John Frusciante
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| John Frusciante | |
|---|---|
 Frusciante with the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Frankfurt, Germany, (2007). |
|
| Born | March 5, 1970 (age 37) Astoria, Queens, New York, USA |
| Genre(s) | Funk Rock Alternative Rock Psychedelic Rock (RHCP) Rock |
| Affiliation(s) | Red Hot Chili Peppers Ataxia |
| Label(s) | Warner Bros. Record Collection |
| Notable guitars | Fender Stratocaster Fender Telecaster Fender Jaguar Gretsch White Falcon |
| Years active | 1988 - present |
| Official site | Official website Official Myspace |
John Anthony Frusciante (IPA pronunciation: [fruˈʃɑnteɪ]) (born March 5, 1970) is the guitarist of the band the Red Hot Chili Peppers, with whom he has performed on five studio recordings (Mother's Milk, Blood Sugar Sex Magik, Californication, By the Way and Stadium Arcadium). He also maintains an active solo career, having released eight albums as well as collaborations with friends Josh Klinghoffer and Joe Lally of Fugazi under the name Ataxia.
Frusciante is well known for his intricate rhythms and leads; he supplies a strong mix of funk and rock music, which form a substantial component of the Red Hot Chili Peppers' sound. As a highly respected and influential modern guitarist, John Frusciante ranked 18th in Rolling Stone's "The 100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time" in 2003.[1]
Contents |
[edit] Early life
Frusciante was born in Queens, New York, though he was later relocated to Los Angeles at the age of 12. His father, John Frusciante Sr., was a Juilliard-trained pianist, while his mother, Gail, was a vocalist who gave up her career to be a stay-at-home mother. Gail and some of her friends would go on to lend their voices to the Red Hot Chili Peppers' song, "Under the Bridge".
Frusciante's family repositioned themselves to Tucson, Arizona, and, following that, Florida, where his father still serves as a Broward County judge. After his parents' separation, Frusciante and his mother moved to Santa Monica, California.[2] Frusciante, like many of those who lived in the area, became swept up in the ubiquitous LA punk scene. Some of the artists he became fond of include Jimi Hendrix, The Others, Black Flag, Captain Beefheart and Frank Zappa. These artists would prove invaluable to his musical career in the near future.
Even as a teenager, Frusciante was confident that he was a guitar prodigy who would become a rock and roll star. He has been avidly listening to the "voices in his head"[citation needed] since childhood, which he often refers to as "the spirits".[citation needed] The said "spirits" told him that he was going to be a rock guitarist before he had a proper awareness of what a rock star was. He left high school at the age of 16, following a proficiency test with his parents' permission. With their support, he moved into his own home to focus on sharpening his musical skills.[3]
[edit] Career
[edit] Red Hot Chili Peppers
Frusciante first saw the Red Hot Chili Peppers in concert when he was 15 and became a devoted fan, especially of the work of original guitarist Hillel Slovak. He studied and learned virtually all guitar and bass elements from their first three albums.
Frusciante became acquainted with Dead Kennedys drummer D. H. Peligro around early 1988, and they jammed together on numerous occasions. Peligro invited Flea (bassist of the Red Hot Chili Peppers) to jam with them, on several occasions. The chemistry between the two bore fruit almost instantly, with Flea saying, in the liner notes of a re-issue of Mother's Milk, that might have been the day he first played the bass riff to "Nobody Weird Like Me".
