Stone Temple Pilots

Core
Purple
Songs From The Vatican Gift Shop
No. 4
Shangri-La Dee Da
Thank You


Core (Atlantic ‘92) Rating: B+
Let’s come right out and say it: Stone Temple Pilots (STP) isn’t a very original band. But they are a very good one, and this strong debut album became a runaway commercial success when it was released at the height of grunge. Of course, the band’s immense popularity and an alleged lack of dues paying caused a critical backlash, along with charges that STP were merely corporate copycats. And while there’s no denying that singer Scott Weiland does a mean Eddie Vedder impersonation (he also pulls off a convincing Axl Rose), musically the band is more metallic, safer, and, one could argue, more radio friendly than Pearl Jam. Their sound is also more streamlined, less sludgy and psychedelic than Soundgarden, and less flat-out weird than Alice In Chains, two other bands that STP have been accused of ripping off. So even though there certainly are similarities, STP have their own recognizably heavy sound. Besides, though Core is derivative and their angst-filled lyrics can seem somewhat forced (such as on the popular but boring dirge “Creep”), there's no denying the catchy, arena ready hooks that this album has in abundance. Popular radio tracks here included the propulsive “Sex Type Thing,” whose date rape lyrics got STP in hot water (though the band of course claimed that they were being ironic), and “Plush,” whose classic riff and brooding vocals "broke" the band. And though Core has some filler, other album tracks such as “Dead And Bloated,” “Wicked Garden,” “Sin,” and the prophetic “Crackerman” are also rock solid hard rockers that remained concert favorites long afterwards. Long story short: not every band can be groundbreaking or even original, but there’s plenty of room in my rock collection for classy pros like STP.

Purple (Atlantic ‘94) Rating: A-
When Purple instantly rose to the top of the charts upon its release, fans were telling the critics what they thought about all the criticism heaped upon STP. In truth, some of it was deserved, but Purple shows the band even more confident and assured, as Weiland’s ragged beauty of a voice comes into its own and the band sticks it down their critics’ throats with a stream of crafty hard rock hits. Propulsive anthems such as the rumbling “Vaseline,” the effortlessly catchy “Interstate Love Song,” the brooding “Big Empty,” and the raging rocker “Unglued” all got extensive air time on all our local “alternative” radio stations. The band surprisingly also offers subtle, refined pop on the acoustic semi-hit “Pretty Penny” and the tongue in cheek (unlisted) twelfth track, a cocktail lounge piano piece on which the band showcases a rarely acknowledged sense of humor. Elsewhere, we get treated to some of the big metallic riffs that highlighted Core, and though the album sometimes gets bogged down in generic power chords the band’s sleek, resourceful songwriting and Weiland’s creative vocals keeps the down time to a minimum.

Songs From The Vatican Gift Shop (Atlantic ‘96) Rating: B+
This less grungey, more experimental release received a much better reception from critics, though it fared far worse commercially, in part because Weiland’s heroin habit prevented the band from touring in support of the album. Which proves that it’s better to borrow from the past than the present, I guess, for the glam metal riffs of “Big Bang Baby” and the Beatlesque power pop of “Lady Picture Show” are no more original than the band’s previous grunge offerings that had the critics in such a lather. Which makes them no less appealing, however, and the jackhammer grooves of “Trippin’ On A Hole In A Paper Heart” and the lush lounge ditty “And So I Know” (featuring pretty vibraphone and harpsichord instrumentation) also offer prime escapist entertainment. This album expanded the band’s sonic palette and contained some of their poppiest and most fun songs to date, though they still checked in with some hard rockers (“Pop’s Love Suicide” and “Tumble In The Rough”) in their customary earlier style. That said, there are also some leaden psychedelic tinkerings and generic guitar riffs that borrow too heavily from the Jimmy Page songbook, most notably on “Ride The Cliché,” which still soars on its Beatlesque chorus. The biggest offender is the lame pop of “Art School Girl,” which apes the weak Tripping Daisy novelty number “I Got A Girl” before going off into an equally mindless thrash chorus. Elsewhere, the trumpet solo on “Adhesive” is a perfect example of both the great and frustrating qualities of this album; it appears from out of nowhere and is a wonderfully moody embellishment to what is otherwise a spectacularly bland song. However, despite some uneven moments this was another satisfying step forward for the band, as STP started to shed their grunge trappings for a more varied musical output.

