Flea (b. 1962)

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Biography

Michael Peter Balzary, known professionally as Flea, is an Australian and American musician and actor. He is a founding member and bassist of the rock band Red Hot Chili Peppers. Flea and vocalist Anthony Kiedis are the only two continuous members of the band and the only ones to appear on every album. Flea has also been a member of the supergroups Atoms for Peace, Antemasque, Pigface, and Rocket Juice & the Moon, and has played with acts including the Circle Jerks, the Mars Volta, Johnny Cash, Tom Waits, Alanis Morissette, Young MC, Nirvana, What Is This?, Fear, and Jane's Addiction.

In Their Own Words (5)

So, naturalists observe, a fleaHas smaller fleas that on him prey;And these have smaller still to bite 'em,And so proceed ad infinitum.Thus every poet in his kindIs bit by him that comes behind.

Jonathan Swift, Poetry, A Rhapsody. Compare De Morgan, above. , 1922

Great fleas have little fleas upon their backs to bite 'em,And little fleas have lesser fleas, and so ad infinitum.And the great fleas themselves, in turn, have greater fleas to go on;While these again have greater still, and greater still, and so on.

Augustus De Morgan, A Budget of Paradoxes, p. 377. Compare Swift, below. , 1922

To produce a mighty book, you must choose a mighty theme. No great and enduring volume can ever be written on the flea, though many there be who have tried it.

Herman Melville, Moby-Dick (1851), Ch. 104 : The Fossil Whale. , 1851

Panurge had a flea in his ear.

François Rabelais, Pantagruel (1532), Chapter XXXI. Simon Forman, Notes to Marriage of Wit and Wisdom. , 1922

It was many and many a year ago,In a District styled E. C.,That a monster dwelt whom I came to knowBy the name of Cannibal Flea,And the brute was possessed with no other thoughtThan to live — and to live on me.

Thomas Hood, Jr., The Cannibal Flea. Parody on Poe's Annabel Lee. , 1922

Timeline

The story of Flea, told in moments.

Legacy

Also an actor, appearing in over 20 films. Studied music theory at USC. Founded the Silverlake Conservatory of Music in LA to provide free music education to kids who can't afford it.

Why found a music school that gives lessons for free? What did studying theory at USC teach someone who already played by instinct?

1962 Birth

Born Michael Peter Balzary in Melbourne, Australia. Moved to New York at four, then Los Angeles at 12 with his mother and jazz musician stepfather.

How did moving from Melbourne to LA shape you? What did your stepfather's jazz give you?

1977 Event

Met Anthony Kiedis at Fairfax High School in LA. Flea played trumpet in the school jazz band. He picked up bass guitar after discovering punk rock. The friendship lasted.

Was meeting Kiedis at Fairfax High fate or luck? What made you switch from trumpet to bass?

1983 Event

Co-founded the Red Hot Chili Peppers with Kiedis, Hillel Slovak, and Jack Irons. His slap bass style fused funk and punk in a way nobody had tried before.

Where did that slap bass style come from? Did anyone else try to mix funk and punk before you?

1991 Event

Blood Sugar Sex Magik sold 13 million copies. "Under the Bridge" and "Give It Away" were everywhere. Rolling Stone readers later ranked Flea the second-best bassist of all time.

What does it feel like to be ranked second-best bassist alive? Was Blood Sugar Sex Magik the peak?