Stone Temple Pilots [ tickets ] bassist Robert DeLeo has seen singer Scott Weiland at his worst. But he doesn't remember seeing the flamboyant vocalist so healthy.

Weiland's drug-related legal problems began in February of 1998 when he was charged with possession of heroin and a hypodermic needle.

The following August, he was sentenced to 90 days in rehab, which the singer successfully completed. In January and April 1999, he was charged with violating his parole. Sept. 3, 1999, he was sentenced to a year in jail. He was released in April, five months earlier than his sentence originally called for.

Now that Weiland is out of jail, clean, married and a father-to-be, the Stone Temple Pilots are on tour promoting "No. 4." The album has had a rough ride. It hit stores Oct. 26, 1999, a month into Weiland's jail sentence.

In between dates, DeLeo and Weiland have been stretching their musical wings. Weiland is working with Limp Bizkit on its forthcoming album "Chocolate Starfish and the Hot Dog Flavored Water," while DeLeo is collaborating with Ozzy Osbourne.

DeLeo talked with Christina Fuoco of liveDaily sister site detroit.citysearch.com about the album, Osbourne and why the Stone Temple Pilots won't take part in a "Behind the Music" special.

LiveDaily: I heard on the radio that you just wrapped up a show in Anchorage. How was that? Is there a big STP audience up there?

Robert DeLeo: It's interesting. It's a beautiful place. I think the people are a little deprived of music though.

It's not every day that you see "Anchorage" on a band's tour itinerary--except maybe Jewel.

Right. Right. [Laughs]

Have you played Anchorage before?

No, but we've canceled there before though.

Well, it seems that your days of canceling gigs are over.

Yeah, and I can honestly say, "Yes."

What is it like to once again be a cohesive unit?

It's been a long time coming. I'd say it's been about probably six-and-a-half years coming.

How did you and the rest of STP keep your morale up?

It was tough. It was tough. I'm going to get very "Behind the Music" with you, Christina. You spend a lot of years trying to get to a point where you want to be able to live off your music-not to get rich or be a rock star, just to be able to sell enough records to make another one and just live off your art. When you put that much effort into it, when someone in your family kind of starts pulling that apart, it's really tough to figure out who you are rather than what you do. You know what I mean?

That line is really blurred and you start relying on what you are to be who you are, or what you do to be who you are. It's a pitfall that a lot of people fall into. I think in our own ways we kind of fell into it. It was tough. In the past two years, I really got myself together and realized that I have a life and life is great--if the band is working or not. I had to really get off relying on [the band] to find my happiness.
But it's very enlightening now. Scott's doing great. I can honestly say. I catch myself saying that I haven't seen him like this in a long time but I don't think I've ever seen him like this out of the 15 years that I've known him, you know?

Was there ever any thought of just scrapping "No. 4" and starting over again with a new album?

Dean [DeLeo, guitarist and his brother] and I were really in a position where we were wondering whether we should hold back on releasing the record at the time that we did. There were so many things weighing either way and we needed to just decide, "Hey, we're going to put this record out now and whatever happens, happens." It's kind of like taking a Polaroid. You finish a record and you want people to see the picture. You don't want to hold it in your dresser drawer for a year. We were wondering what's this record would mean to use in a year if we hold back [until] Scott he comes out. It was kind of difficult for us to realize that if he does get out, whether he's going to be healthy, and then if he's healthy, whether we're going to be able to tour, then if we tour, whether we're going to be able to rework a tour. So there's a lot of things to think about.

Fortunately, we have people behind us and we've been with Atlantic Records long enough that they believe in what we want to do and they allow us the freedom to do what we want to do, which is a really big strong point with this band from the beginning. I think when we artistically get together, special things happen. That's very "Behind the Music," isn't it?

That could be the closing to your episode.

[Laughs]

Have you been approached about doing a "Behind the Music"?

Oh yeah, but, to me how many times can you beat a dead horse? It's like the same story. What new do I have to say?

Have you started writing new material?

Yeah, all the time.

Will you be playing any of it on this tour?

No, it's all in my head right now. We just got into Vancouver last night. I turned on the TV and I was watching the Travel Channel. They were traveling through Morocco and I heard this amazing melody, this female singer singing this melody in the background music. I didn't quite get it the way that it was actually going, but from the other room I was kind of listening to it and it totally sparked this idea in my head. That's sometimes how songs come about. You hear something from a distance. It's not really what it is but you get something else out of it. It inspires you to write something. I was toying around with this thing and I had to hum it into this tape recorder that I have. That's kind of where songs start from and I work music around it.

Do you have any firm plans to return to the studio soon? How long will this tour continue?

We're actually thinking about doing some dates with Family Values, I believe. Then we're planning on going through the end of the year. Then just take some time off and probably maybe go over to Europe in early spring, maybe start on a new record in summer.

Speaking of new material, I heard that you have been working with Ozzy. How did that go?

That went well. I don't know. We've got to get back together and kind of finish them up. It was a really big trip for me to be in the studio with somebody who's partially responsible for what I'm doing.

What was it like? Was it intimidating, fun?

It started out with his A&R guy telling me he needed ballads. So, I went there with a few ballads and had my best stuff written. I got in the room and Ozzy said, [Copping his best imitation of the aging rocker] "Hey man, I got enough ballads, man. I don't need anymore ballads, man. I need some rockers, man. What do you got man?" I said, "Shit, I don't have anything man. I was told you needed ballads." [Osbourne replied] "No man, I got enough ballads, man. I need rockers." I was sitting there sweating, with nothing to show him and I had him looking over my shoulder going, "What do you got?" I was put in a position where I wasn't really ready to show him any rock songs. I had stuff in my head. But he left me alone for about two days and I literally played drums and played bass and guitar and keyboards and put together three songs in two days by myself in this studio. So we still have to finish them.

How has your tour been going?

It's funny because we've been doing these radio shows with other bands. It's funny because there's so much respect now from these bands. It's really amazing to have people come up to you and go, "Man, that f-----' set, man, it's song after song after song." There's probably an hour and a half worth of songs of hits that people know, that have been on the radio for eight years now, nine years. It's possible for us to do a two-hour show and keep everyone attentive. I think after an hour people start losing [interest]. I do that. I go to a show and after an hour I go, all right all right it's time to go home. But we'll probably play a good solid hour and it'll be songs that everyone knows.