No. 4 (Atlantic ’99) Rating: B
After the remaining three members put out an album without Weiland (recruiting singer Dave Coutts) as Talk Show and Weiland himself released a solo album (12 Bar Blues) that didn’t make much of an impact, the reunited Stone Temple Pilots returned amid little fanfare for the lamely titled No. 4. Big chugging riffs and jackhammer rhythms again rule the day, as the band returns to the metallic thunder of their debut, which will doubtless delight many of the band’s early fans while undoubtedly frustrating others who had hoped for further musical growth after Songs From The Vatican Gift Shop. However, though No. 4 represents something of a holding pattern and has a few generic (or worse) riff rockers too many, Stone Temple Pilots have written enough quality songs to make it another worthwhile purchase. Starting off with several hard-hitting but unspectacular rockers (the best of which is “Down,” the album’s somewhat overly obvious first single), No. 4 really takes flight on the Beatlesque chorus to “Church On Tuesday.” “Sour Girl” is even more melodic, and with lyrics that linger, too, such as “she was a happy girl the day that she left me.” The soaring, radio ready “Glide,” on which Weiland unleashes a striking falsetto, is also extremely appealing, while the beautifully low-key ballad “I Got You” offers further proof that the band at their best are all about melody. Finally, the atmospheric “Atlanta” closes out this solid if inconsistent comeback album in fine fashion by strikingly recalling The Doors. Then again, STP were never exactly a band to hide their influences, and their lack of originality has only marginally curbed my enjoyment of the band's best music. Their subsequent tour, which I attended, was a rousing success, as the band played a "greatest hits" set list (appropriate given the long layoff) that made it clear just how many good songs (and hits) the band has (their eventual "greatest hits" album ought to be a stone cold killer). Having outlasted most of their grunge contemporaries, the new millennium once again seemed to hold a bright future for this once troubled band.

Shangri-La Dee Da (Atlantic ’01) Rating: B+
Alas, the good vibes were short lived, as the band's next album, the again abominably titled Shangri-La Dee Da, received mixed reviews and didn't make much of a commercial splash. I'm not sure why "Days Of The Week" wasn't a major hit single (and let's face it, without a hit single most albums are DOA these days), as it's a supremely catchy mid-tempo pop rocker, and the gorgeously heartfelt ballad "Wonderful" likewise would've sounded great on the radio. Those are the high points, but the rest of this album is quite good as well, being both more consistent and eclectic than is customary for the band. Only occasionally a hard rock band these days, the band's mellower material is actually preferable, anyway, as drummer Eric Kretz's swinging grooves and Weiland's plentiful vocal hooks are far more reliably rewarding than the DeLeo brothers' (Robert and Dean) big but often generic hard rock riffs. Yes, the old lack of originality problem is again an issue (as always), but not a major one (as usual), as the singable choruses of "Coma" and "Transmissions From A Lonely Room," and multi-faceted tracks like "Black Again" make for an enjoyably focused if hardly revelatory package. "Hello It's Late" veers very (too?) close to AOR, and some of the more brusing riffs sound (too) familiar, but Dean adds attractive solos to several songs (the Courtney Love baiting "Too Cool Queenie," but also "Bi-Polar Bear" and "Long Way Home"), and Weiland and co. sound relaxed and confident on "A Song For Sleeping," on which Weiland softly croons over a slowly swaying rhythm. As for the lyrics, a newly sober Weiland is probably worth paying attention to more so than ever before, but the newly personalized focus still didn't win the band many fans among critics. Again, perhaps a hit single would've made a difference, but I suppose the band's often gentle stylistic shift made them harder to market, and Shangri-La Dee Da ended up being an unjustly underrated and overlooked last gasp by a band who walked in the shadows of (grunge) giants and whose reputation suffered as a result.

Thank You (Atlantic ’03) Rating: A
With the notoriously unreliable Scott Weiland joining former members of Guns n' Roses in Velvet Revolver (though he must seem stable compared to Axl Rose), it appears that the curtain has closed on Stone Temple Pilots. Fittingly, as a departing gift comes Thank You, a career encompassing retrospective that shows off what a great singles band they were. Although the band was originally called a grunge band and described as a second rate Pearl Jam, Stone Temple Pilots never really fit in with that or any scene. In retrospect they were simply a no frills, straight ahead hard rock band whose best songs were tailor made for "classic rock radio". Sure, they weren't the most original band in the world, and their sound sometimes did veer too close to those Seattle bands, as well as to The Beatles and Led Zeppelin. However, the band had a knack for catchy hooks and had a charismatic vocalist in Weiland, whose drug habit ultimately eroded the enormous momentum the band had gained with their smash first two albums, Core and Purple. Fittingly, more than half of the 15 songs on this compilation originated from those two albums, while the band's less popular subsequent albums (which the band couldn't properly promote due to Weiland's habit) are represented by three (Songs From the Vatican Gift Shop), two (No. 4), and one (Shangri-La Dee Da) song, respectively. In most cases the song selections are the obvious yet correct choices, and though perhaps a few more well-known songs ("Dead And Bloated," "Pretty Penny," "Unglued") could've made the cut as well, by and large this album does a very good job of presenting STP as the stellar singles band that they were. Even the obligatory new song, "All In The Suit That You Wear," is good in an agreeably hard hitting way, and the non-chronological sequencing is designed to make Thank You flow like a proper album, which it does quite nicely, thank you. The lack of liner notes is mildly disappointing but understandable given the raw deal the band has always received from critics, and the band's inclusion of an acoustic version of "Plush" (after the classic electric version had appeared earlier) may seem questionable at first as well. However, upon further reflection this subdued version provides a perfect coda to the album, as it provides a wistful reminder of how what was once such a highly promising career quietly faded away.


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