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Flea (musician)
Encyclopedia
Michael Peter Balzary better known by his stage name Flea, is an Australian-American musician and occasional actor. He is best known as the bassist
, co-founding member, and one of the composer
s of the rock band Red Hot Chili Peppers
. Flea is also the co-founder of Silverlake Conservatory of Music
, a non-profit music education organization founded in 2001.
Originally a jazz
trumpet
prodigy, Flea learned to play bass in high school from a close friend and future Red Hot Chili Peppers guitarist Hillel Slovak
, who required a bassist for his band Anthym
, and soon developed his own style. Flea joined the group, but quit several months later in order to play for the punk rock outfit Fear
. He then rejoined Slovak to form an intended one-off band along with fellow high school alumni Anthony Kiedis
and Jack Irons
; the impromptu collaboration would ultimately give birth to the Red Hot Chili Peppers.
Highly regarded as one of the best rock bass players of all time, his work as a bassist incorporates several musical styles, ranging from aggressive slap bass
to more subdued and melodic techniques. Drawing influences from funk
music and punk rock
, Flea centers his playing on simplicity and minimalism while viewing complexity as a device that should be used in moderation. Aside from the Red Hot Chili Peppers, he has collaborated with many artists, including Jane's Addiction
, Atoms for Peace
, The Mars Volta
, Alanis Morissette
, Johnny Cash
, Young MC
and P
.
Flea has made numerous forays into acting, appearing in films that span many genres such as Back to the Future Part II
(1989) and Part III
(1990), Motorama
(1991) The Chase
(1994), Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas
(1998), My Own Private Idaho
(1991), Suburbia
(1984) and The Big Lebowski
(1998).
, Melbourne
, Australia
. His father, Mick Balzary, an avid fisherman, often took him fishing. When Flea was five, his family moved to Larchmont, New York
for his father's career. In 1971, his parents divorced and his father returned to Australia. Flea and his siblings stayed with their mother Patricia, who soon remarried to a jazz musician. Flea's stepfather, Walter Abdul Urban (1941–2011), frequently invited musicians to his house, where jam session
s would often take place. The family moved again to Los Angeles
, California
, where Flea became fascinated with the trumpet
. He had no interest in rock music
at the time; he idolized jazz musicians like Miles Davis
, Louis Armstrong
and Dizzy Gillespie
. Balzary is of Hungarian and Irish
descent.
His stepfather was an "aggressive alcoholic" who eventually became involved in shoot-outs with police. "I was raised in a very violent, alcoholic household," Flea later said, "I grew up being terrified of my parents, particularly my father figures. It caused [me] a lot of trouble later in life." To cope, Flea began smoking cannabis
at 13, and became a daily user.
Flea attended Fairfax High School
, and was somewhat of an outcast due to his taste in music. However, he soon met Anthony Kiedis
, and after a brief confrontation, the two became best friends. Kiedis recalled: "We were drawn to each other by the forces of mischief and love and we became virtually inseparable. We were both social outcasts. We found each other and it turned out to be the longest-lasting friendship of my life." Flea was turned on to Rock music, particularly Punk by a friend in high school named Hillel Slovak. Slovak needed him for a bassist in a punk band he was starting. He met Anthony Kiedis; they became roommates and after a time, they were offered a gig and played under a preliminary name. However, every show after that, they were referred to as the Red Hot Chili Peppers.
. Irons and Slovak however, decided to leave the Red Hot Chili Peppers in order to pursue a "more serious" future with rock band What Is This?
. Flea ultimately respected the decision, but felt the band would be lost without them. He and Kiedis hired drummer Cliff Martinez
and guitarist Jack Sherman to fill Iron's and Slovak's places, respectively. Andy Gill
, formerly of Gang of Four
, agreed to produce their first album. Gill and Sherman clashed with Flea and Kiedis; they continuously argued over music style, sound, and the album's production. Flea himself felt that the album was stiff and "a big mistake", but also admitted "we [he and Kiedis] were just disrespectful and obnoxious". The band's eponymous debut album, The Red Hot Chili Peppers
, was released on August 10, 1984 to largely poor critical and commercial review. After a relatively unfruitful tour, Sherman was fired in early 1985. Slovak, who had been contemplating a return to the Chili Peppers, rejoined the group after being encouraged by Flea.
Funk musician George Clinton
was hired to produce the band's second album, Freaky Styley
. The strong chemistry between Clinton and the Chili Peppers was felt instantly. Flea later referred to Clinton as "the warmest, kindest man in the world". Freaky Styley was released in August 1985. It received only a bit more attention than The Red Hot Chili Peppers with roughly 75,000 copies sold by year's end. Flea was somewhat indifferent to the poor album sales as he had recently proposed to girlfriend Loesha Zeviar, who was pregnant with their child. The band hired Michael Beinhorn
, their last resort among potential producers, to work on their next album. What Is This? had finally disbanded, and Irons returned to the Chili Peppers in mid 1986 after Martinez was fired. Flea, Slovak and Kiedis especially were involved in heavy drug use and their relationships became strained. Flea recalled that "it began to seem ugly to me and not fun; our communication was not healthy". Kiedis became dependent on heroin, leaving Flea and Slovak to work on much of the album's material by themselves. Flea and Zeviar married, and she gave birth to their daughter, Clara.
Kiedis was briefly kicked out of the band, and given a month to rehabilitate. Kiedis completed the rehab and rejoined the Red Hot Chili Peppers in Los Angeles to record their third album The Uplift Mofo Party Plan
. Flea has referred to the album as "the 'rockingest' record" the band has ever made. The Uplift Mofo Party Plan proved to be far more successful, commercially and critically, than the Chili Peppers' preceding albums; registering at number 148 on the Billboard 200
. Following the Uplift tour, Slovak's drug use dramatically increased. Flea's relationship with Slovak faded, and Slovak became isolated and depressed. On June 28, 1988, Slovak was found dead of a heroin overdose. Flea reflected: "I didn't really know how to deal with that sadness, and I don't think [Kiedis] knew how to deal with it either." Irons, who was taking Slovak's death particularly hard, left the group.
Flea and Kiedis took some time to collect themselves, but decided to keep the band together. Guitarist DeWayne "Blackbyrd" McKnight and drummer D.H. Peligro were added, and the band entered the studio to record a new album. McKnight soon began to create tension within the group, as his style did not mesh with the rest of the band. Peligro, the former drummer of the punk rock band Dead Kennedys
, was a friend of John Frusciante
, an eighteen year old guitarist and avid Red Hot Chili Peppers fan. Peligro introduced Frusciante to Flea, and the three jammed together on several occasions. Flea was impressed with Frusciante's skill, and astonished by his knowledge of the Chili Peppers' repertoire. Flea realized that Frusciante could provide the spark McKnight was lacking. McKnight was fired, and Frusciante accepted an invitation to join the band. Peligro was fired shortly thereafter; the Chili Peppers brought in drummer Chad Smith
as his replacement. Flea and Zeviar started to grow apart, and he began trying to recreate the memories of his adolescence by smoking marijuana on a daily basis. The Chili Peppers entered the studio, and completed recording of their fourth album, Mother's Milk
, in early 1989. Upon release, the album was met with mixed reactions from critics, but received far more commercial attention, peaking at number fifty-eight on the Billboard 200. After this, Flea made appearances playing the trumpet on Jane's Addiction's 1988 album Nothing's Shocking
, and bass on the critically acclaimed 1989 Young MC
album Stone Cold Rhymin'
. He would also appear in the video for "Bust a Move
", the hit single from the same album.
's coverage of spring break; charges were eventually dropped. The band was, however, attracting over three thousand people per show; Mother's Milk had been certified
as a gold
record in early 1990. By the time Red Hot Chili Peppers returned to Los Angeles, Flea and Zeviar agreed to a separation. He tried to put the separation out of his mind by smoking marijuana and having sex with random groupie
s when the band was on tour for Mothers Milk.
When the tour was over, the Red Hot Chili Peppers severed ties with EMI and signed with Warner Bros. Records
. Rick Rubin
, who had rejected an opportunity to produce The Uplift Mofo Party Plan, agreed to produce their next album. Flea had largely used the principal slap bass technique on the band's preceding four albums, and decided to downplay this style in favor of more conventional, melodic bass lines. To record the album, Rubin suggested a mansion that once belonged to magician Harry Houdini
. Flea felt it was "a creatively fertile situation", and decided to bring his daughter Clara with him. He and the rest of the band, excluding Smith, remained inside the house for the entire recording process. When not writing or recording the album, Flea spent a large portion of his time with Frusciante smoking large quantities of marijuana. The emotions Flea felt during the album's recording were like nothing he had ever experienced:
When Blood Sugar Sex Magik
was released on September 24, 1991, it received an overwhelmingly positive critical response. The album peaked at number three on the Billboard Hot 200, and went on to sell over seven million copies in the U.S. alone. The album's ensuing tour was critically acclaimed—the Chili Peppers commonly performed shows with over twenty thousand in attendance. Seattle
-based grunge
band Nirvana
also toured with them during the West Coast leg of their United States tour. The massive attention the Chili Peppers started receiving, however, caused Frusciante to feel extremely uncomfortable, and he abruptly quit the band during the Japanese leg of the album's tour. The band hired guitarist Arik Marshall
to complete the remaining tour dates.
Marshall was fired at the end of the tour, and the band added former Jane's Addiction
guitarist Dave Navarro
to record a new album. Kiedis was in the middle of a heroin relapse, which forced Flea to assume the role of lyricist, something he had not yet done. He wrote most of the song "Transcending", and the intro to "Deep Kick". Flea also wrote the lyrics to an entire song; "Pea", in which he both played bass and sang. These three songs appeared on the Chili Peppers' sixth record One Hot Minute
, which was released on September 12, 1995. The album received mixed reviews and was significantly less commercially successful than Blood Sugar Sex Magik. The One Hot Minute tour was ultimately cut short due to various injuries Kiedis and Smith received, and the Red Hot Chili Peppers decided to go on hiatus. Flea began to practice yoga
, and slowly decreased his marijuana consumption. Due to the Chili Peppers' inactivity, Flea joined Navarro in a Jane's Addiction reunion tour in 1997, filling in for ex-Jane's Addiction bassist Eric Avery
. Rumors spread that the band was breaking up, until Navarro stated otherwise: "I want to clarify that the Chili Peppers are not breaking up ... Flea and I are more than happy to do both projects, time permitting."
Flea also had plans to record a solo album. He asked Chili Peppers manager Lindy Goetz to help him promote the record and his future solo career. Flea eventually abandoned the idea in favor of offering his bass services to other artists. He performed on over forty records from 1995 to 1998, ranging from Alanis Morissette
's Jagged Little Pill
to former Minutemen
bassist Mike Watt
's debut solo album Ball-Hog or Tugboat?
. He also worked with Tori Amos
and Michael Stipe
on a track for the soundtrack to the 1995 Johnny Depp
film Don Juan DeMarco
. Navarro was fired from the Chili Peppers in 1998, and Flea questioned whether or not the Red Hot Chili Peppers would stay together: "... the only way I could imagine carrying on is if we got John [Frusciante] back in the band." Frusciante had completed drug rehabilitation in 1997 after a severe addiction to heroin and crack cocaine
left him on the brink of death. Flea visited Frusciante in early 1998, inviting him back to the Chili Peppers; an emotional Frusciante readily accepted.
Flea was heavily influenced by electronica
during the writing and recording of Californication
and he attempted to emulate this when writing bass lines for the album. Californication took less than two weeks to record; by contrast, One Hot Minute took over a year. When Californication was released on June 8, 1999 it received overwhelmingly positive critical reviews and sold fifteen million copies worldwide—more than Blood Sugar Sex Magik. The Chili Peppers played Woodstock 1999
, with Flea playing completely naked—something he would do again at the Reading and Leeds Festivals
the same year as well as several other Californication tour concerts.
Flea felt like the public school system was seriously lacking in exposing children to music by drastically reducing, and sometimes eliminating, art related programs. He founded the Silverlake Conservatory of Music
, a school dedicated to help youth progress in music, because of this. "I just wanted to fill the void that public education has cut from their curriculum. They've dropped the ball by cutting out music programs," Flea laments, "I grew up in LA public schools and was in the music department. It was really an important thing for my life, it gave me something to hold onto, and it was an important access for me. Without music I would've gotten into a lot of trouble and there are a lot of kids like me out there. I just wanted to try to provide something like what I got."
