143 replies to this topic

[Luxor Kittty]

I probably should have asked this a month ago, but I guess it's not too late... I have been wondering what everyone's story is as to how they found John.

Here's mine -
A long, long, long, long time ago, before the wind, before the... well... you get the idea... I heard that 'new' song by RHCP called Under the Bridge and I was hooked on their music and... on Anthony! But very shortly thereafter, I noticed that adorable guy on guitar and AK became the guy they showed on camera too often and got in my way when I was trying to watch John. Today, I love what he's become even more than I loved him back then. His talent and his spirit have no limits. The day is not complete until I've listened to him, looked at him, and obviously I love talking about him...

[Iva]

Well, I think that vega and I will just share two sides of one single story. In my case, well, I've seen John and, well, the rest of the band, in 1995, when I started watching MTV Europe and there was "Under The Bridge" video. I remember that my first thought was that the guitar player was too damn good for someone who looked so incredibly young. But, later that year, having seen a completely different guy playing guitar for RHCP, I almost thought I was crazy.

Then, when John came back, for some odd and bizzare reason, I was not able to realise that he's the same person in "Under The Bridge", "Californication & "Road Trippin" and "By The Way" & "Can't Stop". I though he was 4 different guys! When I was told that "they" are "him", I found out that I seem to like them, which is...him!

Searching for photos of John on the net to convince myself that he indeed is the same person (I know, WTF?), I came accross his biography. I cried for an hour when I read what he's been through and, having read that he has 3 solo albums (yes, there were just 3 at that moment), I read the lyrics and I figured out that I must hear some of his music.

The rest is history!

[boon]

i found john via the chili peppers as did about 98% of the rest of his fans. i'll begin right at the beginning and explain that i love music so much but its the music i love and show very little interest in the actual people who create that music. therefor if you mention a band, i can talk about the music side of things but ask me to name names and in most cases i wont have a clue who is in that band. such was the case with the chili peppers from way back (my guitar teacher was a big fan so i would learn their songs without having a clue what they even looked like). this was at the point just after one hot minute i think when as far as i was concerned they were no longer together because they weren't releasing anything for ages. i never saw any music videos or anything and only heard their music through the tapes my guitar teacher would make for me to play along to. then californication came out and i was suddenly very aware of the band itself and started watching the music videos etc. i didn't notice john until i read a newspaper article on the band where i found out that one of the members had dentures. i found this hilarious at first since they didn't look that old but that stuck with me and i found myself wondering what happened. i assumed there was an accident or something where his teeth were knocked out. i then found the bands' biograpy online and found out a lot about them and started to notice john a little bit - i found myself fascinated by his experiences. i saw a review in a magazine of TROWFTD so i went shopping and promptly bought and listened to it for months. since then i would count myself as a huge fan of his work, and now consider him to be my favourite musician and songwriter ever.

[funkymonk]

about a year or two ago maybe (i know it hasnt been that long), I got the greatest hits CD. i've always been a chili peppers fan, but after i got the greatest hits CD i listened to it nonstop and wanted to get some more stuff. So I got the BSSM Cd, and Cali, and By The Way, and became a huuge Chili Peppers fan. One time when I was bored and researching a bit more about the chilis i read that John had Solo music, so I ended up downloading a couple songs, then getting some of his CD's and stuff.

[Sadie]

The saga of my fanaticism:

One day, about a year and 1,2... 6 months ago?... no wait, let me start from the VERY, VERY beginning.

When Californication was released, I was quite young (10). My mother and I shared a love of watching music videos on VH1 so one day we had it on, and I remember this video coming on by the Red Hot Chili Peppers. The only thing I remember about that video is this blonde guy in a black coat singing and that it was a RHCP video. It's stuck with me ever since, probably b/c I tied it to Harry Potter (long story).

Anyway fast forward a few years and again I was watching music videos on VH1, but it was like 4 in the morning. By the Way came on, and I thought it was quite hilarious. The guy with the blue hair stuck out in my mind. But I liked the song, and around that same time period I saw Zephyr Song, and Can't Stop, but the only thing about Can't Stop that I remembered was the tube thing at the beginning, the Zephyr Song was the one I attached to.

