![]() Flea learned to play bass from Slovak, who shortly after asked him to be a bassist in his band, Anthym. We found each other and it turned out to be the longest-lasting friendship of my life." įlea was introduced to rock music by Hillel Slovak, and particularly punk rock by Kiedis. Kiedis recalled: "We were drawn to each other by the forces of mischief and love and we became virtually inseparable. However, he soon met Anthony Kiedis, and after a brief confrontation, the two became best friends. the Flea, he attended Fairfax High School, and was something of an outcast due to his taste in music. He was first called "Flea" as a teenager for his seeming inability to sit still, and the nickname stuck. It caused a lot of trouble later in life." To cope, Flea began smoking cannabis at 13, and became a daily user. Flea said: "I grew up being terrified of my parents, particularly my father figures. Flea described his childhood home as violent his stepfather was an aggressive alcoholic who eventually became involved in shootouts with police. He had no interest in rock music at the time, instead idolizing jazz musicians like Miles Davis, Louis Armstrong, and Dizzy Gillespie. The family moved to Los Angeles, California, where Flea became fascinated by the trumpet. įlea's stepfather frequently invited musicians to his house for jam sessions. Flea and his sister Karyn stayed with their mother Patricia, who subsequently married jazz musician Walter Urban (1941–2011). Flea returned to Australia to spend time with his father, completing three years of school in the national capital Canberra. In 1971, his parents divorced, and his father returned to Australia. When Flea was four, his family moved to Rye, New York, for his father's career. ![]() His father, Mick Balzary, an avid fisherman, often took him fishing. He is of partial Hungarian and Irish descent. Michael Peter Balzary was born on October 16, 1962, in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. In 2019, he published a memoir of his early life, Acid for the Children. Since 1984, Flea has acted in films and television series such as Suburbia, Back to the Future Part II and Part III, My Own Private Idaho, The Chase, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, Dudes, Son in Law, The Big Lebowski, Low Down, Baby Driver, Boy Erased, The Wild Thornberrys, Obi-Wan Kenobi, and Babylon.įlea is the co-founder of Silverlake Conservatory of Music, a non-profit organization founded in 2001 for underprivileged children. ![]() In 2012, he and the other members of Red Hot Chili Peppers were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. In 2009, Rolling Stone readers ranked Flea the second-best bassist of all time, behind John Entwistle. ![]() Flea is also a member of the supergroups Atoms for Peace, Antemasque, Pigface, and Rocket Juice & the Moon, and has played with acts including The Mars Volta, Johnny Cash, Tom Waits, Alanis Morissette, Young MC, Nirvana, What Is This?, Fear, and Jane's Addiction.įlea incorporates elements of funk (including prominent slap bass), psychedelia, punk, and hard rock in his playing. In high school, he befriended singer Anthony Kiedis with whom he formed the Red Hot Chili Peppers in 1983. After his parents divorced, Flea spent his childhood in the United States and Australia, before settling in California. He and vocalist Anthony Kiedis are the only two constant members across every album.įlea was born in Melbourne, Australia his family moved to Rye, New York when he was four. He is best known as the co-founder and bassist of the rock band Red Hot Chili Peppers. As Wall wrote in Classic Rock: “When RHCP rocked now, they were a match even for GN’R.Michael Peter Balzary (born October 16, 1962), known professionally as Flea, is an American musician and actor. Fourth album Mother’s Milk moved beyond their origins and paired their sound with mainstream rock melodies. They emerged from studio sessions with producer Michael Beinhorn with the best songs of their career and their finest record so far. From the off, the alchemy was perfect, Smith’s muscular rock grooves and Frusciante’s fluid, blues-funk licks taking the band’s music into another realm. Hope came in the discovery of 18-year-old virtuoso guitarist John Frusciante and beefy drummer Chad Smith, additions who would blow open the sonic possibilities for the Chili Peppers. It forced me to make a choice: I could either join Hillel, or I could try and finish my life.” But in a strange way we found strength from that. “He didn’t die of an overdose, he died from a disease. “Like me, Hillel had the disease of drug addiction,” Kiedis told Mick Wall in 1990. Somehow, out of the tragedy they didn’t just find a way forward, they made the steps that would make them one of the biggest and most enduring groups of their generation.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
Details
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |