“I called John immediately and said, ‘Dude, you have to join us for a song. I’m not going to let you not play with us’”: Dave Navarro on how he and John Frusciante finally played together for the first time after decades of friendship

Back in February 2020, John Frusciante played his first gig with the Red Hot Chili Peppers in over a decade as part of a memorial show hosted by the Tony Hawk Foundation.

The event was also attended by ex-RHCP electric guitar player Dave Navarro, who – along with the rest of his Jane’s Addiction bandmates – was present to perform a four-song set for the gig.

During proceedings, Froosh was invited onstage to join Navarro and the LA alt-rockers to perform Mountain Song – a cover, it turns out, that marked the first time the two guitarists had ever played together, despite their close friendship and RHCP ties.

In a new interview with Guitar World, Navarro reflects on the experience, and recalls how the impromptu performance came about.

“The time I played with John was the first time I'd ever played with him,” Navarro explains. “After all these years, and with me being in the Chili Peppers, I never got the opportunity to play with him.

“We were doing a benefit for a guy who lost his son – God rest his soul – and the Chili Peppers and Jane's Addiction were playing.

“I called John immediately and said, 'Dude, you have to join us for a song. I'm not going to let you not play with us.' He was like, 'Yeah, I'd love to.' And that's how it happened.”

Navarro joined RHCP to fill the space left by Frusciante, after the band’s most decorated guitarist left in 1992. Following brief tryouts with guitarists Arik Marshall and Jesse Tobias, Navarro – who had left Jane’s Addiction at the time – was recruited. He recorded 1995’s One Hot Minute with the band, before departing in 1998. Frusciante rejoined that same year.

The two guitarists remained close over the years, with Navarro previously recalling how he once brought a Les Paul for Frusciante to play in rehab after his first departure from RHCP. Frusciante ended up selling the guitar to buy drugs, but years later, he apologized to Navarro by gifting him a replacement Gibson Les Paul.

Reflecting on the pair finally sharing the stage after such shared experiences, Navarro continues in his GW interview, “I was just floored to have him because he's one of my favorite guitar players, and he's a contemporary favorite.”

Expanding on what it’s like to play with such high-profile guest stars such as John Frusciante and Tom Morello – another player with whom Navarro jammed recently – the Jane’s Addiction member adds, “They're nothing but exciting because these guys are great, and I have love and respect.

“I know they're phenomenal guitar players, and it's fun for me to hear our songs with just a completely out-of-left-field take on the soloing. There's like a brotherhood and a unity among musicians. And with guitar players especially, that happens. It's really special.”

Read the full interview with Dave Navarro, in which he recalls how he stopped playing guitar for a year after the tragic death of Taylor Hawkins, and discusses his battle with Long Covid.