So in the spring of 2004, I went to the beach with my family. I was standing on our little balcony of our rented condo, when I heard heavenly music float up from the poolside. I recognized it as the Zephyr Song, and it was one of the most beautiful things I'd ever heard.

When I got home I told me friend to burn me a CD with (among other songs) By the Way and the Zephyr Song on it. She did, and I loved it. Then I decided to bite the bullet, and buy the actual album. I loved that too. Then I researched the band, because I had become absolutely infatuated with their music (and Anthony).

I went out and bought Californication, BSSM, and the Greatest Hits CD/DVD. During this time I was learning as much as I could about the members of the band, and I read that the guitar player released solo albums. I was skeptical at first, especially b/c I heard somewhere that Anthony didn't like them. But now I think that it meant that Anthony hadn't like listening to his early ones when John wasn't w/ the band and on drugs.

Anyway, I went to this Frusciante's website and listened to a few songs off SCWP. I loved them. I bought the album. I LOVED it. Then I bought TWTD. Then I got Niandra, and then for Christmas I asked for all of his existing ones with the exception of Ataxia and SFTSYH.

Later I got Curtains and downloaded SFTSYH. I still don't have Ataxia, though.

And now, instead of being infatuated with Anthony Kiedis (though I do have his book), I am absolutely 100% in love with John Frusciante.

So, I suppose the Chili Peppers have always been in the back of my mind, they were just waiting for the chance to come out and show me how amazingly awesome they are.

I hope that didn't bore you. Or confuse you. Or both.

Edited by boon, 27 September 2005 - 08:58 AM.

[orangesquirrel]

hmm, well:
dad got californication on tape for one fathers day, and i listened to it a bit, and got over it
then prob a year or two later, i went and bought the cd of it for some reason, in which i fell in love and it didnt leave my cd player for about a year
then when i became more of a fan, i got btw, and then bssm, then i saw an ad for scwp on the rhcp site
so i checked it out, bought it the day it came out and i havent looked back since

[Anne]

For me it was like this- I had always liked RHCP- but I was not impressed when One Hot Minute came out and kind of forgot about them for a while. Then when Californication was released, I wasn't even in that much of a hurry to go and get it...I was still thinking of them as "this band I used to dig."

But then, I was going on vacation and wanted to listen to something new for the 4 hour car ride it was going to take me to get there, I went and picked it up...and John was back and so was the music I loved- different, yet just as appealing!!! I COULD NOT get enough of that cd and then after that- By The Way and Johns solo music followed.

[boon]

thats a wicked story hun! i reallywish i was one of those people who had been a fan back before john left, because i would love to know what it was like when people found out john was back. i can only imagine in retrospect. grrr.

[Anne]

boon, on Sep 27 2005, 08:02 AM, said:

thats a wicked story hun! i reallywish i was one of those people who had been a fan back before john left, because i would love to know what it was like when people found out john was back. i can only imagine in retrospect. grrr. 

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I'll tell you this, it was something no one ever thought would happen. I myself thought that One Hot Minute was definitely the last new RHCP album that would ever come out.
It was when i heard Californication!!

[Luxor Kittty]

^^
I'm with you there... I tried OHM when it came out and it just wasn't the same. ...And when Californication came out, I can still remember my sister and I all happy, talking about how John Frusciante is back!

[vega]

Iva was the one who introduced me to John's solo work. And I rally fell in love with his songs and, dare to say, his personality.
Actually, as a hard core RHCP fan I have to say that I love John as their guitar player, he's their best choice!

[conchamas]

well,

I remember buying a tape 'under the bridge'. I played it immediately in the car on the way back home, not driving (i was a 12-year-old), but listening to the beauty of that guitar-line. I played only guns n' roses-songs at the time. It was the pure blend of bass and guitar-lines which i loved, the outro. I figured the chords out and noticed this change, from Am to Amaj. I just loved that. I also loved the Hendrix-influenced-way of playing.

When he left the band, i thought it was the end of the peppers and him.
When he came back, i didn't believe it until i had the only personal proof shaped in the form of a disc, with 'californication' written on it.
And now his talent can optimize, because he doesn't have stress and eats eggs again

I wish he would eat eggs for the rest of his life!

