News > Red Hot Chili Peppers
John Frusciante Makes A Predicted Departure
By Johnny Firecloud
Monday, December 14, 2009
Hate to say we saw this one coming: although official word has yet to come down the vine, it appears that Red Hot Chili Peppers‘ guitarist John Frusciante has left the band.
Those close to the band say that Frusciante has already been replaced by Josh Klinghoffer, who toured with the Chili Peppers alongside Frusciante in 2007.
“Josh Klinghoffer has been playing with the group for a couple of months now,” a source close to the band explained. “Optimistically, the Peppers are trying to lock down a replacement for John, who has apparently quit. Mentally, John checked out a long time ago. He’s interested in doing his own thing, his own albums – the whole big rock band machinery just doesn’t appeal to him anymore.”
We’re just as skeptical as the next guy about unnamed sources, but like I said, we saw this one coming. In an Q&A with MusicRadar earlier this year, Frusciante made some relatively permanent statements about not being involved in the future of the band, but nobody seemed to know quite what to make of it at the time. Thickening the plot, in an interview we did with Chili Peppers drummer Chad Smith back in September, the kit-pounder made a vague reference to moving forward on RHCP’s new album “one way or another” when I asked about Frusciante’s reluctance to rejoin the fold.
Antiquiet: How are you gearing up mentally for the Chili Peppers to kick back into gear?
Chad Smith: It’s all good! I’m ready, it’s gonna be fun. We haven’t played in two years, so that’s the longest we’ve ever not played together.
Antiquiet: There’s been a lot of concern over that, since you’ve been gone for so long. And John (Frusciante, RHCP guitarist) made a couple comments a while back on how he’s got no intention of diving back in..
Chad Smith: Yeah, he wasn’t too anxious to get back & get going. But one way or another, we’ll get going.
At the time, it seemed as if Smith were simply giving his buddy the benefit of the doubt. Now it seems that he may have known more than he was ready to let on at the time, and “one way or another” carried more weight than we realized.
As a session guitarist, Klinghoffer has worked with artists including Perry Farrell, Tricky, PJ Harvey, Neon Neon and Gnarls Barkley. He also played with Frusciante on several of the guitarist’s solo projects, which should make the transition considerably easier for him, should this all turn out to be true.
If so, the Chili Peppers have lost a brilliant limb whose harmonics and falsetto harmonies consistently lifted the band out of the pop-funk-schtick they always seem to return to. On the upside, perhaps this means we can look forward to a new stylistic turn from the guys, as Dave Navarro helped bring when he hopped on board for 1995’s One Hot Minute.
UPDATE – Official word from John Frusciante:
When I quit the band, over a year ago, we were on an indefinite hiatus. There was no drama or anger involved, and the other guys were very understanding. They are supportive of my doing whatever makes me happy and that goes both ways.
To put it simply, my musical interests have led me in a different direction. Upon rejoining, and throughout my time in the band, I was very excited about exploring the musical possibilities inherent in a rock band, and doing so with those people in particular. A couple of years ago, I began to feel that same excitement again, but this time it was about making a different kind of music, alone, and being my own engineer.
I really love the band and what we did. I understand and value that my work with them means a lot to many people, but I have to follow my interests. For me, art has never been something done out of a sense of duty. It is something I do because it is really fun, exciting, and interesting. Over the last 12 years, I have changed, as a person and artist, to such a degree that to do further work along the lines I did with the band would be to go against my own nature. There was no choice involved in this decision. I simply have to be what I am, and have to do what I must do.
Sending love and gratitude to you all.
Klinghoffer’s a very very very capable guitarist. He took Gnarls Barkley, and PJ Harvey’s band to new levels when he joined them. If he’s replacing Frusciante then I’m happy, it’s about time the guy gets some serious recognition.
Replacement? Really, guys?
…yes.
There’s no such a thing as a “John Frusciante replacement”.
It was expected, but when it hits you… Then again, I’ve always had some kind of special love for One Hot Minute, but it was propably just because Navarro gave more room for the bass.
The Chili’s kind of came back with Stadium Arcadium, but it still wasn’t up to par with their older stuff. By The Way was shit.
I loved Californication.