Red Hot Chili Peppers spent most of 2001 writing their eighth studio album, By the Way
. The entire band began listening to more melodic, textured music that would reflect heavily on the album. Frusciante became the driving force behind By the Way, causing initial strife between him and Flea. If the bassist introduced a funk rhythm into his bass lines, the guitarist would consequently disapprove. By the Way was released on July 9, 2002 to positive critical reviews. Although not as successful as Californication or Blood Sugar Sex Magik, By the Way would go on to sell over nine million copies worldwide. The ensuing tour, however, was extremely profitable; the Chili Peppers performed three concerts in London
's Hyde Park
to over 250,000 attendees and a total gross accumulation of $
17.1 million. It became the highest grossing concert at a single venue in history.
After another two year world tour, the Chili Peppers wrote their ninth studio album Stadium Arcadium
. Unlike By the Way, both Flea and Frusciante were more musically conjoined when writing the record. They found inspiration in Jimi Hendrix
, Jimmy Page
, and Eddie Van Halen
among others. The double album was ultimately released on May 9, 2006 to generally positive reviews, selling over seven million copies in less than two years. In November 2007, Flea's $4.8 million Corral Canyon home in Malibu was burnt down by a wildfire. The location was not, however, his primary residence and had been vacated pending sales.
. Beginning in the fall of 2008, the bassist is studying music theory
, composition and jazz trumpet. Flea attributes his interest in attending such courses to a newfound desire to widen his appreciation and understanding of music: "it’s so much fun to learn this stuff because I never knew anything. I played trumpet in the school bands. I learned things I liked to play on my trumpet but I didn’t learn why this note goes with this note and why it produces that sound. Or how to create tension in the composition [...] Knowing the structure is really fun." Flea also revealed plans to release a mainly instrumental solo record that was being recorded in his home; guest musicians include Patti Smith
and a choir from the Silverlake Conservatory.
Flea is also a part of Radiohead
lead singer Thom Yorke
's live band with Joey Waronker
, Mauro Refosco and Nigel Godrich
. The band performed two shows in Los Angeles in early October 2009, including the entirety of Yorke's 2006 solo album, The Eraser
. The ensemble adopted the name Atoms for Peace
and said they would perform dates leading up to an appearance at the 2010 Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival
.
The Chili Peppers ended their hiatus in October 2009 though were without guitarist John Frusciante, who quit the band in order to pursue other musical interests. Frusciante was replaced by Josh Klinghoffer
. The band began rehearsing and writing for their tenth studio album.
In January 2011, Flea set up his own personal Twitter
account where he shares his personal feelings and updates from the studio. He has also raised money for his Silverlake Conservatory of Music school from fans by giving away personally autographed items in return for donations.
On March 18, 2011, recording was completed on the Chili Peppers tenth studio album. The band is currently in the process of choosing a track listing and album title. The new album is due out at the end of August 2011.
On March 20, 2011, Flea ran the LA Marathon to raise money for the Silverlake Conservatory of Music through Crowdrise
. Flea was also featured in Runner's World
magazine discussing his preparation for the race.
In April 2011, Flea finished second in an online poll conducted by Contact Music to name the best bass guitarist in rock music. Flea lost to the late John Entwistle
of The Who
. Rounding out the top five were Paul McCartney
, Geddy Lee
and Les Claypool
.
On April 21, 2011, Flea appeared on the radio show of The Rolling Stones
guitarist Ron Wood
, giving a interview and jamming with him.
Flea commented about the Chili Peppers new album on April 30, 2011 through his Twitter page, saying the new album is a beautiful thing, a new thing, a warm thing full of love and violence and deep funky grooves for humans.
On June 5, 2011, it was announced that I'm with You
, the new Red Hot Chili Peppers album, will be released on August 30.
Flea will appear in the upcoming documentary title The Other F Word, which will air on Showtime and will be released through Oscilloscope Laboratories (a company founded by Adam Yauch
). The documentary, which was directed by Andrea Blaugrund Nevins, will focus on a generation of punk rockers and how they have handled fatherhood and how they went from public rebel to domestic authority figure. Mark Hoppus
, Jim Lindberg
, Art Alexakis
and Mark Mothersbaugh
will also be featured.
On June 9, 2011, Flea announced that he is giving away a personally customized bass guitar covered with graffiti and a one-on-one bass lesson as a prize in a eBay
auction. The auction will benefit Style Wars
, a 1983 documentary on early hip hop
. The auction will raise money for restoring the film’s negatives. Brad Pitt
, James Franco
and Spike Jonze
also took part in the auction which ended on June 11, 2011.
In June 2011, Flea was voted the second-best bass guitarist of all time by the readers of Rolling Stone magazine, being surpassed only by John Entwistle of The Who.
In a June 23, 2011 interview, Flea discussed the band's return and how he almost quit the Chili Peppers during their hiatus. Flea said that he just felt like he wanted to take two years away just to really look and see if the band was something we should still be doing." "Things had gotten dysfunctional and not fun, even though I thought we were making great records, doing great shows and were a really powerful, mighty thing as a band. I was proud of what we did." "For me, the biggest thing during the time off, and what really made me want to continue doing the band, specifically after decided he didn't want to continue in the band anymore, [was] I just realized, Anthony, man, he's my brother, I love him so much, and we started this band when we were kids. I wanted to keep that going, I never want to let that go. Playing with him is something, even though I can do other things that are exciting and beautiful and I always will do those things and I'll always want to grow and do music outside of the band, the thing that we have is special to us and something that is blood."
Flea played bass on 2 songs on Tom Waits
's 2011 album Bad as Me
, released on October 21.
On October 27, 2011 it was announced that Flea's side-project with Damon Albarn
and afrobeat legend, Tony Allen
would be called Rocketjuice and The Moon
. According to Albarn on where the band's name came from, someone in Lagos
did the sleeve design and that’s the name he gave it which he said he is fine with because trying to find a name for another band is always tricky. The band will make their live debut on October 29, 2011 in London
and their debut album will be released in 2012.
Flea married for the second time in 2005 to model, Frankie Rayder
. They had their first child together, Sunny Bebop Balzary, who was born in 2005. John Frusciante
is the Godparent
of Sunny.
. Flea has been considered one of the greatest bassists of all time, with Greg Tate of Rolling Stone
saying "if there were a Most Valuable Bass Player award given out in rock, Flea could have laid claim to that bitch ten years running". The Smashing Pumpkins
front man Billy Corgan
recalls that when he first saw the Chili Peppers in 1984, "Flea was playing so aggressively that he had worn a hole in his thumb and he was literally screaming in pain in-between songs because it hurt so bad. Someone kept coming out and pouring crazy glue into the hole." Flea's sound is also determined by what type of instrument he plays. Before Californication, he did not believe the actual bass held much significance: "what mattered was how you hit them [basses] and your emotional intent, and I still think that's the bottom line." Flea owns a 1961 Fender Jazz Bass
, treasuring it for its "old wood sound". He has contributed to the Red Hot Chili Peppers' sound not only with the bass but by playing trumpet, as well; it can be heard on several songs, such as "Subway to Venus" and "Taste The Pain" from their fourth album Mother's Milk or "Torture Me" and "Hump De Bump" from their ninth album Stadium Arcadium.
bass lines, however he was to change this style when the Red Hot Chili Peppers formed. He began to incorporate a "slap" bass style that drew influence largely from Bootsy Collins
. However, this technique caused Flea to receive attention from the music world and was often copied, and he therefore felt it necessary to completely remove slap-bass styles from his repertoire following Mother's Milk. Consequently, Blood Sugar Sex Magik saw a notable shift in style as it featured none of his signature technique but rather styles that focused more on traditional and melodic roots. His intellectual beliefs on how to play the instrument were also altered: "I was trying to play simply on Blood Sugar Sex Magik because I had been playing too much prior to that, so I thought, 'I've really got to chill out and play half as many notes'. When you play less, it's more exciting—there's more room for everything. If I do play something busy, it stands out, instead of the bass being a constant onslaught of notes. Space is good." During the writing and recording of One Hot Minute, Flea integrated some use of slap-bass progressions, but continued to center his technique around the philosophy of "less is more" rather than complexity: "I can't even think of anything I played that was complex [on the record]; even the slapping stuff is simple. It's original-sounding, and I'm proud of that—but what I played was more a matter of aesthetic choice." This led Flea to alter the way he wrote music by playing alone, instead of the jam session
s that would dictate how the band conceived songs: "[One Hot Minute] is the least jam-oriented record we've made. I mean, we definitely jammed on the ideas, but there's only one groove on the whole album that came from a jam, 'Deep Kick'. The rest of it came from my sitting down with a guitar or bass."
Flea became interested in electronica
during the Californication era and he attempted to emulate the same atmosphere given off by synthesizer
s into his bass playing: "I feel the most exciting music happening is electronica, without a doubt." He ultimately decided against this, acknowledging that, aside from Frusciante, the band was not moving in the same direction. Californication also saw him incorporate more funk-driven bass lines than he had on One Hot Minute. In By the Way, much of the bass-lines were entirely stripped of funk. Flea felt the chords Frusciante had written were not supportive of his typical technique; furthermore, he does not feel the musical direction of the record was specifically melodic, but instead "... a result of each one of us being who we are. The way we [the band] compose music is a very communal thing."
band that frequently jammed in his presence; he, therefore, became fascinated with the trumpet soon after. Flea credits his continued interest in music to jazz performers like Jaco Pastorius
, Miles Davis
, Duke Ellington
, Charlie Parker
, Louis Armstrong
, John Coltrane
and Dizzy Gillespie
. After Kiedis introduced him to punk
and rock
, Flea became infatuated with artists such as The Germs
, Styx
, David Bowie
and Defunkt
. Flea's early influences before Blood Sugar Sex Magik were mainly funk artists like Bootsy Collins
, Parliament Funkadelic, Sly & the Family Stone
, and The Meters
. They would become a notable aspect of the Red Hot Chili Peppers' sound up to Mother's Milk. Originally, Flea was given the impression by punk bands that one should play as hard and fast as they possibly could, but ultimately rejected this philosophy during Blood Sugar Sex Magik: "I was so into being raw [...] it was all bullshit." On Californication and By the Way, Flea drew influence from electronica, gothic rock
bands like The Cure
, Joy Division
and Siouxsie and the Banshees and New Wave music
rather than funk. During Stadium Arcadium he experienced another shift in interest. Instead of the melodic music he had listened to during the two previous albums, he enjoyed the work of "flashy" guitar players like Jimi Hendrix
, Eddie Van Halen
, and Jimmy Page
, exclusively.
s for his trademark sound:
New Effects used in the recording and touring of I'm With You:
film Suburbia
(1984). Shortly thereafter he starred alongside the Chili Peppers, who played themselves, in the skate drama Thrashin'
(1986). He played the ill-fated punker Milo in another Penelope Spheeris film, Dudes
(1987). He also made an appearance in the Bruce Weber documentary film about the life and career of jazz trumpeter Chet Baker
entitled Let's Get Lost (film)
(1988). He portrayed the character Needles in Back to the Future Part II
(1989) and Back to the Future Part III
(1990), though in an interview he referred to Part II as "a multi-million dollar piece of trash". He played a minor role in the 1991 independent film
My Own Private Idaho
as the character Budd. He played a number of minor roles in films throughout the 1990s, including Son in Law
(1993) as a tattoo artist, The Chase
(1994) as a monster truck driver, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas
(1997) as a hippie
, in The Big Lebowski
(1998) as a German nihilist
and also the 1998 remake of Psycho
. He has also lent his voice to the animated series The Wild Thornberrys
as the character Donnie.
In 1991 the Red Hot Chili Peppers released a black and white film documenting the recording of Blood Sugar Sex Magik titled Funky Monks
. They have released two video concerts, Off the Map in 2001 and Live at Slane Castle
in 2003—the latter of which had over eighty thousand attendees. Flea has also appeared in television broadcasts with Red Hot Chili Peppers on several occasions. Several months before Frusciante's departure in 1992, the band performed two songs on Saturday Night Live
—Kiedis felt the show was an embarrassment due to the guitarist; he believed that Frusciante purposely played the song out of tune and incorrectly. Later that year, the band appeared in the popular animated comedy The Simpsons
on the episode "Krusty Gets Kancelled
". At Woodstock 1994, Kiedis proposed the band perform the first few songs in metallic suits with giant light bulbs placed on their heads. Flea was initially reluctant but eventually agreed: "... when we got to play, the energy of the whole thing took over." In 1992, he guest starred on an episode of The Ben Stiller Show
. On the episode, Flea beats Stiller in a game of basketball.
