Rockin' the Rivers: Stone Temple Pilots playing August 10 at 'The Bridge' near Three Forks

When "Purple," Stone Temple Pilots' sophomore bow came out in 1994, the quartet was coming off the explosive success the band had with its 1992 Brendan O'Brien-produced debut "Core."

Fast forward three decades and the current line-up of vocalist Jeff Gutt, brothers Dean and Robert DeLeo and drummer Eric Kretz are hitting the road with fellow '90s peers Live to commemorate the 30thanniversary of "Purple.") (Live will also be celebrating the 30th anniversary of its third album, "Throwing Copper"). Having met the Live crew at a Rolling Rock beer event in Latrobe, PA back in the early '90s, Dean DeLeo is looking forward to teaming up with that Keystone state outfit and getting fans jazzed about STP tackling the 10 songs on "Purple."

"That's one aspect of our lives in STP that we love -- being able to play live," DeLeo said in a late July interview. "That's the payoff, really, to get out on the road and play. We're going to do the "Purple" record top to bottom in order as it appears on the album. After we finish that record, we'll bust out a few more songs just because of time. I think each band plays for 75 minutes. I'm really looking forward to it."

"That's on my to-do list today," he added with a laugh. "I've got to jump on some guitar and run through some songs I haven't played in 20 years."

STP's roots date back to 1985 when singer Scott Weiland and bassist Robert DeLeo met and played together with a handful of other musicians that included Kretz before morphing into Mighty Joe Young. But wasn't until 1990 when older brother Dean was recruited to play guitar that the band found its core four. Following a name change after their lawyer informed the quartet that a bluesman was already using the Mighty Joe Young moniker, the inspiration of the STP Motor Oil stickers all the members remembered from childhood morphed into Stone Temple Pilots.

After making a name for themselves in the San Diego club scene, Atlantic Records signed the band to a deal in 1992 and released "Core." The next two years found Stone Temple Pilots relentlessly touring, opening for a number of notable bands, including Megadeth and Rage Against the Machine, in addition to playing high profile televised gigs like "Headbangers Ball" and "MTV Unplugged." When it was time to record a follow-up, the reunited with "Core" producer Brendan O'Brien and decamped to Georgia. Going into the studio, DeLeo was confident, particularly after brother Robert gave him a taste of what was to come.

"We were in Atlanta of all places and out in the parking lot of this ramshackle hotel where we had a Winnebago and a Ryder truck," he recalled. "Robert was standing out in the parking lot and it was late morning. I think we were getting ready to hit the road to play the next city. I vividly remember Robert telling me to check this out. He had an acoustic guitar and we were on the back bumper of this Ryder truck and played me 'Interstate [Love Song]' and whistled the melody. I remember that like it was yesterday and how impactful that particular piece of music and melody was. Once I heard that, I knew the next record was going to be fine."

"Purple" sold three million copies while yielding a trio of hit singles in "Interstate Love Song," "Big Empty" and "Vasoline." In the subsequent years, that STP line-up would record four more studio albums including 1996's "Tiny Music...Songs From the Vatican Gift Shop" and 2001's "Shangri-La Dee Da." Creative tensions within the band and Weiland's ongoing substance abuse problems also led to a number of breakups and hiatuses, as well as side projects from the band members including Velvet Revolver and Army of Anyone.

A brief window of time found Linkin Park's Chester Bennington replacing Weiland as STP's lead vocalist. And then on December 3, 2015, Weiland died from an accidental alcohol and drug overdose on his tour bus. Three years later, the DeLeos and Kretz resurrected Stone Temple Pilots with new singer Gutt to record a second self-titled album. The band's last effort was 2020's acoustic effort, "Perdida," which because of the pandemic, went overlooked by many fans. ("Everyone was too busy wiping down their groceries." DeLeo said.)

Through it all, Dean DeLeo is still at a loss when asked how STP has achieved this kind of longevity.

"I guess people dig the songs," he said with a laugh. "I see it every time we do a gig. Everybody is singing along and having a really lovely time. I've got to think it's about the power of music and a song that obviously translates. I have people coming up to me all the time saying they could tell me where they were the first time they heard 'Plush.' When you're first hearing a song, it also carves out a memory and it can take you right back to that place. You can see, smell and feel the room you were in or wherever you were."