From Green River, Mother Love Bone, Temple of The Dog, Pearl Jam, and now Painted Shield, guitarist Stone Gossard has contributed heavily to music since the 1980s. Gossard discusses his long, involved career with Matt Pinfield on this episode of New & Approved.

Gossard tells his musical story in chronological order starting from when he began playing guitar at 16-years-old. He immediately joined bands in his hometown of Seattle to improve his talents. According to Gossard, the Seattle music scene was very unique and open to experimentation which is exactly where he hoped to go with his music.

Gossard discusses with Pinfield the many bands he has been a part of. He explains how he joined Green River and was inspired by genre-breaking bands such as Alice Cooper, Iggy Pop & The Stooges, and The Rolling Stones. Eventually, Gossard formed Mother Love Bone and blended punk and glam rock into an entirely new territory. However, the sudden and tragic loss of bandmate Andy Wood led to the band’s demise and heartbreak for Gossard.

Pinfield asks Gossard about the formation of Temple of the Dog and how Pearl Jam was eventually formed. We learn all about Eddie Vedder’s impact on Gossard and how the two worked together in one of the most important bands of the 1990s.

Currently, Stone Gossard has been working on a side project Painted Shield with signer-songwriter Mason Jennings. Their self-titled debut album is now available to listen!