In 2011, Flea will appear in the documentary, Bob and the Monster
. The film details the life of musician and drug counselor Bob Forrest
.
Flea also appeared in an episode of Celebrity Deathmatch
, fighting against Kenny G
(and winning).
Electric Bass
Electric bass can mean:*Electric upright bass, the electric version of a double bass*Electric bass guitar*Bass synthesizer*Big Mouth Billy Bass, a battery-powered singing fish...
, co-founding member, and one of the composer
Composer
A composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...
s of the rock band Red Hot Chili Peppers
Red Hot Chili Peppers
Red Hot Chili Peppers is an American rock band, formed in Los Angeles in 1983. The group's musical style primarily consists of rock with an emphasis on funk, as well as elements from other genres such as punk, hip hop and psychedelic rock...
. Flea is also the co-founder of Silverlake Conservatory of Music
Silverlake Conservatory of Music
Silverlake Conservatory of Music is a non-profit educational organization formed in California. It was founded in 2001 by Red Hot Chili Peppers bassist, Michael "Flea" Balzary and Keith "Tree" Barry to foster music education...
, a non-profit music education organization founded in 2001.
Originally a jazz
Jazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
trumpet
Trumpet
The trumpet is the musical instrument with the highest register in the brass family. Trumpets are among the oldest musical instruments, dating back to at least 1500 BCE. They are played by blowing air through closed lips, producing a "buzzing" sound which starts a standing wave vibration in the air...
prodigy, Flea learned to play bass in high school from a close friend and future Red Hot Chili Peppers guitarist Hillel Slovak
Hillel Slovak
Hillel Slovak was an Israeli-American musician best known as the original guitarist and founding member of the Los Angeles rock band Red Hot Chili Peppers...
, who required a bassist for his band Anthym
What Is This?
What Is This? was a rock band that originated in Fairfax High School in California and would play numerous shows along the coast of California. Originally named Chain Reaction when the band members were in junior high school, What Is This? were formed before and played around the same time as the...
, and soon developed his own style. Flea joined the group, but quit several months later in order to play for the punk rock outfit Fear
Fear (band)
Fear is an American punk rock band from Los Angeles, California, formed in 1977. The band is credited for helping to shape the sound and style of American hardcore punk, the group started out as part of the early California punk rock scene, and gained national prominence after an infamous 1981...
. He then rejoined Slovak to form an intended one-off band along with fellow high school alumni Anthony Kiedis
Anthony Kiedis
Anthony Kiedis is an American vocalist/lyricist, and occasional actor best known as the lead vocalist of the Grammy-winning American rock band Red Hot Chili Peppers. Kiedis spent his youth in Grand Rapids, Michigan with his mother before moving, shortly before his 12th birthday, to Hollywood,...
and Jack Irons
Jack Irons
Jack Steven Irons is an American musician who is best known as the original drummer of the American rock band The Red Hot Chili Peppers, as well as the former drummer for Eleven and Pearl Jam. He has also worked with Joe Strummer and The Latino Rockabilly War, Redd Kross, Raging Slab, Spinnerette...
; the impromptu collaboration would ultimately give birth to the Red Hot Chili Peppers.
Highly regarded as one of the best rock bass players of all time, his work as a bassist incorporates several musical styles, ranging from aggressive slap bass
Slapping
In music, the term slapping is often used to refer to two different playing techniques used on the double bass and on the bass guitar.-Double bass:...
to more subdued and melodic techniques. Drawing influences from funk
Funk
Funk is a music genre that originated in the mid-late 1960s when African American musicians blended soul music, jazz and R&B into a rhythmic, danceable new form of music. Funk de-emphasizes melody and harmony and brings a strong rhythmic groove of electric bass and drums to the foreground...
music and punk rock
Punk rock
Punk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock...
, Flea centers his playing on simplicity and minimalism while viewing complexity as a device that should be used in moderation. Aside from the Red Hot Chili Peppers, he has collaborated with many artists, including Jane's Addiction
Jane's Addiction
Jane's Addiction is an American alternative rock band formed in Los Angeles, California in 1985. The band's original line-up featured Perry Farrell , Dave Navarro , Eric Avery and Stephen Perkins . After breaking up in 1991, Jane's Addiction briefly reunited in 1997 and again in 2001, both times...
, Atoms for Peace
Atoms for Peace (band)
Atoms for Peace is a rock supergroup formed in late 2009. The group consists of lead singer of Radiohead, Thom Yorke ; Flea of Red Hot Chili Peppers; longtime Radiohead producer Nigel Godrich ; Joey Waronker who has played with artists such as R.E.M., Beck, Elliott Smith, The Smashing Pumpkins,...
, The Mars Volta
The Mars Volta
The Mars Volta is a Grammy award winning American progressive rock band from El Paso, Texas. Founded in 2001 by guitarist Omar Rodríguez-López and vocalist Cedric Bixler-Zavala, the band incorporates various influences including progressive rock, krautrock, jazz fusion, Latin American music, and...
, Alanis Morissette
Alanis Morissette
Alanis Nadine Morissette is a Canadian-American singer-songwriter, guitarist, record producer, and actress. She has won 16 Juno Awards and seven Grammy Awards, was nominated for two Golden Globe Awards and also shortlisted for an Academy Award nomination...
, Johnny Cash
Johnny Cash
John R. "Johnny" Cash was an American singer-songwriter, actor, and author, who has been called one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century...
, Young MC
Young MC
Marvin Young , better known by his stage name Young MC, is an English-born American singer and actor. He is best known for his 1989 hit "Bust a Move"...
and P
P (band)
-Personnel:*Gibby Haynes - vocals*Johnny Depp - guitar, bass*Sal Jenco - percussion*Bill Carter - guitar, bass-Additional musicians:*Ruth Ellsworth-Carter - keyboards*Flea - bass*Steve Jones - guitar*Andrew Weiss - Moog, guitar*Chuck E. Weiss - washboard...
.
Flea has made numerous forays into acting, appearing in films that span many genres such as Back to the Future Part II
Back to the Future Part II
Back to the Future Part II is a 1989 American science fiction comedy film and the second installment of the Back to the Future trilogy. It was directed by Robert Zemeckis, written by Zemeckis and Bob Gale, and starred Michael J. Fox, Christopher Lloyd, Thomas F. Wilson and Lea Thompson...
(1989) and Part III
Back to the Future Part III
Back to the Future Part III is a 1990 American science fiction comedy Western film. It is the third installment of the Back to the Future trilogy. The film was directed by Robert Zemeckis and starred Michael J. Fox, Christopher Lloyd, Mary Steenburgen, Thomas F. Wilson and Lea Thompson. The film...
(1990), Motorama
Motorama
The General Motors Motorama was an auto show staged by GM from 1949 to 1961. These automobile extravaganzas were designed to whet public appetite and boost automobile sales with displays of fancy prototypes, concept vehicles and other special or halo models. Motorama grew out of Alfred P. Sloan's...
(1991) The Chase
The Chase (1994 film)
The Chase is a 1994 action comedy film starring Charlie Sheen and Kristy Swanson. Released a few months before the real-life O. J. Simpson chase that also took place in California, the film includes Henry Rollins as a police officer and features cameos from Ron Jeremy and both Anthony Kiedis and...
(1994), Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas
Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas (film)
Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas is a 1998 American drama film directed by Terry Gilliam, starring Johnny Depp as Raoul Duke and Benicio del Toro as Dr. Gonzo. It was adapted from Hunter S. Thompson's 1971 novel of the same name....
(1998), My Own Private Idaho
My Own Private Idaho
My Own Private Idaho is a 1991 independent drama film written and directed by Gus Van Sant, loosely based on Shakespeare's Henry IV, Part 1, Henry IV, Part 2, and Henry V, and starring River Phoenix and Keanu Reeves...
(1991), Suburbia
Suburbia (film)
Suburbia, also known as Rebel Streets and The Wild Side, is a 1984 film written and directed by Penelope Spheeris about suburban punks who run away from home. The kids take up a minimalist, punk lifestyle by squatting in abandoned suburban tract homes...
(1984) and The Big Lebowski
The Big Lebowski
The Big Lebowski is a 1998 comedy film written and directed by Joel and Ethan Coen. Jeff Bridges stars as Jeff Lebowski, an unemployed Los Angeles slacker and avid bowler, who is referred to as "The Dude". After a case of mistaken identity, The Dude is introduced to a millionaire also named...
(1998).
Early life
Flea was born in BurwoodBurwood, Victoria
Burwood is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 17 km east from Melbourne's central business district. Its Local Government Area is largely the City of Whitehorse but includes the City of Monash in its south west corner. At the 2006 Census, Burwood had a population of 11,886.-History:The...
, Melbourne
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
. His father, Mick Balzary, an avid fisherman, often took him fishing. When Flea was five, his family moved to Larchmont, New York
Larchmont, New York
Larchmont is a village in Westchester County, New York. The population was 5,864 at the 2010 census. It is located within the town of Mamaroneck, on the shore of Long Island Sound, northeast of Midtown Manhattan...
for his father's career. In 1971, his parents divorced and his father returned to Australia. Flea and his siblings stayed with their mother Patricia, who soon remarried to a jazz musician. Flea's stepfather, Walter Abdul Urban (1941–2011), frequently invited musicians to his house, where jam session
Jam session
Jam sessions are often used by musicians to develop new material, find suitable arrangements, or simply as a social gathering and communal practice session. Jam sessions may be based upon existing songs or forms, may be loosely based on an agreed chord progression or chart suggested by one...
s would often take place. The family moved again to Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
, where Flea became fascinated with the trumpet
Trumpet
The trumpet is the musical instrument with the highest register in the brass family. Trumpets are among the oldest musical instruments, dating back to at least 1500 BCE. They are played by blowing air through closed lips, producing a "buzzing" sound which starts a standing wave vibration in the air...
. He had no interest in rock music
Rock music
Rock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...
at the time; he idolized jazz musicians like Miles Davis
Miles Davis
Miles Dewey Davis III was an American jazz musician, trumpeter, bandleader, and composer. Widely considered one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century, Miles Davis was, with his musical groups, at the forefront of several major developments in jazz music, including bebop, cool jazz,...
, Louis Armstrong
Louis Armstrong
Louis Armstrong , nicknamed Satchmo or Pops, was an American jazz trumpeter and singer from New Orleans, Louisiana....
and Dizzy Gillespie
Dizzy Gillespie
John Birks "Dizzy" Gillespie was an American jazz trumpet player, bandleader, singer, and composer dubbed "the sound of surprise".Together with Charlie Parker, he was a major figure in the development of bebop and modern jazz...
. Balzary is of Hungarian and Irish
Irish people
The Irish people are an ethnic group who originate in Ireland, an island in northwestern Europe. Ireland has been populated for around 9,000 years , with the Irish people's earliest ancestors recorded having legends of being descended from groups such as the Nemedians, Fomorians, Fir Bolg, Tuatha...
descent.
His stepfather was an "aggressive alcoholic" who eventually became involved in shoot-outs with police. "I was raised in a very violent, alcoholic household," Flea later said, "I grew up being terrified of my parents, particularly my father figures. It caused [me] a lot of trouble later in life." To cope, Flea began smoking cannabis
Cannabis (drug)
Cannabis, also known as marijuana among many other names, refers to any number of preparations of the Cannabis plant intended for use as a psychoactive drug or for medicinal purposes. The English term marijuana comes from the Mexican Spanish word marihuana...
at 13, and became a daily user.
Flea attended Fairfax High School
Fairfax High School (Los Angeles)
Fairfax High School is a Los Angeles Unified School District high school located in Los Angeles, USA, near the border of West Hollywood in the Fairfax District of Los Angeles...
, and was somewhat of an outcast due to his taste in music. However, he soon met Anthony Kiedis
Anthony Kiedis
Anthony Kiedis is an American vocalist/lyricist, and occasional actor best known as the lead vocalist of the Grammy-winning American rock band Red Hot Chili Peppers. Kiedis spent his youth in Grand Rapids, Michigan with his mother before moving, shortly before his 12th birthday, to Hollywood,...
, and after a brief confrontation, the two became best friends. Kiedis recalled: "We were drawn to each other by the forces of mischief and love and we became virtually inseparable. We were both social outcasts. We found each other and it turned out to be the longest-lasting friendship of my life." Flea was turned on to Rock music, particularly Punk by a friend in high school named Hillel Slovak. Slovak needed him for a bassist in a punk band he was starting. He met Anthony Kiedis; they became roommates and after a time, they were offered a gig and played under a preliminary name. However, every show after that, they were referred to as the Red Hot Chili Peppers.
1984–1990: First four albums
The band's concert repertoire grew to nine songs as a result of months of playing at local nightclubs and bars. The Red Hot Chili Peppers entered Bijou Studios to record a demo tape and subsequently secured a record deal with EMIEMI
The EMI Group, also known as EMI Music or simply EMI, is a multinational music company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the fourth-largest business group and family of record labels in the recording industry and one of the "big four" record companies. EMI Group also has a major...
. Irons and Slovak however, decided to leave the Red Hot Chili Peppers in order to pursue a "more serious" future with rock band What Is This?
What Is This?
What Is This? was a rock band that originated in Fairfax High School in California and would play numerous shows along the coast of California. Originally named Chain Reaction when the band members were in junior high school, What Is This? were formed before and played around the same time as the...
. Flea ultimately respected the decision, but felt the band would be lost without them. He and Kiedis hired drummer Cliff Martinez
Cliff Martinez
Cliff Martinez is an American film score composer and former drummer.-Biography:Cliff Martinez was born in the Bronx, New York. Raised in Columbus, Ohio, his first job composing was for the popular television show Pee Wee's Playhouse...
and guitarist Jack Sherman to fill Iron's and Slovak's places, respectively. Andy Gill
Andy Gill
Andy Gill is a founding member and guitarist for the English rock group Gang of Four, considered among the most influential post-punk bands...
, formerly of Gang of Four
Gang of Four (band)
Gang of Four are an English post-punk group from Leeds. Original personnel were singer Jon King, guitarist Andy Gill, bass guitarist Dave Allen and drummer Hugo Burnham. They were fully active from 1977 to 1984, and then re-emerged twice in the 1990s with King and Gill...
, agreed to produce their first album. Gill and Sherman clashed with Flea and Kiedis; they continuously argued over music style, sound, and the album's production. Flea himself felt that the album was stiff and "a big mistake", but also admitted "we [he and Kiedis] were just disrespectful and obnoxious". The band's eponymous debut album, The Red Hot Chili Peppers
Red Hot Chili Peppers (album)
The Red Hot Chili Peppers is the debut studio album by American funk rock band Red Hot Chili Peppers, released on August 10, 1984 on EMI America Records. The album was produced by Gang of Four guitarist Andy Gill, and is the only album to feature guitarist Jack Sherman.-Background and recording:Red...
, was released on August 10, 1984 to largely poor critical and commercial review. After a relatively unfruitful tour, Sherman was fired in early 1985. Slovak, who had been contemplating a return to the Chili Peppers, rejoined the group after being encouraged by Flea.
Funk musician George Clinton
George Clinton (funk musician)
George Clinton is an American singer, songwriter, bandleader, and music producer and the principal architect of P-Funk. He was the mastermind of the bands Parliament and Funkadelic during the 1970s and early 1980s, and launched a solo career in 1981. He has been cited as one of the foremost...
was hired to produce the band's second album, Freaky Styley
Freaky Styley
Freaky Styley is the second studio album by American funk rock band Red Hot Chili Peppers, released on August 16, 1985 on EMI America. The album name holds its origins in a commonly used phrase in the 80's to describe anything as being "freaky styley". Freaky Styley marks founding guitarist Hillel...
. The strong chemistry between Clinton and the Chili Peppers was felt instantly. Flea later referred to Clinton as "the warmest, kindest man in the world". Freaky Styley was released in August 1985. It received only a bit more attention than The Red Hot Chili Peppers with roughly 75,000 copies sold by year's end. Flea was somewhat indifferent to the poor album sales as he had recently proposed to girlfriend Loesha Zeviar, who was pregnant with their child. The band hired Michael Beinhorn
Michael Beinhorn
Michael Beinhorn is an American musician and record producer.Beinhorn started his professional career as a musician, playing keyboards in Bill Laswell's Material during the 1980s...
, their last resort among potential producers, to work on their next album. What Is This? had finally disbanded, and Irons returned to the Chili Peppers in mid 1986 after Martinez was fired. Flea, Slovak and Kiedis especially were involved in heavy drug use and their relationships became strained. Flea recalled that "it began to seem ugly to me and not fun; our communication was not healthy". Kiedis became dependent on heroin, leaving Flea and Slovak to work on much of the album's material by themselves. Flea and Zeviar married, and she gave birth to their daughter, Clara.
Kiedis was briefly kicked out of the band, and given a month to rehabilitate. Kiedis completed the rehab and rejoined the Red Hot Chili Peppers in Los Angeles to record their third album The Uplift Mofo Party Plan
The Uplift Mofo Party Plan
The Uplift Mofo Party Plan is the third studio album by American funk rock band Red Hot Chili Peppers, released on September 29, 1987 on EMI America Records...
. Flea has referred to the album as "the 'rockingest' record" the band has ever made. The Uplift Mofo Party Plan proved to be far more successful, commercially and critically, than the Chili Peppers' preceding albums; registering at number 148 on the Billboard 200
Billboard 200
The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists...
. Following the Uplift tour, Slovak's drug use dramatically increased. Flea's relationship with Slovak faded, and Slovak became isolated and depressed. On June 28, 1988, Slovak was found dead of a heroin overdose. Flea reflected: "I didn't really know how to deal with that sadness, and I don't think [Kiedis] knew how to deal with it either." Irons, who was taking Slovak's death particularly hard, left the group.
Flea and Kiedis took some time to collect themselves, but decided to keep the band together. Guitarist DeWayne "Blackbyrd" McKnight and drummer D.H. Peligro were added, and the band entered the studio to record a new album. McKnight soon began to create tension within the group, as his style did not mesh with the rest of the band. Peligro, the former drummer of the punk rock band Dead Kennedys
Dead Kennedys
Dead Kennedys are an American punk rock band formed in San Francisco, California in 1978. The band became part of the American hardcore punk movement of the early 1980s. They gained a large underground fanbase in the international punk music scene....
, was a friend of John Frusciante
John Frusciante
John Anthony Frusciante is an American guitarist, singer, songwriter, record and film producer. He is best known as the former lead guitarist of the rock band Red Hot Chili Peppers, with whom he had been for a number of years and recorded five studio albums...
, an eighteen year old guitarist and avid Red Hot Chili Peppers fan. Peligro introduced Frusciante to Flea, and the three jammed together on several occasions. Flea was impressed with Frusciante's skill, and astonished by his knowledge of the Chili Peppers' repertoire. Flea realized that Frusciante could provide the spark McKnight was lacking. McKnight was fired, and Frusciante accepted an invitation to join the band. Peligro was fired shortly thereafter; the Chili Peppers brought in drummer Chad Smith
Chad Smith
Chad Smith is an American musician, best known as the longtime and current drummer of Red Hot Chili Peppers. Smith is also the drummer of the hard rock supergroup Chickenfoot which includes Sammy Hagar, Joe Satriani, and Michael Anthony, former Deep Purple vocalist Glenn Hughes' backing band and...
as his replacement. Flea and Zeviar started to grow apart, and he began trying to recreate the memories of his adolescence by smoking marijuana on a daily basis. The Chili Peppers entered the studio, and completed recording of their fourth album, Mother's Milk
Mother's Milk
Mother's Milk is the fourth studio album by American rock band Red Hot Chili Peppers, released on August 16, 1989, on EMI America Records. It was the first album to feature the band's most well-known lineup...
, in early 1989. Upon release, the album was met with mixed reactions from critics, but received far more commercial attention, peaking at number fifty-eight on the Billboard 200. After this, Flea made appearances playing the trumpet on Jane's Addiction's 1988 album Nothing's Shocking
Nothing's Shocking
Nothing's Shocking is the first studio album by the American alternative rock band Jane's Addiction, released on August 23, 1988 through Warner Bros. Records. Nothing's Shocking was well received by critics upon release and is often cited as the band's best album. Despite this, it peaked at number...
, and bass on the critically acclaimed 1989 Young MC
Young MC
Marvin Young , better known by his stage name Young MC, is an English-born American singer and actor. He is best known for his 1989 hit "Bust a Move"...
album Stone Cold Rhymin'
Stone Cold Rhymin'
Stone Cold Rhymin' is the debut album by rapper Young MC. It was originally released in 1989 on Delicious Vinyl and was later re-issued by Rhino Records. The third track, "Bust a Move", was Young MC's biggest hit and was the song he is mostly remembered for today, reaching No. 7 on the Billboard...
. He would also appear in the video for "Bust a Move
Bust a Move (Young MC song)
"Bust a Move" is a 1989 single by the rapper Young MC. It won the 1990 Grammy Award for Best Rap Performance. It appeared on his album Stone Cold Rhymin and was his biggest hit, reaching number 7 on the Billboard Hot 100 and topping the charts in Australia...
", the hit single from the same album.
1990–1998: Mainstream success and side projects
The ensuing Mother's Milk tour put a strain on Flea's marriage. In order to make money, he needed to tour, and therefore spend time away from his family. Furthermore, he and Smith were arrested on charges of battery and sexual harassment after a performance on MTVMTV
MTV, formerly an initialism of Music Television, is an American network based in New York City that launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs....
's coverage of spring break; charges were eventually dropped. The band was, however, attracting over three thousand people per show; Mother's Milk had been certified
RIAA certification
In the United States, the Recording Industry Association of America awards certification based on the number of albums and singles sold through retail and other ancillary markets. Other countries have similar awards...
as a gold
Music recording sales certification
Music recording sales certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped or sold a certain number of copies, where the threshold quantity varies by type and by nation or territory .Almost all countries follow variations of the RIAA certification categories,...
record in early 1990. By the time Red Hot Chili Peppers returned to Los Angeles, Flea and Zeviar agreed to a separation. He tried to put the separation out of his mind by smoking marijuana and having sex with random groupie
Groupie
A groupie is a person who seeks emotional and sexual intimacy with a musician or other celebrity. "Groupie" is derived from group in reference to a musical group, but the word is also used in a more general sense, especially in casual conversation....
s when the band was on tour for Mothers Milk.
When the tour was over, the Red Hot Chili Peppers severed ties with EMI and signed with Warner Bros. Records
Warner Bros. Records
Warner Bros. Records Inc. is an American record label. It was the foundation label of the present-day Warner Music Group, and now operates as a wholly owned subsidiary of that corporation. It maintains a close relationship with its former parent, Warner Bros. Pictures, although the two companies...
. Rick Rubin
Rick Rubin
Frederick Jay "Rick" Rubin is an American record producer and the co-president of Columbia Records. Along with Russell Simmons, Rubin was the co-founder of Def Jam Records and also established American Recordings...
, who had rejected an opportunity to produce The Uplift Mofo Party Plan, agreed to produce their next album. Flea had largely used the principal slap bass technique on the band's preceding four albums, and decided to downplay this style in favor of more conventional, melodic bass lines. To record the album, Rubin suggested a mansion that once belonged to magician Harry Houdini
Harry Houdini
Harry Houdini was a Hungarian-born American magician and escapologist, stunt performer, actor and film producer noted for his sensational escape acts...
. Flea felt it was "a creatively fertile situation", and decided to bring his daughter Clara with him. He and the rest of the band, excluding Smith, remained inside the house for the entire recording process. When not writing or recording the album, Flea spent a large portion of his time with Frusciante smoking large quantities of marijuana. The emotions Flea felt during the album's recording were like nothing he had ever experienced:
When Blood Sugar Sex Magik
Blood Sugar Sex Magik
Blood Sugar Sex Magik is the fifth studio album by American rock band Red Hot Chili Peppers, released on September 24, 1991. Produced by Rick Rubin, it was the band's first record released on Warner Bros. Records...
was released on September 24, 1991, it received an overwhelmingly positive critical response. The album peaked at number three on the Billboard Hot 200, and went on to sell over seven million copies in the U.S. alone. The album's ensuing tour was critically acclaimed—the Chili Peppers commonly performed shows with over twenty thousand in attendance. Seattle
Seattle, Washington
Seattle is the county seat of King County, Washington. With 608,660 residents as of the 2010 Census, Seattle is the largest city in the Northwestern United States. The Seattle metropolitan area of about 3.4 million inhabitants is the 15th largest metropolitan area in the country...
