Ranking the albums of the Red Hot Chili Peppers

The Red Hot Chili Peppers is easily one of the bastions of rock. Formed in 1983, Anthony Kiedis and company have maintained their touring ways and continued churning out singles and albums well into the late 2010s, proving the lasting power of their brand of music. On the occasion of the band’s 25th year, let’s rank three of RHCP’s most critically acclaimed and celebrated albums.

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Mother's Milk 

This is the first gathering of the band’s most enduring lineup of Kiedis, Flea, John Frusciante, and Chad Smith. The band’s fourth album doesn’t have as many hits as the rest on this list, but it’s where we can find the band’s infectious take on Stevie Wonder’s “Higher Ground,” which aided in the album reaching the top 20 of Billboard’s Modern Rock Chart. It is also RCHP’s first album under the Capitol label. 

Californication 

This 1999 album is easily the most popular for the sheer number of hits alone, from “Otherside” and “Scar Tissue” to “Around the World” and the title track. The band managed to reimagine their sound for the new millennium, with more haunting guitars riffs and steady backbeats without compromising the band’s funk roots. 

By the Way 

Just three years after the wild, unprecedented success of Californication, RHCP proved that they were not falling the way of complacency, releasing this super melodic yet gritty offering that can easily be labeled the go-to album of modern rock. The funk aspects are still there, but the experimentations with sound design and vocal harmonies are all over the place. This “new sound” is epitomized by “The Zephyr Song” and the album’s title track. 

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Hi, I’m Steven Scansaroli and I’m a sophomore engineering student at the College of New Jersey. I’m a huge fan of rock music, and my favorite is the Red Hot Chili Peppers. More of my writingshere.

The Best Players In The New Jersey Devils History

The New Jersey Devils have had a colorful 44 years in the National Hockey League (NHL), peaking in 1995, 2000, and 2003 when the team won their three Stanley Cup titles. Several of the best players in franchise history played during these seasons, the most notable of which are the following:

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Martin Brodeur

Brodeur has a legitimate claim to two “greatest ever” titles: the greatest Devil and the greatest goalie in history. He was instrumental in all three championship runs, forming a brick wall on the net and making it difficult for opponents to score. He also won three Vezina and five William Jenning trophies, which are awarded to the best goaltender in a season, and set several all-time records in the NHL, including wins, shutouts, games played, and more.

Scott Stevens

Brodeur did not do it alone; had plenty of help. One of the notable defensemen on the team was Scott Stevens. He was considered as one of the hardest hitters in the history of the sport, and saved the best of his performances for his face-offs against the best offensive players back then, such as Eric Lindros and Paul Kariya. While Stevens showed impeccable skills in the rink, he was also known for his leadership, with teammates complimenting him for making them better.

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Steve Scansaroli here, an electrical and computer engineering sophomore at The College of New Jersey. I love watching hockey and I am an avid fan of the New Jersey Devils. Read more about the team here.

Why Rhcp’s 'Scar Tissue' Reads Like Poetry

Six multi-awarded studio albums after, and in the wake of a tumultuous decade of touring, the Red Hot Chili Peppers released “Californication” in 1999. Among the many gems that would catapult the band into even more worldwide acclaim is the album’s first single, “Scar Tissue.”

Those who encounter the accompanying video first will immediately see how the song is seemingly self-deprecating take on success, an introspective song about “smarting up.” The video shows the band crossing the desert, looking weary, injured, and licking its wounds. Maybe the idea is to simply capture the essence of the song, of the scar tissues the members have sustained up to that point in their career.

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The lyrics glorify isolation and the search for a haven, a resting place, even redemption. The infectious dribble of lyrics meditates on what seems like mundane images like “a young Kentucky girl” or waving “goodbye to ma and pa” or “lick(ing) your heart and tast(ing) your health.”

But it is in the way the chorus croaks,“With birds I’ll share this lonely viewin’,” that the song truly shines as poetry. The aching repetition dulls the senses, as though the listener himself or herself gets drawn into a weariness. And, all this time, the backbeat and weeping guitar riffs tell us that, in Anthony Kiedis’ own words, “we are all outsiders looking in.”

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Hello, I’m Steve Scansaroli, a sophomore electrical and computer engineering student at the College of New Jersey. The Red Hot Chili Peppers is my favorite band so you can say I’m an old soul. For related reads, visit this blog.