Mother's Milk: When Red Hot Chili Peppers Was Still Funky
Written: Oct 29 '04
Product Rating:
Pros: A few great songs, fantastic bass (thanks Flea), and funky performance...
Cons: A few so-so offerings...
The Bottom Line: If you are at all curious how the band that created both Californication and By The Way got popular, listen to Mother's Milk. A good album.
lambchops's Full Review: Mother's Milk [PA] [Remaster] by Red Hot Chili Pep...
Once upon a time there was a crazy band from out the wilds of California. Wielding a penchant for funk and rap not to mention a fantastic bass player, this band became one of the most phenomenal and creative acts of their era. They were unlike anything else anybody had ever heard—a rock band with a hard funk edge augmented by druggy haze. They were the perfect band of the 1980’s. However something happened around the latter part of the decade—they grew up. By the time the late 1990’s rolled around the band’s former funkiness was almost entirely gone.
Of course the band I speak of is none other than Red Hot Chili Peppers. There is no question that that the So Cal rockers injected some much needed creativity into the synthesized musical world. The group of friends started life as Tony Flow and the Miraculously Majestic Masters of Mayhem. Anthony Kiedis (vocals), Michael Balzary (bass), Hillel Slovak (guitar), and drummer Jack Irons were known for their wild Sunset Strip shows wearing nothing but tube socks. Bassist Balzary became “Flea” in 1983 and the Red Hot Chili Peppers were thusly born.
The always tense relationships in the band were soon tested when both Slovak and Irons left. Obviously hurt but undaunted, RHCP released their debut with a new guitarist and drummer in tow. The band’s self-titled debut didn’t set the world afire but they did gain a small following. Soon thereafter, both Slovak and Irons returned to RHCP and follow-up album Freaky Styley was born. This was a drug-fueled romp through rap and rock and punk and funk and everything in between. It was everything that the band’s debut should have been—complete with George Clinton on as producer. 1987 and the first part of 1988 were good to RHCP. They made their first moves on the charts and were at the apparent top of their game. However the drugs caught up with one member in June 1988. Slovak died from a heroin overdose.
What was left of RHCP refused to stop making music. Irons left the band and in turn left both Kiedis and Flea high and dry. After some trying, they found replacements (which would turn out to be somewhat permanent) in John Frusciante (guitar) and Chad Smith (drums). This new group of four found success quickly. It was during the “Mother’s Milk era” that I first heard and saw (by way of MTV) RHCP. The album was a resounding success in part because of Slovak’s death and the song his band dedicated to him--Knock Me Down. That song and the accompanying video helped the album to go gold (and eventually platinum in 2003). Fortunately, the sound remained very much the same. It was still funky and cool and wild—all the things fans had come to know and love about RHCP.
Mother’s Milk (1989, EMI) is fortunately a more consistent album than the success of one song would indicate. Indeed, Knock Me Down was written because of Slovak’s untimely death but other tracks including the outrageous cover of Stevie Wonder’s Higher Ground, Taste The Pain, and Fire proved that this was the band’s perfect lineup. In fact, I don’t hesitate to say that this is easily the best lineup the band ever had. Plus, on this album and the one that followed (Blood Sugar Sex Magik, the best RHCP album to date) they exhibited a youthful vigor that has been entirely lost in their more recent albums.
In some ways, Mother’s Milk surpasses even Blood Sugar Sex Magik. It is certainly more fun and Higher Ground is the kind of song that makes an album special. The only thing it doesn’t have on Blood Sugar Sex Magik is ingenuity—that album is a creative masterpiece. However, Mother’s Milk shouldn’t be underestimated. The songs it contains are worthwhile and the funk is still there—something I desperately miss about modern RHCP. It is obvious from the bombastic opening to Good Time Boys that this is a band that has something to say. Flea’s fabulous, unique bass skills are as always the perfect compliment to Kiedis’ wailing. However, it takes until the aforementioned Higher Ground for the album to take shape. Flea’s never sounded better—his bass melds perfectly with Frusciante’s guitar and Smith’s bombastic percussion. Kiedis is important, but this is a song that harnesses all of the band’s many strengths. A fantastic, unlikely cover.
There are no actual bad songs on Mother’s Milk but there are some that I’m not as fond of--Subway to Venus is the first of these but I must also point to the odd rap-funk homage to Magic Johnson, and Sexy Mexican Maid. The rest of the material here is all worth hearing. Other particularly notable tracks I’ve yet to mention include Johnny, Kick a Hole in the Sky, Punk Rock Classic, and Stone Cold Bush. As long as you like the funky variety of RHCP music there is appealing material available on Mother’s Milk.
While not their best album, this is an important addition to any rock collection. Red Hot Chili Peppers broke tons of boundaries with their music—skater punks from California blending funk, rap, rock, and punk isn’t something you hear every day. If you’re one of those people that prefer RHCP sanitized ala Californication (1999) and By The Way (2001) it is incredibly important you hear where the band came from. You probably won’t like it, but it will put their more recent music into perspective. Mother’s Milk is where their rise to fame really took off and with each progressive album their sound became more mainstream (with exception going to 1995’s distinctly psychedelic One Hot Minute). If you don’t have Mother’s Milk yet and dare to call yourself a fan you better get cracking.
Rating: 4/5 stars
Track Listing:
01. Good Time Boys
02. Higher Ground
03. Subway To Venus
04. Magic Johnson
05. Nobody Weird Like Me
06. Knock Me Down
07. Taste The Pain
08. Stone Cold Bush
09. Fire
10. Pretty Little Ditty
11. Punk Rock Classic
12. Sexy Mexican Maid
13. Johnny, Kick A Hole In The Sky
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