SCOTT WEILAND Gets Into The Holiday Spirit

Darryl Sterdan of the QMI Agency recently conducted an interview with STONE TEMPLE PILOTS/ex-VELVET REVOLVER frontman Scott Weiland about the singer's newly released Christmas album, "The Most Wonderful Time Of The Year". A couple of excerpts from the chat follow below.

On his reasons for releasing a Christmas album:

Weiland: "Um, well, why not? They're songs and renditions that I've listened to from a child all the way to my adult years. And they're very special to my heart, you know. If you last long enough in this business, you have the ability to make the kind of music you want to make. And this is something I've wanted to do for a while."

QMI Agency: How did you end up making a Christmas album?

Weiland: "We actually recorded one song over a year ago, and we decided, 'Let's make this an album.' So we recorded with a full jazz orchestra some of the best players around. And we took a lot of time figuring out the arrangements and finding the right keys and giving some of the songs a different flavor. You've got some bossa nova, a little reggae. It was amazing to be able to sing those kinds of songs and experiment with different phrasing. Singing rock 'n' roll is a lot different than singing jazz."

QMI Agency: Tell me about Christmas around the Weiland house when you were a boy.

Weiland: "My memories of Christmas are very joyful. My family would get together. My grandparents were with us. It was a special time. I remember we would wake up in the morning, and my father would put on the record player and play old albums. He would usually start out with orchestral versions of classics and chorals. Listening to those songs is something I always remember. You know, even before I got a record deal, Robert (DeLeo of STP) and I recorded a version of White Christmas. We had no money, so we gave it to our families for Christmas. I gave one to my parents, one to my grandparents. They said that was the best present they ever got."

QMI Agency: What about STP's schedule? Are we going to get another album next year?

Weiland: "I don't know about next year. We all want to take some time off. I have been completely busy nonstop for probably about nine years. Dec. 5 will be nine years since I quit doing dope. I was in VELVET REVOLVER at the time. So from VELVET REVOLVER all the way through getting back with STP, it's been nonstop touring. I haven't had more than two months off in the last nine years."

Read the entire interview from the QMI Agency.