Blood Sugar Sex Magik
(59/100 Greatest Albums Ever)

The Chili Peppers’punk-funk-rock was at its most potent on Blood Sugar Sex Magik. Benefiting hugely from the more focussed Rick Rubin production, it veered away from the technically-impressive but ultimately self-indulgent style that had hampered their earlier recordings. Where once the band were overbearingly macho, they now seemed to have come to terms with their inadequacies, both as musicians and as people. While ‘Give It Away’ and ‘Suck My Kiss’ are among the leanest, funkiest things the ‘Peppers recorded, it was the core of sensitive balladry that made the album a classic – from the tender heartbroken swoon of ‘Breaking The Girl’, to the woozy drug-induced melancholy of the still-fabulous ‘Under The Bridge’. The sound of a band hitting their stride, both commercially and creatively.