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Out in L.A.: The Red Hot Chili Peppers, 1983
The Red Hot Chili Peppers were going to be a one-time act for a friend’s album release party.
Forty years later the funk rock band is one of the best known and the longest running in the United States.
Everything that happened in 1983 set the course for the rest of the band’s career. The scrappy band quickly rose to scene-wide fame, playing all over Los Angeles and gaining fans and media attention wherever they performed. Before the year was out, they had played approximately thirty shows, put together an early, beloved repertoire, recorded a blistering demo that secured them a recording contract with EMI/Enigma, and lost two of their founding members to a rival band.
Out in L.A. is an attempt at finding out exactly what happened during that first year and exploring what it is that makes the Red Hot Chili Peppers so compelling and fresh, even as they continue on their musical journey today.
Forty years later the funk rock band is one of the best known and the longest running in the United States.
Everything that happened in 1983 set the course for the rest of the band’s career. The scrappy band quickly rose to scene-wide fame, playing all over Los Angeles and gaining fans and media attention wherever they performed. Before the year was out, they had played approximately thirty shows, put together an early, beloved repertoire, recorded a blistering demo that secured them a recording contract with EMI/Enigma, and lost two of their founding members to a rival band.
Out in L.A. is an attempt at finding out exactly what happened during that first year and exploring what it is that makes the Red Hot Chili Peppers so compelling and fresh, even as they continue on their musical journey today.
- GenresMusicNonfiction
336 pages, Hardcover
Published January 17, 2023
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
June 4, 2023
A sacred text for RHCP fans
April 2, 2023
What can I say? I discovered the Chili Peppers in college, just as they were making the jump from a regional punk funk band to the big time, and followed them through most of their most successful years. I'll admit I don't check out their new material very often, but I do like some of their newer stuff that I've heard.
This book isn't about their newer stuff, though. This depicts the band's first year, 1983. In fact, when the year begins, there is no RHCP. There's What Is This, and there's FEAR, and there are a few other blink-and-miss-it bands, but the group that would become the Chili Peppers was still finding each other. Anthony Kiedis and Hillel Slovak and Michael Balzary and... well, the drummer was Jack Irons off and on. They were in this grouping, they were in that grouping, Balzary (who was in the process of becoming Flea) took a job as bassist for the already-established FEAR, which also featured Lee Ving and Derf Scratch, etc. There were arguments, in-fighting, hurt feelings, and a little band that started out with just about two songs that lasted all of about five minutes. But they made an impression despite the jokey nature of their performance, and their energy was infectious. It was a while before the Chili Peppers had enough songs to really make a show, much less an album, but they still put in their time on stage. They traveled out of California, but that didn't work -- at least, not yet. By the end of the year, there were both RHCP and What Is This, with two members going to each. I imagine most people can guess which band made it big and which didn't.
Anyway, this book is literally a show-by-show recounting of that first year, with as much stuff in between as the author can piece together (I am always impressed with an author who isn't afraid to admit that there's no surviving evidence of something, even if common lore says that the something existed; Aussie author Hamish Duncan covers the oral history and rumors even as he points out that it may not have actually happened that way).
One thing I'll mention, mostly because I found it quite amusing. Mr. Duncan, I know that they SOUND like they should be synonymous, but in American vernacular, "shirtless" and "topless" don't really mean the same thing...
This book isn't about their newer stuff, though. This depicts the band's first year, 1983. In fact, when the year begins, there is no RHCP. There's What Is This, and there's FEAR, and there are a few other blink-and-miss-it bands, but the group that would become the Chili Peppers was still finding each other. Anthony Kiedis and Hillel Slovak and Michael Balzary and... well, the drummer was Jack Irons off and on. They were in this grouping, they were in that grouping, Balzary (who was in the process of becoming Flea) took a job as bassist for the already-established FEAR, which also featured Lee Ving and Derf Scratch, etc. There were arguments, in-fighting, hurt feelings, and a little band that started out with just about two songs that lasted all of about five minutes. But they made an impression despite the jokey nature of their performance, and their energy was infectious. It was a while before the Chili Peppers had enough songs to really make a show, much less an album, but they still put in their time on stage. They traveled out of California, but that didn't work -- at least, not yet. By the end of the year, there were both RHCP and What Is This, with two members going to each. I imagine most people can guess which band made it big and which didn't.
Anyway, this book is literally a show-by-show recounting of that first year, with as much stuff in between as the author can piece together (I am always impressed with an author who isn't afraid to admit that there's no surviving evidence of something, even if common lore says that the something existed; Aussie author Hamish Duncan covers the oral history and rumors even as he points out that it may not have actually happened that way).
One thing I'll mention, mostly because I found it quite amusing. Mr. Duncan, I know that they SOUND like they should be synonymous, but in American vernacular, "shirtless" and "topless" don't really mean the same thing...
May 7, 2023
It rare that I give all 5 stars in a review, but this book earned it. Not so much the storyline which was about the bad,Red Hot Chili Peppers and their exciting exploits at famous clubs in Los Angeles. This book chronologically delves deeper into the making of the band, the individual personalities of members, and exploration of the rock and roll music world. The detail and finely research material is then organized by club and performance. No better way to learn about a band such as the Red Hot Chili Peppers, then reading this book.The ambient music flows through these pages in a brand new way to excite readers with the bands many adventures. Well recommended for rock fans of all ages, read this book!
May 20, 2025
Very specific, and an interesting idea, to capture the lightning in a bottle that was the rising RHCP. Duncan got a lot of good interviews with bit players and compiled a lot of source materials from the band members themselves (e.g., through Flea's and Anthony's autobiographies).
However, there wasn't a lot around from many of the first shows, and there's a ton of speculation. Duncan is honest in his reporting, but he is often left to guess at details, setlists, audience members, and even other bands on the bill.
I still learned some things about the original four, as it were, like where they were living at that time, and e.g., how involved Hillel and Jack were with What Is This (very) and Flea was with Fear (not very). Anthony got a lot of mileage out of being charismatic but not musical, although he did bring some influences to RHCP that the others weren't aware of, like Grandmaster Flash.
However, there wasn't a lot around from many of the first shows, and there's a ton of speculation. Duncan is honest in his reporting, but he is often left to guess at details, setlists, audience members, and even other bands on the bill.
I still learned some things about the original four, as it were, like where they were living at that time, and e.g., how involved Hillel and Jack were with What Is This (very) and Flea was with Fear (not very). Anthony got a lot of mileage out of being charismatic but not musical, although he did bring some influences to RHCP that the others weren't aware of, like Grandmaster Flash.
September 26, 2023
Thank you Goodreads giveaways for my copy.
I've read plenty of rock biographies, but getting a deep dive into their first year is a really, really cool way to approach it!! I thoroughly enjoyed learning about the RHCP first year and how they came to be. A great read for fans!
I've read plenty of rock biographies, but getting a deep dive into their first year is a really, really cool way to approach it!! I thoroughly enjoyed learning about the RHCP first year and how they came to be. A great read for fans!
October 6, 2023
A masterpiece!
March 8, 2025
I loved this account of the background of the members and the forming of RHCP
November 14, 2025
Good read.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews