10 Perfect Rock Albums Of The '90s

Even when the alternative movement started kicking into high gear, it didn't look like the Red Hot Chili Peppers had that much of a shot. Since they had been slogging it out in the clubs of LA for the better part of a decade, you'd think they'd have hit their big break if it was actually out there. Once the hair started to fade though, the Chilis shacked up in a haunted mansion and came out on the other side with their greatest work to date.

Compared to the frat bro style songs they had been making up until this point, Blood Sugar Sex Magik feels like the purest form of the Chili Peppers, taking all of their strengths and turning them up to 1000. You want a cool funky jam? Take something like Give It Away or If You Have to Ask. You looking for some more hard rock material? Righteous and the Wicked and Power of Equality have got you covered. Hell, they even delve into the easy listening pool every now and again, with songs like Under the Bridge and I Could Have Lied hinting at the more sensitive side of Anthony Kiedis' headspace.

As much as this was a high point, it would also prove to be a sendoff for their '90s period, with John Frusciante quitting the band and not returning until Californication later in the decade. Still, if you're looking for the best side of the Chilis, you're pretty much set with any one of these songs.