Single Stories: Stone Temple Pilots, “Wicked Garden” (MTV Unplugged)

25 years ago this week, Stone Temple Pilots released their song “Wicked Garden” to radio, and although it was never actually released commercially as a single, it has nonetheless gone on to become one of the most well-known songs.

With lyrics by Scott Weiland and music by Robert and Dean DeLeo, “Wicked Garden” dates back to 1990, appearing on the band’s original MIGHTY JOE YOUNG demo. The version which appeared on their debut full-length album, CORE, was produced by Brendan O’Brien and was – per the late Mr. Weiland – “a song about people allowing all their innocence and purity to be lost from their lives.” Listeners clearly took the track to heart, given how much airplay it received, and the song received further recognition when it was deemed to be one of the highlights of Stone Temple Pilots’ performance on MTV Unplugged.

On September 29, Rhino Records will celebrate the 25th anniversary of CORE by releasing a Super Deluxe Edition of the classic album, which – in addition to the original 12 tracks, now freshly remastered – also features a disc of B-sides and demos, a disc featuring the band’s performances from the 1993 Reading Festival and their show at the Castaic Lake Natural Amphitheater the same year, a disc featuring their MTV Unplugged performance, and a DVD that includes the 5.1 mix, 24/96 stereo audio, and music videos from the album.

Yes, we know: you suddenly find yourself wondering how you’re going to survive until September 29 without being able to dive into this package. Fortunately, Billboard is here to help you with a little bit of that jonesing by hosting the exclusive streaming of the band’s MTV Unplugged performance of “Wicked Garden.”