Anthony Kiedis: John Frusciante was one of the easiest people to make music with

Red Hot Chili Peppers with John Frusciante, second from right
Red Hot Chili Peppers with John Frusciante, second from right

Red Hot Chili Peppers’ Anthony Kiedis says his former bandmate John Frusciante was one of the easiest people to make music with.

Frusciante joined the band in 1988 and appeared on albums Mother’s Milk and Blood Sugar Sex Magik before he left in 1992. He returned in 1999 before the release of Californication and remained in the band until his departure in 2009. He’s now producing his own projects – and released a digital archive of music he produced last year.

Kiedis admits he misses the guitarist and describes him as a “very special person.”

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The singer tells La Voila: “My experience with John was one of the most wonderful and easiest people to make music with. We could sit down on the floor, John and I, and I could take out a piece of paper, and I would say, ‘Okay, I wrote these words.’

“And he would say, ’Let me see those words,’ and he would take take the words, he would read them, and he’s like, ‘Okay.’ He would start to play something, I would start to sing it, and I would say, ‘Can you play something that feels like this?’ And he would say, ‘Okay, let me try this.’ Then we would have a song.”

He adds: “Never did I meet someone who was so easy to write songs with, and really good songs. If I call him up and say, ‘I’m very sad today,’ he would be like, ‘Come over right now – we’re writing a song.’

“So I bring my sadness to John and he’s like, ‘Sit down, get the notebook, start writing your feelings.’”

Kiedis adds: “I miss him, but I also accept the separate lives – but I miss him.”

Red Hot Chili Peppers are currently touring in support of 11th album The Getaway.

Tour Dates

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Saturday, July 9, 2016 at 7:00PMPark LiveMoscow, Russian Federation
Sunday, July 10, 2016 at 12:00PMT in the Park 2016Auchterarder, United Kingdom
Friday, July 15, 2016 at 7:00PMOttawa Blues FestivalOttawa, Canada
Saturday, July 16, 2016 at 7:00PMFestival d'ete de QuebecQuebec, Canada
Friday, July 22, 2016 at 7:00PMValley Rock Festival여주군, South Korea
Sunday, July 24, 2016 at 7:00PMFuji Rock FestivalMukawa, Japan
Friday, July 29, 2016 at 1:00PMOsheaga FestivalMontreal, Canada
Saturday, July 30, 2016 at 1:00PMLollapalooza Music FestivalChicago, United States
Thursday, August 25, 2016 at 7:00PMTennant's VitalBelfast, United Kingdom
Saturday, August 27, 2016 at 7:00PMReading FestivalReading, United Kingdom
Sunday, August 28, 2016 at 7:00PMLeeds FestivalLeeds, United Kingdom
Thursday, September 1, 2016 at 7:00PMPapp László Budapest SportarénaBudapest, Hungary
Friday, September 2, 2016 at 7:00PMPapp László Budapest SportarénaBudapest, Hungary
Sunday, September 4, 2016 at 7:00PMO2 arenaPrague, Czech Republic
Thursday, September 8, 2016 at 7:00PMTelenor Arena, OsloOslo, Norway
Saturday, September 10, 2016 at 7:30PMTele2 ArenaStockholm, Sweden
Tuesday, September 13, 2016 at 7:00PMHartwall ArenaHelsinki, Finland
Wednesday, September 14, 2016 at 7:00PMHartwall ArenaHelsinki, Finland
Tuesday, September 27, 2016 at 7:30PMBarclaycard CenterBelmonte De Tajo, Spain
Wednesday, September 28, 2016 at 9:30PMBarclaycard CenterBelmonte De Tajo, Spain
Saturday, October 1, 2016 at 9:30PMPalau Sant JordiBarcelona, Spain
Sunday, October 2, 2016 at 9:30PMPalau Sant JordiBarcelona, Spain
Wednesday, October 5, 2016 at 8:00PMHallenstadionZurich, Switzerland
Thursday, October 6, 2016 at 8:00PMHallenstadionZurich, Switzerland
Saturday, October 8, 2016 at 7:00PMUnipol ArenaCasalecchio Di Reno, Italy
Monday, October 10, 2016 at 7:00PMPala AlpitourTurin To, Italy
Tuesday, October 11, 2016 at 7:00PMPala AlpitourTurin To, Italy
Thursday, October 13, 2016 at 8:00PMParks and Suites ArenaMontpellier, France
Saturday, October 15, 2016 at 8:00PMAccorhotels ArenaParis, France
Sunday, October 16, 2016 at 8:00PMAccorhotels ArenaParis, France
Tuesday, October 18, 2016 at 8:00PMAccorhotels ArenaParis, France
Tuesday, November 1, 2016 at 8:00PMOlympiahalleMunich, Germany
Thursday, November 3, 2016 at 8:00PMMercedes-Benz ArenaBerlin, Germany
Sunday, November 6, 2016 at 7:00PMSportpaleisAntwerp, Belgium
Tuesday, November 8, 2016 at 8:00PMZiggo DomeAmsterdam-Zuidoost, Netherlands
Wednesday, November 9, 2016 at 7:00PMZiggo DomeAmsterdam-Zuidoost, Netherlands
Friday, November 11, 2016 at 7:00PMRockhalEsch-Sur-Alzette, Luxembourg
Monday, November 14, 2016 at 8:00PMLanxess ArenaCologne, Germany
Wednesday, November 16, 2016 at 8:00PMJyske Bank BoxenHerning, Denmark
Thursday, November 17, 2016 at 8:00PMTUI ArenaHannover, Germany
Saturday, November 19, 2016 at 6:00PMFesthalleFrankfurt, Germany
Monday, November 21, 2016 at 7:00PMStadthalleBezirk-Rudolfsheim-Fünfhaus, Austria

Drugs, ghosts and the remarkable re-birth of John Frusciante

Former TeamRock news desk member Christina joined our team in late 2015, and although her time working on online rock news was fairly brief, she made a huge impact by contributing close to 1500 stories. Christina also interviewed artists including Deftones frontman Chino Moreno and worked at the Download festival. In late 2016, Christina left rock journalism to pursue a career in current affairs. In 2021, she was named Local Weekly Feature Writer of the Year at the Scottish Press Awards.

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