Around the same time, Frusciante had also attempted to audition for Frank Zappa's musical congregation, but abandoned any such ideas before the final try-out, as Zappa strictly prohibited illegal drug use among musicians in his band. In an interview Frusciante said, "I realized that I wanted to be a rock star, do drugs and get girls, and that I wouldn't be able to do that if I was in Zappa's band."[2]
Hillel Slovak died from a drug overdose in 1988, and drummer Jack Irons was incapable of accepting the death of his dear friend, thus leaving two empty spaces within the Chili Peppers. Bassist Flea and singer Anthony Kiedis eventually regrouped, and were determined to persist in the music industry. Flea was astonished by Frusciante's profound technique, and, considering the band was in desperate need of a new guitarist (their intermediate replacement for Slovak, Duane "Blackbird" McKnight, failed to spark any adequate chemistry for his remain), called Anthony Kiedis over to watch Frusciante play. It was a unanimous decision: John was in. Frusciante was about to sign a contract with Thelonious Monster at the time (and had actually been playing with them for two weeks), but the unanticipated reception into the band caused him to instantaneously discard any such thoughts. Drummer Chad Smith would join the band two weeks prior to recording their first record together.[4]
When Frusciante was later inquired about the response he gave to his rapid sanction into the Red Hot Chili Peppers, he responded with incredible elation, claiming he had "boot marks five feet high on the wall in my room for months after that call."[5]
[edit] Mother's Milk
Soon after, Frusciante recorded his first album with the Chili Peppers, 1989's Mother's Milk. Produced by Michael Beinhorn, the album didn't stray too far from the funk that dominated the band's three previous albums; Frusciante's style on this album is heavily influenced by Slovak's playing. Frusciante and Beinhorn fought often about the tone of his guitar and double layering.[6] Frusciante's personalized guitar style was not yet fully developed at the time of this album, and is, thus, not as complex and multifaceted as it is on other works.
Mother's Milk was the Chili Peppers' first Gold Record, assisted by their first hit single, a cover of Stevie Wonder's "Higher Ground". The album also contained the song "Knock Me Down", which exemplified the band's increasing musical sophistication. The lyrics were written by Kiedis as a forewarning against letting one's friends lose control of themselves, blatantly inspired by the overdose of Slovak; the guitar portion was written by Frusciante when he was just 18. The album illustrated how extraordinary the chemistry was between Frusciante and the rest of the band, as their soulful and touching lyrics show the maturity which would surface over 15 years later.
[edit] Blood Sugar Sex Magik
The band collaborated with producer Rick Rubin to record their second album with Frusciante, Blood Sugar Sex Magik. During the recording, the band isolated itself from the outside world and, with the exception of drummer Chad Smith, lived in Rubin's mansion, alone. For the duration of recording, while they had made a few ventures into society, John and Flea spent most of their time in the mansion, consuming immeasurable quantities of marijuana.[7] The monastic recording conditions are well-documented in the 1991 Gavin Bowden film "Funky Monks", where Frusciante talks about his musical inspiration, style of guitar playing, and sexual experiences. This was also the first album the band recorded on their current label, Warner, who had bought them out of their previous contract with EMI.
Around this time, Frusciante also started a side collaboration with Flea and Jane's Addiction drummer Stephen Perkins called Three Amoebas. They recorded roughly 10-15 hours of music, though none of the aforementioned material has been published.[8]
[edit] Departure from the Peppers and Drug Addiction
Following the significant and unforeseen success of Blood Sugar Sex Magik, Frusciante began to profoundly dislike the popularity and status of the band. He admitted to having once taken great pleasure in a hedonistic existence; however, "...by the age of 20, I started doing it right and looking at it as an artistic expression instead of a way of partying and screwing a bunch of girls. To balance it out, I had to be extra-humble, extra-anti-rock star."[9] Frusciante later affirmed that the band's rise to popularity was "too high, too far, too soon. Everything happened or better everything seemed to be happening at once and I just couldn't cope with it."[10] Following a performance at Tokyo's Club Cuatro on May 7, 1992, Frusciante left the band, for what appeared to be an indefinite period of time.
