SONG OF THE DAY
“My Friends” by Red Hot Chili Peppers (One Hot Minute, Warner Brothers Records, 1995).
INTERESTING FACTS (a la wikipedia)
– “My Friends” is a melodic ballad and was released as the second single from the album.
– It is the only song from One Hot Minute to be included on their Greatest Hits compilation, though the music video for “Aeroplane”, appears on the DVD.
– It became the band’s third #1 single on the Billboard Hot Modern Rock Tracks chart, and their first #1 single on the Billboard Album Rock Tracks chart.
– Lyrically, “My Friends” is one of the moodier and more introspective songs on the album, exploring the loneliness and emptiness people feel. The song is about the difficult times Flea went through; he was going through a painful divorce with his first wife and felt even more depressed because the writing and recording of One Hot Minute was a painstakingly slow and disappointing process that took almost a year and a half.
– The surreal music video depicts the band in many incarnations on a small boat, stranded in a large stretch of treacherous water. Anthony Kiedis admits that he thought this video was not very good, as it was not realistic. They had a second video recorded for the song where they are seen in a studio. The latter can be seen on their Greatest Hits DVD and on the band’s YouTube account.
– The chorus was used as part of “Weird Al” Yankovic’s polka medley “The Alternative Polka” on his Bad Hair Day album.
– The Red Hot Chili Peppers appeared on the Late Show With David Letterman shortly after the release of the album to perform “My Friends”.