Part of what makes Dirt an impressive artistic achievement is that much of the album was written or co-written by Cantrell, who performed a sort of method songwriting by infusing a junkies hopelessness and guttural desperation even into songs that didnt directly address addiction. But as far as the public was concerned, Staley lived out the rest of his doomed existence as the ghost of grunges skeezy past. My strengths and my talent are my title," he said. googletag.cmd.push(function(){ I invested a lot of money on treatments. var googletag = googletag || {}; Layne Thomas Staley, singer-guitarist, born August 22 1967; died before April 19 2002. var mapping1 = googletag.sizeMapping() His comments given to Rubio show that Staley was aware that his mortality was on the horizon and had accepted his fate. "position": 3, She loved creating decopage with 30s and 40s vintage style images cut outs from wrapping paper or old greeting cards. Thinking about both of them yesterday and today, and what might have been. From the start of Dirt, youre trapped in Staleys skin, and for the next 50 minutes there will be no escape. .addSize([748, 200], [[728, 90]]) Staley couldnt bring himself to join Cantrell on stage after being asked, and a photo taken of him backstage is the last image of the singer before his death. I changed my number. Despite his numerous attempts to get clean, Staleys body was discovered in his Seattle condo, with toxicology reports finding his death was the result of an accidental overdose. He'd been dead for weeks, still cradling a full syringe of heroin. I didn't want my fans to think that heroin was cool.". Back in those days, the band lived in abject poverty, "obsessed with getting p---y and who they were f-----g.". "name": "Home" His biological father, Philip Staley, vanished shortly after his birth in 1967, according to "Layne Staley: Angry Chair" by Adriana Rubio (and explained in Metal Sucks). The two had argued over Staley's condition until Staley threatened to end the friendship if Starr reached out to the authorities. }); Late Alice In Chains singer Layne Staley was reclusive his his final years prior to his 2002 drug overdose death, but stories have surfaced over the years about collaborations he discussed, his hobbies, and run ins he had with old friends. I'm telling you: Demri was here." Learn More{{/message}}, {{#message}}{{{message}}}{{/message}}{{^message}}It appears your submission was successful. This idea was explored to an almost nauseating degree on 1992s Dirt, an unrelentingly grim collection of songs about how people should never, ever shoot heroin. He insisted he wanted to play down his addiction because he was worried that wearing it on his sleeve would turn fans on to drugs, which had gone from a fun hobby to a life-threatening burden. Following his death in 2002, Screaming Trees frontman told Rolling Stone, He never recovered from Demris death. She then ignored directions from the officer on the scene to stay outside, entered the house, and sat next to her son's body. "name": "Deep Cuts" Staley and Parrott were no longer together when she died; because she lacked Staley's rock-star bank account, Parrott was reduced to living out a conventional junkie death, finally prostituting. Rumors began circulating that he had lost an arm to gangrene. "name": "Rock Features" var mapping2 = googletag.sizeMapping() Even sadder, Seattle Weekly says Staley's death contributed to the reversal of an encouraging decline in drug overdoses in the Seattle area. .build(); On top of this, Staley had lost his ability to ingest food and survived off supplements for the last few years of his life. "@id": "https://www.alternativenation.net/", { He was holding a loaded syringe and was sitting on a batch of used ones. Less sympathetic listeners might dismiss Junkhead as the empty lamentation of a rock-star addict, but Staley wasnt looking for pity. In addition to Mark, Demris friend Ferrano agreed with him and stated that Staley died because he felt guilty about ending their relationship and not being kind to Demri who was the only person that loved him although he wasnt famous and rich back then. { "@type": "ListItem", Its known that both Parrott and Staley were struggling with their drug addiction problems for a very long time until the young couples early and unexpected deaths. .addService(googletag.pubads()); "I'm not into religion, but I have a good grasp on my spirituality. (Handout). googletag.defineSlot('/98948493,22548962605/alternativenation_multisize_sidebar_1', [[300,600],[300,1050],[300,250]], 'div-gpt-ad-3901802-7') She was