Scott Weiland

Amid all the drug issues and band strife, it's easy to forget what a talent Scott Weiland is. His distinctive Morrison-style croon has never wavered, only becoming more seasoned with age. As the lead singer of '90s rock idols Stone Temple Pilots, he and the DeLeo brothers crafted metallic pop songs and sold close to 20 million units over an almost 17-year run together. The Pilots were dogged as grunge also-rans when they released their 1992 debut Core, but they ultimately changed that critical perception with the more lived-in Purple two years later. Tiny Music... (1996) didn't sell as well, and the subsequent tour was scuttled by Weiland's drug troubles, but it still has a fervent cult following amongst the band's devoted flock. In between stints in rehab and band hiatuses, Weiland always made time for his own solo efforts, starting with 1998's 12 Bar Blues, which saw him channeling Bowie and exploring the glam-rock influences that never saw the light in STP. After a few more albums with the reunited STP and crash-and-burn success of supergroup Velvet Revolver, Weiland once again went into the studio to record his second solo release, "Happy" In Galoshes. As on 12 Bar, Weiland explores textures that he could never indulge in other bands; tracks like the stomping "Missing Cleveland" and scuzz-blues "Big Black Monster" are way more playful than anything he crafted with Velvet Revolver or STP.