Pink Floyd are, without question, one of the greatest bands of all time. Pioneers of psychedelic/progressive rock, their instantly recognisable The Dark Side Of The Moon (1973) is one of the best selling albums in history. They saw further worldwide success throughout the 70s, following up with classic records like Wish You Were Here (1975) and The Wall (1979). That run of albums, at the band’s height, was the product of rock legends Roger Waters and David Gilmour (Despite their famously turbulent relationship), Richard Wright, and Nick Mason. However, Pink Floyd would never have become what it is without Syd Barrett, the band’s original songwriter and frontman who laid the foundation for success when they formed in London back in 1965. Barrett was the creative force behind their first album The Piper at the Gates of Dawn (1967), putting his incredible musical ability to use in establishing the psychedelic identity that would define much of the band’s work going forward. But as their careers started to pick up speed, Barrett struggled increasingly with his mental health and drug usage, and left the band in 1968. After a small contribution to Pink Floyd’s second album A Saucerful of Secrets (1968), and a brief solo career, his life became one of seclusion until his death in 2006. Barrett’s story would go on to influence much of the band’s work, especially Wish You Were Here – For all intents and purposes an album made in dedication to their friend.
Fast forward to 1987 – Jerry Cantrell, Sean Kinny, and Mike Starr are joined by Layne Staley, one of the greatest vocalists of his generation, to form Alice In Chains. The band rose with the likes of Nirvana and Pearl Jam when Seattle Grunge took off in the 90s – Backed by their evolution of a sludgy heavy-metal sound, primary songwriters Cantrell and Staley delved deeply into themes of personal mental health issues and drug abuse with their lyrics. The band’s most known album, Dirt (1992), dealt in particular with Staley’s battle with addiction, written as a cautionary tale of the destructive relationship between drugs and mental health. In the following EP, Jar of Flies (1994), Staley’s writing turned to themes of loneliness and despair. By the late 90’s Staley had removed himself from public life almost entirely, until April 19th 2002, when he was found dead in his Seattle home.
Mental health issues can take a toll on personal relationships, and leave you feeling hopeless and isolated. Throughout the music made by Syd Barrett and Layne Staley, as well as the music made in honour of them, there are sombre yet compelling expressions of what going through that is like. As we look back at the stories of two of music’s greatest talents, one thing becomes clear – we are never as alone as we may think we are.
Looking first to Layne Staley, we see how the central themes of Dirt stand out on the song ‘Sickman’, which he penned with Cantrell:
“I can feel the wheel but I can’t steer
When my thoughts become my biggest fear
Ah, what’s the difference I’ll die
Oh, in this sick world of mine”
It speaks to how Staley’s addiction took a hold of his mental health – feeling like he’s losing control of his thoughts, and as such control of his life. In a troubling admittance of acceptance, he seems indifferent in the face of his addiction, and towards death. It’s just one example of Staley’s brutal honesty about the state of his health on the album. As the drummer for metal band Dream Theatre, Mike Portnoy, said with regards to Dirt –
“It’s all about his heroin addiction. Half the songs on that album, he’s just crying out for help and just laying it out there, very openly.”
He sees the album as an outlet for Staley, an expression of his issues both lyrically and through the band’s harsh sound. But in an interview with Rolling Stone magazine in 1996, Staley discussed how the album is just as much a warning to others, one that sometimes goes amiss –
“When I tried drugs, they were f****** great, and they worked for me for years, and now they’re turning against me – and now I’m walking through hell, and this sucks. I didn’t want my fans to think that heroin was cool. But then I’ve had fans come up to me and give me the thumbs up, telling me they’re high. That’s exactly what I didn’t want to happen.”
There’s definitely an element of release with regards to music and the outlet for expression that it provides, especially in the case of Alice In Chains. It can be cathartic for both those that make it and those that listen to it. However, Staley shows in the interview that it’s not always the case –
“I thought it was cool that I could write such dark, depressing music. But then instead of being therapeutic, it was starting to drag on and keep hurting.”
Moving on to Jar of Flies, an infusion of more acoustic elements took the music in a slightly different direction, away from the chaotic grittiness of Dirt. But the follow-through of deeply introspective lyricism means the darker moments still persist, through tracks such as ‘Nutshell’. Widely regarded as one of the band’s greatest songs, it’s perhaps the most poignant example of Staley’s open expression, drawing focus to his experience with isolation and suicidal ideation through his harrowing lyrics and vocals:
“And yet I fight, and yet I fight
This battle all alone
No one to cry to
No place to call home”
The impact of the lifestyle forced upon him by fame, with his personal life and private issues being subjected to the public eye, cannot be ignored here either:
“My gift of self is raped
My privacy is raked
And yet I find, and yet I find
Repeating in my head
If I can’t be my own
I’d feel better dead”
Speaking to The Seattle Times in 2007, Staley’s mother, Nancy McCallum, spoke about the toll the lifestyle took on her son –
“There was a lot of touring and fame, sign this and go there. It was a very fast pace and an almost impossible situation, and not conducive to disease rehabilitation and recovery.”
In the Rolling Stone interview, Staley spoke openly about the state of his mental health around the time of production on Jar of Flies –
“Things seemed desperate, and I thought taking my life might be a way out. I made a couple of really weak [suicide] attempts, mostly to see if I could do it, and I couldn’t.”
