I slept on it for years (with No Excuses being the only song I knew off it, but thought it was on Sap originally), then heard Nutshell and immediately broke down, like god damn. Ended up binging the rest of it after that.
Somebody once asked me why Alice in Chains is my favorite band. My reply was that you don't listen to their music, you feel their music in your soul. Prime example is this song right here. I suggest "Rotten Apple" next.
Regarding DON'T FOLLOW ... The band came home from being on tour for nearly three years on/off, found out that SOMEONE forgot to set up an automatic bill pay situation, and was kicked out of the band house they were renting for late rent. So they moved into the studio. Jerry had called engineer/producer Toby Wright and asked if he'd be willing to do an EP with them. Toby said, "Yeah, sure." When Jerry showed up, Toby asked, "so where are the songs?" Jerry: "About that... there aren't any. Can we hold up here and work?" So they spent 7 days living and working in a studio. Jerry, Mike Inez, and Sean would do the music, and then Layne would take it, lock himself in a room and write a song to the music. So whenever you see Layne as writer or co-writer on a Jar of Flies song... it was because he locked himself in a room and wrote his part of the lyrics he still had a drug addiction he was dealing with but it wasn't getting in the way of the music. One of the 13 times Layne tried rehab was AFTER they finished Jar of Flies... He completed the program, immediately went to Mark Lanegan's place directly off the plane, got high, and showed up at rehearsals high one day before they were supposed to go on tour with Metallica in 1994. As for having to cancel the tour with Metallica, James Hetfield is a jackass. JERRY was the one who was friends with the guys in Metallica. Layne wasn't. Layne tolerated the Metallica guys being in the front row of the Unplugged show for Jerry's sake. There's no love lost between Layne and Metallica since AIC had to cancel the 1994 tour with Metallica and James Hetfield made fun of Layne's addiction because AIC couldn't do large tours due to Layne's addiction. When Hetfield went through his own stint in rehab for being an alcoholic, he had the audacity to ask for "understanding" while he went through his rehab. Yet, he didn't give that same "understanding" to Layne when Layne was going through it. During the 2nd KISS show in 1996, Layne took a shot at Metallica for wearing mascara and eyeliner, etc etc which they were at the time. Metallica says their Death Magnetic album started out as a tribute to Layne and SHINE was about Layne, but they did that for Jerry not because they all of a sudden started to like Layne after he died. "Oh, but Lars named his kid Layne." If he did it was a guilty conscience that got the better of him for how Metallica treated Layne. Then the band sort of took a hiatus and Layne tried his 13th time at rehab (11 attempts in a rehab facility and 2 times cold turkey) and on his 2nd attempt at kicking drugs cold turkey, this time in the wilderness with 3 friends. When they stopped at a Safeway for a food run, someone was giving Layne crap, and Layne decked the guy. His friends dragged him out of the store and they ended up in a parking lot with some kids who were blasting NO EXCUSES. They were wondering if it was Layne in the car. The minute the chorus of the song hit, Layne sang it PERFECTLY on key with the song and there was NO DENYING it was Layne then. When he got back to Seattle, he fell off the wagon and back into addiction. But Mike McCready, Barrett Martin and John Baker Saunders dragged him out of his condo and got him interested in Mad Season's Above album. McCready thought if Layne was around sober musicians, he would want to be sober. It didn't work, but what came out of it were these dark, beautiful, haunting songs that Layne wrote the lyrics to (everything he sang outside of Lennon's I DON'T WANNA BE A SOLDIER, Layne wrote the lyrics to for Mad Season. McCready was thinking of demoing and Layne raised the ante to "Screw demoing, we're doing a full album" Jerry was going to do a solo album, but nothing would be as good as something he did with AIC, so he started working on Tripod in December 1994-January 1995... then he brought Toby Wright in, thinking once the guys heard he was working with Toby, they'd come running. Everyone but Layne, Jerry had to go find and then talk Layne into coming back. So Mad Season did Live at the Moore on April 28-29, 1995, and then Layne returned to AIC to record Tripod. Layne mentioned wanting to try rehab again, AIC manager Susan Silver nixed that. They had an intervention labeled as a band meeting where Susan Silver basically made Layne responsible for 45 people (including himself, his bandmates, and HER) and that these 45 people were depending on him to write and perform. When Layne's mother heard that, she asked why they couldn't find a new singer until Layne