The Zephyr Song

"The Zephyr Song" is a song by American rock band Red Hot Chili Peppers, released as the second single released from their eighth studio album, By the Way (2002), on August 17, 2002. The song, as a single, was released in two parts. Both editions held two previously unheard-of B-sides, making it, collectively, hold four non-LP tracks. The single peaked at number six on the US Billboard Modern Rock chart, breaking the band's streak of three straight number-one hits.

"Zephyr Song" redirects here. For other songs with the same name, see Zephyr.

"The Zephyr Song"
Single by Red Hot Chili Peppers
from the album By the Way
B-side	"Body of Water" "Someone" "Out of Range" "Rivers of Avalon"
Released	August 17, 2002 (2002-08-17)
Genre	Psychedelic rock
Length	3:53
Label	Warner Bros.
Songwriter(s)	Flea John Frusciante Anthony Kiedis Chad Smith
Producer(s)	Rick Rubin
Red Hot Chili Peppers singles chronology
"By the Way" (2002) "The Zephyr Song" (2002) "Can't Stop" (2003)
Music video
"The Zephyr Song" on YouTube

Composition

The song is about nature's healing power and human connection.^[1] In April 2017, it was revealed that John Frusciante unintentionally interpolated the song "Pure Imagination" from the 1971 film Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory. The song's opening three guitar notes are the same as the first three sung notes from "Pure Imagination".^[2]

Music video

The music video, which was released on September 30, 2002,^[3][4] was directed by Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris. The couple previously collaborated with the band on other videos and would continue to work with the band through the middle of the 2000s. It is generally reminiscent of a kaleidoscope, by utilizing circular and intertwining figures to achieve the psychedelic feel the band was aiming for. Kiedis would later say of the video:

John and Flea wanted something incredibly, just kind of obscure and psychedelic. Finding true psychedelia in this day and age is really hard to do, because everyone wants to rely on computers and all the stuff that really doesn't know how to find the core of psychedelia. So I had my reservations, but there are some moments in this video where I think it's captured.^[5]

The music video also features Flea's partner at the time, Tobey Torres.^[4]

Track listings

CD single 1

No.	Title	Length
1.	"The Zephyr Song"	3:52
2.	"Body of Water"	4:41
3.	"Someone"	3:24

CD single 2

No.	Title	Length
1.	"The Zephyr Song"	3:52
2.	"Out of Range"	3:58
3.	"Rivers of Avalon"	3:39

CD single 3

No.	Title	Length
1.	"The Zephyr Song"	3:52
2.	"Out of Range"	3:58

7" vinyl

No.	Title	Length
1.	"The Zephyr Song"	3:52
2.	"Out of Range"	3:58

Personnel

Red Hot Chili Peppers

• John Frusciante – guitar, backing vocals, keyboards
• Flea – bass
• Anthony Kiedis – lead vocals, double-tracked lead vocals (chorus)
• Chad Smith – drums, drum machine

Charts

Weekly charts Weekly chart performance for "The Zephyr Song" Chart (2002) Peak position Australia (ARIA)[6] 21 Canada (Nielsen SoundScan)[7] 11 Croatia (HRT)[8] 2 Europe (Eurochart Hot 100)[9] 29 France (SNEP)[10] 90 Germany (GfK)[11] 65 Hungary (Single Top 40)[12] 13 Ireland (IRMA)[13] 22 Italy (FIMI)[14] 20 Netherlands (Single Top 100)[15] 72 New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[16] 9 Scotland (OCC)[17] 13 Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)[18] 100 UK Singles (OCC)[19] 11 UK Rock & Metal (OCC)[20] 1 US Billboard Hot 100[21] 49 US Adult Alternative Songs (Billboard)[22] 1 US Adult Pop Airplay (Billboard)[23] 17 US Alternative Airplay (Billboard)[24] 6 US Mainstream Rock (Billboard)[25] 14

Year-end charts Year-end chart performance for "The Zephyr Song" Chart (2002) Position Brazil (Crowley)[26] 84 Canada (Nielsen SoundScan)[27] 81 US Modern Rock Tracks (Billboard)[28] 45 US Triple-A (Billboard)[29] 25 Chart (2003) Position US Adult Top 40 (Billboard)[30] 49 US Modern Rock Tracks (Billboard)[31] 87 US Triple-A (Billboard)[32] 30

Certifications

Certifications and sales for "The Zephyr Song"

Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
United Kingdom (BPI)[33]	Gold	400,000‡
United States (RIAA)[34]	Gold	500,000‡
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Release history

Release dates and formats for "The Zephyr Song"

Region	Date	Format(s)	Label(s)	Ref(s).
United States	August 17, 2002	Maxi-CD	Warner Bros.	[1]
	September 16, 2002	Mainstream rock active rock triple A alternative radio		[35]
Australia	October 7, 2002	CD		[36]
United Kingdom	October 21, 2002			[37]
Japan	October 23, 2002			[38][39]

