Layne Stanley is one of the greatest voices of grunge and music history, with worldwide recognition as the vocalist and songwriter for Alice In Chains , an important band of that era.
Born on August 22, 1967, in Kirkland, Washington, the singer was largely responsible for the group's success. His unique voice and compositions transformed a cover band into an instant hit.
The band's first album, Facelift , was released in 1980, and its first single, "Man In The Box," remains an example of Layne's genius to this day. With three studio albums, the singer also worked on other projects such as Mad Season, with whom he released an album, Above , in 1994, and Class Of '99.
Layne struggled for many years with depression and substance abuse, which resulted in his death in April 2002. The musician was found dead on the 19th, however, after an autopsy, the date of his death was estimated to be two weeks earlier, on April 5th. The examination also revealed that Layne died from a mixture of heroin and cocaine, and his death was classified as an accidental overdose.
Following the tragedy, Alice In Chains released two albums with vocalist William DuVall and continues to be active, though never surpassing the success they achieved with Layne. That said, we at Wikimetal want to honor and celebrate Layne Staley's life and career with a list of his best performances. Check out the tracks below and tell us if you think we missed any!
11. “Bleed The Freak” from the album Facelift (1990)
10. “Nutshell” from the album Jar Of Flies (1994)
09. “Down In A Hole” from the album Dirt (1992)
08. “Grind” from the album Alice In Chains (1995)
07. “Rotten Apple” from the album Jar Of Flies (1994)
06. “Love, Hate. Love” from the album Facelift (1990)
05. “Them Bones” from the album Dirt (1992)
04. “I Stay Away” from the album Jar Of Flies (1994)
03. “Would you?” from the album Dirt (1992)
02. “Man In the Box” from the album Facelift (1990)
01. “Angry Chair” from the album Dirt (1992)
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