-based grunge
Grunge
Grunge is a subgenre of alternative rock that emerged during the mid-1980s in the American state of Washington, particularly in the Seattle area. Inspired by hardcore punk, heavy metal, and indie rock, grunge is generally characterized by heavily distorted electric guitars, contrasting song...
band Nirvana
Nirvana (band)
Nirvana was an American rock band that was formed by singer/guitarist Kurt Cobain and bassist Krist Novoselic in Aberdeen, Washington in 1987...
also toured with them during the West Coast leg of their United States tour. The massive attention the Chili Peppers started receiving, however, caused Frusciante to feel extremely uncomfortable, and he abruptly quit the band during the Japanese leg of the album's tour. The band hired guitarist Arik Marshall
Arik Marshall
Arik Marshall is an American guitarist, singer, songwriter, poet, and author, best known as a one-time member of the Red Hot Chili Peppers. He has earned the respect and praise of artists as diverse as Joe Strummer, Prince, Gwen Stefani, Gavin Rossdale, Annabella Lwin of Bow Wow Wow, and Carlos...
to complete the remaining tour dates.
Marshall was fired at the end of the tour, and the band added former Jane's Addiction
Jane's Addiction
Jane's Addiction is an American alternative rock band formed in Los Angeles, California in 1985. The band's original line-up featured Perry Farrell , Dave Navarro , Eric Avery and Stephen Perkins . After breaking up in 1991, Jane's Addiction briefly reunited in 1997 and again in 2001, both times...
guitarist Dave Navarro
Dave Navarro
David Michael "Dave" Navarro is an American guitarist who plays in the alternative rock band Jane's Addiction and cover band Camp Freddy. He has also played with the Red Hot Chili Peppers, The Panic Channel, and many others.- Early life :...
to record a new album. Kiedis was in the middle of a heroin relapse, which forced Flea to assume the role of lyricist, something he had not yet done. He wrote most of the song "Transcending", and the intro to "Deep Kick". Flea also wrote the lyrics to an entire song; "Pea", in which he both played bass and sang. These three songs appeared on the Chili Peppers' sixth record One Hot Minute
One Hot Minute
One Hot Minute is the sixth studio album by American rock band Red Hot Chili Peppers, released on September 12, 1995, on Warner Bros. Records...
, which was released on September 12, 1995. The album received mixed reviews and was significantly less commercially successful than Blood Sugar Sex Magik. The One Hot Minute tour was ultimately cut short due to various injuries Kiedis and Smith received, and the Red Hot Chili Peppers decided to go on hiatus. Flea began to practice yoga
Yoga
Yoga is a physical, mental, and spiritual discipline, originating in ancient India. The goal of yoga, or of the person practicing yoga, is the attainment of a state of perfect spiritual insight and tranquility while meditating on Supersoul...
, and slowly decreased his marijuana consumption. Due to the Chili Peppers' inactivity, Flea joined Navarro in a Jane's Addiction reunion tour in 1997, filling in for ex-Jane's Addiction bassist Eric Avery
Eric Avery
Eric Adam Avery is an American musician and is the former bass player for the rock band Jane's Addiction. Avery played in Jane's Addiction initially from 1985 to 1991, and rejoined the band in 2008 before departing again in 2010....
. Rumors spread that the band was breaking up, until Navarro stated otherwise: "I want to clarify that the Chili Peppers are not breaking up ... Flea and I are more than happy to do both projects, time permitting."
Flea also had plans to record a solo album. He asked Chili Peppers manager Lindy Goetz to help him promote the record and his future solo career. Flea eventually abandoned the idea in favor of offering his bass services to other artists. He performed on over forty records from 1995 to 1998, ranging from Alanis Morissette
Alanis Morissette
Alanis Nadine Morissette is a Canadian-American singer-songwriter, guitarist, record producer, and actress. She has won 16 Juno Awards and seven Grammy Awards, was nominated for two Golden Globe Awards and also shortlisted for an Academy Award nomination...
's Jagged Little Pill
Jagged Little Pill
Jagged Little Pill is the third studio album by Canadian recording artist and songwriter Alanis Morissette. It was Morissette's first internationally released album, and her first studio album after the three year hiatus following her break with MCA Records. The album marked a shift from her style...
to former Minutemen
Minutemen (band)
Minutemen were an American hardcore punk band formed in San Pedro, California in 1980. Composed of guitarist D. Boon, bassist Mike Watt and drummer George Hurley, Minutemen recorded four albums and eight EPs before Boon's death in an automobile accident in December 1985...
bassist Mike Watt
Mike Watt
Michael David Watt is an American bassist, singer and songwriter.He is best known for co-founding the rock bands Minutemen, dos, and Firehose; , he is also the bassist for the reunited Stooges and a member of the art rock/jazz/punk/improv group Banyan as well as many other post-Minutemen...
's debut solo album Ball-Hog or Tugboat?
Ball-Hog or Tugboat?
Ball-Hog or Tugboat? is the debut solo album by former Minutemen and fIREHOSE bassist, songwriter and vocalist Mike Watt. It was recorded in 1994, and came at a personal and professional career crossroads for Watt...
. He also worked with Tori Amos
Tori Amos
Tori Amos is an American pianist, singer-songwriter and composer. She was at the forefront of a number of female singer-songwriters in the early 1990s and was noteworthy early in her career as one of the few alternative rock performers to use a piano as her primary instrument...
and Michael Stipe
Michael Stipe
John Michael Stipe is an American singer and lyricist. He was the lead vocalist of the alternative rock band R.E.M.Stipe is noted and occasionally parodied for the "mumbling" style of his early career as well as his social and political activism. He was in charge of R.E.M.'s visual image; often...
on a track for the soundtrack to the 1995 Johnny Depp
Johnny Depp
John Christopher "Johnny" Depp II is an American actor, producer and musician. He has won the Golden Globe Award and Screen Actors Guild award for Best Actor. Depp rose to prominence on the 1980s television series 21 Jump Street, becoming a teen idol...
film Don Juan DeMarco
Don Juan DeMarco
Don Juan DeMarco is a 1995 American romantic comedy-drama film starring Johnny Depp as John Arnold DeMarco, a man who believes himself to be Don Juan, the greatest lover in the world. Clad in a cape and domino mask, DeMarco undergoes psychiatric treatment with Marlon Brando's character, Dr. Jack...
. Navarro was fired from the Chili Peppers in 1998, and Flea questioned whether or not the Red Hot Chili Peppers would stay together: "... the only way I could imagine carrying on is if we got John [Frusciante] back in the band." Frusciante had completed drug rehabilitation in 1997 after a severe addiction to heroin and crack cocaine
Crack cocaine
Crack cocaine is the freebase form of cocaine that can be smoked. It may also be termed rock, hard, iron, cavvy, base, or just crack; it is the most addictive form of cocaine. Crack rocks offer a short but intense high to smokers...
left him on the brink of death. Flea visited Frusciante in early 1998, inviting him back to the Chili Peppers; an emotional Frusciante readily accepted.
1998–2007: Californication, By the Way and Stadium Arcadium
The band, with Frusciante back on guitar, began writing new songs during the summer of 1998 in Flea's garage. He and Kiedis were less confident in writing the album, after the disappointing results of One Hot Minute. Flea had also recently broken up with his girlfriend of two years, Marissa Pouw, causing him to enter a state of depression, which was only lifted when his daughter, Clara, comforted him after several weeks of crying.Flea was heavily influenced by electronica
Electronica
Electronica includes a wide range of contemporary electronic music designed for a wide range of uses, including foreground listening, some forms of dancing, and background music for other activities; however, unlike electronic dance music, it is not specifically made for dancing...
during the writing and recording of Californication
Californication (album)
Californication is the seventh studio album by American 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...
and he attempted to emulate this when writing bass lines for the album. Californication took less than two weeks to record; by contrast, One Hot Minute took over a year. When Californication was released on June 8, 1999 it received overwhelmingly positive critical reviews and sold fifteen million copies worldwide—more than Blood Sugar Sex Magik. The Chili Peppers played Woodstock 1999
Woodstock 1999
Woodstock 1999, also called Woodstock 99, performed July 22–25, 1999, was the second large-scale music festival that attempted to emulate the original Woodstock Festival of 1969. Like the previous Woodstock festivals it was performed in upstate New York, this time in Rome, New York, around 200...
, with Flea playing completely naked—something he would do again at the Reading and Leeds Festivals
Reading and Leeds Festivals
The Reading and Leeds Festivals are a pair of annual music festivals that take place in Reading and Leeds in England. The events take place simultaneously on the Friday, Saturday and Sunday of the August bank holiday weekend, sharing the same bill. The Reading Festival is held at Little John's Farm...
the same year as well as several other Californication tour concerts.
Flea felt like the public school system was seriously lacking in exposing children to music by drastically reducing, and sometimes eliminating, art related programs. He founded the Silverlake Conservatory of Music
Silverlake Conservatory of Music
Silverlake Conservatory of Music is a non-profit educational organization formed in California. It was founded in 2001 by Red Hot Chili Peppers bassist, Michael "Flea" Balzary and Keith "Tree" Barry to foster music education...
, a school dedicated to help youth progress in music, because of this. "I just wanted to fill the void that public education has cut from their curriculum. They've dropped the ball by cutting out music programs," Flea laments, "I grew up in LA public schools and was in the music department. It was really an important thing for my life, it gave me something to hold onto, and it was an important access for me. Without music I would've gotten into a lot of trouble and there are a lot of kids like me out there. I just wanted to try to provide something like what I got."
By the Way
By the Way is the eighth studio album by American rock band Red Hot Chili Peppers. The album was released on July 9, 2002 on Warner Bros. Records. It sold over 286,000 copies in the first week, and peaked at number two on the Billboard 200. The singles from the album included "By the Way", "The...
. The entire band began listening to more melodic, textured music that would reflect heavily on the album. Frusciante became the driving force behind By the Way, causing initial strife between him and Flea. If the bassist introduced a funk rhythm into his bass lines, the guitarist would consequently disapprove. By the Way was released on July 9, 2002 to positive critical reviews. Although not as successful as Californication or Blood Sugar Sex Magik, By the Way would go on to sell over nine million copies worldwide. The ensuing tour, however, was extremely profitable; the Chili Peppers performed three concerts in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
's Hyde Park
Hyde Park, London
Hyde Park is one of the largest parks in central London, United Kingdom, and one of the Royal Parks of London, famous for its Speakers' Corner.The park is divided in two by the Serpentine...
to over 250,000 attendees and a total gross accumulation of $
United States dollar
The United States dollar , also referred to as the American dollar, is the official currency of the United States of America. It is divided into 100 smaller units called cents or pennies....
17.1 million. It became the highest grossing concert at a single venue in history.
After another two year world tour, the Chili Peppers wrote their ninth studio album Stadium Arcadium
Stadium Arcadium
Stadium Arcadium is the ninth studio album by American rock band Red Hot Chili Peppers. The album was released on May 9, 2006, on Warner Bros. Records. The album produced five singles: "Dani California", "Tell Me Baby", "Snow ", "Desecration Smile", and "Hump de Bump"...
. Unlike By the Way, both Flea and Frusciante were more musically conjoined when writing the record. They found inspiration in Jimi Hendrix
Jimi Hendrix
James Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix was an American guitarist and singer-songwriter...
, Jimmy Page
Jimmy Page
James Patrick "Jimmy" Page, OBE is an English multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, and record producer. He began his career as a studio session guitarist in London and was subsequently a member of The Yardbirds from 1966 to 1968, after which he founded the English rock band Led Zeppelin.Jimmy Page...
, and Eddie Van Halen
Eddie Van Halen
Edward Lodewijk "Eddie" Van Halen is a Dutch-American guitarist, keyboardist, songwriter and producer, best known as the lead guitarist and co-founder of the hard rock band Van Halen, inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame...
among others. The double album was ultimately released on May 9, 2006 to generally positive reviews, selling over seven million copies in less than two years. In November 2007, Flea's $4.8 million Corral Canyon home in Malibu was burnt down by a wildfire. The location was not, however, his primary residence and had been vacated pending sales.
2008–present: Chili Peppers hiatus, return to school and I'm with You
After the band announced a long hiatus due to exhaustion, Flea enrolled in music classes at the University of Southern CaliforniaUniversity of Southern California
The University of Southern California is a private, not-for-profit, nonsectarian, research university located in Los Angeles, California, United States. USC was founded in 1880, making it California's oldest private research university...
