In commemoration of what would have been Layne Staley's 40th birthday today, I thought I would put something together showcasing the life of this amazing artist and person. Some of you may not know who Layne Staley or his more famous band, Alice in Chains, but by far this is my favorite band of all time, and even though he is dead, Layne's memory will live on through his music for years to come.

Some might classify the music of Alice in Chains as "grunge" simply because they came from Seattle during that time period, but I've never felt that they could be so narrowly placed into one genre of music. They do have some grunge-type sounding songs, but by no means was that all they were limited to.

Wikipedia has a great selection of information on the band Alice in Chains and a great biography on Layne Staley, so rather than try to fumble through what little creative writing skills I have, I am going to pick and choose information from wikipedia and other sources that I have deemed relevant to share with you. If you would like a more full biography, go search for it yourself!

Alice in Chains formed in Seattle, Washington in 1987. They were one of the most commercially successful bands from the Seattle grunge music scene, selling an estimated 15 million albums worldwide. Unlike many of their peers, Alice in Chains owed more to heavy metal than to punk rock or classic rock, but the group became closely associated with grunge due to their Seattle roots, their image, and their introspective and sometimes morbid lyrics.

The unique name of the band is derived from "one of Layne Staley's former bands, Alice N' Chainz, originally called "sleeze". According to Staley, Alice N' Chainz would dress in drag at concerts, and he noted that he felt the name would fit a band that "dressed in drag and played speed metal."

The band signed with Columbia Records in 1989. After recording a series of demos in early 1989, the band offered its first official release in July 1990, We Die Young EP. The title track became a moderate hit on metal-oriented radio, preparing the way for the release later that year of the group's first full LP, Facelift. The album produced an unexpected hit in "Man in the Box", the video for which went into regular rotation on MTV. Supported by a tour opening for Van Halen and Iggy Pop, Facelift went Gold by the end of the year.

The group received more exposure in 1992 when one of their new songs, "Would?", appeared on the soundtrack for Singles, a motion picture by filmmaker Cameron Crowe based on the lives of Seattle singles. The album Dirt, released in the fall of 1992, exemplifies the group's heavy, guitar-driven, distortion-drenched sound, and Staley and Cantrell's complex vocal harmonies. It was both a critical and commercial success, going Platinum by the end of the year and remaining the band's most successful album to date. However, the dark lyrics, dealing mostly with isolation and addiction, increased speculation that Staley was addicted to heroin. It is now known that this speculation was correct.

In January 1994, the band once again released an acoustic-based EP, Jar of Flies. Which, similar to Sap centered on acoustic performances, including string arrangements. With a track list of seven songs, Jar of Flies was firmly in the EP category but debuted at No. 1 on album sales charts, the first EP ever to reach that position. The album was written and recorded in a week.

In November 1995, Alice in Chains returned with the release of a self-titled album, Alice in Chains, commonly referred to as "Grind", "Tripod", "Three" or "Three Legged Dog" due to the image of a forlorn three-legged-dog on the album cover and because it was the band's third full album. This album was a return to the heavy metal roots of the band, though unlike the sound of their previous albums and even less like the more acoustic Jar of Flies record. The album debuted at number one on the charts, but the group failed to support it with a tour, sparking further discussion about Staley's heroin addiction. Ultimately, this would be the last official album that Alice in Chains produced.

Although the band never officially disbanded, Staley spiraled deeper into depression when his girlfriend died from bacterial endocarditis in 1996. He became a recluse, rarely leaving his Seattle condo. The possibility of a full Alice in Chains reunion finally ended on April 20, 2002, when Staley was found dead in his condominium from a lethal overdose of heroin and cocaine.

Alice in Chains still tours with most of its original members, but the surviving members of the band feel that it would not be appropriate due to Layen Staley's death to record any new material. The band tours mostly now to preserve the memory of their lead singer and dear friend.
Here are a few videos of the band of some of my favorite songs. The first one is a live show and shows how awesome Layne's voice was even in concert. He drops the F-bomb at the very beginning, so don't turn it up too loud at work! Smiling

Here is a video for a song from Layne Staley's lesser known band, Mad Season. Just as awesome as Alice in Chains, but a little darker and more sad at times. Like a lot of songs written by Layne for Alice in Chains, songs by Mad Season carry significant undertones of the severe drug addiction Layne Staley was facing at the time.

Layne Thomas Staley August 22, 1967-April 5, 2002

Born Layne Thomas Staley August 22, 1967 in Kirkland, Washington, Layne grew up the child of divorced parents. Layne showed his musical talents early and began playing drums at the age of 12. Not long after developing a love for bands like Black Sabbath and The Doors Layne took up singing.

Although he heavily used heroin, he hated being characterized as a hopeless junkie — not because it wasn't true, but because of the effect it had on those he cared about. He was pretty unapologetic about his own drug use and was convinced that his talents and personality defined his character, not his extracurricular activities. He was angry that articles about his usage grieved his mother and sister and made his fans think heroin was cool.

In October 1996 Layne's longtime girlfriend Demri Parrott died from bacterial endocartitis as a result of her own drug abuse. This is something Layne would never get over. Layne bought a penthouse condominium in a security building and rarely would ever leave or answer the door or telephone. His health began to deteriorate and he had abscesses covering his arms from the years of heroin abuse. He spent his time locked in his home playing video games and creating art and sunk deeper and deeper into his addiction mixing heroin with cocaine and even began using crack. Layne always remained close with his mom and step father and even made a family appearance following the birth of his nephew in February of 2002. On April 19, 2002 at 5:50 pm the police kicked down the dead-bolted door of his home accompanied by Layne Staley's mom and stepfather and they found the body of Layne Staley on the couch. The King County medical examiners office determined that Layne died on April 5 from an acute intoxication due to the combined effects of opiate (heroin) and cocaine.

Layne Staley was an amazing and deeply troubled person who shone brightly if even for a brief time and has touched my life in many ways through his expressive and emotive musical talent. May he rest in peace.

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