Me and My Friends #43 - Cover Me, Slowly
"If You Want Me To Stay," "They're Red Hot," "Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere"... the band have covered a wonderful selection of songs over the years, and in the process opened my eyes and ears to a number of bands I've come to care quite deeply about. Sometimes they stick to the fairly obvious choices (they went perhaps a little too heavy on the Hendrix in the late eighties), and sometimes the covers come completely out of left field, like 2019's "Just What I Needed."
I could write a whole preamble here, but why delay things? This is a simple one. I've asked a variety of friends and RHCP fans what song they think the band should cover. Sit back, relax, and conjure up a tiny, rotating version of the band in your head as they play some new, old songs.
Me, your host
"They Say I'm Different" by Betty Davis
I've always admired this track by Betty Davis, one of the true original punks and all-time badass. It's a down and dirty funk song (that guitar sounds straight out of a Chili Peppers track already) and Anthony could have a lot of fun with the vocals if he does the right inflection. And those "talkaboutittalkaboutit!" backup vocals that show up in the second half of the song would be delightful for Flea and John to do in unison. The slide guitar could just be some wah-wah vamping, the bass is all over the place, the drums are right in the pocket. I have a feeling half the crowd hearing this song would assume the band had actually written it, and maybe that's a sign of a good cover?
Leandro Cabo, webmaster of the RHCP Live Archive, the best website on the internet.
Growing up during my teenage years, I went through a huge Nirvana phase. Going through the bootlegs and finding out about all these unknown songs, I was always pretty fond of the b-sides but especially this song. Now, years later, it's a pretty well known song, as it has been included in various official compilations and the album's 20 anniversary reissue.
Sappy is probably my favorite Nirvana song and I just think it would fit the Chili Peppers' live sound quite well. John has recently mentioned Kurt Cobain as an active influence while writing the last record and has been no stranger at covering the band on his solo shows ('Pen Cap Chew' and 'Moist Vagina' in 1997, then 'Lounge Act' in 2001), so I'd be very interested in his take for this song.
Max Elfimov, fan and 83-87 expert
"My Guitar Wants to Kill Your Mama" by Frank Zappa & the Mothers of Invention
When in early 2006 one fan opened a discussion on Chili Peppers forum (don't remember the name exactly, was it on One Hot Globe?) "Which cover songs would you love to hear from the band during their upcoming tour?" I mentioned this one being sung by John. So not a proper Chili Peppers cover, but a song covered by John, Flea & Chad + Keith Barry (The Tree). Several psychedelic electric & acoustic solos, insane brass section in the middle of the song played by Flea & Tree. John's double-tracked voice, I think, would have been perfect for this number. The only Zappa's song with Anthony's vocals I can imagine is "Muffin Man" (also a great idea for Chili Peppers cover).
Yes, we have a snippet of this song performed by Josh several years ago. But I think that the full band version with Anthony's vocals would have been pure magic. I remember their brilliant studio version of "Castles Made of Sand" which is absolutely stunning, so I am pretty sure that song would have been also great. AK voice fits here perfectly. No matter who's on the guitar - all the guitar players in the band are/were Hendrix fans.
Ben Townsend, half of the Universally Speaking podcast
"Almost Cut My Hair" by Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young
My pick is a tune that I first heard in the car on a family holiday. We were driving through France and this came on - Almost Cut My Hair by Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young from the album Deja Vu. It starts as it means to go on, the most amazing lead guitar line got my attention immediately.
CSN&Y had a lot of guitar players and on the album this means a lot of great right/left ear stuff, and a lot of the ancient art of weaving. John could do this brilliantly if covered in the studio, and as we’ve seen in recent performances of Black Summer and others, in the live arena he’s still great at including the overdubbed parts in his live rhythm playing.
This song feels like it has a strip my mind vibe. I can hear long, melodic Flea lines in there during the quieter parts. I can hear Johns long, held backing vocals, and and an absolute killer solo.
Meanwhile The Myth seems to be back on a steady diet of drum kits at the moment. He’s hitting as hard as I’ve ever seen. He would be perfect to raise this song to a different rhythmic level.
And on to The Swan. He also seems to be in an amazing place performance wise, and he’s alway great in the studio. He’d do a great job and it would be nice to hear him unleash a more bluesy vocal. They could even call it Almost Shaved My ‘Tache.
The band have played many styles of music. I love Blues Rock and this would, I think, be an amazing cover.
Sam Townsend, the other half of the Universally Speaking podcast
"It's the End of the World As We Know It (And I Feel Fine)" by REM
The question of which song would I like to see Covered by RHCP is actually one that I asked myself the first time I listened to Poster Child just a few weeks ago.
As soon as poster Child finished I found myself thinking what a good job the lads would do on a cover of Its the end of the world as we know it by REM. The two songs have an obvious lyrically heavy similarity which I feel would really allow Anthony to shine, while also showcasing his abilities on some of the more traditionally sung sections.
It would also be a fantastic opportunity for John and Flea to layer on the backing vocals when performing the song live. I can imagine the three of them singing this together would be something to behold, a real shot of energy and a truly uplifting listen.
