Tell Me Baby

For the album by Isak N Jiyeon, see Tell Me Baby (album).

"Tell Me Baby"
Single by Red Hot Chili Peppers
from the album Stadium Arcadium
B-side	"A Certain Someone" "Mercy Mercy"
Released	July 17, 2006
Recorded	2005
Studio	The Mansion, Los Angeles, California
Genre	Funk rock,[1] alternative rock[2]
Length	4:07
Label	Warner Bros.
Songwriter(s)	Flea, John Frusciante, Anthony Kiedis, Chad Smith
Producer(s)	Rick Rubin
Red Hot Chili Peppers singles chronology
"Dani California" (2006) "Tell Me Baby" (2006) "Snow (Hey Oh)" (2006)
Music video
"Tell Me Baby" on YouTube

"Tell Me Baby" is a song from the Red Hot Chili Peppers' ninth studio album Stadium Arcadium. The song was released as the follow-up to the hit single "Dani California" on July 17, 2006.[3] The single was not as successful as their prior single "Dani California" nor their next single "Snow (Hey Oh)" as far as chart success, but did reach number one on the Billboard Modern Rock chart and remained there for four weeks making it the band's second straight number one on that chart from Stadium Arcadium and tenth number one overall.

Composition

"Tell Me Baby" incorporates both the old funk rock sound from their Blood Sugar Sex Magik days in the verses of the song, and the chorus focuses on the more melodic sound found on more recent Chili Peppers albums. The song is about the dreams of pilgrims in Los Angeles who want to obtain fame and fortune.[3]

Reception

Nick Mitchell at The Skinny gave the song three out of five stars, stating "Neither particularly complex nor memorable, "Tell Me Baby" is nevertheless an upbeat little number that may well ingratiate itself on your eardrums."[4]

Music video

The music video for "Tell Me Baby" was directed by Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris, a directing duo that has worked on many other Chili Peppers videos. Flea said, "It's the best [video] we ever did."[5] For the video, Dayton and Faris interviewed and auditioned people who originally came to California to achieve some sort of fame and people who play music just for the sake of playing music. During the callback for the auditioned people, their second audition was filmed and the members of the Chili Peppers surprisingly entered the room during auditions to join in playing along.

Live performances

"Tell Me Baby" was performed often on the Stadium Arcadium World Tour and has been featured on all the tours that followed.

Formats and track listings

CD version 1 5439 15673-2

1. "Tell Me Baby" – 4:07
2. "A Certain Someone" – 2:25

CD version 2 9362 42956-2

1. "Tell Me Baby" – 4:07
2. "Mercy Mercy" – 4:01
3. "Lyon 6.6.06" (Live) – 3:53

7" Picture Disc 5439 15973-2

1. "Tell Me Baby" – 4:07
2. "Mercy Mercy" – 4:01

Personnel

Red Hot Chili Peppers

• Anthony Kiedis – lead vocals
• John Frusciante – guitar, backing vocals, keyboards
• Flea – bass
• Chad Smith – drums, percussion

Charts

Weekly charts Chart (2006) Peak position Australia (ARIA)[6] 20 Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 40)[7] 39 Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)[8] 44 Belgium (Ultratip Bubbling Under Wallonia)[9] 10 Canada Rock (Billboard)[10] 1 Czech Republic (Rádio – Top 100)[11] 7 Denmark (Tracklisten)[12] 13 Germany (GfK)[13] 37 Ireland (IRMA)[14] 12 Italy (FIMI)[15] 87 Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)[16] 18 Netherlands (Single Top 100)[17] 27 New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[18] 16 Norway (VG-lista)[19] 20 Poland (Polish Airplay Top 100)[20] 5 Slovakia (Rádio Top 100)[21] 17 Sweden (Sverigetopplistan)[22] 57 Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)[23] 43 UK Singles (OCC)[24] 16 US Billboard Hot 100[25] 50 US Adult Alternative Songs (Billboard)[26] 27 US Adult Pop Airplay (Billboard)[27] 22 US Alternative Airplay (Billboard)[28] 1 US Mainstream Rock (Billboard)[29] 8 Venezuela Pop Rock (Record Report)[30] 1

