Alice In Chains

        Alice In Chains was formed in Seattle, Washington in 1987. Jerry met Mike Starr. Starr introduced him to Sean Kinney, Mike’s sister’s boyfriend. One night, Jerry met Layne Staley. Soon after, they would form a band. At the time, they were called Alice N' Chainz. They then changed their name to Diamond Lie, toyed with the idea of naming themselves Fuck, and settled with Alice In Chains. They debuted on February 11th, 1989 opening for Mother Love Bone. In that same year, Alice In Chains signs up with Columbia Records. In June 1990, they released their first (EP) "We Die Young". Two months later, the band released their first full length album "Facelift". In January 1991, the band released their first single, "Man In the Box", which became a fan favorite, and "Sea of Sorrow", which followed suit. In 1991 they were nominated for "Best Heavy Metal Artist" at the American Music Awards, "Best Heavy Metal Performance" at the Grammys, and were voted "Best New Band" by RIP Magazine. In early 1992, Layne starts to have personal problems due to his addiction to heroin. In September 1992, They release "Dirt", which in part deals with Layne’s painful drug experiences. The single Would, which appeared in the movie Singles, won the "Best Song From A Movie" award at the 1993 MTV Music/Movie awards. Dirt was voted "Album of the Year" by SPIN Magazine. In 1993, Mike Starr leaves the band and goes on to form Sun Red Sun with Ray Gillen (Badlands). Ozzy’s bassist, Mike Inez joins the band. Later that year, Alice in Chains is invited by Perry Farrell to headline the Lollapalooza tour. They have been nominated for three more Grammys (1995 for I Stay Away, 1996 for Grind, and 1997 for Again), and one MTV Video Award (in 1996 for Again), but haven't won any.

        The band has toured all over the world, opening as well as headlining. Below is a list of some of the most important tours.

        1990 Extreme
        1990 Iggy Pop
        1991 Megadeth
        1991 Clash of the Titans (Slayer, Anthrax, Megadeth)
        1991 Van Halen
        1992 Ozzy Osbourne
        1992 Screaming Trees & Gruntruck
        1993 Lollapalooza (headliners)
        1994 Metallica (several shows cancelled)
        1996 Kiss

        Return to index