. Beginning in the fall of 2008, the bassist is studying music theory
Music theory
Music theory is the study of how music works. It examines the language and notation of music. It seeks to identify patterns and structures in composers' techniques across or within genres, styles, or historical periods...
, composition and jazz trumpet. Flea attributes his interest in attending such courses to a newfound desire to widen his appreciation and understanding of music: "it’s so much fun to learn this stuff because I never knew anything. I played trumpet in the school bands. I learned things I liked to play on my trumpet but I didn’t learn why this note goes with this note and why it produces that sound. Or how to create tension in the composition [...] Knowing the structure is really fun." Flea also revealed plans to release a mainly instrumental solo record that was being recorded in his home; guest musicians include Patti Smith
Patti Smith
Patricia Lee "Patti" Smith is an American singer-songwriter, poet and visual artist, who became a highly influential component of the New York City punk rock movement with her 1975 debut album Horses....
and a choir from the Silverlake Conservatory.
Flea is also a part of Radiohead
Radiohead
Radiohead are an English rock band from Abingdon, Oxfordshire, formed in 1985. The band consists of Thom Yorke , Jonny Greenwood , Ed O'Brien , Colin Greenwood and Phil Selway .Radiohead released their debut single "Creep" in 1992...
lead singer Thom Yorke
Thom Yorke
Thomas "Thom" Edward Yorke is an English musician who is the lead vocalist and principal songwriter for Radiohead. He mainly plays guitar and piano, but he has also played drums and bass guitar...
's live band with Joey Waronker
Joey Waronker
Joseph "Joey" Waronker is an American drummer and music producer. He is the son of record producer Lenny Waronker and singer/actress Donna Loren; his younger sister is musician Anna Waronker; and his grandfather is record executive and professional violinist Simon Waronker. He has three other...
, Mauro Refosco and Nigel Godrich
Nigel Godrich
Nigel Godrich, , is a recording engineer, record producer and musician. He is best known for his work with the English rock band Radiohead and is sometimes referred to as the "sixth member" of the band...
. The band performed two shows in Los Angeles in early October 2009, including the entirety of Yorke's 2006 solo album, The Eraser
The Eraser
The Eraser is the debut solo album by Radiohead lead singer Thom Yorke, released on 10 July 2006. The album debuted at #3 on the UK Albums Chart and at #2 on the Billboard 200 in the United States, selling over 90,000 copies in its first week. Critical reception to the album was generally positive...
. The ensemble adopted the name Atoms for Peace
Atoms for Peace (band)
Atoms for Peace is a rock supergroup formed in late 2009. The group consists of lead singer of Radiohead, Thom Yorke ; Flea of Red Hot Chili Peppers; longtime Radiohead producer Nigel Godrich ; Joey Waronker who has played with artists such as R.E.M., Beck, Elliott Smith, The Smashing Pumpkins,...
and said they would perform dates leading up to an appearance at the 2010 Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival
Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival
The Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival is a three-day annual music and arts festival, organized by Goldenvoice and held at the Empire Polo Club in Indio, California, in the Inland Empire's Coachella Valley...
.
The Chili Peppers ended their hiatus in October 2009 though were without guitarist John Frusciante, who quit the band in order to pursue other musical interests. Frusciante was replaced by Josh Klinghoffer
Josh Klinghoffer
Joshua Adam "Josh" Klinghoffer is an American multi-instrumentalist, who is best known as the current guitarist for the rock band Red Hot Chili Peppers. Klinghoffer replaced his friend and frequent collaborator John Frusciante, who left the band in 2009.Klinghoffer also fronts Dot Hacker, and was...
. The band began rehearsing and writing for their tenth studio album.
In January 2011, Flea set up his own personal Twitter
Twitter
Twitter is an online social networking and microblogging service that enables its users to send and read text-based posts of up to 140 characters, informally known as "tweets".Twitter was created in March 2006 by Jack Dorsey and launched that July...
account where he shares his personal feelings and updates from the studio. He has also raised money for his Silverlake Conservatory of Music school from fans by giving away personally autographed items in return for donations.
On March 18, 2011, recording was completed on the Chili Peppers tenth studio album. The band is currently in the process of choosing a track listing and album title. The new album is due out at the end of August 2011.
On March 20, 2011, Flea ran the LA Marathon to raise money for the Silverlake Conservatory of Music through Crowdrise
Crowdrise
Crowdrise is a website that uses crowdsourcing for charitable purposes. Crowdrise was founded by actor and activist Edward Norton, producer and activist Shauna Robertson, and the founders of Moosejaw, Robert and Jeffrey Wolfe...
. Flea was also featured in Runner's World
Runner's World
Runner's World is a globally circulated monthly magazine for runners of all skills sets, published by Rodale Press in Emmaus, Pennsylvania, in the United States...
magazine discussing his preparation for the race.
In April 2011, Flea finished second in an online poll conducted by Contact Music to name the best bass guitarist in rock music. Flea lost to the late John Entwistle
John Entwistle
John Alec Entwistle was an English bass guitarist, songwriter, singer, horn player, and film and record producer who was best known as the bass player for the rock band The Who. His aggressive lead sound influenced many rock bass players...
of The Who
The Who
The Who are an English rock band formed in 1964 by Roger Daltrey , Pete Townshend , John Entwistle and Keith Moon . They became known for energetic live performances which often included instrument destruction...
. Rounding out the top five were Paul McCartney
Paul McCartney
Sir James Paul McCartney, MBE, Hon RAM, FRCM is an English musician, singer-songwriter and composer. Formerly of The Beatles and Wings , McCartney is listed in Guinness World Records as the "most successful musician and composer in popular music history", with 60 gold discs and sales of 100...
, Geddy Lee
Geddy Lee
Gary Lee Weinrib, OC, better known as Geddy Lee , is a Canadian musician, best known as the lead vocalist, bassist, and keyboardist for the Canadian rock group Rush...
and Les Claypool
Les Claypool
Leslie Edward "Les" Claypool is an American musician and writer, best known as the lead vocalist and bassist in the band Primus. Claypool's playing style on the electric bass mixes tapping, flamenco-like strumming, whammy bar bends and slapping.Claypool has also self produced and engineered his...
.
On April 21, 2011, Flea appeared on the radio show of The Rolling Stones
The Rolling Stones
The Rolling Stones are an English rock band, formed in London in April 1962 by Brian Jones , Ian Stewart , Mick Jagger , and Keith Richards . Bassist Bill Wyman and drummer Charlie Watts completed the early line-up...
guitarist Ron Wood
Ron Wood
Ronald David "Ronnie" Wood is an English rock guitarist and bassist best known as a former member of The Jeff Beck Group, Faces, and current member of The Rolling Stones. He also plays lap and pedal steel guitar....
, giving a interview and jamming with him.
Flea commented about the Chili Peppers new album on April 30, 2011 through his Twitter page, saying the new album is a beautiful thing, a new thing, a warm thing full of love and violence and deep funky grooves for humans.
On June 5, 2011, it was announced that I'm with You
I'm with You (album)
I'm with You is the tenth studio album by American rock band Red Hot Chili Peppers. The album was released by Warner Bros. Records on August 26, 2011 in several countries and on August 29 in the US, a day earlier than originally planned...
, the new Red Hot Chili Peppers album, will be released on August 30.
Flea will appear in the upcoming documentary title The Other F Word, which will air on Showtime and will be released through Oscilloscope Laboratories (a company founded by Adam Yauch
Adam Yauch
Adam Nathaniel Yauch , , is a founding member of hip hop trio the Beastie Boys. He is frequently known by his stage name, MCA, and other pseudonyms such as Nathanial Hörnblowér.-Early life:...
). The documentary, which was directed by Andrea Blaugrund Nevins, will focus on a generation of punk rockers and how they have handled fatherhood and how they went from public rebel to domestic authority figure. Mark Hoppus
Mark Hoppus
Mark Allan Hoppus is an American musician, record producer, and television host. He is the bass guitarist and one of the two lead vocalists of the pop punk band Blink-182, as well as the bass guitarist and lead vocalist of the alternative rock band +44. He is a co-founder of both bands...
, Jim Lindberg
Jim Lindberg
James William Lindberg is an American singer and guitarist. Active since the 1980s, when he played in local bands in his early career, Lindberg is best known for being the frontman and songwriter of the influential punk rock band Pennywise, where he had remained as a member for 21 years...
, Art Alexakis
Art Alexakis
Arthur Paul "Art" Alexakis is best known as the American singer, composer, and lead guitarist of the rock band Everclear. He has been a member of several notable bands, in addition to his own work as a songwriter for other artists...
and Mark Mothersbaugh
Mark Mothersbaugh
Mark Allen Mothersbaugh is an American musician, composer, singer and painter. He is the co-founder of the new wave band Devo and has been its lead singer since 1972. His other musical projects include work for television series, films, and video games....
will also be featured.
On June 9, 2011, Flea announced that he is giving away a personally customized bass guitar covered with graffiti and a one-on-one bass lesson as a prize in a eBay
EBay
eBay Inc. is an American internet consumer-to-consumer corporation that manages eBay.com, an online auction and shopping website in which people and businesses buy and sell a broad variety of goods and services worldwide...
auction. The auction will benefit Style Wars
Style Wars
Style Wars is a 1983 documentary on hip hop culture, directed by Tony Silver and produced by Tony Silver and Henry Chalfant. The film has an emphasis on graffiti, although bboying and rapping are covered to a lesser extent...
, a 1983 documentary on early hip hop
Hip hop
Hip hop is a form of musical expression and artistic culture that originated in African-American and Latino communities during the 1970s in New York City, specifically the Bronx. DJ Afrika Bambaataa outlined the four pillars of hip hop culture: MCing, DJing, breaking and graffiti writing...
. The auction will raise money for restoring the film’s negatives. Brad Pitt
Brad Pitt
William Bradley "Brad" Pitt is an American actor and film producer. Pitt has received two Academy Award nominations and four Golden Globe Award nominations, winning one...
, James Franco
James Franco
James Edward Franco is an American actor, film director, producer, screenwriter, author, painter, performance artist and instructor at New York University. He left college in order to pursue acting and started off his career by making guest appearances on television series in the 1990s...
and Spike Jonze
Spike Jonze
Spike Jonze is an American director, producer and actor, whose work includes music videos, commercials, film and television...
also took part in the auction which ended on June 11, 2011.
In June 2011, Flea was voted the second-best bass guitarist of all time by the readers of Rolling Stone magazine, being surpassed only by John Entwistle of The Who.
In a June 23, 2011 interview, Flea discussed the band's return and how he almost quit the Chili Peppers during their hiatus. Flea said that he just felt like he wanted to take two years away just to really look and see if the band was something we should still be doing." "Things had gotten dysfunctional and not fun, even though I thought we were making great records, doing great shows and were a really powerful, mighty thing as a band. I was proud of what we did." "For me, the biggest thing during the time off, and what really made me want to continue doing the band, specifically after decided he didn't want to continue in the band anymore, [was] I just realized, Anthony, man, he's my brother, I love him so much, and we started this band when we were kids. I wanted to keep that going, I never want to let that go. Playing with him is something, even though I can do other things that are exciting and beautiful and I always will do those things and I'll always want to grow and do music outside of the band, the thing that we have is special to us and something that is blood."
Flea played bass on 2 songs on Tom Waits
Tom Waits
Thomas Alan "Tom" Waits is an American singer-songwriter, composer, and actor. Waits has a distinctive voice, described by critic Daniel Durchholz as sounding "like it was soaked in a vat of bourbon, left hanging in the smokehouse for a few months, and then taken outside and run over with a car."...
's 2011 album Bad as Me
Bad as Me
Bad as Me is the seventeenth studio album by American rock musician Tom Waits, released on October 21, 2011 by ANTI- Records. The album is known to have been recorded as early as February 2011 and was officially announced for release on August 23, 2011 on Waits' official web site and various social...
, released on October 21.
On October 27, 2011 it was announced that Flea's side-project with Damon Albarn
Damon Albarn
Damon Albarn is an English singer-songwriter and record producer who has been involved in many high profile projects, coming to prominence as the frontman and primary songwriter of Britpop band Blur...
and afrobeat legend, Tony Allen
Tony Allen (musician)
Tony Oladipo Allen is aNigerian drummer, composer, and songwriter who currently lives and works in Paris. He is currently writing his autobiography "Tony Allen: Master Drummer of Afrobeat" with author/musician Michael E...
would be called Rocketjuice and The Moon
Rocketjuice and The Moon
Rocketjuice and The Moon is a supergroup formed in 2008. The group consists Damon Albarn of Blur and Gorillaz, Flea of Red Hot Chili Peppers and Tony Allen , longtime drummer and musical producer for Fela Kuti....