By this time, he had developed insatiable drug habits as a result of touring with the band during the previous four years; similarly, during the time interval, Kiedis embarked on a drug-pillage, once again after being clean for five years. The collegiate Frusciante was inspired to take drugs as he looked to the others as his role models, saying in an interview, "The kids who smoked pot just seemed like burnouts to me. I was practicing 10 to 15 hours a day. But I never felt like I was expressing myself. When I found out Flea was stoned out of his mind at every show, that inspired me to be a pothead."[11]
There were countless plausible explanations as to why Frusciante departed from the band. One potential reason is because a talk he had with Slovak before he died. Slovak asked Frusciante "Would you still like the Chilis if they got so popular that they played the L.A. Forum?" Frusciante replied "No. It would ruin the whole thing, that's what's great about the band."[8]
Upon parting from the Chili Peppers, Frusciante fell into a docile and volatile depression, unable to write music, or even play the guitar. For a long period of time, he focused primarily on painting and producing various 4-track recordings he had made during his time with the Chili Peppers. He began using heroin, and subsequently spiraled into a life-threatening four-year dependence.
Frusciante later remarked, "When I originally decided to become a drug addict, it was a clear decision. I was very sad, and I was always happy when I was on drugs; therefore, I should be on drugs all the time. I was never guilty — I was always really proud to be an addict.”[12]
An infamous article published by the New Times LA in 1996 described the dismal state of Frusciante's life at the time.[13] Frusciante was portrayed as "a skeleton covered in thin skin." At the pinnacle of his addictions, Frusciante nearly died from a somber blood infection. His arms became fiercely scarred from improperly shooting heroin and cocaine into his arms, leaving permanent abscesses. The walls of his Hollywood Hills home were broken down and covered in graffiti, and an accidental fire later burned the house down.
During this time, actor Johnny Depp and Gibby Haynes of the Butthole Surfers ventured to Frusciante's house and filmed an unreleased documentary short called Stuff depicting the squalor in which Frusciante was living.[14]
[edit] Niandra LaDes and Usually Just a T-Shirt
Frusciante began recording his first solo album, Niandra LaDes and Usually Just a T-Shirt, in 1992, prior to leaving the band. It was eventually released in March of 1994 under the American Recordings label. He was deeply involved in the production, performing and recording of almost all of the instruments and vocals.
The album was a great departure from his previous work and would mark the beginning of the lo-fi, experimental sounds that Frusciante would continue to pursue for much of his solo career. Many tracks were filled with psychedelic layered guitars and strange effects, such as backward instrumental recordings and the speeding up or slowing down of his vocal tracks. Frusciante's singing on the album was very raw, emotional, and often unintelligible.
The two titles referred to the first and second halves of the record, composed as a double album, because each had a significantly different sound. Niandra LaDes was closer to his earlier songwriting but produced much more sparsely than any of his work with the Chili Peppers. Idiosyncratic songs such as "Your Pussy's Glued to a Building on Fire" and "Running Away into You" exemplified the contrast. Niandra also included a cover of Bad Brains' "Big Takeover". Usually Just a T-Shirt was composed of more abstract pieces consisting of many instrumentals, few of which followed traditional song structures. Every song on this side is untitled.[15][16]
Frusciante claims that his music is a gift from spirits that frequently spoke to him. He has said about these spirits, "I was so happy that someone was visiting I’d make food for them. When they were gone, I’d cry."[12]
[edit] Smile From the Streets You Hold
Frusciante's 1997 solo album Smile From the Streets You Hold was released in order to get "drug money", according to Frusciante himself[17] and was later withdrawn from the market. It was written and recorded largely in the style of Niandra Lades: lo-fi, with uneven, gossamer, layered guitar work and rough, impassioned vocals that are often unintelligible.[18] The late River Phoenix appears on the album providing vocals for the two songs "Well, I've Been" and "Height Down", while also playing guitar on the latter. Frusciante has promised he will one day re-release the record.[19]
[edit] Return
By 1997, Frusciante had decided to quit his drug addictions cold turkey, later entering a rehabilitation facility and beginning his full recovery. Part of his physical recuperation involved removing and replacing all of his teeth with dentures to avoid a lethal infection.[2]
In the years following, he also began to live a more spiritual, ascetic lifestyle, changing his diet and practicing yoga. His attitude on taking drugs completely changed: "I don't need to take drugs. I feel so much more high all the time right now because of the type of momentum that a person can get going when you really dedicate yourself to something that you really love. I don't even consider doing them, they're completely silly. Between my dedication to trying to constantly be a better musician and eating my health foods and doing yoga, I feel so much more high than I did for the last few years of doing drugs."[20]
Despite his harrowing experience as an addict, Frusciante has cited in several interviews that he does not view this time as a "dark period" in his life. “I don’t look at it like that. That was the period that I learned, when I got my mind straight about everything that I needed to know. I really value that period of time,” he said in one 2006 interview.[21]
Musically, with the following albums he also began to move away from his guitar virtuoso influences, emphasizing new wave sounds, chord changes and tones over his previous stylistic work on hard rock and heavy metal solos.