completed rehab, Susan told her, "You don't get it, LAYNE IS Alice In Chains." So, a lot of Layne's anger at the management and record company went into the Tripod album. DON'T FOLLOW is a gloomy, introspective track that can be interpreted in two ways: 1) The main character is running away from home, tired of the life he has to live. 2) A drug addict warning others not to do drugs, as you can’t turn back. DON'T FOLLOW kinda ties into the next song SWING ON THIS. According to producer Toby Wright who worked on Jar of Flies, Tripod AND re-editing the video for the Unplugged show, "It was Jerry's concept of having him start out the song, and Layne comes in, and then we finish up [with a] two-sides-to-the-story type of thing, which I thought was a brilliant concept." The first verse that is sung by Jerry Cantrell "Hey, I ain't never coming home / Hey, I'll just wander my own road / Hey, hey, I can't meet you here tomorrow, no / Say goodbye, don't follow / Misery so hollow Jerry isn’t happy with his life at home, so he decides to run away, thinking it will fix his problems. He is telling his friends and family that he’s running away, and not to bother looking for him. It’s likely he could be telling them this through the form of a note, rather than just saying it in person. In the first couple of lines in the third verse sung by Layne "Ooh, forgot my woman, lost my friends / Things I'd done and where I've been" This is part two of the song; the tempo and tone of the song shift from gloomy and bland to more upbeat in a dark cynical way. He has traveled down the wrong path and realized he has estranged himself from everything he once knew.
Whale and Wasp is a instrumental track off the album but its moving. Worth a listen off camera. Amazing how they can elicit certain emotions with just instruments
Omg!! FINALLY someone does my favorite song by him! Them. (This one I do hear the lyrics) ❤😥❤ Y'all heard the talent and felt the sadness! Oh bless you Asia, for what you said... he def needed a hug and some love. 🎶 #bluesrock #grunge
It was sad how addiction to 'h' pushed Layne Staley to the point of no return... People tried to help him, his band... his family... friends...but he was becoming more isolated and wouldn't listen to reason. When this was recorded in late 1993, he was always shooting up in the bathroom... He went to rehab... he went to treatment... and he would fall back to using every time. When his girlfriend Demri died in 1996, it was over for him... There was literally no reason for him to recover in his eyes. Guitarist Jerry Cantrell in 1998 saw him in the studio and reportedly admonished him because Layne seemed more interested in going back to Seattle to get high (Layne allegedly made up an excuse that his sister was getting married & he had to be there - they knew his sister had already gotten married, so he was lying...). Layne was just not motivated to do anything... his teeth were rotting & falling out in his last years... he was frail and unkempt. Former AIC bassist Mike Starr claimed that he had visited Layne at his apartment in 2002, a while before he was found dead... as he left, Layne allegedly felt hurt and told Starr not to come back if he went. Layne was found dead weeks later. Mike Starr died in 2011 from a prescription drug OD. Addiction to 'h' is one of the hardest things to kick... Ratt guitarist Robbin Crosby (who died in 2002 from an OD , after he had contracted AIDS) said quitting 'h' is like quitting breathing when addicted... Nikki Sixx (bass) of Motley Crue was hooked on it and published 'The heroin diaries' - a book that had his diary entries in the past & shed light on his life in the 80's when he was using and nearly died of an OD in 1987... Sublime's main man Bradley Nowell was found dead from an 'h' OD in 1996, while on tour w/ Sublime... Blind Melon singer Shannon Hoon was also found dead after years of 'h' abuse in 1995... Red Hot Chili Peppers guitarist Hillel Slovak died in 1988 from 'h', and their singer Anthony Kiedis had also abused the drug for years and survived... RHCP guitarist John Frusciante also got addicted in the 90's and was lucky he got clean by 1999. Slash (guitar) of Guns N' Roses had to be resuscitated from a 'h' OD on tour in the early 90's... so did Pantera vocalist Phil Anselmo in 1996, after he OD'd on 'h' after a Pantera concert... Kurt Cobain of Nirvana was also an 'h' abuser. Even going back to the past... Jimmy Page (guitar) of Led Zeppelin was hooked on the drug by 1977... he looked thin, frail and was isolated from everyone, but he was lucky to kick the habit... Aerosmith's Steven Tyler (vocals) & Joe Perry (guitars) had been hooked in the 70's and did not get clean from 'h' until the late 80's... Megadeth's Dave Mustaine was a notorious 'h' abuser in the 80's and 90's... as were the other members of Megadeth during that time. It's as bad a drug as they come... I've heard that from people who had used it firsthand...