. According to Albarn on where the band's name came from, someone in Lagos
Lagos
Lagos is a port and the most populous conurbation in Nigeria. With a population of 7,937,932, it is currently the third most populous city in Africa after Cairo and Kinshasa, and currently estimated to be the second fastest growing city in Africa...
did the sleeve design and that’s the name he gave it which he said he is fine with because trying to find a name for another band is always tricky. The band will make their live debut on October 29, 2011 in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
and their debut album will be released in 2012.
Personal life
From 1985 to 1990 Flea was married to Loesha Zeivar (Loesha's name still remains tattooed on Flea's chest). Together they had one daughter, Clara Balzary, who was born in 1988. Clara has been featured in many Chili Peppers books and documentaries including the band's Funky Monks documentary. She also has appeared at many shows and as a child even provided artwork for the band's t-shirts and promotional material. As an adult, Clara was most recently in the short-lived band, The Tints and is also an aspiring artist and photographer, taking the promotional photographs for the new Red Hot Chili Peppers record. Loesha currently works as a Resident Technician at the Pasadena Recovery Center and was featured on the reality series, Celebrity Rehab. Flea is a fan of English football team Sheffield UnitedFlea married for the second time in 2005 to model, Frankie Rayder
Frankie Rayder
Francesca "Frankie" Rayder is an American model who appeared in the annual Victoria's Secret Fashion Show four times and in the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue twice. She has an extensive portfolio of covergirl appearances for numerous high fashion magazines and was once a VH1/Vogue Fashion...
. They had their first child together, Sunny Bebop Balzary, who was born in 2005. John Frusciante
John Frusciante
John Anthony Frusciante is an American guitarist, singer, songwriter, record and film producer. He is best known as the former lead guitarist of the rock band Red Hot Chili Peppers, with whom he had been for a number of years and recorded five studio albums...
is the Godparent
Godparent
A godparent, in many denominations of Christianity, is someone who sponsors a child's baptism. A male godparent is a godfather, and a female godparent is a godmother...
of Sunny.
Musical style
Flea has displayed a wide variety of techniques throughout the years, ranging from his initial use of slapping and popping to the more traditional methods he has employed since Blood Sugar Sex Magik. Greg Prato of Allmusic has noted that "by combining funk-style bass with psychedelic, punk, and hard rock, Flea created an original playing style that has been copied numerous times". Flea stated in an interview that he was influenced greatly by Louis ArmstrongLouis Armstrong
Louis Armstrong , nicknamed Satchmo or Pops, was an American jazz trumpeter and singer from New Orleans, Louisiana....
. Flea has been considered one of the greatest bassists of all time, with Greg Tate of Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
saying "if there were a Most Valuable Bass Player award given out in rock, Flea could have laid claim to that bitch ten years running". The Smashing Pumpkins
The Smashing Pumpkins
The Smashing Pumpkins are an American alternative rock band that formed in Chicago, Illinois in 1988. Formed by Billy Corgan frontman and James Iha , the band has included Jimmy Chamberlin , D'arcy Wretzky , and currently includes Jeff Schroeder Mike Byrne , and Nicole Fiorentino The Smashing...
front man Billy Corgan
Billy Corgan
William Patrick "Billy" Corgan, Jr. is an American singer, songwriter, guitarist and occasional poet best known as the frontman and sole permanent member of The Smashing Pumpkins. Formed by Corgan and guitarist James Iha in Chicago, Illinois in 1987, the band quickly gained steam with the...
recalls that when he first saw the Chili Peppers in 1984, "Flea was playing so aggressively that he had worn a hole in his thumb and he was literally screaming in pain in-between songs because it hurt so bad. Someone kept coming out and pouring crazy glue into the hole." Flea's sound is also determined by what type of instrument he plays. Before Californication, he did not believe the actual bass held much significance: "what mattered was how you hit them [basses] and your emotional intent, and I still think that's the bottom line." Flea owns a 1961 Fender Jazz Bass
Fender Jazz Bass
The Jazz Bass was the second model of electric bass created by Leo Fender. The bass is distinct from the Precision Bass in that its tone is brighter and richer in the midrange and treble with less emphasis on the fundamental harmonic...
, treasuring it for its "old wood sound". He has contributed to the Red Hot Chili Peppers' sound not only with the bass but by playing trumpet, as well; it can be heard on several songs, such as "Subway to Venus" and "Taste The Pain" from their fourth album Mother's Milk or "Torture Me" and "Hump De Bump" from their ninth album Stadium Arcadium.
Technique
Flea's bass playing has changed considerably throughout the years. When he joined Fear his technique centered largely around traditional punk rockPunk rock
Punk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock...
bass lines, however he was to change this style when the Red Hot Chili Peppers formed. He began to incorporate a "slap" bass style that drew influence largely from Bootsy Collins
Bootsy Collins
William Earl "Bootsy" Collins is an American funk bassist, singer, and songwriter.Rising to prominence with James Brown in the late 1960s, and with Parliament-Funkadelic in the '70s, Collins's driving bass guitar and humorous vocals established him as one of the leading names in funk...
. However, this technique caused Flea to receive attention from the music world and was often copied, and he therefore felt it necessary to completely remove slap-bass styles from his repertoire following Mother's Milk. Consequently, Blood Sugar Sex Magik saw a notable shift in style as it featured none of his signature technique but rather styles that focused more on traditional and melodic roots. His intellectual beliefs on how to play the instrument were also altered: "I was trying to play simply on Blood Sugar Sex Magik because I had been playing too much prior to that, so I thought, 'I've really got to chill out and play half as many notes'. When you play less, it's more exciting—there's more room for everything. If I do play something busy, it stands out, instead of the bass being a constant onslaught of notes. Space is good." During the writing and recording of One Hot Minute, Flea integrated some use of slap-bass progressions, but continued to center his technique around the philosophy of "less is more" rather than complexity: "I can't even think of anything I played that was complex [on the record]; even the slapping stuff is simple. It's original-sounding, and I'm proud of that—but what I played was more a matter of aesthetic choice." This led Flea to alter the way he wrote music by playing alone, instead of the jam session
Jam session
Jam sessions are often used by musicians to develop new material, find suitable arrangements, or simply as a social gathering and communal practice session. Jam sessions may be based upon existing songs or forms, may be loosely based on an agreed chord progression or chart suggested by one...
s that would dictate how the band conceived songs: "[One Hot Minute] is the least jam-oriented record we've made. I mean, we definitely jammed on the ideas, but there's only one groove on the whole album that came from a jam, 'Deep Kick'. The rest of it came from my sitting down with a guitar or bass."
Flea became interested in electronica
Electronica
Electronica includes a wide range of contemporary electronic music designed for a wide range of uses, including foreground listening, some forms of dancing, and background music for other activities; however, unlike electronic dance music, it is not specifically made for dancing...
during the Californication era and he attempted to emulate the same atmosphere given off by synthesizer
Synthesizer
A synthesizer is an electronic instrument capable of producing sounds by generating electrical signals of different frequencies. These electrical signals are played through a loudspeaker or set of headphones...
s into his bass playing: "I feel the most exciting music happening is electronica, without a doubt." He ultimately decided against this, acknowledging that, aside from Frusciante, the band was not moving in the same direction. Californication also saw him incorporate more funk-driven bass lines than he had on One Hot Minute. In By the Way, much of the bass-lines were entirely stripped of funk. Flea felt the chords Frusciante had written were not supportive of his typical technique; furthermore, he does not feel the musical direction of the record was specifically melodic, but instead "... a result of each one of us being who we are. The way we [the band] compose music is a very communal thing."
Influences
Flea's stepfather was in a bebopBebop
Bebop differed drastically from the straightforward compositions of the swing era, and was instead characterized by fast tempos, asymmetrical phrasing, intricate melodies, and rhythm sections that expanded on their role as tempo-keepers...
band that frequently jammed in his presence; he, therefore, became fascinated with the trumpet soon after. Flea credits his continued interest in music to jazz performers like Jaco Pastorius
Jaco Pastorius
John Francis Anthony Pastorius III , known as Jaco Pastorius, was an American jazz musician and composer widely acknowledged as a virtuoso electric bass player....
, Miles Davis
Miles Davis
Miles Dewey Davis III was an American jazz musician, trumpeter, bandleader, and composer. Widely considered one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century, Miles Davis was, with his musical groups, at the forefront of several major developments in jazz music, including bebop, cool jazz,...
, Duke Ellington
Duke Ellington
Edward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington was an American composer, pianist, and big band leader. Ellington wrote over 1,000 compositions...
, Charlie Parker
Charlie Parker
Charles Parker, Jr. , famously called Bird or Yardbird, was an American jazz saxophonist and composer....
, Louis Armstrong
Louis Armstrong
Louis Armstrong , nicknamed Satchmo or Pops, was an American jazz trumpeter and singer from New Orleans, Louisiana....
, John Coltrane
John Coltrane
John William Coltrane was an American jazz saxophonist and composer. Working in the bebop and hard bop idioms early in his career, Coltrane helped pioneer the use of modes in jazz and later was at the forefront of free jazz...
and Dizzy Gillespie
Dizzy Gillespie
John Birks "Dizzy" Gillespie was an American jazz trumpet player, bandleader, singer, and composer dubbed "the sound of surprise".Together with Charlie Parker, he was a major figure in the development of bebop and modern jazz...
. After Kiedis introduced him to punk
Punk rock
Punk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock...
and rock
Rock music
Rock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...
, Flea became infatuated with artists such as The Germs
The Germs
The Germs are an American punk rock band from Los Angeles, California, originally active from 1977 to 1980. The band's early lineup consisted of singer Darby Crash, guitarist Pat Smear, bassist Lorna Doom, and their most consistent drummer Don Bolles. Germs have since reformed in 2005 with Shane...
, Styx
Styx (band)
Styx is an American rock band that became famous for its albums from the late 1970s and early 1980s. The Chicago band is known for melding the style of prog-rock with the power of hard rock guitar, strong ballads, and elements of American musical theater....
, David Bowie
David Bowie
David Bowie is an English musician, actor, record producer and arranger. A major figure for over four decades in the world of popular music, Bowie is widely regarded as an innovator, particularly for his work in the 1970s...
and Defunkt
Defunkt
Defunkt is a musical group founded by trombonist/singer Joseph Bowie 1978 in New York, United States, and still active. Their music touches on elements of punk rock, funk and jazz....
. Flea's early influences before Blood Sugar Sex Magik were mainly funk artists like Bootsy Collins
Bootsy Collins
William Earl "Bootsy" Collins is an American funk bassist, singer, and songwriter.Rising to prominence with James Brown in the late 1960s, and with Parliament-Funkadelic in the '70s, Collins's driving bass guitar and humorous vocals established him as one of the leading names in funk...
, Parliament Funkadelic, Sly & the Family Stone
Sly & the Family Stone
Sly and the Family Stone were an American rock, funk, and soul band from San Francisco, California. Active from 1966 to 1983, the band was pivotal in the development of soul, funk, and psychedelic music...
, and The Meters
The Meters
The Meters are an American funk band based in New Orleans, Louisiana. The Meters performed and recorded their own music from the late 1960s until 1977...
. They would become a notable aspect of the Red Hot Chili Peppers' sound up to Mother's Milk. Originally, Flea was given the impression by punk bands that one should play as hard and fast as they possibly could, but ultimately rejected this philosophy during Blood Sugar Sex Magik: "I was so into being raw [...] it was all bullshit." On Californication and By the Way, Flea drew influence from electronica, gothic rock
Gothic rock
Gothic rock is a musical subgenre of post-punk and alternative rock that formed during the late 1970s. Gothic rock bands grew from the strong ties they had to the English punk rock and emerging post-punk scenes...
bands like The Cure
The Cure
The Cure are an English rock band formed in Crawley, West Sussex in 1976. The band has experienced several line-up changes, with frontman, vocalist, guitarist and principal songwriter Robert Smith being the only constant member...
