Mix Tape of the Day: March 5, 2015 - The Red Hot Chili Peppers

Since it's John Frusciante's birthday, we are only taking a look at the RHCP songs that are from his time in the group.  Coincidentally, this is exactly the same couple of eras in which all their best hits were produced.  Strange how that worked out so perfectly.

1. Under the Bridge - The Red Hot Chili Peppers (1991) While the RHCP had been around during the '80s, and Frusciante joined them at the end of the decade, it wasn't really until Blood Sugar Sex Magik that they became alt. rock legends.  With the mesmerizing "Under the Bridge" introducing us to the RHCP's love/hate relationship with California, we suddenly became a part of a whole new '90s.

2. Give It Away - The Red Hot Chili Peppers (1991) Alternate lyrics: "What I'd like is I'd like to hug and kiss ya."  Alternate alternate lyrics: "Yabba dabba yabba dabba dabba do now."

3. Soul to Squeeze - The Red Hot Chili Peppers (1991) The sudden success of BSSM caused Frusciante to leave the group temporarily.  However, the group had a back catalog of B-sides and so songs like this were able to be released in the following years.  One album was released before he returned to the group, One Hot Minute. While it had it's share of enjoyable songs ("My Friends") it just wasn't the same.

4. Californication - The Red Hot Chili Peppers (1999) Fortunately, Frusciante returned to kick off the next three albums, starting with the near perfect Californication.  Not only was the trip back to the seedy underbelly of California present, but we were also introduced to a character named Dani whose journey would be chronicled over the trilogy of albums.

5. Scar Tissue - The Red Hot Chili Peppers (1999) Drug abuse was rampant among many of the RHCP members and this song helped to reunite the members and give them the "resurrection" that they badly needed.

6. Parallel Universe - The Red Hot Chili Peppers (1999) I'm always a fan of songs that are the artist's personal favorite, even if they aren't big hits.  These are the songs that get brought out at every live performance and it allows the setlist to feel a bit more personal.  This was also included on the Greatest Hits album, despite not technically qualifying.  I'm glad that RHCP did everything they could to get people to hear this one.

7. Otherside - The Red Hot Chili Peppers (1999) Don't worry, I didn't forget the best RHCP song.  Once again dealing with drug addiction and overdose, the band handles the death of one of the original band members Hillel Slovak (the pre-Frusciante guitarist) in a touching way.

8. By the Way - The Red Hot Chili Peppers (2002) Dani returns in the title track for the second album in the California trilogy.  And this is my favorite RHCP song.  I like the abrupt shifts in melody between the verses and the choruses.  It really feels like a race against the clock, trying to meet someone who has already been waiting for a long time and is slipping away.

9. On Mercury - The Red Hot Chili Peppers (2002) I tended to like the non-single tracks from By the Way more than the singles.  They just seem a lot more fun! Don't you agree?

10. Someone - The Red Hot Chili Peppers (2002) After scouring through hours of B-side material, I found this gem.  It feels like it should have been one of their hits, as I enjoy it a lot more than what was selected to be the singles for By the Way.

11. Save the Population - The Red Hot Chili Peppers (2003) So, I own two RHCP albums.  Stadium Arcadium and this.  No regrets. (Both were birthday gifts.)  I know true music fans are supposed to hate compilation albums, but this really gives me that RHCP fix whenever I need it. "Save the Population" was the token new song on the album, and I like it just as much as the rest.

12. Dani California - The Red Hot Chili Peppers (2006) Dani's story is brought to a head.  The trilogy wasn't specifically planned out, but it really worked to the band's favor.  There is more of a focus on who this person is and the ups and downs of her life.  Apparently, she's a composite of many ex-girlfriends.  I hope they're all satisfied with how this song turned out.

13. Stadium Arcadium - The Red Hot Chili Peppers (2006) I'm surprised this didn't become a single.  The final RHCP Frusciante album was a two-disc magnum opus called Stadium Arcadium.  Although the band continues without Frusciante to this day, this truly feels like a swan song of an album.  Stories from the recording are a lot more pleasant and it was just sheer creativity coming out of every corner.  Everyone did their best.

Mix Tape of the Day: February 27, 2015 - The Best of 2007

I had a lot of contenders for my 2007 list, but there weren't really many stand out choices for me.  It was strange, but I feel like since I had listened to these songs so many times in 2007 that they all just started fading into the background.  Some of my true favorites have already been featured on other lists, so these all kind of feel like "runners up."  When making the tough choices about losing "Crank That (Soulja Boy)," I decided that if I listened to it on my iPod repeatedly back in 2007, then it must have been worthy of this list.

1. Stronger - Kanye West (2007) This is the song that would eventually inspired Kelly Clarkson's "Stronger." Kanye West took a classic Daft Punk track to create the hook for this song, making it instantly memorable.

2. The Sweet Escape - Gwen Stefani ft. Akon (2006) I'd probably listen to this song everyday throughout my freshman year of college.  Boy, was that a bad decision.  But I must remember what drew me to it in the first place.  It was the line about the refrigerator.

3. Thnks fr th Mmrs - Fall Out Boy (2007) Remember when Fall Out Boy was the cool thing to listen to?  Good times(?).

4. Who Knew - Pink (2006) Apparently Pink disappeared for a bit, then came back with this and "U + UR Hand."  Both are great, but I gave the slight edge to this one.  I tend to like like "hardcore sad" Pink music.

5. Snow (Hey Oh) - The Red Hot Chili Peppers (2006) Oh yeah, I still have to do my Red Hot Chili Peppers mix.  Thanks for reminding me!

6. Beautiful Girls - Sean Kingston (2007) I thought this was the stupidest song for the longest time. I felt the "Stand by Me" sample clashed with the lyrics.  He just seemed like an overdramatic moody teenager...I guess my opinion has changed.

7. Before He Cheats - Carrie Underwood (2005) Since this song is technically based on speculation (the narrator never specifically witnesses cheating occurring and assumes a lot of the more incriminating moments), I'd like to imagine a scenario in which it's all a big misunderstanding and the guy was innocent the whole time.

8. If Everyone Cared - Nickelback (2005) I'm hoping that by putting this song here at #8, you'll overlook the fact that I included a Nickelback song, especially one as pandering as this one.

9. Teardrops on My Guitar - Taylor Swift (2006) Ah, we finally made it to the beginning of Taylor Swift's career.  Singing about unrequited love and heartache.  That's our Taylor.

10. Welcome to the Black Parade - My Chemical Romance (2006) Back when lipdubs were all the rage, I really wanted to make one set to this song.  Um, it's probably for the better that I didn't move past the brainstorming stage on that one.

11. Girlfriend - Avril Lavigne (2007) I don't care if she ripped off the song "I Wanna Be Your Boyfriend" by the Rubinoos.  It's still fun and great and both songs complement each other well.  Let her have this one.

12. Face Down - The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus (2006) No comment.

13. Apologize - One Republic (2005) I'm cheating here and not using the Timbaland remix that actually charted.  The two songs are virtually identical, but the original is just purer and feels more heartfelt.  And it's my favorite OneRepublic song, so there.