By the Way

Performer: Red Hot Chili Peppers
Producer: Rick Rubin
Distributor: WEA (Distributor)

Notes: Red Hot Chili Peppers: Anthony Kiedis (vocals); John Frusciante (guitar); Flea (bass); Chad Smith (drums). Recorded at Cello Studios and Chateau Merchant, Los Angeles, California. 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 Building on the return of gifted guitarist John Frusciante on 1999's CALIFORNICATION, BY THE WAY finds the Red Hot Chili Peppers crafting an intricately crafted follow-up light years beyond the band's simple punk-funk origins. Re-teaming with longtime producer Rick Rubin, the Chili Peppers deftly add varied stylistic ingredients to a musical stew of unexpected nuance. Frusciante deals out brisk, flamenco-flavored acoustic rhythm guitar to the breezy Latin outing "Cabron," choppy chords on the ska-like "On Mercury," and double-tracked strands of guitar on "Dosed," a heartfelt ode to love. Amid this orgy of creative rediscovery, funk still remains an important component of the band's sound as evidenced by the infectious rhythms of Flea's bass playing and Frusciante's trademark chicken-scratch fretwork found on the tasty "Can't Stop" and the space-age tribal stomp of "Throw Away Your Television". Other high points find these Cali crazies stringing a distinct Motown beat and Beatles-flavored harmonies throughout the irresistible "Universally Speaking" and adding strings to the ruminative "Midnight," with its gradually escalating monster groove. Despite the daunting, 70-minute length of BY THE WAY, the mature execution and musical change-ups make this a major milestone in the Red Hot Chili Peppers canon.

Rolling Stone (7/25/02, p.71) - 4 stars out of 5 - "...A near-perfect balance of gutter grime and high-art aspiration....With the accomplished, insanely melodic BY THE WAY, RHCP dive headfirst into the pop realm that their 1999 single 'Scar Tissue' hineted at..." Spin (1/03, p.72) - Ranked #25 on Spin's list of 2002's "Albums of the Year" Spin (8/02, pp.61,2) - "...They may have made the years best rock record....BY THE WAY's sonic vibrancy, as well as its maturity, sounds like a band being reborn..." Entertainment Weekly (7/12/02, pp.81-2) - "...An even more refined version of the Chili Peppers....the music is more earnest and lofty...with a cushion of Beach Boys pop harmonies here, a somber string-section intro there..." Rating: B Q (12/02, p.68) - Included in Q Magazine's "The 50 Best Albums of 2002." Q (8/02, p.118) - 5 stars out of 5 - "...They are at the peak of their game. They're also at the peak of everyone else's game. A fantastic record, full of wonder." Uncut (9/02, p.118) - 3 stars out of 5 - "BY THE WAY presents a band who have mellowed and matured with unusual benefits to their music...jangling guitars, sunshine pop...allied to discreet electronic trim..." CMJ (8/16/02, p.7) - "...Complex vocal harmonies and slick arrangements....the Chili Peppers are still making some of the best music of their career..." Mojo (Publisher) (8/02, p.95) - "...The strongest Chili's album since 1991's BLOOD SUGAR SEX MAGIK..." NME (Magazine) (7/13/02, p.36) - 8 out of 10 - "...By and large, very good..."

Inspiring legions of imitators (especially among the rap-metal crowd), the Red Hot Chili Peppers combined biting rock guitar with funk rhythms and rap-influenced vocals for a thunderous, party-hearty sound. While the California band was popular on the alt-rock circuit in the late-'80s, they broke through to the mainstream and became superstars in the early '90s with a more mature sound that incorporated melodic ballads. Nevertheless, the band's stageshow continued to be just as unpredictable and outrageous as their music.

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