the fiance of musician Layne Staley. "I know I'm dying," Staley is reported to have said. At the time of her death she had already had a pacemaker implanted due to the damage caused by using dirty needles to inject heroine. For the bands cover design, Layne Staley provided the artwork, even painting his girlfriend Demri Parrott on the cover, when approaching the band with the design they quickly agreed with it. googletag.cmd.push(function() { 4. He wasn't really into the trumpet, but the drums he loved. "@type": "WebSite", Meanwhile, Starr, who'd been introduced to heroin by Staley, drank a bottle of bleach used for cleaning syringes, thinking it was water. googletag.defineSlot('/98948493,22548962605/alternativenation_multisize_content_1', [[336,280],[300,250]], 'div-gpt-ad-3901802-3') Frusciante was hesitant to visit Staley because he didnt think you could really preach to somebody about getting clean, but Forrest was adamant about trying to help him. Actually, the best of times was when everyone was just strung out on booze, coke and sex the basic musts on any rocker's CV. } Addiction was a constant throughout Staleys short life, which he tried his hardest to break out from but sadly didnt make it, and his music serves as a memory of his distinct talent. According to The Book Of Rock Lists by Dave Marsh and Kevin Stein (1981 ed. Staley created a personal shrine in the recording studio featuring a dead puppy in a jar that he used for inspiration as he crooned lyrics like "Stick your arm for some real fun.". I know Im near death, Staley continued. Cover for 'Alice and Chains: The Untold Story,' by David de Sola. nodes: [ They were attached at the hip until 1994 when they split for a final time. This portable projector plays your movies in crisp, high-contrast, 1080p detailno matter where you are. } Still, obvious as it was, Staley got defensive when pressed about his habit, worried it would come to define him. They are not my friends.. I did crack and heroin for years. { Forrest had gained a reputation at the time as being someone who could communicate with addicts, he had helped Frusciante get clean in 1997. }); Given the loss of Staley and lag time between records, Black Gives Way To Blue had no right being any good. Staley was found dead, toothless and weighing only 86 pounds, in his Seattle apartment in 2002. She did not use heroin until with him. While late Alice In Chains frontman Layne Staley was largely reclusive during his later years, the legendary singer considered fronting the band that later became known as Audioslave in January 2001, according to Staleys friend Morgen Gallagher, who talked to Alternative Nation in August 2015. It's the worst pain in the world. They also were on hand that year to accept an MTV Video Music Award for best alternative video, an appearance punctuated by drunken shoutouts to Happy Gilmore and Lynyrd Skynyrd and an awkwardly slurred tribute to Nowell. I am interested in rock music, creative writing, drama, and yoga. Alice In Chains frontman Layne Staley had one of the mightiest voices in rock history and alongside Pearl Jam's Eddie Vedder and Nirvana's Kurt Cobain, among others was one of the greatest figures to come out of the grunge movement that originated in his native Seattle, Washington. By this point he had quit [Alice In Chains], he had lost most of his teeth, and weighed barley 100 pounds. In the Staley slot was William DuVall, who sang in Cantrells post-AIC band and sat in with Alice when the band first reunited in 2006 for a benefit concert. I know I did my best or what I thought would be right. It was therapeutic and worked for me for a while, until my dad saw my picture printed on a magazine." But nevertheless, Starr still blamed himself and never even spoke about it until that Celebrity Rehab interview in February of 2010. Tough-guy posturing linked hip-hop with hard rock, and it would come to define the rap-rock hybrid that dominated mainstream rock radio in the late 90s. There was more to Nowell than living life like the world was one big smoke-filled Chevy van. She died in the hospital late in 1996. }, Alternative Nation published a similar article in September 2014, but we are now publishing a new version with a couple of new stories. "name": "Rock Features" As Layne sat there and Ann was swimming, a huge meteor went over them and it lit up Laynes face. .addSize([0, 0], [[320, 50]]) adServer: 'googletag', He was also a serious heroin addict, a habit inspired in part by wanting to mimic his heroes. "@id": "https://www.alternativenation.net/", In a lawsuit filed after Staley's death, his