Layne Staley Biography

Layne Staley was born Layne Rutherford Staley on August 22, 1967, in Kirkland, Washington, USA, to Phil Staley and Nancy Staley. His parents separated when he was just seven and he had to grow up with his mother and stepfather Jim Elmer.

He was raised with Catholic values and attended ‘Meadowdale High School,’ located in Lynnwood, Washington. Eventually, he adopted his stepfather’s surname.

In 1984, he became part of a students’ metal band called ‘Sleze.’ He then started playing across Seattle as a member of ‘Alice N’ Chains,’ a band formed by the former members of ‘Sleze.’ The name of the band was eventually changed to ‘Alice in Chains.’

On August 21, 1990, the band released their first album ‘Facelift.’ The album featured the hit single ‘Man in the Box,’ which was written and composed by him.

Released in 1992, their second studio album ‘Dirt’ went on to become a massive success. The album featured singles, such as ‘Would?,’ ‘Rooster,’ ‘Angry Chair,’ ‘Them Bones,’ and ‘Down in a Hole.’

In 1994, ‘Alice in Chains’ came up with their album ‘Jar of Flies,’ which received positive critical reviews and became one of their most successful albums.

In 1995, after a year of struggle with his heroin addiction, the band ‘Alice in Chains’ came together for their self-titled album. The album was based on the themes of depression and drug use; this was his last album with the band.

In 1996, he was part of the ‘Alice in Chains’ MTV Unplugged performance. The same year, he also performed in Kansas City, Missouri.

In 1998, he helped record two ‘Alice in Chains’ tracks, namely ‘Get Born Again’ and ‘Died.’ These tracks were released the following year on the ‘Music Bank’ box, a box set compilation album put together with the help of ‘Columbia Records.’

The album ‘Dirt’ peaked at number six on the ‘Billboard 200’ and was 4xplatinum certified. It was one of the bestselling albums of 1992 and sold over five million copies across the globe.

Released in 1994, ‘Jar of Flies’ peaked at number one on ‘Billboard 200’ and received a triple platinum certification. The album sold four million copies across the globe. In 2011, the album was ranked fourth on ‘Guitar World’ magazine's list of ‘top ten guitar albums of 1994.’

In 2006, he was featured on ‘Hit Parader’ magazine, in which he was ranked 27th on their list of ‘Heavy Metals’ All-Time Top 100 Vocalists.’

By 1992, he had started using drugs. Due to his drug addiction, the band ‘Alice in Chains’ couldn’t go on tours to promote their album ‘Dirt.’

In 1996, his ex-girlfriend and ex-fiancée Demri Lara Parrott lost her life due to accidental overdose of drugs.

From 1999 onwards, he kept himself out of the public eye and started spending more time alone in his Seattle condo. He isolated himself and little is known as to what he did during this time.

On April 19, 2002, at the age of 34, his dead body was found at his University District apartment in Seattle. It is believed that he died on April 5, 2002. His autopsy report stated that he had died due to an overdose of heroin and cocaine.

In 2002, his mother Nancy McCallum, along with substance abuse and alcohol abuse counsellor Jamie Richards, set up the ‘Layne Staley Fund,’ a non-profit organization that works with the objective of helping drug addiction victims and providing them medical treatment.