Layne Staley

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Layne Thomas Staley (born Layne Rutherford Staley, 1967 – April 5, 2002) was an American singer best known as the original lead singer and co-songwriter of Alice in Chains.

The band rose to international prominence in the early 1990s as a result of Seattle's grunge movement, and they became known for Staley's distinct vocal style and tenor voice, as well as harmonized vocals from him and guitarist/vocalist Jerry Cantrell.

Staley performed with the glam metal bands Sleze and Alice N' Chains, as well as the Mad Season and Class of '99. Staley was out of the public spotlight from mid-1996 to present day, but never to perform live again.

Staley suffered for a large part of his adult life with depression and heroin use, resulting in his death at the age of 34 on April 5, 2002. Staley was ranked at No. 1 in the United Kingdom's rankings. In 2006, 27 people were on Hit Parader's list of "Heavy Metal's Top 100 Vocalists" and in No. 27. In 2012, 42 on Complex's magazine list of "The 50 Best Lead Singers of All Time" was listed.

"Layne Staley Day" was officially declared by Seattle's city on August 22, 2019.

Early life

On August 22, 1967, Staley was born at Overlake Hospital in Bellevue, Washington. Phillip Blair "Phil" Staley and Nancy Elizabeth Staley (née Layne) are his parents. Staley did not like his middle name "Rutherford" and would get yelph whenever someone called him by this name. He legally changed his middle name to "Thomas" during his teens because he was a fan of Mötley Crüe drummer Tommy Lee.

When he was two or three years old, Staley formed a rhythm band in Bellevue and was the youngest in the group. He wrote in his Dr. Seuss book, All About Me, that he wanted to be a singer at nine years old.

Staley was seven years old when his parents divorced, after which he was raised by his mother and stepfather, Jim Elmer. When enrolling in Meadowdale High School in Lynnwood, he took his stepfather's surname and was known as Layne Elmer for a long time.

Staley was raised as a Christian Scientist but in a 1991 interview: "I have a fascination with how brainwashed people get to church and how they'll give up their money, their time, and their entire life for a cause that they're sure is correct, but I'm not positive." I believe there are a lot of people who are afraid of life and living, and they want to make sure they get to Heaven or whatever. I try to avoid it as much as I can. I was raised in the church until I was 16 years old, and I've disagreed with their beliefs for as long as I can remember, so I chose not to believe in anything apart from myself." In a 1999 interview, Staley also stated that the song "Get Born Again" is about "religious hypocrisy."

He approached music through his parents' collection, listening to Black Sabbath (regarded by him as his first influence) and Deep Purple. Other well-known hard rock and metal bands include The Stooges, Anthrax, Judas Priest, Saxon, Rainbow, Mercyful Fate, Twisted Sister, Van Halen, and industrial/new wave bands such as Ministry, The Lords of the New Church, and Skinny Puppy. Prince and David Bowie were also among his top idols, according to him.

Staley started playing drums at the age of 12; he appeared in several glam bands in his early teens; but by this time, Staley had aspirations to become a singer. Staley formed Sleze, a group of Shorewood High students that also included future members of The Dehumanizers and Second Coming in 1984.

In 1985, Staley and his band Sleze made a cameo in Father Rock, a low-budget film from Seattle's Public Access Channel. Sleze morphed into Alice N' Chains in 1986, a group that Staley described as "dressed in drag and played speed metal." The new band appeared in Seattle and Armored Saint covers.

Personal life

Staley attended several recovery services in the early 1990s, but he was unable to remain clean long. At one time, the Alice in Chains' other members travelled to Los Angeles for weekly therapy at Staley's rehab. Susan Silver, Alice in Chains' boss, recruited bodyguards to keep Staley away from people who might try to give him drugs during the tour, but he ended up relapsing on alcohol and heroin during the tour. Mark Lanegan recalled partying with Staley on tour and said that it was "an insane, dark, heroin-fueled frat party from start to finish, with Layne [Staley] and I raising hell, behaving like teenagers, lasting for days on end. We took care of whatever drugs were on our way. Heroin, cocaine, painkillers, or something else is missing. Kurt Cobain's death in April 1994 sparked Staley's temporary sobriety, but within a few months, he was back to his heroin use. Alice in Chains' managers turned down lucrative touring opportunities and stayed on the road, hoping that this would help Staley. Mike McCready, the Pearl Jam lead guitarist, also helped Staley by inviting him to his side project, Mad Season. McCready had hoped that working with sober musicians would inspire Staley. Demri Lara Parrott, Staley's former fiancée, died of a heroin overdose on October 29, 1996. According to NME, Staley was placed on a 24-hour suicide watch. According to NME, a friend said that Staley was taking Parrott's death "very badly" and had fallen into deep depression. "He never recovered from Demri's death," Lanegan told Rolling Stone in 2002. "I don't think he meant to go further after that."

