They wore socks for at least one show. Just socks, and not on their feet. They coated themselves in DayGlo paint, too. The bassist Flea also donned a diaper and nothing else for their biggest gig in town heretofore.
Socks, weed and women: Recapping 39 years of Red Hot Chili Peppers' Twin Cities gigs
Saturday's concert at U.S. Bank Stadium caps off a long run that started with frequent First Avenue visits.
April 4, 2023 at 10:05AM
When the Red Hot Chili Peppers take the stage at U.S. Bank Stadium on Saturday — their first-ever stadium gig in town — it will cap off the Los Angeles funk-punk vets nearly 40-year ascent through Twin Cities venues. They hardly seemed dressed for success during their first few visits to town, going back to almost annual visits to First Avenue in the early 1980s.
Here's a recap of the Chili Peppers' many visits to Minneapolis and St. Paul — 16 shows so far, according to the band's own live archive.
Nov. 21, 1984, First Ave: Their first time in the Mainroom featured Jason & the Scorchers for openers and a meager $2 cover. Club DJ Dean Vaccaro remembered, "Epic night. Almost empty room." Rifle Sport guitarist Gérard Boissy, then a First Ave stagehand, remembered singer Anthony Kiedis "making out with two rather suburban-looking women" in the dressing room and then-guitarist Jack Sherman being grateful for help soldering his guitar together. "He was a really great guitar player," Boissy said.
Oct. 21, 1985, First Ave: Hillel Slovak (who fatally overdosed three years later) had joined on guitar. The band squeezed in a rowdy appearance at Northern Lights Records on Hennepin Avenue to promote the new LP "Freaky Styley" before the show. The set included an encore cover of Jimi Hendrix's "Fire," which they also pulled out 14 years later as the Woodstock '99 grounds were infamously set ablaze.
Dec. 1, 1986- Nov. 18, 1987: The band squeezed in three more Mainroom shows in as many years, highlighted by the particularly wild Uplift Mofo Party Plan Tour stop in 1987. It featured Faith No More for openers and ended with all the Chili Peppers in their socks (over their private parts) and covered in DayGlo paint under black lights. Remembered fan Joe Anderson, "As the show went on, the sweat started to make the paint run. They ended up a swirled sweaty DayGlo mess!" They also threw in a cover of "Subterranean Homesick Blues," nodding to Bob Dylan.
Oct. 9-10, 1989, First Ave: The two-night stand following the release of "Mother's Milk" was their first time in town with St. Paul-born drummer and Will Ferrell lookalike Chad Smith, who toured Paisley Park and proudly posed with the band's painted First Ave star for social media their last time in town.
Nov. 31, 1991, Roy Wilkins Auditorium: This one's best remembered for the two opening acts that were already on the cusp of bigger stardom, Smashing Pumpkins and Pearl Jam.
Aug. 28, 1992, Lollapalooza II, Harriet Island: Back when Lolla was a touring festival, the Chili Peppers took over from Jane's Addiction as the second-year headliner following the mainstream crossover success of the "Blood Sugar Sex Magik" album. Others on the bill included Soundgarden, Ministry, the Jesus & Mary Chain and Pearl Jam. Local concert promoter Jeff Taube was a backstage runner for the band and remembers delivering a quarter-pound of weed to singer Anthony Kiedis as he meditated, and he drove a diaper-clad Flea around in a golf cart. "Interesting experience," Taube glibly noted.
May 20, 1999, First Ave: Way too big for the room by then, the band returned as part of its Teen Tolerance Tour, inspired by Colorado's Columbine High School shooting. Local high school students had to write essays to win free tickets. The 65-minute performance showcased new-ish guitarist John Frusciante, who played on their best-loved albums and is back in the RHCP lineup again after a 10-year hiatus.
March 24, 2000-Jan. 21, 2017: Target Center and Xcel Energy Center: The band has played five Twin Cities arena shows in the 21st century, the first of which also featured a couple memorable opening acts: Foo Fighters and Muse. Their last local gig at Target Center found interim guitarist Josh Klinghoffer cover local legends the Replacements' "Answering Machine" while Kiedis sang a couple homages to Prince.
Red Hot Chili Peppers
With: The Strokes, King Princess.
When: 6:30 p.m. Sat.
Where: U.S. Bank Stadium, 401 Chicago Av. S., Mpls.
Tickets: $45-$295, ticketmaster.com.
Critics’ picks for entertainment in the week ahead.