[edit] Californication and By the Way
Free of his addictions and ailments, Frusciante was asked to re-join the Red Hot Chili Peppers. Flea was not enjoying the band without John, so he contacted him to ask if he would be interested in joining the band again. The band welcomed the guitarist back into the fold with open arms. Frusciante's recovery, along with the support of Flea and Smith, inspired Kiedis to attempt to kick his own drug problems.[3]
In 1999, Californication was released with Frusciante back on guitar. The album was a sonic celebration of life and rebirth ("Scar Tissue"), and also an exploration of Hollywood superficiality. On Californication, Frusciante was influenced by musicians and bands he had been listening to at the time, including Matthew Ashman from Bow Wow Wow, New Order's Bernard Sumner and the work of the 80s band The Cure.
The band recorded a follow-up album in 2002, entitled By the Way. For By the Way, he mentioned his desire to emulate guitar players such as The Durutti Column's Vini Reilly, Johnny Marr, John McGeoch, and XTC's Andy Partridge, or as he put it, "people with good chords."[7]
[edit] To Record Only Water for Ten Days
During the Californication world tour, Frusciante wrote his own songs, which would be released on another solo album called To Record Only Water for Ten Days (2001). This album was not nearly as stream-of-consciousness and avant-garde as his previous solo albums, but his lyrics were still very cryptic and the sound of the album was notably sparse and stripped down.
TROWFTD sounded significantly different from his previous solo work as well as his RHCP output. The songwriting and production was more efficient and straight-forward compared to Niandra LaDes and Smile, and in terms of genre, the songs strayed from the rock pop he had just written with the Chili Peppers on Californication, taking on a more New Wave quality. Instead of focusing mostly on his guitar work, Frusciante became interested in synthesizer sounds and textures, and his synth is a prime feature of this record.
Frusciante began his To Record Only Water for Ten Days tour on January 27, 2001, with a performance at The Borderline in London. The tour concluded on June 10 with a short show at The Ruby in Los Angeles, and all 16 concerts featured Frusciante on solo acoustic guitar with minimal effects, with DeFacto as supporting act, marking the start of a long friendship with Omar Rodriguez-Lopez.
21 unreleased songs were posted on John Frusciante's official website as a demo album, From the Sounds Inside. These songs are taken from the To Record Only Water era of Frusciante's solo career and are different, sometimes unmastered, versions of songs on the album.
In 2001, Frusciante also contributed to the first of what would be many musical collaborations with friend Omar Rodriguez-Lopez, A Manual Dexterity: Soundtrack Volume One.
[edit] 2004 recordings
Beginning in 2004 and concluding in early 2005, Frusciante began an ambitious project, releasing seven albums within a twelve month period. Following the release of his fourth full-length solo album, in June, Frusciante officially announced that he would be releasing six new records over the span of six months.[22] Each album would be recorded in different styles and genres, and be released through the label Record Collection.
The following seven albums of Frusciante's most fruitful musical period represent an array of rock music that often incorporates instruments, tempo changes, and electronic sounds uncommon to traditional Western rock. Many of these tracks were recorded live, as with the albums following Shadows. Frusciante wanted to produce these records quickly and inexpensively on analog tape, shunning modern studio and computer-assisted recording processes.[23]
In February 2004, John released Shadows Collide With People which featured guest appearances from some of Frusciante's closest friends, including Josh Klinghoffer from The Bicycle Thief, Omar Rodriguez-Lopez from The Mars Volta, and RHCP bandmates Chad Smith and Flea. It is his most polished sounding album to date. He later released demo versions of almost all the tracks through his official website, and a selection of the tracks which were recorded in his living room and featured only vocals and acoustic guitar.
The Will to Death was released at the end of June 2004. The album intentionally lacked the meticulous editing and high production cost of Shadows Collide with People, as John wanted the album to be "imperfect" compared to his highly produced Shadows.
Automatic Writing was released at the end of August 2004. It is record of five long jams with hypnotic bass lines and experimental guitar parts. The album was under the name of Ataxia. Ataxia includes Frusciante on guitar, Josh Klinghoffer on drums and Joe Lally (bassist of Fugazi) on bass, with all three contributing to the vocals. Automatic Writing and is apparently the first half of recordings the trio did together under the name Ataxia. The second half of the Ataxia session, as well as an electronic record that was a collaboration with Josh Klinghoffer once again, are currently in the mixing phase and are yet to be released.
DC EP was released in September 2004. It included just four tracks and totaled less than 15 minutes. The record was produced by Fugazi's Ian MacKaye. Frusciante was accompanied on this album by Jerry Busher on drums.
Inside of Emptiness was the fourth of the six albums. Recorded in just 6 days (8-13 March) this album adopted a heavier feel than previous Frusciante releases. John himself said that one of the solos was accomplished by "beating the fuck out of his guitar".[24] Frusciante was once again accompanied by Klinghoffer and Omar Rodriguez-Lopez makes another appearance. The album was released in late October 2004.
The final album of 2004 was A Sphere In The Heart Of Silence. Klinghoffer shared equally in the production of this album, and the record was released under the name "John Frusciante and Josh Klinghoffer". Recorded in April (9-11, 14-15), the fifth album in the series was not released until November.
Curtains completed Frusciante's productive journey. Officially released February 1, 2005, the album was recorded in May 2004 (8-14, 19-23), so it can still be considered a part of Frusciante's prolific year. The album is mostly acoustic, recorded in Frusciante's living room, and has the most commercial appeal of the albums in his series of six. It was also the most critically well-received. Accompanying Frusciante on this album were Carla Azar (from Autolux) on drums and Ken Wilde on upright bass. Omar Rodriguez-Lopez made another contribution, adding lead guitar on two tracks, 'Lever Pulled' and 'Anne', where he and John play two dual guitar solos.
Each of the Record Collection albums' artwork was designed by Lola Montes and each was engineered by Ryan Hewitt.
John was also kept busy with the Red Hot Chili Peppers in 2004 as they embarked upon a summer tour in Europe. The band played in stadium-sized venues in their biggest tour to date. The band unveiled three new songs on this tour: "Leverage of Space", "Rolling Sly Stone" and "Mini-Epic". A live album called Live in Hyde Park was released, compiling live tracks from the band's Hyde Park shows in London. Two of the new songs, "Leverage of Space" and "Rolling Sly Stone", were included.
He also performed in Los Angeles together with guitarist Michael Rother of Neu! and Kraftwerk fame. Playing with Rother was like a dream come true for Frusciante, who has been a great fan of the guitarist for many years.
Frusciante revealed in March that he has plans to make a remastered version of the internet album, From the Sounds Inside and also to make all of his copies of Smile from The Streets You Hold, which he has sitting in a warehouse, available to the fans by selling them through his official website, stating: "I recently listened to 'Smile' again and really loved it, it's really a wonderful album and it should be out there, people should be able to listen to it".[19]
On the 23rd of April, Frusciante participated in the All Tomorrow's Parties festival curated by Vincent Gallo, who Frusciante is quite close with. He played an acoustic set of songs ranging from Niandra LaDes and Usually Just a T-Shirt to Curtains.
Frusciante was also featured on The Mars Volta's Frances the Mute playing solos on the song "L'Via L'Viaquez".
