lambchops's Full Review: Thank You [CD & DVD] [PA] - Stone Temple Pilots
During the early 1990’s the rock scene was strange. There was a clear division between the “old” school hair metal rockers and the new crop of “grunge.” One band that stood out from the crowd wasn’t either—Stone Temple Pilots represented good ol’ fashioned hard rock. Their songs were equal parts heavy guitar rock and melodic introspection. It was clear from their debut on that STP (as they are affectionately known) was special.
Rewind to 1992. I still “wanted my MTV” and as such was fortunate enough to stumble on STP early on in the game. I fell in love with them from the moment I first heard Plush followed immediately by Sex Type Thing. The four guys from California managed to do what no band had ever done to me previously—I cared about their music. I loved their music. Heck, I anticipated the release of every single and every subsequent album. But not everything was perfect. Frontman Scott Weiland has been publicly struggling with drug addiction for most of his years in the spotlight. The three remaining members Dean DeLeo (guitar), Robert DeLeo (bass), and Eric Kretz (drums) looked on as Weiland crumbled before their eyes.
Years passed and further albums were released. 1992 debut Core is a great disc, but it is with 1994’s Purple and 1996’s Tiny Music that STP really came into their own. Purple was chock full of sparkly-clean hard rock anthems. They scored no fewer than five hit singles—not to mention a spot atop the Billboard 200. Tiny Music on the other hand was a bit stranger and proved to be inaccessible at first. But with a little effort, it became clear that this was the band having fun injecting pop into their otherwise hard rock songs. This album yielded a few personal favorites including Lady Picture Show, Adhesive and Seven Caged Tigers.
More years passed and Weiland did some time in jail for drug charges. But the band didn’t stop for him…they continued making music and eventually, with his help, recorded No. 4—another pretty darned impressive hard rock album. Songs Sour Girl and Down got considerable attention but it was Atlanta that really did it for me. Shangri-La Dee Da (2001) followed a year or two later, but didn’t have the same punch as earlier outings. It was another hard rock injected with pop disc which was released and disappeared seemingly just as quickly. But two songs got any play--Hollywood Bitch and Days of the Week.
So now here we sit in 2003, and STP once again is out to impress. This time, instead of feeling like a comeback it feels like an unfortunate swan song. But however you slice it greatest hits compilation Thank You is a gem to behold. Yeah, I realize I’m biased but for fans of the band and those interested in their music it is a perfectly seamless album. And, an added bonus is that you can also purchase for just a few bucks more the CD/DVD combo which includes a separate disc which houses not one, not two, but in excess of THIRTY live performances, music videos, and bootlegs spanning the band’s career. It is more than I could have even dreamt for. STP is clearly, as the name of the disc implies, thanking their fans for years of support.
The CD itself holds a humble fifteen songs. What you expect to be there is…of course as a fan of the band for in excess of a decade I have some personal favorites that aren’t included. But the truth is that these are indeed STP’s biggest hits. In addition, a new track is included (All In The Suit That You Wear) and there’s the classic acoustic version of Plush. The songs included are all exceedingly familiar. They aren’t arranged in order of release. Rather, they seem to be put together to sound well—this is an album unto itself. One that begs to be loved and adored and that immediately deserves a place in every rock collection.
There are songs on Thank You from each of the band’s five studio albums. Of course omitted are their excellent cover tracks from The Beatles, The Doors, and Led Zeppelin—but I can’t fault them for that. Though I will say that STP is one of the single best cover bands to ever walk the face of the Earth. Especially considering that they have a daunting catalogue of their own tunes to back up any claims that they are wanna bes. Heck, early in their career they were accused of trying to be Pearl Jam. Of course, in retrospect nothing could be further from the truth. They have proven to be consistently good and almost always great—their rock n’ roll is exactly the kind that I so long for today but am instead inundated with jerk off crap-rockers.
All rants aside, I dare anybody to find fault with Thank You. There are only fifteen songs on the CD itself, so unless you consider the material on the bonus DVD you’ll be sorely underwhelmed. But figuring that into the equation, this is a release of epic proportion—I really cannot rave enough.
