141: Chad Smith (Red Hot Chili Peppers, Chickenfoot, Bombastic Meatbats)

The Trap Set with Joe Wong

Joe Wong

Joewong, Drums, Comedy, Performing Arts, Arts, Drummers

4.8 • 709 Ratings

🗓️ 27 September 2017

⏱️ 53 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Chad Smith's unabashed hard rock style could have easily clashed with the funk-punk roots of the Red Hot Chili Peppers, but instead he proved to be the catalyst that launched the band to international superstardom. His muscular, yet articulate drumming evokes a cross between P-Funk and Deep Purple and acts as the perfect anchor for the bestial rowdiness of his band mates.

Chad grew up in suburban Detroit, feeling like a square peg in a round hole. This unease led to misadventures in car theft, burglary, and even a stint in jail. Musically, he cut his teeth playing in countless Detroit clubs before moving to Los Angeles in 1988, during the Sunset Strip's heyday. He describes the immediate, explosive musical chemistry that has allowed the multi-decade success of the Chili Peppers. Chad also candidly discusses his evolution from living a “spiritually bankrupt” lifestyle to becoming a grounded, healthy family man.

Transcript

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0:00.0	They call me and they was like, yeah, okay.
0:03.3	They left a message on my answering machine.
0:05.2	Yeah, you could join the band, but you got to shave your head.
0:08.5	I'm like, I'm not fucking shaving my head for these fucking guys.
0:11.1	What the fuck is that all?
0:12.1	I don't know.
0:14.2	And so I show up to the next day and they're like, you can shave your head?
0:18.1	I'm like, no, I'm not shaving my head.
0:20.3	And they're like, okay, we respect that.
0:22.7	This is Joe Wong. Welcome to the Traffset, where each week we explore the lives of drummers.
0:43.3	I want to play something for you. I'm I'm I'm
0:55.0	I'm
0:56.0	I'm
0:57.0	I'm You're hearing blood sugar sex magic by red hot Peppers, featuring my guest, Chad Smith on drums.
1:32.3	A Michigan native, Smith joined the Chili Peppers in 1988 as their third drummer.
1:38.3	Although his unabashed hard rock roots initially seemed at odds with the underground origins of the band. Chad proved
1:46.1	to be the catalyst that launched the Peppers to international superstardom.
1:50.3	Chad's muscular yet articulate drumming, evoking a cross between P-Funk and Deep Purple,
2:03.6	serves as the perfect counterweight to the bestial rowdiness of his bandmates.
2:09.6	Apart from his work with the Peppers, Chad's led his own band, the Bombastic Meatbats,
2:15.6	and he's a member of the riff rock supergroup, Chicken Foot.
2:19.3	He's also a highly sought-after session player, recording albums with everyone from Wayne Kramer to the Dixie Chicks to Johnny Cash.
	...

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