Although his major credits are all in the realm of the studio or behind-the-scenes as far as the public seems to know, this has not always been the case. Doug, a multi-instrumentalist, had been playing for well over a decade, first in the New York tri-state area then in New Orleans, before making the move to Los Angeles and taking up residence on the more technological side of the musician’s experience.

Owing to an absolutely unexpected situation that could singularly be explained as an “only in L.A.” surreal kind of reality thing, Grean soon met Scott Weiland. Before long, the two discovered they had very similar tastes in music and the creative juices began to flow at a collaborative snail’s pace. Leisurely, languidly, yes, almost lavishly, the two steadily worked on writing, recording, and generally fussing around with sounds and concepts. Consciously avoiding the avenues Weiland had already passed down, they sought to use anything at their disposal, from vintage recording equipment to unusual instruments to make sure “Happy” In Galoshes have a fresh sound unlike anything Scott had done before, with either Stone Temple Pilots or Velvet Revolver.

Now, ten years down the road, Doug Grean is Weiland’s creative partner in many ventures. His guitar playing, songwriting, and production skills are front and center on Weiland’s newest solo release, “Happy” In Galoshes, making him an integral part of the overall sound. He is the musical director for the band as well, making sure all is indeed “happy”, or at least somewhat content and at least somewhat close to schedule as they tour in support of the new disc.

Grean was kind enough to take a moment out of his touring schedule to answer some questions for the Crusher readers.

CHRISTINE NATANAEL: What were you like as a child?

DOUG GREAN: As a child I was shy and introverted—also kind of obsessive. I would find something I was into and be very, very into it for a few years and then move on. Photography was one of my obsessions. By the time I was 11 I had built (with my brother) a darkroom in the basement. Eventually, around the age of 12, I found mandolin and then guitar, and it's been that ever since.

CN: What is your earliest memory of music? (situation and song)

DG: I remember listening to Chicago 8-tracks my dad had back in the early ‘70s. The first record I bought was Don McLean's American Pie. I bought that with my birthday money for xmas one year and I played it over and over again on my Mickey Mouse record player. Before that it would have been church music. I was in the boys’ choir for years.

CN: What was the first instrument you learned?

DG: I wanted to learn how to play the clarinet and took lessons for three years in elementary school. But the teacher really turned me off to it, so I gave up on music for a few years until I found the guitar.

CN: You come from a family where your mother was an artist, and art and creativity were around you. When did you know that music was the path you wanted to pursue as opposed to art? And do you still do anything at all with art?

DG: I knew I wanted to be a professional musician from the time I played my first paid gig at the age of 16. It was somebody’s sweet 16 party. I still can't believe that someone was willing to pay us to play!

My artistic side definitely comes from my mother. She was always and still is very supportive. She always seemed to believe that I would be successful in this business. My father was a different story.

CN: Tell me about the years you spent in Crimson Rose and how they molded your musical dialogue and view of the world.

DG: My brother was a big Deadhead and he was a few years older. He got us all into the Dead. And now as I look back I realize that it was a great way to learn how to improvise. Because we played almost all Grateful Dead songs it gave us an excuse to just go off. We'd pick a chord progression and play it for 50 minutes. That's a great way to practice. Improvisation is still a huge part of everything I do—playing, producing, writing—all of it.

CN: Tell me about your New Orleans years and playing with people like George Porter, Jr. You started at Tulane University, but the pull of the power of the music seems to have gotten to you.

DG: New Orleans was the best musical education I could have ever had. All the greats were there and easily accessible—Snooks Eglin, Earl King, Walter Wolfman Washington, The Neville Bros. All these great cats were just around and if you were around you could hang with them, party with them, and eventually, if you were good enough, sit in with them. I sat in with or had them sit in with my band all the time. It was just the way New Orleans was, at least when I was there.

I really studied New Orleans’ style of Funk/Blues/Jazz. And I learned a lot. I think what I learned there changed the way I play and gave me the sound I have today. Not to brag, but I think my feeling and sense of time is completely different than someone that didn't spend ten years playing down there. My pocket is way deeper because of my time in N.O.

CN: What is your favorite non-guitar instrument without strings? With strings?

DG: Electric guitar is still my favorite stringed instrument. I'm playing a guitar that was custom made for me by The Electrical Guitar Company in Florida. I'm also really into the banjo right now. My favorite non-stringed instrument is the Fender Rhodes.

CN: hat pulled you into the studio world? Was it initially as a session player or as an engineer? And which do you enjoy more?

DG: I had to start learning how to record music because I got sick of paying other people to record my band! I took some classes and begged friends with studios to let me experiment on their gear, and over time I figured it all out. I really think it’s in the ears, not the gear. But people will argue about that forever. I can't say which I enjoy more. They are both what I love to do and if I could go back and forth every few months I’d be a happy man.

CN: What were some of your most favorite early studio sessions/work?

DG: Once when I was a intern a long time ago I was working on the first Frank Black CD. He had his friends, They Might Be Giants, over to hang during the session. I was asked to go on a run and pick up some muffins. When I got back I handed a bag of muffins to one of the Johns, and he said, "What's this?" And I said, "They might be muffins," and then just smiled and walked away. On that same session Frank Black, whose real name is Charles, used to come in on Sunday to listen to rough mixes. Since there was nobody else working, I would run things for him and we'd just sit there and smoke pot and talk about the songs. He was very cool to me.

CN: Who and what are your musical influences?

DG: 1) Silence. 2) The Meters. 3) Anyone who writes a really good song.

CN: What disciplines other than music inspire you?

