By the Way

by Red Hot Chili Peppers

Overview

The Red Hot Chili Peppers' eighth studio album finds the California foursome exploring the more melodic freeways of harmony and texture, contrasting the gritty, funky side streets of their early days. Luckily, with this more sophisticated sound, the Peppers have not sacrificed any of their trademark energy or passions for life, universal love, and (of course) lust. Although they recorded the spiky Abbey Road EP in 1988, this album actually sounds a lot closer to the Beatles' Abbey Road, with a little of Pet Sounds and elements of Phil Spector's lushest arrangements all distilled through the band's well-traveled funk-pop stylings. Harmony vocals and string arrangements have replaced some of the aggressive slap bass that the group was initially recognized for, but fans of both the gentle and the fierce Chili Peppers styles will embrace the title track and first single, "By the Way." In fact, this song on its own could almost be a brief history of everything the Red Hot Chili Peppers have recorded: fiery Hollywood funk, gentle harmonies, a little bit of singing about girls, a little bit of hanging out in the streets in the summertime, some rapid-fire raps from Anthony Kiedis, some aggro basslines from Flea -- the song plays like a three-and-a-half-minute audio version of Behind the Music. Overall, the album leans more toward the melodic end of their oeuvre, but they have grown into this kinder, gentler mode organically, progressively working toward this groove little by little, album by album. What once were snapshots of a spastic punk-funk lifestyle have grown into fully realized short stories of introspection and Californication. Though the pace of the album falters at times (particularly in the verses; the choruses are all pretty spectacular), it is refreshing to see that as the four Chili Peppers continue to grow older and more sure of themselves, their composition and performing skills are maturing along with them. ~ Zac Johnson

Product Details

Release Date:	07/09/2002
Label:	Warner Bros.
UPC:	0093624814016

Tracks

1. By the Way
2. Universally Speaking
3. This Is the Place
4. Dosed
5. Don't Forget Me
6. The Zephyr Song
7. Can't Stop
8. I Could Die for You
9. Midnight
10. Throw Away Your Television
11. Cabron
12. Tear
13. On Mercury
14. Minor Thing
15. Warm Tape
16. Venice Queen

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Red Hot Chili Peppers   Primary Artist
Marc Mann   Conductor
Chad Smith   Drums
Flea   Bass,Guitar (Bass),Vocals (Background)
John Frusciante   Guitar,Vocals (Background)
Julian Schnabel   Conductor
Anthony Kiedis   Vocals

Technical Credits

Ethan Mates   Engineer
Vladimir Meller   Mastering
Vlado Meller   Mastering
Jason Wormer   Engineer
Marc Mann   Orchestral Arrangements
Lindsay Chase   Production Coordination
Dave Lee   Guitar Technician
Dick Rude   Video Director,Video Producer
Andrew Scheps   Engineer
Chad Smith   Composer
Flea   Composer
John Frusciante   Composer
Julian Schnabel   Cover Art,Photography,Art Direction
Ryan Hewitt   Engineer
Jim Scott   Mixing,Engineer,Recording
Rick Rubin   Producer,Original Album Producer
Anthony Kiedis   Composer