In the recently published autobiography of Steve Jones of the Sex Pistols, Lonely Boy, Jones mentions late Stone Temple Pilots frontman Scott Weiland when talking about the recent trend of famous musicians dying and then getting a spike of attention they hadn’t had late in their life.
Jones said, “I went to a few 12-step meetings where [Scott Weiland] was there. But I could tell from the start just by sensing his vibe that he simply didn’t get it and never would. The day before his death, no one gave a fuck about him, and just wrote him off. The next day, all the radio stations were milking him for all he was worth.”
Linkin Park frontman Chester Bennington discussed Stone Temple Pilots and Scott Weiland in a recent Q104.3 interview. Alternative Nation transcribed his comments.
“Man, let me just tell you, I have the highest respect for Stone Temple Pilots. I love Scott [Weiland], I’m sad that he’s gone. He was a huge supporter. I just heard a really interesting story the other day, about how he had heard [Hybrid Theory] with one of the programmers in California, and basically said, ‘That’s it. That’s what you guys are going to be playing from now on.’ That just means a lot to me, because he actually introduced me to a lot of the people I play music with.”
“I’ve seen Stone Temple Pilots play probably about 30 times, a huge influence on me. They really made music that I absolutely loved, and I still love to this day. So the chance to go out and perform those songs with those guys was very cool. Honestly, Robert [DeLeo], Dean [DeLeo], and Eric [Kretz], those guys are super talented. I’ve had the privilege of not only being in Linkin Park and being around a bunch of geniuses, I got to go and be in Stone Temple Pilots and be around a bunch of geniuses, and just kind of sit back and kind of ask myself, ‘How did I get here?’”
“I had so much fun. I actually still get to play with those guys every once in awhile, I have a deep deep love. The only reason why I’m not doing it now is my kids, they would cry every time I would go on the road with STP. When I leave on tour with Linkin Park, they’re like, ‘Okay, we’ll see you when you get back.’ They understand what I’m doing, but when I would leave with STP they would cry. I started realizing, I think they thought I was choosing to do that over being at home with them, because I would be done with Linkin Park and coming home. It was just too hard on my family, so I basically was like, you know what, I’ve got to stop being selfish here. When I’m not doing Linkin Park, I’ve got to be home with my babies.”
