I had just moved to Los Angeles in 2003 to work with producer Rick Rubin. One night, in the studio at his Hollywood Hills home, around 2am, I looked down from the terrace at the Sunset Strip. Hundreds of people wandered back and forth; I whispered, 'the city’s always open.' This song was born. I got some friends in the studio to help record it, including Brad Wilk, John Frusciante and Jonny Polonsky. This version, recorded in Portugal, is nice too.