John Frusciante
I don't want to be on the radio. I don't want to be on MTV.
Guitarist John Frusciante has experienced both colossal highs and death-defying lows in both his musical career and personal life. Born in 1970 and raised in California, Frusciante dropped out of high school when guitar playing and rock music took hold of the up-and-coming musician/songwriter. Embracing both the unpredictable side of rock (Frank Zappa, Steve Vai, King Crimson, Funkadelic) and punk (the Germs, Black Flag), Frusciante created his own guitar style -- combining both technical skill with a knack for penning funky, psychedelic riffs. The Red Hot Chili Peppers became an automatic fave when the young guitarist discovered them early in their career, and his dream to join the band came true in 1988, after striking up a friendship with the Chili Peppers' bassist Flea (in the wake of founding guitaristHillel Slovak's death from a drug overdose). Interestingly, Frusciante had just been hired by another L.A. band, Thelonious Monster, prior to joining the Peppers.
Besides
releasing two obscure solo albums (1995's Niandra Lades and Usually Just a T-Shirt and 1997's Smile From the Streets You Hold), little was heard from Frusciante after his split from the Peppers in 1992. Then a disturbing article appeared in
the L.A. Weekly, one that painted Frusciante as a heroin abuser with a death wish (the
interviewer was also shocked at his ghastly appearance). Thankfully, with the
advice of friends, Frusciante checked himself into a rehab center and got off
drugs and stopped his path to certain destruction. Just a few months after
getting his life back on track and facing the world again, he got back in
contact with the rest of his ex-Pepper mates (he regularly kept in contact with Flea), whose then-current guitarist, Dave Navarro, had just split from the band.
After a loose
jam session was deemed a success (as well as a psychological evaluation!), Frusciante was asked to rejoin the band. The newly kindled
relationship was a rousing success, as the reunited Peppers issued the great Californication in 1999 to rave reviews and big sales. Two years
later, and with drugs a thing of the past, Frusciante emerged a tough singer/songwriter by releasing a solo
effort entitled To Record Only Water for Ten Days. Merely a creative outlet
from his band's original material, Frusciante appeared motivated and relaxed as an individual
and free from the deception of drugs that haunted him before. In 2004, Frusciante released an astounding six solo albums as well
as a project with Josh Klinghoffer (who appears on several of those six albums) and Fugazi's Joe Lally called Ataxia.
Then Red Hot Chili Peppers duty
called once again, and Frusciante did
some work with Glenn Hughes before
releasing a follow-up to the Ataxia album in early 2007. The Empyrean arrived
in 2009, and in 2012, two wildly different solo albums showed up in the form of
an EP called Letur-Lefr and a
full-length called PBX Funicular Intaglio Zone. These two
recordings were dizzying affairs that reflected Frusciante's lifelong
dream to make electronic music, and employed acid house bass synthesizers and
sampled jungle drum breaks, and even had cameos from MCs like Wu-Tang's RZA.
http://www.allmusic.com/artist/john-frusciante-mn0000223627
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