.
Over the years,
Californication has maintained its
popularity. "Scar Tissue" won a
Grammy award
for best rock song in 2000. The album was ranked number 399 on
Rolling Stone magazine's 2003
list of
the 500 greatest
albums of all time and, in 2006, the Chili Peppers recorded a
five-set playlist for
AOL Sessions that
included "Scar Tissue" and "Californication". The album produced
many staple hits for the Chili Peppers; five of the sixteen songs
on their
Greatest
Hits album were taken from
Californication.
Californication tour
Immediately following the release of
Californication, the
band embarked on a
world tour
to support the record, beginning in the United States. To culminate
the US leg of their tour, the Chili Peppers were asked to close
Woodstock '99, which became infamous
for the violence it resulted in. The band was informed minutes
before arriving that the crowds and bonfires in the fields had gone
out of control. When the Chili Peppers performed a tribute to Jimi
Hendrix's song "Fire" to finish their set as a favour to Hendrix's
sister, the disruption escalated into violence when several women
who had been
crowd surfing and
moshing were raped and nearby property was
looted and destroyed. Kiedis felt that "It was clear that this
situation had nothing to do with Woodstock anymore. It wasn't
symbolic of peace and love, but of greed and cashing in... We woke
up to papers and radio stations vilifying us for playing
'Fire'."
To kick
off the band's European tour, the band staged a free show in
Moscow
's Red
Square
, on August 14, 1999, to a crowd of over
200,000. Kiedis recalled the situation: "Red Square was so
filled with wall-to-wall Russians that we needed a police escort to
get near the stage."
Following the European leg, the group did a
show in New York
City
, at the Windows on
the World, for KROQ radio
contest-winners, and then at the Big Day
Out festival in Australia following several Japanese tour
dates. Flea, however, began to feel the repercussions of
touring causing the band to set up concerts that were less
strenuous, and consequently less financially rewarding, for them.
These shows would finish the remainder of the
Californication tour. As one of the last shows before the
release of their next album
By the
Way, the Chili Peppers played
Rock
in Rio 3.
Accolades
The information regarding accolades attributed to
Californication is adapted from AcclaimedMusic.net
(*) designates unordered lists.
Track listing
All songs written by Red Hot Chili Peppers.
- "Around the
World" – 3:58
- "Parallel
Universe" – 4:30
- "Scar Tissue" – 3:35
- "Otherside" – 4:15
- "Get on Top" – 3:18
- "Californication" –
5:21
- "Easily" – 3:51
- "Porcelain" – 2:43
- "Emit Remmus" – 4:00
- "I Like Dirt" – 2:37
- "This Velvet Glove" – 3:45
- "Savior" – 4:52
- "Purple Stain" – 4:13
- "Right on Time" – 1:52
- "Road Trippin'" – 3:25
- Australian edition bonus track
- "Gong Li" – 3:43
- "How Strong" – 4:42
- "Instrumental #2" – 2:34
- iTunes Store bonus tracks
- "Quixoticelixer" – 4:48
- "Over Funk" – 2:58
- "Fat Dance" – 3:40
B-sides
Personnel
- Red Hot Chili Peppers
- Additional musicians
- Production
Sales chart positions and Certifications
- Album
| Chart |
Peak position |
Certifications |
Sales/Shipments |
| Billboard 200 |
3 |
5x Platinum |
5,349,230+ |
| Netherlands |
2 |
2x Platinum |
100,000+ |
| UK Top 40 |
5 |
3× Platinum |
900,000+ |
| Germany |
2 |
3x Gold |
450,000+ |
| Australia |
1 |
8x Platinum |
560,000+ |
| Swedish Top 60 |
1 |
2x Platinum |
80,000+ |
| New Zealand |
1 |
8x Platinum |
120,000+ |
| France |
2 |
2x Gold |
200,000+ |
| Finland |
1 |
Platinum |
40,000+ |
| Norway |
1 |
Gold |
15,000+ |
| Austria |
2 |
Gold |
20,000+ |
| Switzerland |
3 |
2x Platinum |
100,000+ |
| Canada |
4 |
6x Platinum |
600,000+ |
| Belgium (Flanders) |
6 |
|
|
| Belgium (Wallonia) |
13 |
|
|
| Italy |
7 |
|
|
- I Most figures in this column are of the
numbers of units shipped based on the certifications accumulated.
Sources provided for these figures give the value of certifications
for the country they were issued in.
- Singles
Notes
- Anthony
Kiedis and Larry Sloman (October 6, 2004), Scar Tissue
(New York: Hyperion),
p. 295. ISBN 1401301010.
- Kiedis and Sloman (2004), p. 307.
- Kiedis and Sloman (2004), pp. 344, 358, 401.
- Kiedis and Sloman (2004), pp. 361–377.
- Kiedis and Sloman (2004), pp. 389–400
- Kiedis and Sloman (2004), pp. 401–406.
- Kiedis and Sloman (2004), p. 404.
- Kiedis and Sloman (2004), p. 409.
- Blackett, Matt (September, 1999). "Return of the Prodigal Son."
Guitar
Player.
- Kiedis and Sloman (2004), p. 407.
- Kiedis and Sloman (2004), p. 420.
- Kiedis and Sloman (2004), pp. 230–232, 320–321, 344, 424.
- Kiedis and Sloman (2004), p. 422.
- Woodlief, Mark (August, 1999) "Red Hot Chili Peppers Funking:
The Power of Positive." Ray Gun.
- Kiedis and Sloman (2004), p. 423.
- Kiedis and Sloman (2004), p. 424.
- Kiedis and Sloman (2004), p. 426.
- Kiedis and Sloman (2004), p. 427.
- Kiedis and Sloman (2004), p. 435.
- Dimery, Robert - 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You
Die; page 856
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