First things first…what songs are included?
Plush (1992)
Wicked Garden * Plush * Creep * Sex Type Thing * Plush (acoustic)
Purple (1994)
Vasoline * Big Empty * Interstate Love Song
Tiny Music (1996)
Big Bang Baby * Lady Picture Show * Tripping On A Hole In A Paper Heart
No. 4 (1999)
Down * Sour Girl
Shangri-La Dee Da (2001)
Days of The Week
Non-album
All In The Suit That You Wear
The single new song, All In The Suit That You Wear probably isn’t quite up to par as far as “classic” in comparison to the other fourteen songs, but it is a wonderful gift to have a new song from the band. The guitars are great, Weiland sounds as perfect as always, but the melody just isn’t as good as a Plush or Lady Picture Show
The CD itself is brilliant, the DVD is the fantabulous chocolate icing on the cake. As mentioned, the DVD does include official videos—fourteen of them in fact. You get for your money everything from the earliest images of the band from Sex Type Thing and Wicked Garden through Big Bang Baby and beyond. It’s just wonderful to have all the videos arranged chronologically in one place and easily accessible by a simple click.
Fans will also be pleased by the selection of official live performances including a stellar acoustic version of Plush from MTV’s Headbanger’s Ball. Also particularly notable are performances of Atlanta, Meat Plow (a fantastic track from Purple), Tumble in the Rough (another great selection but this time from Tiny Music), and the pensive Zeppelin-esque Army Ants. There are a total of sixteen live performances.
But the fun doesn’t stop there…STP also collects twelve bootleg videos from various performances over the years. Included are special ones like Weiland’s surprise performance of Sweet Emotion with Aerosmith and the band’s performance of Wichita Lineman with Glenn Campbell. Also special are recordings of Loungefly (another personal favorite), Pretty Penny, and Dead & Bloated. A large number of still photos and promo shots are also easily gotten to and appreciated.
Thank You is such a pleasant surprise. I’ve missed STP, and this collection of songs, videos, and photos has once again reminded my exactly why it is that I fell in love with their music and will probably forever remember them as one of the few bands in my life that has truly been a favorite. Thank You is an impossible-to-miss treasure. Get it. Now.
(please excuse the length of the track listings and DVD features…it really is incredible)
Rating: 5/5 stars
Track Listing:
01. Vasoline
02. Down
03. Wicked Garden
04. Big Empty
05. Plush
06. Big Bang Baby
07. Creep
08. Lady Picture Show
09. Trippin' on a Hole in a Paper Heart
10. Interstate Love Song
11. In the Suit That You Wear
12. Sex Type Thing
13. Days of the Week
14. Sour Girl
15. Plush (acoustic)
DVD Music Videos:
01. Sex Type Thing
02. Plush
03. Wicked Garden
04. Creep
05. Vasoline
06. Interstate Love Song
07. Big Bang Baby
08. Trippin’ On A Hole In A Paper Heart
09. Lady Picture Show
10. Down
11. Sour Girl
12. Days of the Week
13. Hello, It’s Late
14. Sex Type Thing (1992-2002)
DVD Live Performances:
01. Army Ants
02. Interstate Love Song
03. Silver Gun Superman
04. Crackerman
05. Plush
06. Trippin’ On A Hole In A Paper Heart
07. Hollywood Bitch
08. Big Empty
09. Long Way Home
10. Down
11. Meat Plow
12. Tumble in the Rough
13. Sex and Violence
14. Wicked Garden
15. Plush (acoustic)
16. Atlanta
DVD Bootlegs:
01. Where The River Goes
02. Dead & Bloated
03. Crackerman
04. Pop’s Love Suicide
05. Sweet Emotion (W/ Steven Tyler and Joe Perry)
06. Big Bang Baby
07. Pretty Penny
08. Loungefly
09. Wonderful
10. Creep
11. Too Cool Queenie
12. Wichita Lineman (w/ Glen Campbell)
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