My Friends (song)

This article is about the Red Hot Chili Peppers song. For the Stereophonics song, see My Friends (Stereophonics song). For other uses, see My Friends (disambiguation).

"My Friends"
Single by Red Hot Chili Peppers
from the album One Hot Minute
B-side	"Let's Make Evil" "Stretch"
Released	September 19, 1995
Format	CD, 12" vinyl
Recorded	1995
Genre	Alternative rock
Length	4:02
Label	Warner Bros.
Producer	Rick Rubin
Red Hot Chili Peppers singles chronology
"Warped" (1995) "My Friends" (1995) "Aeroplane" (1996)
Music video "My Friends" on YouTube Music video "My Friends (Version 2)" on YouTube

"My Friends" is a song by the Red Hot Chili Peppers and the fourth track on their 1995 album One Hot Minute. It is a melodic ballad and was released as the second single from the album. It is the only song from One Hot Minute to be included on their Greatest Hits compilation, though the music video for "Aeroplane", appears on the DVD. It became the band's third #1 single on the Billboard Hot Modern Rock Tracks chart where it remained for 4 consecutive weeks, and their first #1 single on the Billboard Album Rock Tracks chart.^[1] Lyrically, "My Friends" is one of the moodier and more introspective songs on the album, exploring the loneliness and emptiness people feel. Singer Anthony Kiedis then stresses that those people "hurt by the cold" are not alone and are loved. The song is about the difficult times Flea went through; he was going through a painful divorce with his first wife and felt even more depressed because the writing and recording of One Hot Minute was a painstakingly slow and disappointing process that took almost a year and a half.

Music video

The surreal music video depicts the band in many incarnations on a small boat, stranded in a large stretch of treacherous water. This video was directed by Anton Corbijn. Anthony Kiedis admits that he thought this video was not very good, as it was not realistic. They had a second video recorded for the song, directed by Gavin Bowden, where they were in a studio. The latter can be seen on their Greatest Hits DVD and on the band's YouTube account.

Trivia

• The chorus was used as part of "Weird Al" Yankovic's polka medley "The Alternative Polka" on his Bad Hair Day album.

• The Red Hot Chili Peppers appeared on the Late Show with David Letterman shortly after the release of the album to perform "My Friends", as seen here.

Track list

CD single (1995)

1. "My Friends" (album)
2. "Coffee Shop" (album)
3. "Let's Make Evil" (previously unreleased)
4. "Stretch" (previously unreleased)

CD version 2 (1995)

1. "My Friends" (album)
2. "Coffee Shop" (album)
3. "Let's Make Evil" (previously unreleased)

12" single (1995)

1. "My Friends" (album)
2. "Coffee Shop" (album)
3. "Let's Make Evil" (previously unreleased)
4. "Stretch" (previously unreleased)

Preceded by "Name" by Goo Goo Dolls	Billboard Modern Rock Tracks number-one single November 18 – December 9, 1995	Succeeded by "Glycerine" by Bush
Preceded by "Name" by Goo Goo Dolls	Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks number-one single December 9 – December 30, 1995	Succeeded by "Cumbersome" by Seven Mary Three
Preceded by Bullet with Butterfly Wings by The Smashing Pumpkins	Canadian RPM Alternative 30 number-one single December 4 – 18, 1995	Succeeded by "One of Us" by Joan Osbourne

References

1. ^ Whitburn, Joel (2004). The Billboard Book of Top 40 Hits, 8th Edition (Billboard Publications), page 522.