Jupiter; Song 7: Slow Cheetah

A rush job, as I must get ready to leave home pick up Bucky and head off for Ski Trip 2006, and I want to finish a quarter of the album review before I go. OK, “Slow Cheetah”, now we’re getting somewhere. Let’s start out with the obvious, yes it’s an acoustic guitar song on Stadium Arcadium, and when John Frusciante pulls out the acoustic, he always means business (think “I Could Have Lied”, “Road Trippin’” and “Venice Queen”). I think most guitarists could play the acoustic guitar riff in this piece, but John’s performance in this song is so magical and hypnotic, pulling the piece into a Cameron Crowe movie soundtrack. Anthony Kiedis’ pleasant singing enhances the mood, although I wish John would have done something less predictable than his trademark falsetto harmonies.

If Stadium Arcadium were purchased in vinyl form, this track would close of the first side of the Jupiter disc, or more specifically the instrumental coda would. Some great sounds are achieved in this section, probably tricks with tape manipulation, and listening to it makes me wonder what "Slow Cheetah" would be like if such psychedelic tones perfused the track in its entirety. Overkill methinks, but “Venice Queen”, the best song on their last record By The Way, certainly benefited from atmospheric flourishes.

I have no problem saying that this is one of my favourite songs on the new album, this song not only fills an important space in Stadium Arcadium, but also in the whole Chili Pepper catalogue. Although this is a great song to play when driving (especially at night), this song is best heard softly through ear phones. When I make my ear strain to hear the subtleties of the textures of the sounds, I feel elevated, as if the vibrating air particles causing the sound are dancing inside your head, a waltz to be exact.

And that’s all I have time for unfortunately, I’ll be back in a week, with all-new “special” reviews to be put up soon after. Ta.