STP Type Thing

This one hurts.

I know. I know. I’m not 18 anymore. Famous figures from my youth are going to die, and those who are rock stars are going to die young. It’s part of the gig. It’s what they do. Still not fair. And I already took my dose … in 2002 … losing my No. 1 guy, Layne Staley. Yet, it doesn’t make this hit (pun intended) any easier.

Dammit, Scott Weiland I’m going to miss you.

I’m guessing many of my fellow Gen X’ers won’t consider Weiland one of the voices of our generation, but he was certainly a fixture of the most influential time of my life.

Three decades of adventure, sadness, mistakes, celebration and awkwardness. He was there … not literally, but for the sake of a young guy finding his way into adulthood Weiland was basically in shadows.

He and Stone Temple Pilots were there in the background as I talked to girls on the phone as a teenager. They were among my go-to selections for my tape deck-CD adaptor in my car driving to and from school, cruising on weekends and as the soundtrack to my trouble-making adventures. 

I vividly remember "Creep" playing as I worked on my first-ever case of beer with friends while tailgating at a remote overlook. And dare let "Plush" come on and not sign along. Go ahead, try it.

STP was there as I got ready for the prom and made appearances at all three after-prom parties I enjoyed. Again, we hooked up for graduation. I then took Weiland and STP with me away to college, all three studio albums within arms reach at all times in my CD case.

And when I transferred back home, they helped reassure me I made the right decision and became a good study buddy in the parking lot before tests and of course, my wing men at many house parties.

We took our relationship to another level after college. I was starting to truly grow up and often needed a gentle reminder of who I was and where I came from.

And then the script flipped, a whole new world was unveiled. Twice deployed with the military. Twice, a new life for me to learn, discover and adjust to. Weiland's lyrics — his voice — was among the comforts that enabled me to find peace and maintain perspective during the most stressful time of my life.

I'm sure this is a commonly shared gratitude for many of STP's fans, spanning all dynamics of stress, pain and loss.

My Top 10 STP Songs

     1. Wicked Garden

       

     2. Sin

       

     3. Plush

       

     4. Big Empty

       
     
      5. Silvergun Superman

       
     
     6. Creep

              

     7. Trippin' on a Hole in a Paper Heart

       
     
      8. Where the River Goes

             

      9. Interstate Love Song

               

      10. Still Remains

       

Weiland is among my Holy Trinity of Music, along side Staley and Eddie Vedder. Front men to the three bands in a way molded me like a big brother. I can’t think back to any important moment of my life without Alice in Chains, Pearl Jam or Stone Temple Pilots (usually a combination of all three) there as a soundtrack, an inspiration … an imprint to that moment or memory.

And of course, all three were in regular rotation at my wedding reception. I wouldn't have had it any other way.

These bands … these front men … are me. There aren’t too many moments of my day when I’m not listening to or referencing music. And the Trinity is my foundation.

And yes, to this day I'm often reaching out to those same CDs I once raced to the mall to get upon learning of their release. The cases are cracked. The discs scratched. Yet, the music is as crisp, clear and loud as ever.

This multi-decade relationship has since become multi-generational. I'm pretty confident I'm one of the few fathers with a 5-year-old who knows what a CD is. She routinely questions Daddy which new disc is going into the rotation for the morning commute to school. And she knows, more often or not it’s coming from our Trinity.

There isn’t much left connecting me back to my childhood. I've moved away. I've said good-bye to many loved ones. Due to the explosion of urban sprawl, my hometown is no longer my hometown. As I near 40, I understand even less of my childhood will exist. I’m okay with it. It's life. It's in the script. I’ll always have my music, and hopefully all of my original CDs … even if those voices become a little more spiritual. 

— Jaime North