[Leilah]

When i was about 13, One hot minute was all that i loved in my life. And Dave Navarro. Then, when Californication came out, and i saw some new pics of the band, i was totally confused-who's the new guy? I didn't like him at all and ignored him.
Greatest hits changed it all-i heard Johns voice clearly for the first time in "Save the population" and instantly loved it. I was wondering-who's doing the backing vocals? It aint Ant, and for sure not Chad, so maybe Flea...or that new guy? I had to know more about that new guy. LOL
So i read the bands history, and lots of JF interviews. Suddenly i realized he's quite interesting and a good musician. SCWP came out and i bought it. After that my views on music changed a lot and i'm enjoying everything on a new level
Oh, yeah, it helped also when i noticed that he's quite hot. *megablush*

[Curtains]

I've been in to rhcp since the release of californication.. not untill about last year or something a frind of mine told me that the guitarist had solo stuff out. so I (don't hate me for this) went and downloaded an album, wich just happened to be smiles from the streets... And well, that might not be the best album to start with when you listen to frusciante. so the time whent on and i stumbled across some interview from german Tv where johnny was promoting shadows collide with people, and so i fell in love and searched high and low in record stores and such for rhcp music and movies and of course the jf-albums, only one missing is niandra lades..
and now.. well. see for yourself, go me self i real nice tatoo <--------

[Silverla]

Although I'm 30, I only really started listening to the Peppers a couple of years ago when they released By The Way. I do not know how that happened, since I'd heard several of their songs before this and liked them, especially UTB which had long been an all-time favourite of mine, and I always meant to listen to some Chili Peppers and had had lots of opportunities to do that! Still I like to think it just happened when it was meant to.

I loved BTW in a way I'd never loved an album before, and music has always been important to me, so that's saying something. It made sense to me, it spoke to me and I loved their sound, especially the chemistry between the bass and lead guitar. I bought Greatest Hits, realised this was the same band that had produced UTB and several other songs I knew, started to buy the other albums retrospectively and fell more and more in love with this music.

In every song, and particularly in UTB and Scar Tissue, I loved the guitar. It made me wanna pick up and start learning again - I'd always wanted to play and had started to learn at one time, though I gave up because I was finding it hard to progress. Then I bought the Slane Castle DVD and a concert ticket and just thought they rocked like nobody else live, and I loved the way John put so much heart and soul into his guitar playing. At this time I was beginning to find out more about them through people I met in forums on the internet and I read about all their stories. I found Anthony's and John's stories in particular deeply sad but very inspiring, and everything they stand for really echoed how much their music made sense to me.

And around about that time I also read that John had produced several solo albums and I started to acquire them. When I bought Shadows, I didn't realise I was embarking on a lifelong love affair with the guy's music. I can't even say why it's the best stuff I've ever heard - it just speaks to me, and I know you'll all know what I mean. His music will always be part of my life now - it makes me smile when I'm sad and is perfect for helping me shut off from work and lose myself.

And I did start learning guitar again. And I'm much better this time round.

[ray_likethefish]

Hey La, on Sep 26 2005, 01:40 PM, said:

I probably should have asked this a month ago, but I guess it's not too late...  I have been wondering what everyone's story is as to how they found John. 

Here's mine -
A long, long, long, long time ago, before the wind, before the... well... you get the idea... I heard that 'new' song by RHCP called Under the Bridge and I was hooked on their music and... on Anthony!  But very shortly thereafter, I noticed that adorable guy on guitar and AK became the guy they showed on camera too often and got in my way when I was trying to watch John.  Today, I love what he's become even more than I loved him back then.  His talent and his spirit have no limits.  The day is not complete until I've listened to him, looked at him, and obviously I love talking about him...

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

My stories same as yours, descovered Under The Bridge and years later descovered who the guy in the silly hat was. The rest as they say is history

[Surrogate_Helical]

i was a chilli peppers fan and i loved by the way so i checked out the rest of there albums and loved them all. My brohter bought shadows collide with people and he didnt think too much of it. I learned carvel and was hooked. I bought all his albums exept smile from the streets.. and he completely changed the way i saw music

[Miss Frooshontay]

I already was a RHCP fan and one time, I listened to "TROWFTD" and I just said... "Whoaaaaaa! I never heard something as creative as this music before " And after, I became a fan and I started to love him.....

[mario]

Same story with me ,I saw video Going inside,it was great to me.year later my friend bought TOWFTD,I fell in love with John and his music
I understand you