, Joy Division
Joy Division
Joy Division were an English rock band formed in 1976 in Salford, Greater Manchester. Originally named Warsaw, the band primarily consisted of Ian Curtis , Bernard Sumner , Peter Hook and Stephen Morris .Joy Division rapidly evolved from their initial punk rock influences...
and Siouxsie and the Banshees and New Wave music
New Wave music
New Wave is a subgenre of :rock music that emerged in the mid to late 1970s alongside punk rock. The term at first generally was synonymous with punk rock before being considered a genre in its own right that incorporated aspects of electronic and experimental music, mod subculture, disco and 1960s...
rather than funk. During Stadium Arcadium he experienced another shift in interest. Instead of the melodic music he had listened to during the two previous albums, he enjoyed the work of "flashy" guitar players like Jimi Hendrix
Jimi Hendrix
James Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix was an American guitarist and singer-songwriter...
, Eddie Van Halen
Eddie Van Halen
Edward Lodewijk "Eddie" Van Halen is a Dutch-American guitarist, keyboardist, songwriter and producer, best known as the lead guitarist and co-founder of the hard rock band Van Halen, inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame...
, and Jimmy Page
Jimmy Page
James Patrick "Jimmy" Page, OBE is an English multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, and record producer. He began his career as a studio session guitarist in London and was subsequently a member of The Yardbirds from 1966 to 1968, after which he founded the English rock band Led Zeppelin.Jimmy Page...
, exclusively.
Effects
According to an article in uberproaudio.com, Flea utilizes these effects unitEffects unit
Effects units are electronic devices that alter how a musical instrument or other audio source sounds. Some effects subtly "color" a sound, while others transform it dramatically. Effects are used during live performances or in the studio, typically with electric guitar, keyboard and bass...
s for his trademark sound:
- BOSS ODB-3 Bass OverdriveBoss CorporationBoss is a manufacturer of effects pedals for electric guitar and bass guitar. It is a division of the Roland Corporation, a Japanese manufacturer that specializes in musical equipment and accessories...
- MXR Micro AmpMXRMXR, also known as MXR Innovations, was a manufacturer of guitar effects units, co-founded in 1973 by Keith Barr and Terry Sherwood . MXR was based in the United States in Rochester, New York. MXR Innovations, Inc. was incorporated in 1974...
- Electro-Harmonix Q-TronElectro-HarmonixElectro-Harmonix is a New York-based company that makes high-end electronic audio processors. The company was founded by Mike Matthews in 1968. They are most famous for a series of popular guitar effects pedals introduced in the 1970s and 1990s....
- Dunlop 105Q Crybaby Bass WahDunlop Cry BabyThe Dunlop Cry Baby is a popular wah-wah pedal, manufactured by Dunlop Manufacturing, Inc. It is the best selling guitar pedal of all time. The name Cry Baby was from the original pedal from which it was copied, the Thomas Organ/Vox Cry Baby wah-wah. Thomas Organ/Vox failed to register the name as...
- Whirlwind D1
- Electro-Harmonix Big Muff
New Effects used in the recording and touring of I'm With You:
- Moog MF-103 12-stage phaserMoogerfoogermoogerfooger is the trademark for a series of analog effects pedals manufactured by Moog Music. There are currently five different pedals produced, however one of these models is designed for processing control voltages rather than audio signal...
- Malekko B:Assmaster
Film and television appearances
Flea has pursued a minor acting career since the mid 1980s. His first role was as young punk Razzle in the Penelope SpheerisPenelope Spheeris
Penelope Spheeris is an American director, producer and screenwriter. She is best known as a documentary film director whose works include the trilogy titled The Decline of Western Civilization...
film Suburbia
Suburbia (film)
Suburbia, also known as Rebel Streets and The Wild Side, is a 1984 film written and directed by Penelope Spheeris about suburban punks who run away from home. The kids take up a minimalist, punk lifestyle by squatting in abandoned suburban tract homes...
(1984). Shortly thereafter he starred alongside the Chili Peppers, who played themselves, in the skate drama Thrashin'
Thrashin'
Conversely, Brolin had turned down the role of Thom Hansen on 21 Jump Street, which ultimately went to Depp.-Continuing reaction to the film: Sixteen years after initial release, the MTV series Jackass, in a February 2002 episode, played homage to the "jousting scene" with "maces and man-purse" in...
(1986). He played the ill-fated punker Milo in another Penelope Spheeris film, Dudes
Dudes (film)
-Plot:Two punks from the big city , traveling across the country in a Volkswagen bug, embrace the western ethos when they must take revenge against a group of rednecks for killing their friend in this lighthearted road movie...
(1987). He also made an appearance in the Bruce Weber documentary film about the life and career of jazz trumpeter Chet Baker
Chet Baker
Chesney Henry "Chet" Baker, Jr. was an American jazz trumpeter, flugelhornist and singer.Though his music earned him a large following , Baker's popularity was due in part to his "matinee idol-beauty" and "well-publicized drug habit."He died in 1988 in Amsterdam, the...
entitled Let's Get Lost (film)
Let's Get Lost (film)
Let's Get Lost is an American documentary film about the turbulent life and career of jazz trumpeter Chet Baker written and directed by Bruce Weber...
(1988). He portrayed the character Needles in Back to the Future Part II
Back to the Future Part II
Back to the Future Part II is a 1989 American science fiction comedy film and the second installment of the Back to the Future trilogy. It was directed by Robert Zemeckis, written by Zemeckis and Bob Gale, and starred Michael J. Fox, Christopher Lloyd, Thomas F. Wilson and Lea Thompson...
(1989) and Back to the Future Part III
Back to the Future Part III
Back to the Future Part III is a 1990 American science fiction comedy Western film. It is the third installment of the Back to the Future trilogy. The film was directed by Robert Zemeckis and starred Michael J. Fox, Christopher Lloyd, Mary Steenburgen, Thomas F. Wilson and Lea Thompson. The film...
(1990), though in an interview he referred to Part II as "a multi-million dollar piece of trash". He played a minor role in the 1991 independent film
Independent film
An independent film, or indie film, is a professional film production resulting in a feature film that is produced mostly or completely outside of the major film studio system. In addition to being produced and distributed by independent entertainment companies, independent films are also produced...
My Own Private Idaho
My Own Private Idaho
My Own Private Idaho is a 1991 independent drama film written and directed by Gus Van Sant, loosely based on Shakespeare's Henry IV, Part 1, Henry IV, Part 2, and Henry V, and starring River Phoenix and Keanu Reeves...
as the character Budd. He played a number of minor roles in films throughout the 1990s, including Son in Law
Son in Law
Son in Law is a 1993 comedy film starring Pauly Shore, Carla Gugino, Lane Smith, Cindy Pickett, Tiffani Thiessen, Patrick Renna, Dan Gauthier and Dennis Burkley.-Plot:...
(1993) as a tattoo artist, The Chase
The Chase (1994 film)
The Chase is a 1994 action comedy film starring Charlie Sheen and Kristy Swanson. Released a few months before the real-life O. J. Simpson chase that also took place in California, the film includes Henry Rollins as a police officer and features cameos from Ron Jeremy and both Anthony Kiedis and...
(1994) as a monster truck driver, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas
Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas (film)
Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas is a 1998 American drama film directed by Terry Gilliam, starring Johnny Depp as Raoul Duke and Benicio del Toro as Dr. Gonzo. It was adapted from Hunter S. Thompson's 1971 novel of the same name....
(1997) as a hippie
Hippie
The hippie subculture was originally a youth movement that arose in the United States during the mid-1960s and spread to other countries around the world. The etymology of the term 'hippie' is from hipster, and was initially used to describe beatniks who had moved into San Francisco's...
, in The Big Lebowski
The Big Lebowski
The Big Lebowski is a 1998 comedy film written and directed by Joel and Ethan Coen. Jeff Bridges stars as Jeff Lebowski, an unemployed Los Angeles slacker and avid bowler, who is referred to as "The Dude". After a case of mistaken identity, The Dude is introduced to a millionaire also named...
(1998) as a German nihilist
Nihilism
Nihilism is the philosophical doctrine suggesting the negation of one or more putatively meaningful aspects of life. Most commonly, nihilism is presented in the form of existential nihilism which argues that life is without objective meaning, purpose, or intrinsic value...
and also the 1998 remake of Psycho
Psycho (1998 film)
Psycho is a 1998 American horror film produced and directed by Gus Van Sant for Universal Pictures, a remake of the 1960 film directed by Alfred Hitchcock...
. He has also lent his voice to the animated series The Wild Thornberrys
The Wild Thornberrys
The Wild Thornberrys is an American animated television series that aired on Nickelodeon. It was rerun in the USA on Nickelodeon and occasionally The N until 2009 and Nicktoons until 2007...
as the character Donnie.
In 1991 the Red Hot Chili Peppers released a black and white film documenting the recording of Blood Sugar Sex Magik titled Funky Monks
Funky Monks
Funky Monks is the title of a 1992 documentary about the rock band Red Hot Chili Peppers and the recording of their highly successful 1991 Warner Bros. debut Blood Sugar Sex Magik. The album was produced by Rick Rubin and recorded in The Mansion, a supposedly haunted house which Rubin now owns...
. They have released two video concerts, Off the Map in 2001 and Live at Slane Castle
Live at Slane Castle (Red Hot Chili Peppers video)
Live at Slane Castle is a Red Hot Chili Peppers concert video released in 2003, two years after the release of their latest concert DVD, Off the Map. The concert taped was their second show at Slane Castle in Ireland, the Foo Fighters also played as the opening act, and have their own DVD footage...
in 2003—the latter of which had over eighty thousand attendees. Flea has also appeared in television broadcasts with Red Hot Chili Peppers on several occasions. Several months before Frusciante's departure in 1992, the band performed two songs on Saturday Night Live
Saturday Night Live
Saturday Night Live is a live American late-night television sketch comedy and variety show developed by Lorne Michaels and Dick Ebersol. The show premiered on NBC on October 11, 1975, under the original title of NBC's Saturday Night.The show's sketches often parody contemporary American culture...
—Kiedis felt the show was an embarrassment due to the guitarist; he believed that Frusciante purposely played the song out of tune and incorrectly. Later that year, the band appeared in the popular animated comedy The Simpsons
The Simpsons
The Simpsons is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical parody of a middle class American lifestyle epitomized by its family of the same name, which consists of Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa and Maggie...
on the episode "Krusty Gets Kancelled
Krusty Gets Kancelled
"Krusty Gets Kancelled" is the twenty-second and final episode of The Simpsons fourth season. It first aired on the Fox network in the United States on May 13, 1993. In the episode, a new show featuring a puppet named Gabbo premieres in Springfield and competes with Krusty the Clown's show...
". At Woodstock 1994, Kiedis proposed the band perform the first few songs in metallic suits with giant light bulbs placed on their heads. Flea was initially reluctant but eventually agreed: "... when we got to play, the energy of the whole thing took over." In 1992, he guest starred on an episode of The Ben Stiller Show
The Ben Stiller Show
The Ben Stiller Show was the name of two sketch comedy television shows that aired on MTV from 1990 to 1991, and then on Fox from September 1992 to January 1993. The Fox show starred Ben Stiller, Andy Dick, Janeane Garofalo and Bob Odenkirk. Character actor John F. O'Donohue also appeared in every...
. On the episode, Flea beats Stiller in a game of basketball.
In 2011, Flea will appear in the documentary, Bob and the Monster
Bob and the Monster
Bob and the Monster is a 2011 documentary film by Keirda Bahruth which profiles musician and drug counselor Bob Forrest.- Synopsis :This documentary film follows outspoken indie-rock hero Bob Forrest, through his life-threatening struggle with addiction, to his transformation into one of the most...
. The film details the life of musician and drug counselor Bob Forrest
Bob Forrest
Bob Forrest is the lead vocalist and lyricist for Los Angeles bands Thelonious Monster and The Bicycle Thief. In September 2006 he released his first solo album, Modern Folk And Blues Wednesday. He is also a drug counselor, appearing alongside Dr...
.
Flea also appeared in an episode of Celebrity Deathmatch
Celebrity Deathmatch
Celebrity Deathmatch is a claymation television show that depicts celebrities against each other in a wrestling ring, almost always ending in the loser's gruesome death. It was known for its excessive amount of blood used in every match and exaggerated physical injuries...
, fighting against Kenny G
Kenny G
Kenneth Bruce Gorelick , better known by his stage name Kenny G, is an American, adult contemporary and smooth jazz saxophonist. His fourth album, Duotones, brought him breakthrough success in 1986...
(and winning).