Dani California

"Dani California" is a single from the Red Hot Chili Peppers' ninth studio album, Stadium Arcadium. The single was first made available at the iTunes Music Store and then was officially released on May 2, 2006. The international radio premiere was April 3, 2006, when Don Jantzen, from the Houston radio station KTBZ-FM, played "Dani California" continuously for his entire three-hour program.[2]

"Dani California"
Single by Red Hot Chili Peppers
from the album Stadium Arcadium
B-side
  • "Million Miles of Water"
  • "Whatever We Want"
  • "Lately"
ReleasedApril 3, 2006
RecordedMarch–December 2005
StudioThe Mansion in Los Angeles, California
GenreFunk rock, alternative rock[1]
Length4:42
LabelWarner Bros.
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)Rick Rubin
Red Hot Chili Peppers singles chronology
"Fortune Faded"
(2003)		 "Dani California"
(2006)		 "Tell Me Baby"
(2006)
Music video
"Dani California" on YouTube

The single peaked at number six on the Billboard Hot 100, becoming the band's third and last single (after "Under the Bridge" and "Scar Tissue") to enter the top ten. In addition, "Dani California" became the second song in history (after R.E.M.'s 1994 track "What's the Frequency, Kenneth?") to debut at number one on the Billboard Modern Rock chart, and stayed there for 14 consecutive weeks. It also charted at number one on the Mainstream Rock charts. where it spent twelve straight weeks on top.[3] The song won two Grammy Awards, one for Best Rock Song and the other for Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal.[4] It also marked the band's joint-biggest UK hit to date along with "By the Way", peaking at number two on the UK Singles Chart, being kept off number one by Gnarls Barkley's "Crazy".

Origins and character

Throughout the song, lyricist Anthony Kiedis laments the early death of Dani, a poor, young Southern girl who eventually lived in California, became a mother and lived a hard, fast, unsettled life.[5] Kiedis has commented that the character of Dani is a composite of all the women with whom he has had relationships. The song narrates much of Dani's life, starting with her birth in Mississippi and apparently culminating with her death in the badlands, by a North Dakota policeman, while en route to Minnesota.[6]

Dani first appeared in the 1999 song "Californication", which includes the lyrics "Teenage bride with a baby inside/Gettin' high on information" although the girl's name is not specified. She was next mentioned in the Red Hot Chili Peppers' 2002 single "By the Way" as "Dani the girl". Kiedis commented: "When this funky groove came up it struck me as a perfect place to actually tell a story. It sort of revealed itself to me that it's been the same character, just kind of developing. At first I didn't realize that I was writing about the same girl."[7]

Guitarist John Frusciante used various instruments and effects devices in order to achieve the textures and treatments used throughout the song, including Mellotron, Moog effect pedals, and a Doepfer modular synthesizer, used for the filtering and processing of pre-recorded tracks. The one-minute guitar solo at the end of the song is an adaption of Jimi Hendrix's intro to "Purple Haze", with the effects kept very close to the original.

The working title of the song was "Wu-Tang" because Smith's drums sounded similar to those on the Wu-Tang Clan's debut album, Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers),[8] though they ended up a bit more like Lynyrd Skynyrd's "Sweet Home Alabama".

Reception

Shortly after its release, the originality of the song was questioned on the Dan Gaffney Morning Show on Delaware based news/talk radio station WGMD 92.7 FM.[9] Two of the station's talk show hosts, Dan Gaffney and Jared Morris, alleged that the Red Hot Chili Peppers had plagiarized Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers' 1993 hit "Mary Jane's Last Dance". To demonstrate, they presented audio snippets of both songs, both side by side and simultaneously (i.e. on top of each other) several times. They stated that the chord progression, key, and the lyrical theme of the songs (both produced by Rick Rubin) showed "startling similarities" and urged listeners to "decide for themselves."[9]

Although the chord progressions sound similar, they do in fact differ as "Mary Jane's Last Dance" follows "Am, G, D, Am" (A Dorian mode), while "Dani California" follows "Am, G, Dm, Am" (A minor). University of Chicago musicologist Travis Jackson said the songs' chord progressions were similar, but were a "pretty standard groove" in music and not necessarily evidence of copying.[10] Other commentators on the controversy point out that the main riff in Petty's song resembles that of a prior song called "Waiting for the Sun" which was released in 1992 by The Jayhawks. The Jayhawks were the opening act for Petty's tour in 1992 and keyboardist Benmont Tench played on both "Waiting for the Sun" and "Mary Jane's Last Dance".[11]

