Pretty Face: A Red Hot Cajun Nights Story by Sable Hunter

By the Way is the eighth studio album by American rock band Red Hot Chili Peppers. The album was released July 9, 2002 on Warner Bros. Records. It sold more than 286,000 copies in the first week, and peaked at number two on the Billboard 200 (their next album would peak at number one). Singles from the album included "By the Way," "The Zephyr Song," "Can't Stop," "Dosed" and "Universally Speaking." The lyrical subject matter vocalist Anthony Kiedis addresses in By the Way is a divergence from previous Chili Peppers albums, with Kiedis taking a more candid and reflective approach to his lyrics. By the Way was lauded by critics as a departure from the band's previous styles, and is recognized for the melodic and subdued emotions given by the Chili Peppers. Guitarist John Frusciante is credited with writing most of the album's melodies, bass lines and guitar progressions, therefore changing the direction of the recording dramatically: "his warm, understated guitar work and his doo-wop style vocal harmonies are king this time around." By the Way contained very little of the signature punk-funk fusion the band had become known for playing. Frusciante has stated that writing "By the Way [was] one of the happiest times in my life." The album went on to sell more than 8 million copies worldwide.

A Red Hot Chili Peppers album with John Frusciante is always an event. The guitarist returns to the Californian formation after twelve years of absence, the group donning the same trappings that made the successes of Blood Sugar Sex Magik in 1991 or Californication in 1999. Produced once again by Rick Rubin, Unlimited Love therefore reminds us of the most melodic of the Red Hot, greatly favoring precisely melancholy songs like Not The One or White Braids & Pillow Chair, even bordering on adolescent emotions. We also find there the dripping and metallic basses of Flea, virtuoso hubbub, on Here Ever After, already audible on a hit like By The Way in 2002. Rather than the tangy pop object that raged during Frusciante's recent absence, here is a group that reconnects with funk on Poster Child or with disco motifs on the excellent Aquatic Mouth Dance. This record smells of the 1990s, seems to emerge from spontaneous sessions like the title These Are The Ways, cut in the sound of the time. With a touch of modernity, the Red Hot Chili Peppers explore what has made them one of the most famous rock bands of recent decades, and deliver an album as an anti-wrinkle.

Pretty Woman is noted for its musical selections and hugely successful soundtrack. The film features the song "Oh, Pretty Woman" by Roy Orbison, which inspired the movie's title. Roxette's "It Must Have Been Love" reached No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 in June 1990. The soundtrack also features "King of Wishful Thinking" by Go West, "Show Me Your Soul" by the Red Hot Chili Peppers, "No Explanation" by Peter Cetera, "Wild Women Do" by Natalie Cole and "Fallen" by Lauren Wood. The soundtrack went on to be certified three times platinum by the RIAA.

Mother's Milk is the fourth studio album by the American rock band Red Hot Chili Peppers, released on August 16, 1989, on EMI Records. After the death of founding guitarist Hillel Slovak and subsequent departure of drummer Jack Irons, vocalist Anthony Kiedis and bassist Flea regrouped with the addition of guitarist John Frusciante and drummer Chad Smith. Frusciante's influence altered the band's sound by placing more emphasis on melody than rhythm, which had dominated the band's previous material. Returning producer Michael Beinhorn favored heavy metal guitar riffs as well as overdubbing that was perceived by Frusciante as excessive, and as a result Beinhorn and Frusciante constantly fought over the album's guitar sound.

This digital box set contains Red Chili Peppers' Blood Sugar Sex Magik (1991), One Hot Minute (1995), Californication (1999), By the Way (2002), Stadium Arcadium (2006), I'm with You (2011). There's too many smash-hits to count and is well worth the while.