mother, Nancy Layne McCallum, alleged that at one point in the mid-'90s, her son tried to withdraw from the band to take care of his issues, but Silver forcefully pointed out that if he did, he would be putting 40 people out of work. Yes, Staley had been experiencing heroin addiction for years by the time this 1995 article which was titled "Alice In Chains' Layne Staley: Needle and Damage Done" came out. "I never wanted to end my life this way," he continued, lamenting but ultimately accepting his decision to start using crack cocaine and heroin years before. He thought it was very rock n roll, you know, Nowells widow Troy Dendekker said. In Greg Pratos Grunge is Dead, Laynes mother Nancy revealed that Layne was a video game freak. He had a big screen TV, 5 games 5 different gamers. Who doesnt want to go to a concert to hear their favorite songs, regardless of whos singing or whos playing it? Nevertheless, Alice In Chains has lived on like few bands of its time, and even in death Staley is still among the most vital singers youre likely to hear on the local modern-rock station. Menu. - WORLDWIDE:- Vimeo https://vimeo.com/ondemand/whatisclassicrock2Cheers,Daniel Don't leave like this.". Then, two things changed. Club tells us, the year 1996 seems to have marked the start of his slow, sad downfall. Im not doing well. Listening to music you love to hear is fun, period.Rome Ramirez, on replacing Bradley Nowell as the new singer of Sublime, So sing just like him, fuckers/It wont offend him/Just me/Because hes dead.Pearl Jam, 4/20/02, written for Layne Staley. His skin was grey, dark circles under his eyes. He was reporting on his own ongoing dissolution, giving the play-by-play on his soul being ripped away from him. He wanted a teddy bear that Demri had had with her in hospital. The story of his decline began on July 3, 1996, after Staley left the stage following a warm-up set for KISS. googletag.cmd = googletag.cmd || []; }); It's too late. "@type": "ListItem", Bob: Your Moms worried, man. She said he looked like a kid again, and at that moment there was no darkness in his life. "There is no f-----g way I'm going to do that," he shouted. Staley and Parrott met in 1988 while she was working at a store called Saturdays. Two crack pipes were waiting on his coffee table, and several more used needles were uncovered when his body was moved. Although he'd lived as a recluse for years, former Alice in Chains bassist Michael Starr who Diffuser says blamed himself for Staley's death claimed on an episode of "Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew"that he was the last person to see Staley alive. It certainly rejiggers the list: Guitarist Terry Kath of MOR jazz-rock band Chicago (as well as the city of Chicago) died under similar circumstances in 1978, holding a gun he thought was unloaded to his head and mistakenly offing himself in front of his wife and one of his stage crew members. "Since that call I always was wondering, 'Where is my dad?' It was love at first sight. She wasn't happy with the suicide ruling and wondered what more there might be to the story. Hes always been dead as far as most people are concerned. googletag.defineSlot('/98948493,22548962605/alternativenation_multisize_anchor', [[728,90],[320,50]], 'div-gpt-ad-3901802-6') Needless to say, we missed the game and kept pretty much everyone else from watching it as well., That day we were talking and he said he had gotten a call from the old Rage Against The Machine members and they were putting together a new project, and they wanted him to audition. After that, I dont think he wanted to go on.. pubID: '434bb5e4-3704-4b75-b36c-785a444462bd', And as we're all aware, things have hardly improved in the decades since. According to "sources close to the band," Staley lost his 27-year-old ex-girlfriend, Demri Parrott, to a heroin overdose later that same year. People who knew both of them well generally agree (and told me) that Layne never got over Demris death. } Here he is backstage on the Warped Tour looking like one of the many shirtless, deeply tanned, and blond bros lurking in the audience. Parrott was born in Bremerton, Washington to Kathleen Austin and Dennis Dougherty on February 22, 1969. and "Them Bones" unless you've got deep wells of pain to draw from for inspiration. Alice in Chains was opening for Van Halen on tour in 1991 when Staley, prompted by Parrott, started using. (1969-1996) model, artist, grunge icon, beautiful soul The pain is more than you can handle. He said, In his arm? Demri Parrott Remembered. Forrest says that Staleys mind clearly still