In an interview with Rolling Stone magazine, Petty denied rumors that he planned to sue the Chili Peppers and said, "I seriously doubt that there is any negative intent there. And a lot of rock & roll songs sound alike."[12]

Music video
A frame of the "Dani California" video showing Flea and Anthony Kiedis honoring funk

The music video for "Dani California" premiered on MTV on April 4, 2006. Directed by Tony Kaye, director of American History X (who was only accepted after initial choice Mark Romanek declined), the video is a quasi-chronology of the evolution of rock music; the band performs the song on a stage, but in a variety of outfits representing important figures and movements in the history of rock, with band members transformed into famous musicians.[5]

Flea affirmed that "[The band] mainly did eras, not actual people: rockabilly, British Invasion, psychedelia, funk, glam, punk, goth, hair metal, grunge, and ourselves being the sum of all those parts."[5] While the band's appearance was intentionally generic in each scene, obvious nods were made to certain specific artists, including Elvis Presley, The Beatles, Jimi Hendrix, Cream, Parliament-Funkadelic (as Flea was dressed like Bootsy Collins), David Bowie (as Flea was dressed like Bowie in his Ziggy Stardust persona), Slade, Sex Pistols, The Misfits' Glenn Danzig, Poison, Mötley Crüe, Nirvana (aping their MTV Unplugged performance), Rammstein and the Red Hot Chili Peppers themselves.[13] The video finishes with the Red Hot Chili Peppers as themselves, occasionally flashing back to the imitated transformed artists featured earlier in the film.

The video received ten nominations at the 2006 MTV Video Music Awards; it won the award for Best Art Direction, failing to win its six other nominations for Video of the Year, Best Group Video, Best Rock Video, Best Direction, Best Editing and Best Cinematography. The video was also nominated for an MMVA for best international video.

Live performances

The song has been the band's most performed from the album with over 330 performances as of 2017.

Chart performance

"Dani California" debuted at number 24 and peaked at number six on the Billboard Hot 100 (remaining for two weeks at that position) and it's the 2nd song to debut at number one on the Modern Rock Tracks chart after R.E.M. in 1994 and before Linkin Park in 2007, remaining at the location for 14 weeks.[14] The song also managed to achieve 28,000 units of digital sales in the song's first week of release and debuted at number 16 on the Hot Digital Songs chart.[15] In the UK, the song fared even better, peaking at the number two spot for one week (kept off by Gnarls Barkley's "Crazy"), and eventually remaining on that chart for over 15 weeks. It also stayed 12 weeks at number one on the Mainstream Rock Tracks chart. The song also became a cross-over hit to pop and adult contemporary radio peaking number five on the Adult Top 40 chart, their 1st Top 5 and Top 10 single on the chart beating "Scar Tissue" and "Otherside" both at number 11. The song also hit number 25 on the Mainstream Top 40 chart.

The song is among the few tracks the Red Hot Chili Peppers recorded which have broken the top 10 on the Billboard Hot 100.[14] It was a success, with "Dani California" accumulating over 500 weeks collectively on over 20 charts.[14]

The song is offered as a playable track in Rock Band, and was exportable to Rock Band 2 but not any future versions of the Rock Band series until a patch on November 8 made the song playable in Rock Band 3.[16] The song is used in the two Japanese live-action films, Death Note and Death Note 2: The Last Name, both directed by Shūsuke Kaneko. In addition, "Dani California" was used in the promo for the fourth season of Sons of Anarchy and as a NASCAR AD for All Star Weekend in 2006.[17]

Track listing

CD single 1 5439 15759-2

  1. "Dani California" – 4:44
  2. "Million Miles of Water" – 4:06

CD single 2 9362 42925-2

  1. "Dani California" – 4:44
  2. "Whatever We Want" – 4:48
  3. "Lately" – 2:55

7" picture disc single 5439 15758-7

  1. "Dani California" – 4:44
  2. "Whatever We Want" – 4:48

12" Picture disc single

  1. "Dani California" – 4:44

Promotional single PR015735

  1. "Dani California" – 4:44

iTunes EP

  1. "Dani California" – 4:44
  2. "Whatever We Want" – 4:47
  3. "Lately" – 2:55
  4. "Million Miles of Water" – 4:05

Personnel

Red Hot Chili Peppers

  • Anthony Kiedis – lead vocals
  • John Frusciante – guitar, backing vocals, mellotron[18]
  • Flea – bass
  • Chad Smith – drums

Additional musicians

  • Brad Warnaar - French horn[19]

Charts

Certifications
Region CertificationCertified units/sales
Australia (ARIA)[64] Gold 35,000^
Denmark (IFPI Denmark)[65] 2× Platinum 180,000
Italy (FIMI)[66] Gold 25,000
Sweden (GLF)[67] Gold 10,000^
United Kingdom (BPI)[68] Platinum 600,000
United States (RIAA)[69] 2× Platinum 2,000,000*

* Sales figures based on certification alone.
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.
Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

References
  1. https://consequenceofsound.net/2017/07/ranking-every-alternative-rock-hit-from-worst-to-best/4/
  2. "KTZB Radio Station Interview". Red Hot Chili Peppers. Archived from the original on January 3, 2010. Retrieved June 4, 2007.
  3. "Red Hot Chili Peppers: Artist Chart History". Billboard. Retrieved June 3, 2007.
  4. "49th Annual Grammy Awards – Red Hot Chili Peppers". Grammy. Archived from the original on December 20, 2006. Retrieved June 3, 2007.
  5. Stadium Arcadium (CD). Warner Bros. Records. 2006.
  6. "Song lyrics". Archived from the original on 2008-07-25.
  7. YouTube – Red Hot Chili Peppers "Dani California"
  8. Harris, Chris (February 8, 2007). "Road To The Grammys: Chili Peppers Experiment With Sounds, Wu-Tang Beats On Stadium Arcadium – Music, Celebrity, Artist News". MTV.com. Retrieved January 3, 2013.
  9. "A Petty Case of Plagiarism". BC Magazine. Archived from the original on May 21, 2007. Retrieved June 3, 2007.
  10. "Latest News: Petty vs. Chili Peppers, Townshend Explains Song and More". Rolling Stone. Retrieved June 3, 2007.
  11. "Five Musicians Who Ripped Off Tom Petty". citypages.com.
  12. "Petty to Peppers: Andy Greene". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on May 25, 2007. Retrieved June 3, 2007.
  13. Michaels, Mitch. "The Self-Service Edition: Dani California Video". Ask 411 Music. 411 Mania. Archived from the original on September 26, 2007. Retrieved February 17, 2007.
  14. "Red Hot Chili Peppers Billboard Chart Performance". Allmusic. Retrieved March 30, 2008.
  15. Pietroluongo, Silvio (22 April 2006). "Peppers Heat Up Hot 100". Billboard. p. 70. Retrieved 3 August 2017.
  16. "RB 3 Title Update Coming 11/8 – Black Hole Sun & Dani California and Hide Song Option". Archived from the original on 2012-01-09.
  17. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RiK_y_cvVQQ
  18. Cleveland, Barry. "Red Hot Chili Peppers' John Frusciante". GuitarPlayer. Archived from the original on 16 May 2017. Retrieved 24 May 2017.
  19. "Try the TIDAL Web Player". listen.tidal.com. Retrieved 2020-09-20.
  20. "Australian-charts.com – Red Hot Chili Peppers – Dani California". ARIA Top 50 Singles. Retrieved February 16, 2013.
  21. "Austriancharts.at – Red Hot Chili Peppers – Dani California" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40. Retrieved February 16, 2013.
  22. "Ultratop.be – Red Hot Chili Peppers – Dani California" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved February 16, 2013.
  23. "Ultratop.be – Red Hot Chili Peppers – Dani California" (in French). Ultratip. Retrieved February 16, 2013.
  24. "Red Hot Chili Peppers Chart History (Canadian Digital Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved June 11, 2019.
  25. "Red Hot Chili Peppers Chart History (Canada Rock)". Billboard. Retrieved December 9, 2018.
  26. "ČNS IFPI" (in Czech). Hitparáda – Radio Top 100 Oficiální. IFPI Czech Republic. Note: Change the chart to CZ – RADIO – TOP 100 and insert 200626 into search. Retrieved February 16, 2013.
  27. "Danishcharts.com – Red Hot Chili Peppers – Dani California". Tracklisten. Retrieved June 11, 2019.
  28. "Hits of the World – Eurocharts" (PDF). Billboard. Vol. 118 no. 20. May 20, 2006. p. 49. Retrieved July 25, 2020.
  29. "Lescharts.com – Red Hot Chili Peppers – Dani California" (in French). Les classement single. Retrieved February 16, 2013.
  30. "Offiziellecharts.de – Red Hot Chili Peppers – Dani California". GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved February 16, 2013.
  31. "Archívum – Slágerlisták – MAHASZ" (in Hungarian). Rádiós Top 40 játszási lista. Magyar Hanglemezkiadók Szövetsége.
  32. "The Irish Charts – Search Results – Dani California". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved January 16, 2020.
  33. "Italiancharts.com – Red Hot Chili Peppers – Dani California". Top Digital Download. Retrieved February 16, 2013.
  34. "Nederlandse Top 40 – week 19, 2006" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40 Retrieved February 16, 2013.
  35. "Dutchcharts.nl – Red Hot Chili Peppers – Dani California" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved February 16, 2013.
  36. "Charts.nz – Red Hot Chili Peppers – Dani California". Top 40 Singles. Retrieved February 16, 2013.
  37. "Norwegiancharts.com – Red Hot Chili Peppers – Dani California". VG-lista. Retrieved February 16, 2013.
  38. "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved July 3, 2018.
  39. "ČNS IFPI" (in Slovak). Hitparáda – Radio Top 100 Oficiálna. IFPI Czech Republic. Note: insert 200635 into search. Retrieved February 16, 2013.
  40. "Spanishcharts.com – Red Hot Chili Peppers – Dani California" Canciones Top 50. Retrieved February 16, 2013.
  41. "Swedishcharts.com – Red Hot Chili Peppers – Dani California". Singles Top 100. Retrieved February 16, 2013.
  42. "Swisscharts.com – Red Hot Chili Peppers – Dani California". Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved February 16, 2013.
  43. "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved February 16, 2013.
  44. "Red Hot Chili Peppers Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved February 16, 2013.
  45. "Red Hot Chili Peppers Chart History (Adult Alternative Songs)". Billboard.
  46. "Red Hot Chili Peppers Chart History (Adult Pop Songs)". Billboard.
  47. "Red Hot Chili Peppers Chart History (Alternative Airplay)". Billboard.
  48. "Red Hot Chili Peppers Chart History (Mainstream Rock)". Billboard.
  49. "Red Hot Chili Peppers Chart History (Pop Songs)". Billboard.
  50. "ARIA Top 100 Singles for 2006". ARIA. Retrieved January 15, 2021.
  51. "Jahreshitparade Singles 2006" (in German). Retrieved June 11, 2019.
  52. "Jaaroverzichten 2006" (in Dutch). Ultratop. Retrieved June 11, 2019.
  53. "Top 100 Singles – Jahrescharts 2006" (in German). GfK Entertainment. Retrieved June 11, 2019.
  54. "Musica: Classifiche Annunali 2006 FIMI-AC Nielsen" (in Italian). FIMI. Archived from the original on January 12, 2007. Retrieved January 15, 2021. Click on Scarica l'allegato.
  55. "Top 100-Jaaroverzicht van 2006". Dutch Top 40. Retrieved November 29, 2019.
  56. "Jaaroverzichten – Single 2006" (in Dutch). MegaCharts. Retrieved June 11, 2019.
  57. "Årslista Singlar, 2006" (in Swedish). Sverigetopplistan. Retrieved January 15, 2021.
  58. "Schweizer Jahreshitparade 2006" (in German). Retrieved June 11, 2019.
  59. "End of Year Singles Chart Top 100 – 2006". Official Charts Company. Retrieved July 3, 2018.
  60. "Billboard Top 100 – 2006". Archived from the original on March 4, 2009. Retrieved August 31, 2010.
  61. "Adult Pop Songs – Year-End 2006". Billboard. Retrieved September 22, 2019.
  62. "Billboard Year-End Charts: Hot Modern Rock Songs". Billboard. Nielsen Business Media. 118 (51): 81. December 23, 2006. Retrieved June 11, 2019.
  63. "Top AFP – Audiogest – Top 3000 Singles + EPs Digitais" (PDF) (in Portuguese). Associação Fonográfica Portuguesa. Retrieved September 22, 2020.
  64. "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2006 Singles". Australian Recording Industry Association. Archived from the original on 10 August 2020. Retrieved February 16, 2013.
  65. "Danish single certifications – Red Hot Chili Peppers – Dani California". IFPI Denmark. Retrieved December 8, 2020.
  66. "Italian single certifications – Red Hot Chili Peppers – Dani California" (in Italian). Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana. Retrieved October 30, 2017. Select "2017" in the "Anno" drop-down menu. Select "Dani California" in the "Filtra" field. Select "Singoli online" under "Sezione".
  67. "Gold & Platinum Certifications 2006" (PDF). IFPI Sweden (in Swedish). p. 5. Archived from the original (PDF) on May 21, 2012. Retrieved February 16, 2013.
  68. "British single certifications – Red Hot Chili Peppers – Dani California". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved July 5, 2019. Select singles in the Format field. Select Platinum in the Certification field. Type Dani California in the "Search BPI Awards" field and then press Enter.
  69. "American single certifications – Red Hot Chili Peppers – Dani California". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved February 16, 2013. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Single, then click SEARCH. 
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.