[edit] Stadium Arcadium
In the spring of 2005, Frusciante entered the studio with the rest of the Chili Peppers to work on their 9th studio album: Stadium Arcadium. The album was released in the United States on May 9 of 2006.
Frusciante's guitar playing is dominant throughout the album, and he provides backing vocals on the majority of the tracks as well. As revealed on the album's bonus DVD, Frusciante, who usually is a "less is more" style of guitarist,[25] has gone all out on the album using a full 28 track mixer to display the full range of his guitar arsenal. In the arrangements, he uses a wide range of sounds and playing styles ranging from the Blood Sugar Sex Magik days all the way up to By the Way. Several reviews have stressed that Frusciante's influence from Hendrix is evident in his solos on this album,[26] with Frusciante himself backing this up.[27] In addition to his guitar playing, Frusciante expanded his use of effects throughout the album, giving all 28 tracks a rich and textured feel to them. His different pedals range from the Electro-Harmonix English Muff'n fuzz to the Holy Grail Reverb, each one lending itself to specific verses, interludes, or guitar solos. In the studio, Frusciante and album producer Rick Rubin worked tirelessly on over-dubbing guitar parts, tinkering with harmonies, frequencies, envelope filters, and nearly everything in the sonic effect arsenal to create the multi-layered tracks.[27]
[edit] Current
Frusciante made the cover of Rolling Stone (#1020) in February 2007, along with Derek Trucks and John Mayer. He was named as one of the "New Guitar Gods" and the cover nicknamed him "The Visionary." Frusciante in the past has received moderate recognition for his guitar style and skill, but it wasn't until Stadium Arcadium, that music critics and guitarists alike became fully aware of John. Recent proof of this has appeared on the Latest Issue of Guitar World, of which featured Frusciante on the back cover in an ad for Korg Tuners, calling him as a "Guitar God". In 2006 John was featured on the cover of Guitar World[28]
In 2006, Frusciante helped The Mars Volta complete their third album Amputechture. In return, Omar Rodriguez-Lopez played the guitar solo in the RHCP song Especially in Michigan on Stadium Arcadium.
From 2006 to 2007, Frusciante will be touring with the rest of his bandmates in the Red Hot Chili Peppers in support of Stadium Arcadium. He will also be featured on two of the songs on the new Glenn Hughes (of Deep Purple fame) album, Music for the Divine, along with Chad Smith who will be playing the drums. He will also be featured along with Flea on one track, "Hard Life", on the debut album by Perry Farrell's new group, Satellite Party.
Frusciante played alongside Flea, Ikey Owens, Josh Klinghoffer, etc. on Bob Forrest's debut record made up equally of cover songs and original tracks. The album, Modern Folk and Blues - Wednesday, was released on September 19, 2006, and includes Bob playing "The Dying Song" featuring John, who wrote the song, on guitar and backing vocals.
The record A Loveletter to the Transformer, Pt. 1 by The Diary of Ic Explura, is comprised of Frusciante's former girlfriend and Niandra collaborator Toni Oswald, and John's good friend Josh Klinghoffer. The album was recorded in John's old home which he usually leaves vacant.
Frusciante has finished working on the second Ataxia album and the release date is 20th March, 2007. Josh Klinghoffer is working on the drums for 17 songs John has written for his next solo record, the follow up to Curtains which he stated might be out in 2006, though this was stated in early spring. He spoke of it having a more orchestral and classical feel, perhaps implementing new instruments or playing piano as he has done in the past.[citation needed] There are also more electronic songs written with Josh Klinghoffer as a sequel to A Sphere in the Heart of Silence, which will be worked on whenever they find time during the Stadium Arcadium tour.
Other upcoming contributions include:
- Only Built 4 Cuban Linx II - Raekwon on the track "The Brass" with Ghostface Killah
- A Manual Dexterity: Soundtrack Volume Two
- The Diary of Ic Explura, Pt. 2 – A new project featuring Toni Oswald and Josh Klingoffer.
- Se Dice Bisonte, No Bufalo - Omar Rodriguez-Lopez
[edit] Trivia
- John is the youngest member of the Chili Peppers, joining when he was 17.
