Scott Weiland
"Happy" in Galoshes

You know those American soldiers who return from missions in tough places like Iraq and Afghanistan, deeply scarred with countless wounds, traumas, and torments, more internal than physical? Well, Scott Weiland reminded me of that figure, a soldier returning from the '90s, having survived his other illustrious colleagues of the grunge era.

Instead, he died this past December 3rd, in a tour bus that was taking him around America to perform in small clubs with his Wildabouts. He died alone, apparently in his sleep, from a mix of drugs, alcohol, and psychoactive drugs. Some were not surprised; in fact, maybe they were more surprised that he was still alive.

In the last year of his life, he appeared almost like a "dead man walking." His performances were rather lackluster, and his voice and stage presence were no longer those he had when he electrified vast crowds with the Stone Temple Pilots or Velvet Revolver. A telling example is his performance last April 28th in Corpus Christi, Texas, where he performed visibly out of it, moving haphazardly and slowly, singing off-key and getting the lyrics wrong, while his band continued to play as if nothing were amiss. A sad spectacle that reminds me a lot of Amy Winehouse in Belgrade in 2011. A spectacle that no one stops, perhaps in the name of a sadistic and morbid "the show must go on."

After his solo debut with 12 Bar Blues in 1998, exactly ten years later he returned with "Happy" in Galoshes, an album conceived in what was perhaps Scott's worst year, 2007. The misadventure with Velvet Revolver had just ended badly, but the strongest shock came with the death of his beloved brother Michael, felled by an overdose, a circumstance that profoundly marked him but was certainly no warning for him, and then the very troubled separation from his wife Mary Forsberg. "Happy" in Galoshes contains 10 songs, there's also a deluxe version with 20 songs, and boasts collaborations with Steve Albini, Adrian Young, Tony Kanal, and Tom Dumont from No Doubt. It’s an album that showcases all of Weiland’s versatility, characterized by a wide variety of musical genres. It ranges from bossa nova in "Killing me Softly," the Dylan-esque flavored country in "Tangled with your Mind," new wave in "Blind Confusion," and even electronica in "She Sold Her System." Never as in this album does Scott express the full influence David Bowie had on him, emblematic is the track "Paralysis," which narrates with a sensual baritone voice the tormented love for another "sour girl," and then there’s the cover of Fame. In the deluxe version, there’s also the cover of "Reel Around the Fountain" by The Smiths.

"Happy" in Galoshes is a sincere and intimate introspective journey that Scott was not afraid to share publicly. Unfortunately, it was a work that went unnoticed at the time or deliberately snubbed because Scott was talked about more for his heroin addiction problems rather than his artistic production, because Scott was considered to have mimicked his Seattle area colleagues in his early days, an accusation that created strong prejudices against his artistic output.

Whether you love or hate him, Scott Weiland was one of the most iconic, sexy, and charismatic frontmen in rock history, a sort of hybrid between Iggy Pop, Mick Jagger, and Jim Morrison, with one of the most beautiful and original voices.

Following his death, Billy Corgan said of him: "If you were to ask me who I really consider the great voices of our generation, I would say they are him, Layne (Staley), and Kurt (Cobain)."

Thank you for your music, Scott.