DG: I'm not very disciplined at the moment. As a producer/engineer one of my big jobs is to be the guy in the room with the least A.D.D. In other words I'm the one who has to keep things flowing in a logical linear fashion. So that's it for discipline.

CN: Which of your musical influences would you most like to meet, (or have met, if they are deceased), and why?

DG: Jerry Garcia. James Booker. Professor Longhair.

CN: What gear do you use in the studio? And what gear do you take on tour to try to replicate that studio sound?

DG: Wow this question could be it's own multi-page interview.

I try to use a lot of vintage microphones and pre-amps and as many vintage tube amps as I can get my hands on—old guitars and all that. But I also use a lot of newer stuff like Protools. I still use some analog tape, but not as much as I used to.

Live I use a custom guitar made for me by The Electrical Guitar Company. It's primarily made from aluminum and has a very unique tone. I use vintage Traynor YBA-1 amps made by a Canadian company. I have one that's from 1967 and one from 1971. They've all been rebuilt and modified for my tastes. I do a lot of this rebuilding myself and whatever I can't handle I farm out to my tech.

It's really hard to recreate all the textures on the HIG record. But we do the best we can. I carry a rack of effects that's pretty extensive. I can't list them all here because, well, it would be too boring.

CN: Tell me about Lavish Studios, Softdrive Records (and some of its artists), and how you met Scott Weiland.

DG: Scott and I own Lavish. He had this big 2000 square foot space that had a little gear in it, but you couldn't really call it a working studio. I came in about ten years ago and started rebuilding and rewiring. I also moved in all of my own gear. Now after 10 years we have a very functional studio that I've made some really good records in.

Softdrive is an indie record company that is owned by Scott, Dana Dufine, and I. We have distribution through RED and also we've partnered with New West Records. We have a small stable of artists. Scott Weiland, The Color Turning, Something to Burn and Tommy Joe Wilson. We plan to release three records this year.

I met Scott about 13 years ago. I had checked my brother into rehab. I went back the next day to check on him and he had gotten a new room mate in the middle of the night. It was Scott. So that's when we met. But we didn't start working together at that time. About a year later he ended up in another rehab my brother was running the kitchen at. So we got to talking one day and he invited me to come down to his studio and throw around some ideas and try to get his place back together. Within a few weeks of that we had written "Big Black Monster". It's on the new record and it was actually written in October 1999.

CN: Tell me about the first time you sat down to jam or write with Scott. Place, situation, mood, instruments, etc., and what came out of it.

DG: Well this was kind of answered above, but I will go into more detail. The first writing session was, like I said above, "Big Black Monster". What happened was I was at the studio waiting for him, (he's habitually late) and he called me from the car and sang me a bass line idea and asked me to lay it down. So I recorded what he gave me over the phone and then I wrote a chorus before he showed up. And that chorus really knocked his socks off, so he sat down and wrote and sang the melody. He played a baritone guitar part for the verse then left. And I filled in more of the other instrumentation after he left. And that was it. He's not your typical writer, and I think he was looking for someone like me that played various instruments, engineered, wrote, and produced, and could do it from voice mail messages and do it well. I mean, he's so busy and so scattered that's just one of the methods he needs to use sometimes. Sometimes we write the old-fashioned way where we just sit in a room with an acoustic guitar, but more and more it's become this kind of touch and go "here's a idea—okay here's my reaction idea—okay here's my melody... etc., etc.” I have to admit it's a very strange way of going about things, but I think that not doing things traditionally is what gives this record it's sound.

CN: What would you say influenced the songwriting most on “Happy” In Galoshes?

DG: Scott's had a lot of ups and downs. But mostly I'd say the main inspirations for his lyrics were his difficult relationship with his wife, the birth of his kids, his battle with addiction, and finally, the death of his brother. Those were probably the big ones. That's more of a question for him. I don't write the lyrics. I give a line or word here and there, but that's his territory.

CN: What is the most unexpected thing that happened in the studio during the recording? It did take, what, ten years? There must be some memories.

DG: There were times when he would show up extremely intoxicated. There were other times when his wife would come and major drama would ensue.

CN: Which, do you feel, is the boldest song on “Happy” in terms of creative and recording process, and why?

DG: “Pictures and Computers.” It's over seven minutes long. It does not follow any usual song form. The instrumentation is totally whacked. And I love the writing and playing I did on that song. I love that song and wish it got more attention.

CN: Which, do you feel, is the boldest song on the new album in terms of emotional and lyrical content, and why?

DG: Probably "Blister on My Soul". It's about his brother and some of the wreckage he left behind in all our lives before he passed. It's pretty heavy stuff.

CN: How did you and Scott decide to cover “Fame”, which was famously recorded by David Bowie, but written along with his former guitarist, Carlos Alomar (as well as John Lennon)?

DG: That was the one song I was not really that involved in. All I did was record the vocals, (I guess I produced the vocals), and I played a little guitar. But the idea to do it was Paul’s [Oakenfold] and the programming was done by his guy, Jeff Turzo. But I do love that song, and I'm a big fan of Carlos.

CN: If you had the chance to sit down and interview anyone, living or dead, who would you choose, and why?

DG: Nikola Tesla, Bob Moog, Professor Leon Theremin, Aimee Mann, Wayne Coyne.

CN: What is your greatest fear?

DG: Losing the people closest to me, (including my dogs).

CN: Who inspires you most right now, as a musician or as a person?

DG: Hillary Clinton

CN: What are you most grateful for at this point?

DG: That after ten years of hard work this record is finally on the shelves. There were times when I really didn't know if anyone would ever hear these songs, and that would have been a life long regret.

Thanks so much.

Doug Grean