Year-end charts Chart (2006) Position Brazil (Crowley)[31] 96 Canada Rock (Radio & Records)[32] 17 Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)[33] 93 UK Singles (OCC)[34] 177

Certifications

Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
United Kingdom (BPI)[35]	Silver	200,000^‡
^‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

References

1. "Red Hot Chili Peppers – Tell Me Baby (4:07)". Billboard. Vol. 118, no. 30. July 29, 2006. p. 51. ISSN 0006-2510.
2. mgallucci (9 April 2014). "Top 10 Alt-Rock Videos From 2006". Diffuser.fm. Retrieved May 19, 2016.
3. "The 15 Best Red Hot Chili Peppers Songs". PopMatters. Retrieved March 23, 2015.
4. "Red Hot Chili Peppers - Tell Me Baby". Retrieved March 23, 2015.
5. Michael Balzary (June 5, 2006). "Fleamail June 4, 2006". Redhotchilipeppers.com. Archived from the original on October 5, 2007. Retrieved July 31, 2007.
6. "Red Hot Chili Peppers – Tell Me Baby". ARIA Top 50 Singles.
7. "Red Hot Chili Peppers – Tell Me Baby" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40.
8. "Red Hot Chili Peppers – Tell Me Baby" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50.
9. "Red Hot Chili Peppers – Tell Me Baby" (in French). Ultratip.
10. "Chart History". Billboard. Retrieved December 9, 2018.
11. "ČNS IFPI" (in Czech). Hitparáda – Radio Top 100 Oficiální. IFPI Czech Republic. Note: Select 24. týden 2006 in the date selector. Retrieved 1 December 2014.
12. "Red Hot Chili Peppers – Tell Me Baby". Tracklisten.
13. "Red Hot Chili Peppers – Tell Me Baby" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. Retrieved March 18, 2019.
14. "Chart Track: Week 23, 2006". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved August 23, 2014.
15. "Red Hot Chili Peppers – Tell Me Baby". Top Digital Download. Retrieved 7 January 2015.
16. "Nederlandse Top 40 – week 29, 2006" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40.
17. "Red Hot Chili Peppers – Tell Me Baby" (in Dutch). Single Top 100.
18. "Red Hot Chili Peppers – Tell Me Baby". Top 40 Singles.
19. "Red Hot Chili Peppers – Tell Me Baby". VG-lista.
20. "Listy bestsellerów, wyróżnienia :: Związek Producentów Audio-Video". Polish Airplay Top 100. Retrieved January 19, 2014.
21. "ČNS IFPI" (in Slovak). Hitparáda – Radio Top 100 Oficiálna. IFPI Czech Republic. Note: insert 200616 into search. Retrieved 15 December 2014.
22. "Red Hot Chili Peppers – Tell Me Baby". Singles Top 100.
23. "Red Hot Chili Peppers – Tell Me Baby". Swiss Singles Chart.
24. "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved February 26, 2015.
25. "Red Hot Chili Peppers Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved December 11, 2014.
26. "Red Hot Chili Peppers Chart History (Adult Alternative Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved May 22, 2021.
27. "Red Hot Chili Peppers Chart History (Adult Pop Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved May 22, 2021.
28. "Red Hot Chili Peppers Chart History (Alternative Airplay)". Billboard. Retrieved May 22, 2021.
29. "Red Hot Chili Peppers Chart History (Mainstream Rock)". Billboard. Retrieved May 22, 2021.
30. "Pop Rock" (in Spanish). Record Report. August 19, 2006. Archived from the original on July 16, 2006.
31. "Brazilian Top 100 Year-End 2006". Crowley Broadcast Analysis. April 3, 2018. Retrieved January 30, 2022.
32. "Top Canada Rock Songs" (PDF). Radio & Records. Retrieved January 10, 2024.
33. "Top 100-Jaaroverzicht van 2006". Dutch Top 40. Retrieved January 12, 2020.
34. "2006 UK Singles Chart" (PDF). ChartsPlus. Retrieved November 15, 2021.
35. "British single certifications – Red Hot Chilli Peppers – Tell Me Baby". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved September 10, 2024.