zoso77

Sad news from the music world:

Scott Weiland, Former Stone Temple Pilots Singer, Dead at 48 | Rolling Stone

I'm not sure how many of you are familiar with Weiland's life. He battled with addiction issues throughout his life, starting with coke in his teens. When Stone Temple Pilots hit it big in the early 90's, he got hooked on heroin. And for much (if not all) of the next 20+ years, he struggled with addiction. He concurrently suffered from Bipolar Disorder. I remember seeing an interview he did with Howard Stern about 5 years ago, and he admitted that he still drank. In the same breath, he said he wanted to quit drinking.

Given all the live footage of Weiland that's on YouTube these days from the past several years, I'm guessing he never quit because he didn't sound very good. You can only abuse yourself for so long before it begins to take a toll on your craft. Look at Whitney Houston. Or Jimmy Page after 1975.

This is a sad but all-too-familiar tale. Weiland was never able to be fully honest with himself. He repeatedly gave himself permission to self destruct. And while the autopsy hasn't been performed yet, it's not unreasonable to assume that a lifetime of abuse finally caught up with him. He leaves two kids and a wife behind.

Owl1370

My AXBF just texted me about this and reminded me that we saw him walking around Miami Beach last New Years. I am not going to respond but I hope that AXBF does take this into his heart. AXBF is an excellent drummer and guitar player but his addiction has destroyed all his musical desires.

Txhelp

I feel the same way Zozo....

I saw him twice. the first time he seemed to not be into the music as much (about 4 years ago). The last time he came here...he was wasted on stage. The band held it together but man...he was all over the place. It was so sad.....

May his family find peace.

zoso77

Jimmy Page got heavily into heroin beginning around 1975, and if you listen to Zeppelin bootlegs from around then and especially 1977, you can hear it.

Want an example? Go to YouTube and listen to "Since I've Been Loving You" from Madison Square Garden 1973, and then listen to the same song from Cleveland 1977. The difference in the quality of Page's playing is night and day; Page was rippin' in '73, but in '77, he was staggering and stumbling across the fretboard.

The fact we have another dead musician does not and will not deter someone from picking up. Did Page's story stop Kurt Cobain? Or Layne Staley from Alice in Chains? Did Cobain and Staley deter Weiland?

No, of course not. And I think the lesson is denial is a very, very powerful thing. How many people pick up and tell themselves they're different, or they can handle it?

Owl1370

Zoso - I know what you are saying. Although I love Zeppelin (and will look on youtube) Kurt Cobain had a profound impact on my generation. Sometimes I wonder if it becomes an excuse for addicts to say hey - I am just like them.

ardy

its always so sad.. this old lady clown just can't drink enough water to have this many tears... I have such respect for the music world.. much harder then blowing up balloons for events and kids.... always tell my music friends how much they mean an please hold the Stars tight to their hearts. love to you all. play something tonight make it slow and hold your fav person tight.. life passes us by to fast.. love Holly the Holiday Clown... Milwaukee wi...

hopeful4

I saw where his wife is denying he was using drugs. That made me sad for her too, that she feels like she has to cover up instead of truly just experiencing the grief for what it is. A better choice, in my opinion, is to use this as a wake up call to so many others. Sigh. Addiction is awful.

Owl1370

All addicts think they are special dont they?

JOIE12

what I noticed were the threads ... the multitude of posts sharing about people whom have passed away. People who knew him closely, all of the deceased family members from addiction. What a horrible reality.

Jorgenss

How many of our addicts are/were talented musicians as well?

It is all too sad and reminds me that addiction has no boundaries or status.

Anaya

Yes, addiction is awful.

Maybe in time by going through the grieving process, she will be able to come to terms and face the reality of what is/was. I imagine she and the children are heartbroken.

zoso77

Weiland's ex-wife Mary has penned this on behalf of herself and their two kids. It's quite sad. But given what we know about the disease, this is unsurprising.

Page 2 of Scott Weiland's Family: 'Don't Glorify This Tragedy' | Rolling Stone

Txhelp

Sad article she wrote...drugs took the place of eveything good and whole in his life. Like so many stories here.

WanderingGypsy

Brilliantly painful through the eyes of his children. I applaud her for having the courage to pen this for her children.

ardy

only this little hole in the wall of time understands her and the kids. love to you all for so many reasons. ardy

NowTheCatLady

I was thinking drugs, but then I heard he'd been clean so then I thought heart attack from all the prior drug use. Maybe he did have a heart attack or some complication due to his prior drug use?

zoso77

The police found cocaine in Scott's bunk on his tour bus. Never a good sign.

Marcus

Love STP and CORE came out my Freshman year of college which we listened to a ton. Unfortunately when it comes to addicts saying you are clean (or his current wife swearing he is clean) and reality are often 2 different things. He was supposedly "Hollywood Sober" (just booze) for a bit and might not have shot dope in some time, but apparently was back doing coke/crack so goes to show you the drug of choice often doesn't matter.

That was a great letter from his X Zoso! Drug addiction and dying young does seem to give you street cred or whatever in many circles unfortunately. It is not until you see it up close and the damage it does to families that gets many people to truly understand the path of destruction and devastation it leaves.

Weiland is gone - done - over. A bit surprised he made it this far actually. I just feel for the loved ones that he left that have to carry it with them for the rest of their days. Such a shame.

zoso77

[ going OT to discuss music ]

Back when I was playing with bands in the bars, I had to learn "Interstate Love Song" off Purple. Everyone remembers than jangly main riff. What most people don't realize is how brilliant that verse chord progression is. It's a textbook case of voice leading using chords that you seldom hear in a rock context. And yet Scott came up with this great melody on top of it that both stood out and, at the same time, allowed that chord progression to breathe. It was then that I really got into STP, because they were always invested in the strength of songs and coming up with inventive arrangements to fortify those songs.

Speaking as an experienced guitarist and a songwriter, I don't think there's any band that came out of the 90's that could touch STP. For me, it's the songs you don't hear on the radio -- "Still Remains", "Kitchenware & Candybars", "Art School Girl", "Hello It's Late", "First Kiss on Mars" -- that define the strength of the band, and Scott's contribution to that legacy was ginormous.

What the media has focused on is Scott's addictions. What they haven't focused on is his Bipolarity and the fact he opted not to take medication for it. When someone gets into that destructive feedback loop of using drugs to self medicate, it's not going to end well. To borrow from control systems terminology, it's not a Bounded In Bounded Out system that's created when you mix Bipolar Disorder with drugs. It's a system that will oscillate out of control, become unstable, and eventually destroy itself. Sadly, that's exactly what happened with Weiland.

It sucks. I feel for his kids. It didn't have to go down like this. Yet this was the path he chose.

[ done ]

incitingsilence

The letter his wife wrote …
Scott’s death…

But how much difference will be made? I can almost hear my husband in the sickness saying, that won’t ever be me, because it can’t be in the moment. You can’t see it, in it.

Watching bipolar … My gf can’t sting a sentence together and write anymore, can’t paint or draw at any level. She was brilliant, off the chart IQ and having a conversation with her now is like talking to someone who has severe special needs. I actually think it is more horrific watching what has become of her now years on meds than it was the years of knowing her off them before the diagnosis. It could be the disease aspect, but in all honestly there is nothing of her left. And sadly if she had chosen to not treat the bipolar all roads would probably point to nothing much left as well because she would have continued to self-medicate on some level ... It is just so sad.


And the music …
Still Remains is one of my favs from STP.
And the music will forever live on as it always does…