Published on Jan 21, 2005
For the ultimate ’80s college party band, 1988 and 1989 proved
to be sobering years. Co-founder Hillel Slovak died from a drug
overdose. Drummer Jack Irons had left the band, leaving Flea and
Anthony Kiedis with some mounting decisions: do you continue on
with your band? How do you address the hells you have endured on
your next album when you’re best known for singing “Party on Your
Pussy” and penning “Catholic School Girls Rule”?
Facing challenges that would have done in most bands, the Red
Hot Chili Peppers were able to work through the grieving process,
honor Slovak’s memory and created arguably their finest record with
Mother’s Milk. The band automatically got onto the right
path with the hiring of guitarist John Frusciante and drummer Chad
Smith, both have remained with the band since (excluding
Frusciante’s much-publicized break from the band in the early and
mid ’90s).
Conflict has a way of bringing out the best in bands, and
Mother’s Milk was the fruits of the Peppers’ labor, even
though you can hear nothing but unity throughout the album. Indeed,
Smith and Frusciante’s chemistry was so good that it seemed that
they were longtime members. Their first major breakthrough single,
a scorching cover of Stevie Wonder’s “Higher Ground” had a fuller
sound than anything they had recorded before. And “Knock Me Down,”
their lesser-known breakout hit from this album, was a poignant
response to drug addiction, enabling Anthony Kiedis to grow as a
songwriter (this maturation would later yield them their most
famous hits, namely “Under the Bridge” and “Scar Tissue”).
Despite the heavy subject matters of some of the songs,
Mother’s Milk is still the Red Hot Chili Peppers at their
most freaky, crazy and party-obsessed best. “Magic Johnson” is a
frenzied homage to the Laker great and their second cover, “Fire,”
actually does justice to the Jimi Hendrix great.
The second half of the album peters out. “Sexy Mexican Maid” is
meant to be sexy, but elicits more of a snicker than titillation
and “Johnny, Kick A Hole In The Sky” is a sorry way to end an album
this solid. Still, “Pretty Little Ditty” is another winner of a
track and a testament that the Red Hot Chili Peppers were a band to
be reckoned with, not a novelty.
Even with the scattered flaws,
Mother’s Milk is a must-buy for any self-respecting Red Hot
Chili Peppers fan. Many hail
BloodSugarSexMagic as the crowning achievement of the band,
but I always thought that album was bloated. Everything that made
the Peppers great: their soul-searching ballads, the amazing bass
work of Flea and the overall chemistry of the band mates was in
Mother’s Milk. And if I had to recommend one must-own
Peppers album, it would be this one, without a doubt.