- John doesn't play guitars that were made after the 1960s.
- John has reported in an interview that he heard about the Red Hot Chili Peppers when his teacher, who was a guitarist, informed him that he was going to try-out for a band named the Red Hot Chili Peppers. After seeing the video for "True Men Don't Kill Coyotes", John saw Flea playing and said that he couldn't be replaced, but after finding out about the death of Hillel Slovak, he then knew why they needed a guitarist. Though, his teacher didn't get the position, John tried out and got it.
- Previous girlfriends include Toni Oswald, actress Milla Jovovich and Stella Schnabel (his ex-fiancee, who was featured on the cover of By The Way). He is currently dating singer Emily Kokal.
- John is a huge fan of musician Frank Zappa and has said that his collection of Zappa records is one of his most prized possessions.
- Frusciante has stated that Bernard Sumner of Joy Division / New Order is one of his favorite guitarist of all time.[citation needed]
- John is a huge fan of 'The Wellingtons'
- The first song John ever wrote was called "Fuck You to José" when John got into a childhood fight during a baseball game. According to him, this was also the last time he has played a sport.
- John is the godfather to Flea's daughter Sunny Bebop.
- John has said that the only television shows that he likes are Curb Your Enthusiasm, The Simpsons, The Office, Extras and Chappelle's Show.
- John practices Vipassana, a form of Buddhist meditation.
- Despite being shown driving a car in the Scar Tissue video, John doesn't drive in real life.
- In the anime Strawberry Marshmallow, Ana Coppola's pet dog Frusciante is named after him.
- Frusciante has a habit of carrying a guitar with him almost everywhere he goes, so much so that he is particularly easy to spot on the street.
- A book by Italian writer Enrico Brizzi is titled Jack Frusciante è uscito dal gruppo, (translated: Jack Frusciante has left his band) with a deliberate mistake on his name.
- John's father is a judge in the Juvenile Division in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Judge Frusciante has a gold record from his son hanging in his chambers.
[edit] Equipment
Guitars:
Electrics:
- Fender Stratocaster 1962 (3 tone sunburst, gift from Anthony Kiedis for re-joining the Band)
- Fender Stratocaster maple-necked '55 (2 tone sunburst)
- Fender Stratocaster 1962 (olympic white)
- Fender Stratocaster 1962 (red)
- Fender Telecaster 1963 Custom (3 tone sunburst)
- Fender Telecaster 1965 Custom
- Fender Jaguar 1962 (fiesta red)
- Fender Mustang 1969 Fiesta Red (used almost exclusively as a backstage warm-up guitar)
- Gibson Les Paul 1969 Custom Black Beauty
- Gibson ES-335 1956 Two Color Sunburst
- Gibson SG 1961 Custom Cherry Red
- Gretsch White Falcon 1955
- Fender Precision Bass Olympic White (rosewood fretboard)
Acoustics:
- Martin 0-15 (acoustic)
- Martin 1940 (acoustic)
- Maton Messiah 12-string acoustic
- Mosrite St. George Gold (12 String Electic)
- Taylor 314c (acoustic)
Amps:
- Marshall Major 200W with KT88 Tubes
- Marshall Silver Jubilee 2550
Picks:
- Jim Dunlop Tortex 0.6mm
Strings:
- D'Addario XL .10s-.046
Effects:
- BOSS CE-1
- BOSS DS-2 Turbo Distortion
- BOSS FV-50 H volume pedal
- 2x Digitech PDS-8000
- Electro-Harmonix English Muff’n
- Electro-Harmonix Holy Grail Reverb
- Electro-Harmonix Electric Mistress Flanger
- Electro-Harmonix Big Muff Pi
- Ibanez WH10 Wah
- Line6 FM4 Filter Modeler
- Line6 DL4 Delay Modeler
- Moog MF-105 MuRF
- Moog MF-105B Bass MuRF
- 3x Moog MF-101 Low-Pass Filter
- Moog MF-103 12-Stage Phaser
- Moog MF-102 Ring Modulator
- 2x Moog Controll Processor
- 3x Moog Expression Pedal
- Mostrite FUZZrite
- Guyatone VT-X Tube Tremolo
- MXR Micro Amp
[edit] Discography
[edit] References
- ^ "The 100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time", Rolling Stone, August 27, 2003.
