Thirty-five years in the making. Flea releases ‘Honora’ today on Nonesuch Records, a ten-track debut solo album that sets aside the bass and returns him to trumpet, the instrument he loved before he became one of the defining rock bassists of his generation. The New York Times says his trumpet lines “embody a deep pathos.” The Los Angeles Times calls it “intuitive and inspiring.” DownBeat gave it the April cover story. The album earns every word. Listen here.
The band assembled around Flea is extraordinary. Producer and saxophonist Josh Johnson, guitarist Jeff Parker, bassist Anna Butterss, and drummer Deantoni Parks form the core of the Honora Band, with Mauro Refosco and Nate Walcott among the additional contributors. Thom Yorke appears on original track “Traffic Lights.” Nick Cave delivers a vocal performance on “Wichita Lineman” that has already generated a dedicated visualizer. Six of the ten tracks are Flea originals, with the remaining four drawing from Frank Ocean and Shea Taylor, George Clinton and Eddie Hazel, Jimmy Webb, and Ann Ronell.
Flea describes the recording sessions with characteristic directness: “Sitting in a room and playing the music with them made me feel like I was on drugs. I was buzzing, tripping and floating around the studio.” The vulnerability behind that statement matters. He admits he was scared before making this record, worried the jazz musicians around him would dismiss him as a rock poseur. What he found instead was generosity, and ‘Honora’ carries that energy throughout.
Flea and the Honora Band made their live debut on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon earlier this week. The sold-out Honora Tour launches May 7 in Chicago and runs through North America and Europe, closing with a slot at Rotterdam’s North Sea Jazz Festival on July 11.
‘Honora’ Track List:
Golden Wingship
A Plea
Traffic Lights (feat. Thom Yorke)
Frailed
Morning Cry
Maggot Brain
Wichita Lineman (feat. Nick Cave)
Thinkin Bout You
Willow Weep for Me
Free As I Want to Be
The Honora Tour Dates:
May 7 – Chicago, IL – Thalia Hall
May 9 – Toronto, ON – The Opera House
May 10 – Montreal, QC – Théâtre Beanfield
May 12 – New York, NY – Webster Hall
May 13 – Washington, DC – Black Cat
May 16 – Los Angeles, CA – The Fonda Theatre
May 21 – Berlin, DE – Heimathafen
May 22 – Amsterdam, NL – Paradiso
May 23 – Antwerp, BE – Jazz Middelheim
May 26 – London, UK – Koko
May 28 – Paris, FR – Alhambra
May 29 – Paris, FR – Alhambra
Jul 11 – Rotterdam, NL – North Sea Jazz Festival 2026