I gotta think, that for Frusciante…this wasn’t a bad decision.
i’m sure josh can play as good as john, but can he write? and can he sing? just search for youtube videos of his solos songs on rhcp concerts. anyway, i don’t know why john keeps doing this to the band that got him famous. if it wasn’t for rhcp, no one would know/hear his solo work.
If youve read Scar Tissue, you will see that John always hated the whole stadium rock show thing (he always prefered playing clubs etc) which is why he quit the band after Blood Sugar…the chilis then really lost their way while he was gone until he rejoined them a few years later and brought their mojo back…it will be interesting to see what the new record actually sounds like with whoever they decide on…but im not holding my breath for anything decent as John really cemented the Chilis style from Mothers Milk onwards
pretty exciting news. the chilis werent really gonna come up with anything new i dont think, it feels like their going to be a mainstream rock band forever, so I think it kinda makes sense for frusciante to leave. Now if only flea and smith had done the same and they made a new band, we coulda had something really exciting
If you have some of John’s solo cds, he plays with Josh on them and josh sings on some songs. Johns kinda branched out too, he’s worked with everybody from the wu tang clan and rza, to cevin key from skinny puppy. John’s been described many many times as always writing and making new music, so it must get kinda redundant to have to play the same songs over and over, changing only the solo’s each night. Besides the rest of the chili’s are all like 10 years older than john, and john is 10 years older than josh… Besides flea is busy with the silverlake school, chad has his 2 side bands, and anthony is a new dad and is working on that hbo show about his life. So how much longer were the chili’s going go on?
R.I.P RHCP. On the upside maybe he will record more with Omar.
I think that is problem with replacements (usually) – they can play songs live even better than orginal guy but when songwrting comes into play they tend to letdown everyone. Especially in band like RHCP where there is one guitar.
Frusciante certainly lent a lot to the Chili Peppers’ sound on the albums to which he contributed, but there was never really an apparent gel factor within the group when he was a part of it — it kind of seemed forced, despite its being a successful formula. I see this as a positive for both sides, as there was too much dysfunction and weird history looming over the band with John present.
frusciante’s a really talented, original, unique guitarist. with that said, one hot minute was underrated.
This is a tragedy, Hillel and Frusciante were the pinnacle of RHCP..Navarro was a passing phase and John will never be replaced.
RHCP will never be the same again.
There is no RHCP without john.
:(
[...] Does information from “a source close to the band” constitute what exactly? A substantiated rumor? What’s code here? If the source is legit, then soon enough I suspect we’ll hear the brutal truth that the oft-conflicted by stardom John Frusciante has indeed left the Red Hot Chili Peppers. [...]
But now who will make up for the tone def Anthony Kiedis? This Josh guy can play, but he is no JF. Fruschiante was really the only reason I listened to the RHCP.
Maybe this is for the best for everyone………
And it’s official: http://tinyurl.com/ybmhrgk
so according to johns myspace post he quit a year ago? I’m surprised it took this long for the news to get out.
As long as Klinghoffer brings the funk it’ll be alright……..
There is an Italian Movie called John Frusciante’s Left The Band. I guess there will be a sequal. LOL. When John returned, it was great to see him turn his life around. The others really nurtured him and let him have his will. We all know Flea held back more than he should have. John’s a free spirit and he needs to go his own way, but I somehow doubt he will hit the heights he did in his Chili years. Hopefully, Josh’s role in the band means Flea will have more room. I only hope Josh hasn’t got the RHCP guitarists curse. Stay clean Josh. As a sesh muso he knows how to slot in. He’s got my vote, but guys, RHCP have got nothing more to prove. Just playing music together is all we can ask.
No.. RHCP will NEVER be the same again without Frusciante..
The chemistry they made amazing, and created one of the greatest bands in the world..
However like all great things in life, they must come to an end..
Frusciante cannot ever be replaced, Josh will not equate to be a fraction of what a guitarist John was..
RIP to the greatest modern alt rock band that existed!!
As much as I hate to see John leave, I can’t help but to think back on when Hillel died. The love the guys in the band had for each other was the kind you squeeze in your hand and it squishes thru your fingers–you could feel it like that. Then when John came on board the chemistry that developed between him and Flea bordered on telepathic. We’ll just have to wait and see how (if?) Josh will fit into the equation.
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