References

1. "The 15 Best Red Hot Chili Peppers Songs". PopMatters. Archived from the original on October 3, 2013. Retrieved March 23, 2015.
2. "Turns Out John Frusciante Lifted 'The Zephyr Song' Intro Melody From Willy Wonka Movie". Retrieved July 12, 2017.
3. "Timeline". redhotchilipeppers.com. Archived from the original on February 6, 2015. Retrieved November 21, 2021.
4. Paul Brannigan (July 15, 2014). "How Red Hot Chili Peppers Conquered The World With By The Way". loudersound. Retrieved December 6, 2022.
5. Anthony Kiedis — The Making Of: The Zephyr Song. Red Hot Chili Peppers Greatest Hits
6. "Red Hot Chili Peppers – The Zephyr Song". ARIA Top 50 Singles. Retrieved September 24, 2020.
7. "Red Hot Chili Peppers Chart History (Hot Canadian Digital Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved September 24, 2020.
8. "Top Lista Hrvatskog Radija". Croatian Radiotelevision. Archived from the original on December 3, 2002. Retrieved April 14, 2023.
9. "Eurochart Hot 100 Singles" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 20, no. 46. November 9, 2002. p. 23. Retrieved May 4, 2021.
10. "Red Hot Chili Peppers – The Zephyr Song" (in French). Les classement single. Retrieved September 24, 2020.
11. "Red Hot Chili Peppers – The Zephyr Song" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. Retrieved February 13, 2019.
12. "Archívum – Slágerlisták – MAHASZ" (in Hungarian). Single (track) Top 40 lista. Magyar Hanglemezkiadók Szövetsége. Retrieved January 12, 2024.
13. "Irish-charts.com – Discography Red Hot Chili Peppers". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved August 23, 2014.
14. "Red Hot Chili Peppers – The Zephyr Song". Top Digital Download. Retrieved January 7, 2015.
15. "Red Hot Chili Peppers – The Zephyr Song" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved September 24, 2020.
16. "Red Hot Chili Peppers – The Zephyr Song". Top 40 Singles. Retrieved September 24, 2020.
17. "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved September 24, 2020.
18. "Red Hot Chili Peppers – The Zephyr Song". Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved September 24, 2020.
19. "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved February 26, 2015.
20. "Official Rock & Metal Singles Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company. Retrieved September 24, 2020.
21. "Red Hot Chili Peppers Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved December 11, 2014.
22. "Red Hot Chili Peppers Chart History (Adult Alternative Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved September 24, 2020.
23. "Red Hot Chili Peppers Chart History (Adult Pop Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved September 24, 2020.
24. "Red Hot Chili Peppers Chart History (Alternative Airplay)". Billboard. Retrieved September 24, 2020.
25. "Red Hot Chili Peppers Chart History (Mainstream Rock)". Billboard. Retrieved September 24, 2020.
26. "Brazilian Top 100 Year-End 2002". Crowley Broadcast Analysis. April 3, 2018. Retrieved January 30, 2022.
27. "Canada's Top 200 Singles of 2002". Jam!. January 14, 2003. Archived from the original on September 6, 2004. Retrieved March 22, 2022.
28. "Most-Played Modern Rock Songs of 2002". Airplay Monitor. Vol. 10, no. 51. December 20, 2002. p. 44.
29. "The 2002 Allstars: Most-Played Triple-A Songs". Airplay Monitor. Vol. 10, no. 51. December 20, 2002. p. 52.
30. "The Year in Charts 2003: Most-Played Adult Top 40 Songs". Airplay Monitor. Vol. 11, no. 51. December 19, 2003. p. 22.
31. "The Year in Charts 2003: Most-Played Modern Rock Songs". Airplay Monitor. Vol. 11, no. 51. December 19, 2003. p. 43.
32. "The Year in Charts 2003: Most-Played Triple-A Songs". Airplay Monitor. Vol. 11, no. 51. December 19, 2003. p. 47.
33. "British single certifications – Red Hot Chili Peppers – The Zephyr Song". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved March 25, 2022.
34. "American single certifications – Red Hot Chili Peppers – The Zephyr Song". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved October 26, 2021.
35. "Going for Adds". Radio & Records. No. 1470. September 13, 2002. p. 45.
36. "The ARIA Report: New Releases Singles – Week Commencing 7th October 2002" (PDF). ARIA. October 7, 2002. p. 27. Archived from the original (PDF) on November 6, 2002. Retrieved November 21, 2021.
37. "New Releases – For Week Starting 21 October 2002: Singles". Music Week. October 19, 2002. p. 27.
38. "ザ・ゼファー・ソング C/Wボディ・オブ・ウォーター,サムワン | レッド・ホット・チリ・ペッパーズ" [The Zephyr Song c/w Body of Water, Samwan | Red Hot Chili Peppers] (in Japanese). Oricon. Retrieved September 17, 2023.
39. "ザ・ゼファー・ソング C/W アウト・オブ・レンジ,リヴァーズ・オブ・アヴァロン | レッド・ホット・チリ・ペッパーズ" [The Zephyr Song c/w Out of Range, Rivers of Avalon | Red Hot Chili Peppers] (in Japanese). Oricon. Retrieved September 17, 2023.