worked but that he was a million miles away., Bob: Hey Layne. According to David de Sola's book Alice In Chains: The Untold Story, Layne Staley believed that the ghost of his late girlfriend Demri Parrott visited him just days before his April 2002 death.. Alice In Chains frontman Layne Staley and model Demri Parrott's relationship started as a fairytale but turned out a tragic love story that people can still remember. Layne: Nothing. By David de Sola | November 1, 2016 | 0. She said she believes her daughter was there that night to be there with Layne as hes doing his transition., 10. FULL FILM: https://youtu.be/qMlLfrU5fjsAlice in Chains lineup throughout the Layne Staley era consisted of Layne Staley (87 - 98), Jerry Cantrell (87 - 98), Sean Kinney (87 - 98), Mike Starr (87 - 93) \u0026 Mike Inez (93 - 98).Alice in Chains post-Layne Staley has consisted of William DuVall (06 - Present), Jerry Cantrell (05 - Present), Sean Kinney (05 - Present) \u0026 Mike Inez (05 - Present).The We Die Young EP consists of three tracks: We Die Young, It Ain't Like That, Killing Yourself.Facelift consists of twelve tracks: We Die Young, Man in the Box, Sea Of Sorrow, Bleed The Freak, I Can't Remember, Love, Hate, Love, It Ain't Like That, Sunshine, Put You Down, Confusion, I Know Somethin (Bout You), Real Thing.Sap consists of 5 tracks: Brother, Got Me Wrong, Right Turn, Am I Inside, Love Song.Dirt consists of 13 tracks: Them Bones, Dam That River, Rain When I Die, Down in a Hole, Sickman, Rooster, Junkhead, Dirt, God Smack, Iron Gland, Hate to Feel, Angry Chair, Would?Jar of Flies consists of 7 tracks: Rotten Apple, Nutshell, I Stay Away, No Excuses, Whale \u0026 Wasp, Don't Follow, Swing on This.Self-titled consists of 12 tracks: Grind, Brush Away, Sludge Factory, Heaven Beside You, Head Creeps, Again, Shame in You, God Am, So Close, Nothin' Song, Frogs, Over NowThe MTV Unplugged performance consisted of 13 songs: Nutshell, Brother, No Excuses, Sludge Factory, Down In A Hole, Angry Chair, Rooster, Got Me Wrong, Heaven Beside You, Would?, Frogs, Over Now, The Killer Is Me. He seriously, seriously hated "Rutherford." Pop culture obsessives writing for the pop culture obsessed. Staley goes on to discuss how he got back in touch with his dad years after giving up trying but only because Phil had seen his photo in a magazine and, realizing he was rich, hit him up for drug money. "name": "Home" nodes: [ Layne Believed Girlfriends Ghost Visited Him Just Prior To His Death. You dont get the same singular experience listening to Godsmack (which took its name from a Dirt track), Staind, or Creed, who adopted the superficialities of Alice In Chains sonic and thematic signposts and reconfigured them into interchangeably angsty and thuddingly poppy plop-metal. (Jeffrey Mayer/WireImage). On one hand, the two bands got up to some hilarious business pranking each other. She was around five feet tall-maybe even shorter-and was stunningly beautiful. What's not known is if they finally connected. Demri Parrott was an American artist who was born on February 22, 1969. I dont give a fuck if you fucking believe me or not, dude. Because he'd been a recluse for so long, friends and family who might've found him earlier didn't think it was particularly odd they hadn't heard from him during that time. Layne Considered Sending A Demo To Jerry Cantrell. You dont look too good. Sadly, Starr wasn't too far behind his former friend and bandmate. ] I told him that John had gangrene once. Clearly, Staley maintained some of what he learned in his religious upbringing, but he wanted nothing to do with the structures it forced him into. Next Zack de la Rocha had quit Rage Against The Machine just a few months prior, and his bandmates were looking for a new singer. Hes wearing gold Elvis sunglasses and talking about partying with the other bands on tour and hanging with champion skateboarder Remy Stratton. Mark Lanegan and Mike Inez also went to Laynes home and bang on his door trying to see him. "I know I have no chance. It took Layne Staley, Alice in Chains' lead singer, a while longer to kill himself with a speedball. There will always be haters, he said in an interview with budZtv in 2010. It's hard enough to lose a child. When [Dirt] came out, the thing did not leave my CD player, Godsmack singer Sully Erna told Cross in Rolling Stone. Over a torturously slow metal-blues riff, Staley denounces the hypocrite norm, running their boring drills, and commits himself to consuming whatever drugs are available to him. Dirt, in particular, became an important touchstone. Black Gives Way to Blue