Alice in Chains book to hit shelves again

By Trent McMartin Mar 20, 2006, 21:05 GMT

ARTS Publications is planning on running a new reprint of the biography of late Alice in Chains frontman Layne Staley, titled “Layne Staley: Angry Chair” via Xanadu Enterprises Inc.

According to the press release, journalist-author Adriana Rubio has been contacted by many of Layne’s fans for “Angry Chair” copies since the title is out of print and “used” copies are being sold online at outrageous prices.

The book has been highly criticized since its release a few years ago mainly due to what many critics call an overabundance of “filler material” that inhabits its pages.

An entire chapter is dedicated to John Brandon, author of the terrible 2001 biography Unchained: The Story of Mike Starr, a book about the former Alice In Chains bassist. Rubio senselessly reprints six songs that Brandon penned for and about the members of AIC and their families. The book is essentially one woman’s perspective of Staley and how his music saved her in her battle with Bulimia.
 
When heard of the book’s existence, Staley himself called Rubio in the middle of the night, blasting her for writing it. In what would be the final interview of his life, Staley wanted to set the record straight about the evils of drug use and that his old girlfriend, Demri Parrott, died of bacterial endocarditis - an infection of the heart’s inner lining - and not a drug overdose as originally reported. An excerpt from the interview is below:

”This ******* drug use is like the insulin a diabetic needs to survive,” he said. “I’m not using drugs to get high like many people think. I know I made a big mistake when I started using this ****!

Knowing the end was near Staley revealed to Rubio in that last interview that his fate was all but sealed. 

“I know I'm near death,” he said. “I did crack and heroin for years. I never wanted to end my life this way. I know I have no chance. It’s too late. I never wanted [the public’s] thumbs’ up about this ******* drug use. Don’t try to contact any AIC (Alice in Chains) members. They are not my friends.”

Staley died in his Seattle condo in April of 2002 of an apparent drug overdose.

Along with “Angry Chair,” Rubio has published two other books in the United States: “Dave Mustaine: Are you Ready to Take the Risk?”(Vantage Press) and “Jim Morrison Ceremony” (ARTS Publications).