10 Rock Albums That Went From Hated To Loved

It would be a pretty easy explanation to say that some of the best music the Red Hot Chili Peppers made was with John Frusciante. Since his name is all over some of the most successful records they ever had, Frusciante’s way with melody was always the X-factor that took them from a funky party band to legitimate artists. There was a time both before and after John though, and Dave Navarro’s turn as the Peppers’ guitarist made for a pretty raw deal.

Although the Peppers were all in a tough spot when John left for the first time, their attempts to put things back together with One Hot Minute were actually pretty damn great. While Navarro is nowhere near the same style as what John brought to the table, his focus on shredding solos gives this record a lot of teeth, especially on the more rock focused cuts like Warped and Deep Kick.

This is also known nowadays as the record where Anthony Kiedis relapsed on drugs, which brings a dark undercurrent to almost every song here, like his critique on religion on Shallow Be Thy Game and the borderline metal moments on the title track. Now that it has 2 decades under its belt, One Hot Minute really stands as the true undiscovered gem in the Peppers’ catalog. It might not be on the same level of Californication or even By the Way, but this is the sound of the Peppers trying something new and succeeding nearly every single time.