Editing Jack Irons (section)

===What Is This? and Red Hot Chili Peppers===
{{Main article|What Is This?|Red Hot Chili Peppers}}
<!-- Commented out: [[File:EarlyRHCP.jpg|220px|thumb|left|[[Red Hot Chili Peppers|Red Hot Chili Peppers]] in 1988 during ''The Uplift Mofo Party Plan'' tour; (left to right) Jack Irons, [[Flea (musician)|Flea]], [[Anthony Kiedis]], [[Hillel Slovak]]]] -->
As teenagers, Irons, Johannes, Slovak, and schoolmate Todd Strassman formed the band Chain Reaction in 1976. After its first gig, the band renamed itself Anthym. Slovak, dissatisfied with Strassman's bass playing, taught friend [[Flea (musician)|Michael "Flea" Balzary]] to play then replaced Strassman with Flea. After graduating high school, the band changed its name to [[What Is This?]] after a question often asked by people who heard the band play. Flea soon departed to play bass in the prominent Los Angeles punk band [[Fear (band)|Fear]]. What Is This? continued, performing many shows along the California coast.

In 1983, Flea formed a "one-off" band, Tony Flow and the Miraculously Majestic Masters of Mayhem, with Kiedis, Slovak and Irons. Their performance was a hit and, after deciding to continue past the single concert, they changed their name to [[Red Hot Chili Peppers]], quickly gaining popularity around Los Angeles. After six months, they earned a record deal with [[EMI]] and prepared to record its first album. Since What Is This? had signed a record deal two weeks earlier and Slovak and Irons considered Red Hot Chili Peppers a side project, they quit. With What Is This?, Irons recorded 1984's ''[[Squeezed (EP)]]'', 1985's ''[[3 Out of 5 Live]]'' EP, and a full-length [[What Is This?|self-titled album]] that same year. The band broke up following the album's recording as Slovak became frustrated with the band and rejoined Red Hot Chili Peppers. In the meantime, Irons played on several recordings by Walk the Moon, a duo made up of Johannes and [[Natasha Shneider]]. In 1986, after learning that drummer [[Cliff Martinez]] had resigned, Irons returned to the Red Hot Chili Peppers.

Irons played drums on Red Hot Chili Peppers' first demo tape and their third album, 1987's ''[[The Uplift Mofo Party Plan]]''. When Slovak died of a [[drug overdose|heroin overdose]] on June 25, 1988, Irons again quit the band because he did not want to be part of a group where his friends were dying.<ref name="kiedis" /> In 2006, Irons said Slovak's death had been such a huge shock that he had been suffering from depression ever since.<ref>[http://www.contactmusic.com/new/xmlfeed.nsf/mndwebpages/chili%20peppers%20jack%20irons%20pays%20tribute%20to%20slovak_14_05_2006 "Chili Peppers' Jack Irons Pays Tribute to Slovak"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090112164631/http://www.contactmusic.com/new/xmlfeed.nsf/mndwebpages/chili%20peppers%20jack%20irons%20pays%20tribute%20to%20slovak_14_05_2006 |date=January 12, 2009 }}. [[Contactmusic.com]]. May 14, 2006.</ref>

On August 12, 2012, Irons and  Martinez performed "Give It Away" with Red Hot Chili Peppers at a Los Angeles concert. In 2017, Irons was an opening act for several dates on ''[[The Getaway World Tour]]''.<ref name="redhotchilipeppers.com"/>