June 8, 1999: RHCP Release ‘Californication’
Californication was a sort of comeback album in many ways. The Red Hot Chili Peppers seemed to get their mojo back on this album. The same hard hitting rock and downright funk found on 1991’s Blood Sugar Sex Magik was back in full force. The Chili Peppers were working with legendary producer Rick Rubin again and perhaps the fundamental building block— guitarist John Frusciante was back.
From John’s mellow riffs that set the tone for “Scar Tissue” to Flea’s in your face funk on “Around The World”, you could tell the Chili Peppers were a whole unit again (wrapped together in one tube sock). Above and beyond the music found on Californication, the imagery connected with the album is second to none. In a time where videos actually mattered, the noir style video for “Otherside” and the gamer-esq video for “Californication” made the Chili Peppers a mainstay on popular shows like TRL.
Blood Sugar Sex Magik may have been the bands break out album but it was Californication that propelled the group into the new millennium and solidified their spot as one of the most eclectic and inventive bands of our time, earning the Chili Peppers a spot in The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