RIP Layne. This song is amazing. Heroine isn't a recreational drug. You kill it, or it kills you. He couldn't kill it. It killed him. When he wrote this he knew that he wouldn't be with us long.
Jerry’s part is so soft and thoughtful then Layne comes in and just lays it out - once again, chills. It’s like a very hard & honest conversation between two friends who have reached a fork in the road……one choosing to go left and the other right, but will always love each other no matter what direction they take.
Jerry Cantrell is definitely a great backbone to this band. Their current singer is great and does Layne justice. I get to see them live again in September at Louder than Life music festival. Please check out Laynes other project Mad Season. Pretty awesome as well.
@@td315 lol! William does fine harmonizing with Jerry. Is it the same? Of course not. It's a different vibe now, but I'm glad they're still keeping the songs alive on stage
@@mneugent7658 true true, my friends and I thought Layne wrote the lyrics when they first came out in the early 90’s. There was no internet or any reliable way to find out that kind of info. Especially a dumb group of teenagers like us.
*When is someone going to react to River of Deceit, or more, by Mad Season? Mad Season singer is Layne Staley. I have all AIC albums/CDs and thought they were the best from Seattle during that time. Followed by (not in any order because I liked them all): Soundgarden, Pearl Jam, and Mother Love Bone. Just wish Layne had gotten it together.*
Yo, there's a vid where Chris Cornell talks about the last time he saw Layne alive. Looking horribly depressed. He said he'll always regret not going to him that night. With something. :`( (You guys... a harmonica is often called a harp. A mouth harp. Might be what that person was meaning.)
My favorite 90s band. Raw talent, pure and simple. Please react to them doing "Love Hate Love" live and "It Ain't Like That" from their first album Facelift. RIP Layne💖
This song reminds me of sitting around a campfire and some guys break into a song. I know few musicians and they've pulled out their guitar and/or harmonica when camping and play some of their songs or covers where we sing along.
It’s one of AICs best songs ever… and you both hit the nail on the head! Those words were a flash forward of what ultimately happened to Lane, and he knew it early on :(
How do I not know you guys did this song??!! I just rediscovered this song again about a week ago and I can't stop listening to it. The outro is like a completely different song and it is spectacular. F'n 🔥
8/1/2023 and found your reaction to this! The wonderful thing about this song is it can mean whatever you want it to mean ❤ it got me through some super difficult times… addiction, homelessness, depression… even though it’s “dark” it touches my soul each time I hear it ❤my absolute most favorite song by AIC although, I adore them all!
He was battling depression and expressed it the best way he could through music, that's pain in that mans voice. Also battling an addiction that eventually killed him in 2002. RIP Lane.
probably my favorite song by them, i read it similar to how you said, the first half, dont follow me down this dark path ive chosen for myself, second half realizing how lost he truely is and begging for help for someone to take him home. beautiful and tragic all at once. thanks for reacting to this one so far i havent seen any other reactors cover this song.
