Plucking, slapping or thumping, you name and Flea got it. October 16 is celebrated as ‘Reminiscing Best Basslines On Songs” day only in honour of my favourite bassist Flea a.k.a Michael Peter Balzary.
Flea rose to popularity as the bassist for the funk-rock band Red Hot Chili Peppers. While most of us know Flea for his on stage tactics and shirtless performances, there are a few more reasons as to why Flea tops the list of my favourite Rock bassist.
- Distinct basslines
Bass is one of the primer instruments in Rock music yet only few understand the importance of its sound. Coupled with the beats of the drums, bass provides smoothness to the rhythm of the song.
Whenever you hear a Flea song, the bass is distinct and you could actually sing the entire song to just the bassline. That’s how perfection is in his compositions.
- Exquisite techniques
While most bassists stick to only plucking the bass strings, Flea can do magic with his fingers. The guitar must’ve had a thousand orgasms just by the way Flea plays it.
Pure magic! From slapping to thumping, Flea revolutionised the bass sound for an entire generation.
- Survived the test of time
Flea has been around a long time and by long I mean 33 years. He joined Red Hot Chili Peppers back in 1983 as a 21 year old. Now he’s 54 and still rocking like a boss.
He is consistently reinventing his musical style and inspiring millions with his music including me.
- The Entertainer
When you go naked in front of 200,000 people with only your guitar covering your genitals, you sure are one of a kind. That’s Flea.
He loves his audience and goes through every crazy tactic imaginable to make it worth their time and money. Just check out ‘Woodstock 99: Give it away’.
- Founded RHCP
Yes, he gave us Red Hot Chili Peppers. That’s got to be quite an achievement. The sleazy funk rock band that gave us the hard-hitting ‘Under the bridge’, absurdly funny ‘Dani California’ and incredibly uplifting ‘Snow’.
RHCP has been one of the greatest Rock bands of all time and we surely are thankful to Flea, Anthony Kiedis and late Hilel Slovak for doing us the honour.
He chatted and jammed out with Kiko the gorilla, he played the role of goofy Douglas J Needles in Back to the Future II and III and much more. Flea is truly a testament to how awesomeness is independent of what age you are.
Abiding by that, we wish him a very happy 54th birthday.
Keep Rocking Flea!
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