With the added weight that Flea and Chad would bring to the rhythm section ITEOTWAWKI would have the potential to be an absolute juggernaut of a track - taking the listener on a roller coaster ride of instrumental and vocal delight.
Is there room for John to squeeze in a solo - perhaps not - but the momentum building, vocally layered nature of the song would make this a real RHCP treat for the ears.
Irena Halder, fan and artist
I think RHCP would make a very fine job of covering Get Back by The Beatles. It’s a punchy song with a fantastic groove and a relentless, driven rhythm. The minimalist, daft lyrics would pose few problems on stage for Kiedis, and the BV’s are just right for Frusciante. There are no less then 3 slots for Frusciante to improvise to his heart’s content, interspersing his soloing with some complex rhythmic bar chords in A Major. Flea & Chad Smith would keep the song rolling forward brilliantly in tight R & B style. The band could have loads of fun with this song, and we’d have loads of fun singing along.
Mark Minshall, fan and listening-party-host-extraordinaire
"Breakfast in America" by Supertramp
I grew up with my uncle's vast record collection, most of it was English artists/bands like Genesis, 10CC, Supertramp, Elton John, Bee Gees etc. Every time I'd visit his house (a lot), I'd run straight to that room upstairs. After growing older and developing my taste and discovering 'new' artists, RHCP quickly established themselves as my favourite. It was around 2006 I first got into them, and I was absolutely blown away by Frusciante's glowing guitar solos, backing vocals and harmonising on Stadium. I couldn't get over it. After familiarising myself with their catalogue I'd always come back to Stadium and I'd wish there was another two discs. I've always been one to imagine what other songs would sound like if RHCP covered them, and I usually hark back to my childhood and those records. When I was asked this question I instantly thought of Breakfast in America. It's perfect isn't it? I can just imagine Anthony's lead vocals, something reminiscent of a little slowed down 21st Century, Flea's thumping bass, John singing the "na na naaaaa's" then a screaming show off guitar solo in place of the clarinet. I can hear it, I'm telling ya!
Manu from RHCP Stuff, fan and Twitter oracle
I thought that this task would not only be entertaining, but also simple. How wrong I was! Every time an idea of a song that was "good" for the band came to mind, I remembered that they had already made covers of it. It would be comfortable to say epic names like Jimi Hendrix, Bowie, Ramones, Funkadelic or Iggy, but it would also be aiming to something comfortable that they have already done before.
The newer bands also don't "feel" like something RHCP would do. So... Where could I approach the matter? It has to be a different band, but at the same time one that has been before or contemporary to them. In the late '80s, for a brief moment, RHCP shared a similar sound with the New York based band Living Colour. On their album 'Vivid' (1988) the band led by Corey Glover channeled the sound of funk and metal in a magnificent way, finding some similarities with the sound that Mother's Milk (released the following year) would have. On the single 'Middle Man' from that same album I can picture RHCP doing a cover in their own style. For some reason, I think Anthony's voice would fit very well on this song and the rest of the band would adopt it as "their own" without sounding or parodying the sound of the 80s, proving that the sound back then just evolved and didn't fade away.
Dan Bogosian, bassist and the singular member of the RHCP author community (for a few more months at least...)
"Something about that Woman" by Lakeside
If I could make the Red Hot Chili Peppers cover songs, I'd pick a thousand, but if I could make them cover only one song, it'd be "Something about that woman" by Lakeside. My favorite RHCP is funk RHCP, and that song is pure funk. Though it's laden with synthesizers, a Chili Pepper re-working would provide more space for all three instrumentalists to go wild, and give AK a chance to use his perverse lyricism and singing for a justified reason: there IS something about that woman. The groove is so thick, and the guitar work so clever - the extension holdover between its two primary chords sounds like something John would already do... imagine what John WOULD do. The bass groove sounds like Flea at his simplest - imagine what Flea would do going ham. Maybe keep the breakdown but add a guitar solo, add some lovely RHCP harmonies, and this song would jam to the top of my list.
Me again, your host
"What Do You Want the Girl to Do" by Allen Toussaint (as covered by Lowell George)
The version of this song I'm most familiar with, and adore to my very core, is actually a cover of an Allen Toussaint song - here's the original. Toussaint was an enormously prolific songwriter whose fingerprints are all over New Orleans R&B. He even wrote "Lady Marmalade"! This track, recorded by Lowell George shortly before his untimely death, starts out quite slow but builds wonderfully to a lovely chorus. There's not much room for heavy riffing or an explosive solo, but I think that's the point. Much like the band's version of "Brandy," I think this could be a lovely mid-set refresher to cleanse the palette after a couple of heavier songs, and it suits Anthony's voice quite well. All vibes.
Keen on some more cover action? Check out this section of the RHCP Live Archive, which allows you to filter in the many covers (or even teases of covers) the band have performed since 1983. Aside from maybe "Higher Ground," which will feature in the band's 2022 tour?
A fun few months ahead! See you soon!
H.