No harp, just harmonica. Harp is a slang term for a harmonica. The plucked strings were acoustic guitars. Such a great song. This whole EP, Jar of Flies, is awesome. The only fault is that it is an EP and not a full album. Thanks for listening and sharing. Peace from SF
Played this at my Mama’s funeral upon her request, along with Temple Of The Dog’s “Say Hello To Heaven”, Nikka Costa’s “Push & Pull” (female with a VOICE A BANGING VOICE) and Mazzy Star’s “Fade Into You”
I don't know if I truly have just one favorite song, but every time the idea is floated to me, this is the first one that comes to mind. Just a beautiful, haunting track. I've always envisioned this as a campfire song, to be sung in a circle around a roaring fire.
You all may want to check out Jerry Cantrell‘s new solo album. Much like this song there are several with a country field to them. Also no one is doing a reactions to the Brighten album from Jerry Cantrell!
Layne was one of those people that embody a spirit that is older and wiser than anyone can realise while he was on this plane with us. There are a few artists that use the talent they have to teach us and lead us to a higher level of self and through his pain and sadness he opened up and gave so many something to feel along too and help them to get past what Layne the man couldn't in his own lifetime. That is why he is and always will be a true Legend.
❤ this was mostly of Jerry Cantrell, but of course beautifully translated by Layne vocally. Makes you wonder if Jerry wrote it FOR Layne. RIP. I love this song. It's what I feel when I am burned out and sick of it all.
Layne Staley did one album with another band called MAD SEASON. The lead guitarist of Pearl Jam was in the band with him. They had two major hits!! River of Deceit and DOWN
Becoming/being a heroine addict must be absolute hell. Layne must have had moments of not remembering his love, his friends, and even his thoughts and actions. When the heroine wears off and one comes to realize what his/her thoughts and actions were, what goes through that particular mind? I can only imagine the deepest crevice of HELL! I know I would want to go back to the way things were before ("home"), but may not know how to if I were too far gone in my addiction. Realizing that "I ain't never coming home" from deep addiction, how would one keep him/herself from going insane. My guess is to escape in more heroine. Such an incredibly sad story. RIP Layne and Demri.
"It hurts to care I'm going now" is the proper lyric. People need to get that right. Nobody's asking them to translate Anna Karenina on here. It's one song.
those of us who lived in the late 80s and 90s when AIC was coming into the mainstream did have a pretty good idea of the troubled life of Layne and a lot of their songs reflected his pain in his addiction. The news of his death hit fans pretty hard, one of the most epic voices in rock history.
If you want to check out more Alice In Chains with Jerry Cantrell singing the lead vocals check out Heaven Beside You, No Excuses, Grind and Over Now. Also Mad Season Feat. Mark Lanegan - Long Gone Day (Live). If you want to check out AIC post Layne Staley listen to Check My Brain. Jerry Cantrell also did some solo album. A few great songs are Cut You In and Devil By His Side
People you need to realize Jerry Cantrell is the main song writer for this band ! That is he is the main lyricist and music writer… This is Jerry’s song lyrics and music! Jerry gives credit to Layne for pushing him to be the main Director of this band as if he was telling Jerry “ hey I’m not gonna be here much longer you Ned to keep this thing going!
I can't believe you guys did don't follow and I missed it? Check out Mad Season Wake up Mad Season consist of Layne Staley from Alice n Chains and Mike McCready guitarist 🎸 from Pearl Jam.
That's not a harp he's playing, it's an acoustic guitar through an amplifier, there is also an acoustic bass guitar ran through an amplifier, really cool sound anyway!!
Thing about Jerry Cantrell is he had stage fright. So he wanted other people to sing. But Layne had to convince him he had a great voice. And should step up to the Mike more. And as you can hear here, he wasn’t lying.
In the depths of my addiction. Heroin. Alcohol. Cocaine. I figured this would be the song at my funeral. Teach my kids a lesson. Struggled with mental health forever. Nice.