Staley and the other members of Alice in Chains attended the Grammy Awards on February 26, 1997, after the album "Again" was nominated for Best Hard Rock Performance. Staley purchased a 1,500 sq ft (140 m2) three-bedroom condominium in Seattle's University District by a trust in April of that year. Toby Wright, the artist of Alice in Chains' third album, designed and built a home recording system for him.

Jerry Cantrell told Kerrang that in 1998, during rumors that Staley never left his house, had contracted gangrene, and that he had lost the ability to ingest food and was eating on a diet of Ensure. Alice in Chains members hung out at Staley's house on a daily basis. Staley made a phone call to radio station Rockline on June 22, 1998 and conducted a rare interview when Cantrell was promoting his first solo album, Boggy Depot. Staley called Cantrell to speak with him and said that he loved the album.

Staley re-emerged in October 1998 with "Get Born Again" and "Died," two tracks with Alice in Chains that were not released on the Music Bank box set in 1999. In the midst of the sessions, new evidence of Staley's deteriorating health persisted. "Staley weighed 80 pounds...and was white as a ghost," Dirt producer Dave Jerden, who was originally chosen by the band for the performance, said. Layne "definitely didn't look like how he used to look," Studio engineer Elan Trujillo said, and Staley discovered that in addition to no teeth, he had leg atrophy. Cantrell refused to comment about the singer's appearance, and band manager Susan Silver said she hadn't seen him since "last year."

Staley made his last public appearance on October 31, 1998, when he attended a Jerry Cantrell solo concert in Seattle. He turned down Cantrell's invitation to perform with him on stage. The most recent photograph of him that has been released has been taken backstage at Staley's backstage.

When Staley laid down additional vocal tracks as part of a supergroup named '99, which included members of Rage Against the Machine, Jane's Addiction, and Porno for Pyros, he was thought to have been left behind his "self-imposed rock & roll exile" in November 1998.

When Cantrell, Inez, and Kinney were invited to attend a discussion on the launch of Nothing Safe: The Best of the Box, on July 19, 1999, Rockline's Cantrell, Inez, and Kinney was astonish, when Staley called in to assist. This was Staley's last interview.

Staley's life during this period varied from 1999 to 2002, becoming more reclusive and depressed, with no one knowing the particulars of his death. Staley was expected to spend the majority of his days creating art, playing video games, or even nodding off on heroin. Morgen Gallagher, a one-time roommate of Staley, later announced that around 2001, Staley was going to audition for Audioslave, which was later debunked by Audioslave guitarist Tom Morello.

Nancy McCallum, Staley's mother, told The Seattle Times in 2007 that despite his loneliness, he was never far from the love of his family and friends, who stuffed his answering machine and mailbox with messages and letters. "Just because he was alone doesn't mean we didn't have sweet moments with him." McCallum has also stated that she and Staley were both on Thanksgiving and then again on Valentine's Day of 2002, just around Valentine's Day. This was the last time McCallum saw her son. Sean Kinney has written about Staley's final years and loneliness:

Staley's physical appearance had deteriorated even more than before: his teeth had fallen, his skin was sickly pale, and he was severely emaciated. "If no one heard from him for weeks, it wasn't strange," Matt Fox said. Staley grew disengaged from his peers and bandmates who had repeatedly attempted to get him into rehab, but Staley refused. "He didn't speak to anybody as of late," Staley's close friend Mark Lanegan said. But, for us not to talk for a few months, it's par for the course."

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Career

While working at the Music Bank rehearsal studios in 1987, Staley met guitarist Jerry Cantrell at a party in Seattle. Cantrell had seen Staley with his then-band, Alice N' Chains, perform at the Tacoma Little Theatre a few months before, and was captivated by his voice. After being kicked out of his family's house, Cantrell was homeless, so Staley invited Cantrell to live with him at the Music Bank. The two fast friends were roommates for more than a year in the dilapidated rehearsal space they shared.

Alice N' Chains was soon disbanded and Staley joined a funk band that also needed a guitarist at the time. Cantrell was asked to serve as a sideman by Cantrell. Cantrell agreed to a condition that Staley join his band, which at the time didn't have a name and included drummer Sean Kinney and bassist Mike Starr. To give a hint, they began auditioning bad lead singers in front of Staley, which made him ill. Staley's last straw was when they auditioned a male stripper in front of him – he decided to join the band after that. "I knew that voice was the one I wanted to be playing with," Cantrell said of Staley's voice. It seemed that it came from a 350-pound biker rather than a skinny little Layne. "I consider his voice to be my voice." The funk project came to an end, and Staley joined Cantrell's band full time in 1987. "Fuck" and "Diamond Lie" were two band names in Cantrell's previous band's name.

They were playing a show at the University of Washington two weeks after the band's formation, attempting to fill out a 40-minute set with a few original songs as well as Hanoi Rocks and David Bowie covers. Diamond Lie drew attention in the Seattle area and later adopted Alice N' Chains, the name of Staley's previous band, before renaming her Alice in Chains. Staley's ex bandmates allowed him to use the name.