consists of 11 tracks: All Secret Know, Check My Brain, Last of My Kind, Your Decision, A Looking in View, When the Sun Rose Again, Acid Bubble, Lesson Learned, Take Her Out, Private Hell, Black Gives Way to Blue.The Devil Put Dinosaurs Here consists of 12 tracks: Hollow, Pretty Done, Stone, Voices, The Devil Put Dinosaurs Here, Lab Monkey, Low Ceiling, Breath on a Window, Scalpel, Phantom Limb, Hung on a Hook, Choke.Rainier Fog consists of 10 tracks: The One You Know, Rainier Fog, Red Giant, Fly, Drone, Deaf Ears Blind Eyes, Maybe, So Far Under, Never Fade, All I Am.Boggy Depot (Jerry Cantrell solo record) consists of 12 songs: Dickeye, Cut You In, My Song, Settling Down, Break My Back, Jesus Hands, Devil by His Side, Keep the Light On, Satisfy, Hurt a Long Time, Between, Cold Piece.Degradation Trip Volumes 1 \u0026 2 (Jerry Cantrell solo double record) consists of 25 songs: (Volume 1) Psychotic Break, Bargain Basement Howard Hughes, Owned, Angel Eyes, Solitude, Mother's Spinning in Her Grave (Glass Dick Jones), Hellbound, Spiderbite, Pro False Idol, Feel the Void, Locked On, Gone. "@type": "BreadcrumbList", adServer: 'googletag', "@type": "WebPage", "@type": "WebPage", Forrest recalls the story in his book Running with Monsters: A Memoir. }, "I pay you," she screamed back. Demri's obituary. }, Alice In Chains late leader Layne Staley tragically lost his fight against addiction on April 5th, 2002. 2. But you don't write and sing songs like "Rooster" and "Would?" Like lots of rock stars, Layne Staley didn't have the happiest, most stable upbringing. googletag.defineSlot('/98948493,22548962605/alternativenation_multisize_top_2', [[336,280],[300,250]], 'div-gpt-ad-3901802-2') Whether you believe it or not, it's a hauntingly beautiful story. She will know it sooner or later. !function(a9,a,p,s,t,A,g){if(a[a9])return;function q(c,r){a[a9]._Q.push([c,r])}a[a9]={init:function(){q("i",arguments)},fetchBids:function(){q("f",arguments)},setDisplayBids:function(){},targetingKeys:function(){return[]},_Q:[]};A=p.createElement(s);A.async=!0;A.src=t;g=p.getElementsByTagName(s)[0];g.parentNode.insertBefore(A,g)}("apstag",window,document,"script","//c.amazon-adsystem.com/aax2/apstag.js"); Taproot were recording a new album with Alice In Chains producer Toby Wright in 2002, and wanted Layne Staley to sing on a song, according to Mark Yarms book Everybody Loves Our Town: An Oral History of Grunge. apstag.init({ She looks very similar to Staley's longtime girlfriend and eventual fianc Demri Parrott. Nowell was musically precocious as a child, able pick out a tune on his guitar after only hearing it once. googletag.pubads().refresh(); I didn't create myself because I would have done a hell of a better job.". "@id": "https://www.alternativenation.net/category/rock/", But while the surviving members of Alice In Chains made sure to present their band as a newly evolved entity, Sublimes Bud Gaugh and Eric Wilson are trying to pick up where they were forced to leave off in 1996, when their lead singer, Bradley Nowell, died of a heroin overdose at age 28. sid: '1366', Equally important for Sublimes success was the element of mans-man machismo, which was spelled out on the album cover depicting a hulking and shirtless Nowell standing with his back to the camera and exposing his large Sublime tattoo. "@type": "ListItem", Courtney Love tried to chase him down following Cobain's death. Layne Was Going To Record With Taproot In 2002. He needs his hands and arms. Hed been dead for two weeks; the tip-off that something was amiss came not from concerned family members or friends but from Staleys accountants, who noticed that he hadnt spent any money in several days. By early 2001, it had been a couple of years since he had seen his old friend, so he was very surprised when he ran into him at a party. He said he was going back to treatment and then going to LA to do the audition in a couple of months. Band manager Susan Silver told Staley that he had to be the one to break it to ticket buyers that the concert was going to end midperformance because he was too screwed up to carry on. Starr, after a stint on VH1's "Celebrity Rehab With Dr. Drew" and "Sober House," overdosed on prescription drugs in 2011. } googletag.pubads().disableInitialLoad(); On the rare occasions that he ventured out of his home, where he gorged on videogames whenever he wasnt gorging on drugs, Staley cut a hard figure: Abscesses covered his arms, and hed lost most of his teeth. "item": { The last time Kathleen Austin Demris mother saw Layne was in 1997. Yeah we were . .addSize([748, 200], [[728, 90]])