TASTE THE PAIN - The Making of The Red Hot Chili Peppersʼ Mother’s Milk

This is a story about the making of a record. The record is the fourth release by The Red Hot Chili Peppers, called Mother’s Milk. Mother’s Milk is especially important because it marks the turning point from what the Chili Peppers originally were, and what they have become and continue to be.

This is a story about my involvement in the creation of Mother’s Milk as its producer, and my recollection of how it was made. It’s about the choices I made to keep the project stabilized, on track, and to avoid the multiple near-disasters it faced throughout the process of making it. This is a story of metaphorical minefields, determined strategy and occasionally smashing straight through barriers both real and perceived, head first. It is a story about the band themselves, who they were and how they evolved drastically through extremity, loss and inevitably, immeasurable triumph.