Randy Hauser, a local promoter, became aware of Alice in Chains at a concert and promised to pay for demo recordings. However, the band was supposed to record at the Music Bank studio in Washington one day before the band was scheduled to perform, but police shut down the studio during the state's biggest cannabis raid. The final demo, which was produced in 1988, was titled The Treehouse Tapes and welcomed music curator Kelly Curtis and Susan Silver, who also worked with Seattle-based band Soundgarden. The demonstration was carried out by Curtis and Silver at Columbia Records' A&R representative Nick Terzo, who arranged an interview with label president Don Ienner. Terzo wrote Alice in Chains to Columbia in 1989, based on The Treehouse Tapes. In 1989, the band also performed another unidentified demo over a three-month period. This recording can be found on the bootleg version Sweet Alice.

Alice in Chains unveiled Facelift on August 21, 1990, which influenced the band's signature style. "Man in the Box," Staley's lyrics, became a big hit. "Man in the Box" is a well-known "wordless opening tune, in which Staley's unique, throat vocals are matched in unison with an effects-laden guitar" and "He who wishes/Will be wasted" with Cantrell's drier, less resonant voice.

The RIAA has now awarded Facelift a double platinum in the United States for two million copies. For two years before releasing the acoustic EP Sap in early 1992, the band performed in favor of the album. Alice in Chains made a cameo appearance in Cameron Crowe's 1992 film Singles, performing "It Ain't Like That" and "Would?" "The rumors of a new war have pushed me to the brink of going back to the United States."

Alice in Chains was the first woman to earn Dirt in September 1992. The critically acclaimed album, as well as the band's most popular, debuted at number six on the Billboard 200 and was named quadruple platinum. The sun logo was engraved on the album's inlay. Staley saved Starr's life after he had overdosed during the Dirt tour in Brazil in 1993. The band did not tour in favour of Dirt for very long because of Staley's heroin use.

Cantrell wrote nearly all of Alice in Chains' songs and lyrics, but Staley added more lyrics as time went on. Eventually, Staley will be credited for about half of the songs from the complete Alice in Chains catalog prior to the introduction of Black Gives Way to Blue in 2009. In addition, he produced the music and lyrics to "Hate to Feel," "Angry Chair" and "Head Creeps," as well as other songs. Staley's lyrics are largely seen as dealing with his personal struggles, such as opioid use and depression. On "Angry Chair" and "Hate to Feel," Staley also performed guitar. On the liner notes of the 1999 Music Bank box set, Cantrell spoke of "Angry Chair":

Alice in Chains' third EP, Jar of Flies, was released in 1994. It debuted at number one, making it the first Alice in Chains release and the first-ever EP—the first to do so. Staley's deteriorating health, the other members of Alice in Chains decided not to tour in favour of Jar of Flies. Following the album's release, Staley found a rehabilitation clinic and began to work on a side project with many Seattle artists, including Pearl Jam's Mike McCready, Barrett Martin of Screaming Trees, and John Baker Saunders of The Walkabouts. The band worked on demos for many months and performed their first performance at the Crocodile Cafe in Seattle on October 12, 1994, under the name "The Gacy Bunch." The band renamed Mad Season within a few weeks. Mad Season performed two songs on Pearl Jam's Self-Polution satellite radio broadcast "Lifeless Dead" and "I Don't Know Anything" in January 1995. The band's album entitled Above, which was released in March 1995, was released in March 1995. On alternative radio, the first single, "River of Deceit," became a modest success. Live at the Moore Theatre in Seattle, a home video, was released in August 1995 as a home video.

During Alice in Chains' hiatus, Staley's drug use began to gain traction in fan and media groups, due in large part to changes in his physical condition as a result of continued heroin use.

Alice in Chains has been recalled to perform Alice in Chains, also known as "Tripod," which was first published in November 1995. The album debuted at number one on the US charts, and it has since been rewarded—along with Facelift and Jar of Flies—double platinum status. The songs on "Grind," "Heaven Beside You," and "Over Now" were all written by Staley, bringing together the band's best lyrical contribution to the band's catalog, with the exceptions of "Grind" and "Over Now." The band released The Nona Tapes, a home video accompanying the album, but the band lapsed again, with no further tours scheduled in support of the album. Cantrell shared some insight into how Staley's heroin use led to internal tensions: "Very frustrating, but we stuck it out." We rode the good times together, and we bonded through the tough times together. We never stabbed each other in the back or spat our guts, and we never stabbed ourselves in the back, and that [did] that kind of bullshit that you see happen a lot. "Drugs served for years for me," Staley told Rolling Stone in February 1996, "now they're turning against me, now they're turning against me, and now I'm walking through hell and this sucks." I didn't want my children to believe that heroin was cool. But then, I've had supporters come up to me and give me the thumbs up, indicating that they're high. That's just what I didn't want to happen."

The MTV Unplugged performance in New York on April 10, 1996, one of Staley's last shows with Alice in Chains. The album of Unplugged came after a lengthy period of inactivity for the band; it was their first show in two-and-a-half years. Staley appeared at Kansas City, Missouri, on July 3, 1996, while Alice in Chains was touring with Kiss.

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