Stone Temple Pilots bassist Robert DeLeo and singer Jeff Gutt were recently interviewed on Talk is Jericho. When host Chris Jericho brought up recently discussing Grunge with Billy Corgan, DeLeo had high praise for him.
DeLeo said, “Billy Corgan, I love Smashing Pumpkins. A great band, and Billy is a very, very talented individual.”
Billy Corgan posted a touching tribute for Scott Weiland when he died in December 2015, calling him one of the best three ‘voices of his generation’ along with Kurt Cobain and Layne Staley.
DeLeo then discussed how he didn’t really feel like STP was very ‘Grunge’ especially when it came to style.
“We were doing Zeppelin and Motown, I didn’t get into music to be a part of the scene, we were just carrying on what we learned.”
Jeff Gutt said, “Just as a fan sitting from the outside, to me with the glam thing, the Grunge had to happen. The glam thing was all about fun and partying, and the glitz and the glam, and when Grunge came out it was really real and really raw. There was something about that, that really attracted people that were dealing with real problems. It wasn’t about partying.”
DeLeo then elaborated on not really fitting in with the Grunge style, “I was going through a very big slicked back hair, long sideburns, vintage clothes with wing tips [look], and then I’d hear Grunge and I’d think, I’m the furthest thing from Grunge man. I just wanted to go out and represent myself, adding little pieces of what I learned over the years and how I wanted to present myself.”
“It is called the music ‘business.’ That’s the part of the business, because I forget who said that, if there wasn’t any music with the business, it would be great. The same goes for any business.”
Gutt added, “David Geffen said that. ‘If there weren’t any musicians, the music industry would be great.'”
