One Hot Minute (Warner Bros., 1995) by Red Hot Chili Peppers

This is a mediocre album at best.  Jane's Addiction guitarist Dave Navarro replaced John Frusciante after he quit the band in 1992.  And Navarro is a great guitar player, but his sound is more rooted in metal than funk and rhythm like the Chili Peppers.  The stylistic differences are very apparent on this recording.  Lyrically, the album seems like a step down from Blood Sugar Sex Magik.  And the album's best cut, "My Friends," is ballad that was made solely for the "Under the Bridge" crowd.  Overall, this album is a forced commercial attempt by a group of very talented musicians.

Californication (Warner Bros., 1999) by Red Hot Chili Peppers

The sound of Californication is more melodic in vocal and instrumental delivery than a lot of their previous work.  As a whole, the album taps into the poetic sensibility that made the deeply personal "Under the Bridge" such huge hit years earlier.  "Scar Tissue" is one of the my favorite records from the band's 25 plus year catalogue.  This album also has strong sentimental value to me as well.  The Red Hot Chili Peppers were my first concert, the Californication tour, - back in the summer of 2000 at Van Andel Arena in Grand Rapids, MI.  They performed with Foo Fighters as their opening act and, even as a hip hop fan, it remains the best concert I have seen to date.  Because Kiedis spent some of his childhood in the Grand Rapids area, it is impossible to not be exposed to the Chili Peppers' music (not that that's a bad thing at all) growing up there.  And, as a result of that hometown connection, the crowd was really into the show.  The only downside to the whole experience was that I couldn't wear the T-shirt that I got from the show to Middle School in the fall because it had the word "Californication" on it.

Blood Sugar Sex Magik (Warner Bros., 1991) by The Red Hot Chili Peppers

I think it is awesome that Chris Rock is inducting RHCP into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame this year.  Rock is one of my favorite comedians and Blood Sugar Sex Magik is one of my "desert island" album choices.  If it weren't for BSSM, the blueprint would not have been laid for acts like Rage Against the Machine, Korn, and Kid Rock to follow.  There are very few albums that I can play top to bottom, but this is one that I can.  The rhythmic vocal on "Power of Equality", bass-line on "Give It Away", and the soul-bearing "Under the Bridge", it is a remarkable album.  And one that only grows more influential with time.  Blood Sugar Sex Magik is an album that I bought about ten years ago at Media Play.  It has been in rotation non-stop since then and I do not see that changing anytime soon.