The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductees will perform at the Pokolbin winery on Saturday, February 23, in what will arguably be the biggest concert the Hunter Valley has witnessed since The Rolling Stones’ November 2014 show at Hope Estate.

The gig will be part of the Red Hot Chili Peppers’ first solo Australian tour in 12 years and their first time in the Hunter or Newcastle.

The tour begins on February 17 for RHCP’s first ever show in Tasmania at Hobart’s Derwent Entertainment Centre, before passing through Sydney (February 19), Brisbane (February 25), Melbourne (February 28), Geelong (March 2) and Perth (March 5).

The band’s last Australian shows were for the Big Day Out festival in 2013.

“We can’t wait to see all our fans in Australia and New Zealand - it has been too long,” the band said in a statement.

The news follows two massive announcements in the past week from fellow Hunter Valley winery Bimbadgen, who has secured pop princess Kylie Minogue and Canadian rocker Bryan Adams for their A Day On The Green series on March 16 and 23 respectively.

However, on the weight of record sales and musical influence the RHCP are undoubtedly this summer’s biggest attraction. 

Since forming in 1983 in Los Angeles the RHCP have sold 80 million records, earned six Grammy Awards and been instrumental in infusing hard rock, funk and hip-hop sounds to be one of the forefathers of rap metal.

Australian-born bassist Flea - real name Michael Balzary - and frontman Anthony Kiedis are sole founding members, while the current line-up also features long-serving drummer Chad Smith and guitarist Josh Klinghoffer, who replaced John Frusciante in 2009.

After establishing a cult following in the ’80s, the RHCP became one of the world’s biggest bands with the release on their 1991 album Blood Sugar Sex Magik, which featured the classics Under The Bridge, Suck My Kiss and Breaking The Girl.

Rolling Stone magazine ranked the Blood Sugar Sex Magik in the top-20 greatest albums of the ’90s. 

The band continued with One Hot Minute in 1995 after Frusciante quit and was replaced with Jane's Addiction guitarist Dave Navarro. 

But after one album Navarro’s drug problems threatened to derail the band.

However, in 1999 Frusciante returned to the fold and they released the mammoth Californation, the RHCP’s most commercially successful album.

Since then the RCHP have continued to build their international fan base through the albums By The Way (2002), Stadium Arcadium (2006), I’m With You (2011) and The Getaway (2016). 

Tickets go on general sale at 12pm on November 26, with fan club sales to begin from November 21.