- ^ a b c James Rotondigic. "Till I Reach the Higher Ground." Guitar Player Magazine, November 1997.
- ^ a b Fricke, David. "Tattooed Love Boys: After twenty-three years, nine albums, death, love, and addiction, the Red Hot Chili Peppers are at Number One for the very first time". Rolling Stone. June 15, 2006.
- ^ Forsythe, Tom. "Laughing All the Way". Interview in Guitar Magazine, February 1991.
- ^ "Red Hot Chili Peppers". Behind the Music. VH1. 1999-05-30.
- ^ Kiedis, Anthony [2004-10-06]. Scar Tissue. Hyperion. ISBN 1-4013-0101-0.
- ^ a b Dalley, Helen. "Interview with John Frusciante." Total Guitar Magazine, August 2002.
- ^ a b Artie Nelson. "Space Cadet". Raw Magazine, Issue #163, November 23, 1994.
- ^ "The Chili Peppers Rise Again". Rolling Stone Magazine, April 2000.
- ^ Gabriella. "The Californication of John Frusciante". NY Rock, July 1999.
- ^ Kennealy, Tim. "Chilly Pepper". High Times Magazine, 1995.
- ^ a b Sullivan, Kate. "Interview with Flea, Anthony and John". Spin, August 2002.
- ^ Wilonsky, Robert. "Blood on the Tracks". New Times Los Angeles, 1996.
- ^ Zafiais, Alex (March 24, 2004). Blood Sugar Sex Magic: Damaged Genius John Frusciante is Back, Again!. Papermag.com. Retrieved on 2006-08-13.
- ^ Williams, Adam (November 3, 2003). Niandra LaDes and Usually Just a T-Shirt review. PopMatters.com. Retrieved on 2006-08-25.
- ^ Huey, Steve. Niandra LaDes and Usually Just a T-Shirt review. All Music Guide. Retrieved on 2006-08-25.
- ^ Johnfrusciante.com. Smile from the Streets That You Hold. Retrieved on 2006-06-08.
- ^ Raggett, Ned. Smile From the Streets You Hold review. All Music Guide. Retrieved on 2006-08-25.
- ^ a b Johnfrusciante.com (2005-03-16). A Little Message from John to the Fans. Retrieved on 2006-06-08.
- ^ "John Frusciante - Water Music." Rock Sound Magazine #21, February 2001.
- ^ Tom Bryant. "War Ensemble." Kerrang! Magazine, May 3, 2006.
- ^ Colin Devenish. "Frusciante Prepares a Feast".Rolling Stone, June 29, 2004.
- ^ John Payne. "Changing Channels: John Frusciante's Brave New Frequencies". LA Weekly, July 29, 2004.
- ^ http://www.johnfrusciante.com/music/emptiness.php
- ^ See interview with Anthony Kiedis in Kerrang. Retrieved August 2, 2006.
- ^ Greg Kot. "Peppers' 'Stadium': Too much of too little", The Chicago Tribune, May 7, 2006. Ian Cohen. "Red Hot Chili Peppers. Stadium Arcadium", Stylus Magazine, May 23, 2006. Retrieved on 2006-08-23.
- ^ a b Barry Cleveland. "Murfs, Muff'ns, and Modular Synths", Guitar Player, November, 2006. Retrieved on 2007-01-16.
- ^ Fricke, David (2007). "The New Guitar Gods" RollingStone.com (accessed February 13, 2007)
[edit] External links
- www.johnfrusciante.com - John Frusciante's official site
- www.myspace.com/johnfrusciantemusic/ - Official Myspace page
- www.jftab.com - RHCP/John Frusciante guitar tablature archive/forum
- Frusciante.net - Most comprehensive archive & news source
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