Alongside Guns N’Roses, Mötley Crüe and Red Hot Chili Peppers, Stone Temple Pilots were one of the most notoriously decadent modern rock bands the world had seen, mainly due to the actions and addictions of frontman Scott Weiland. His love affair with heroin and cocaine ultimately brought about the break-up of the band in 2002 – something also responsible for the problems he endured while fronting hard rock supergroup Velvet Revolver, and which eventually caused them to self-destruct.
Now, however, Stone Temple Pilots have re-formed and Weiland’s drugs problems are a thing of the past. Clearly, though, as this memoir shows, the after-effects are still an important part of Weiland’s life. Not Dead And Not For Sale is a fascinating account in which Weiland recalls, with startling honesty and in surprisingly poetic prose, the story of his life, from his earliest encounters with drugs, his relationship with religion, his string of relationships and the impact – both positive and negative – that being in a multi-million selling band had on him. More importantly, it reveals him now, in 2011, as a caring parent who triumphed over adversity – proof that, if he can do it, there’s hope for everyone.