Staley’s writing throughout Dirt and Jar of Flies is such a true, painful reflection of his life during that time. Looking at his later years only compounds that pain. Staley continued to struggle with addiction, through the production of his final albums with the band – the self-titled Alice In Chains (1995) and the live album of their 1996 MTV Unplugged performance. The incredible Unplugged show was to be one of his last, with Staley going live with the band for the final time in Kansas City in July the same year.
Self-imposed isolation plagued Staley for the final years of his life. Bandmate Sean Kinney spoke to Rolling Stone after Staley’s death, about the extent of the problem –
“It got to a point where he’d kept himself so locked up, both physically and emotionally. I kept trying to make contact. Three times a week, like clockwork, I’d call him, but he’d never answer. Every time I was in the area, I was up in front of his place yelling for him. Even if you could get into his building, he wasn’t going to open the door. You’d phone, and he wouldn’t answer. You couldn’t just kick the door in and grab him, though there were so many times I thought about doing that. But if someone won’t help themselves, what, really, can anyone else do?”
It’s impossible to say what truly drove Staley to isolation – it’s unfair to cite any one thing, such as his drug addiction, as the sole issue. Regardless, Kinney’s account implies a feeling of hopelessness, or a feeling of being a burden to others, that can so easily lead you to decline the help that you deserve.
Layne Staley died from a drug overdose, just over 23 years ago on 5th April 2002, and it was two weeks before his body was found.
Thirty years earlier, Syd Barrett was dealing with substance abuse and mental health issues in a way that undoubtedly parallels Staley. Speaking on the Joe Rogan Experience podcast, Roger Waters discussed his relationship with Barrett in the time leading up to his exit from Pink Floyd. He describes Barrett’s deteriorating mental state, recounting a time where the two were walking in Los Angeles, but Barrett believed he was in Las Vegas. Waters tells Rogan –
“His face darkened, and he looked down at the ground and spat out one word – ‘People’ – and that sort of encapsulates what it was like. Nothing made any sense.”
It wasn’t long before Barrett started to remove himself from people. Waters says that he had “disappeared completely” by 1969, and that Barrett’s family advised Waters not to visit him, knowing he would be “agitated and upset” if reminded of his life before he became reclusive. Waters declines to point to a single cause of Barrett’s decision to isolate himself, suggesting the possibility of Schizophrenia to argue that his consumption of psychedelic drugs wasn’t the defining factor that it is often cited as. Waters goes on to mention Wish You Were Here and its importance in relation to Barrett, and it’s through the music of Pink Floyd that Waters and the band have perhaps the most significant messages about their friend to impart.
The backbone of Wish You Were Here is ‘Shine On You Crazy Diamond’ – a mostly-instrumental monumental rollercoaster, split into nine parts that bookend the album, and when combined reach over 25 minutes long. But the track isn’t just significant in musicality and size, as Waters tells Rogan –
“Shine on You Crazy Diamond is just completely about Syd.”
When the lyrics finally begin in part five, it’s an instant reminder that the band haven’t forgotten Barrett for the brilliant creative personality he was before his life was drastically changed:
“Remember when you were young
You shone like the sun”
The writing then turns to an acknowledgement of the pressures of the industry Barrett and the others found themselves in, ones that directly influenced his mental state, eventually leading to his exit from the band:
“You were caught in the crossfire of childhood and stardom
Blown on the steel breeze
Come on, you target for faraway laughter
Come on, you stranger, you legend, you martyr, and shine”
Syd Barrett had become a stranger to them by 1975. However, as the title of the song – a refrain used throughout – shows, they intended for his legacy to ‘shine on’ through the music that would never have existed had it not been for him. Furthermore, the album’s title track is a message of longing for Barrett to be there to enjoy that music with them again:
“How I wish, how I wish you were here
We’re just two lost souls swimming in a fish bowl, year after year
Running over the same old ground, what have we found?
The same old fears, wish you were here”
Waters writes of the feeling that hasn’t subsided in the years since Barrett’s exit. The two were once trying to navigate their success and increasingly complex lives together. So much has changed in the time since Barrett left that life behind, but one thing has remained the same – Waters wishes that Barrett was still there to experience it all with him.
It’s a sentiment so similar to that held by those close to Layne Staley, both during his time with Alice In Chains, and following his own isolation and death. The music and lyrics on the likes of Dirt and Jar of Flies may have been incredibly dark at times, but bandmate Jerry Cantrell reminds us in an interview with The Skinny magazine that his and Staley’s writing wasn’t devoid of hope –
“We were talking about what was going on at the time, but within that there was always a survivor element – a kind of triumph over the darker elements of being a human being.”
On Jar of Flies, ‘No Excuses’ contrasts with the despair of ‘Nutshell’ with an unconditional commitment from Cantrell to support Staley as he fought his addiction:
“Yeah, it’s fine, we’ll walk down the line
Leave our rain and cold, trade for warm sunshine
You, my friend, I will defend
And if we change, well, I love you anyway”
As Sean Kinney told Rolling Stone, those closest to Staley still made the effort to be with him as he became increasingly isolated. Staley’s mother also told The Seattle Times –
“He was never far from the love of his family and friends — who filled his answering machine and mailbox with messages and letters. Just because he was isolated doesn’t mean we didn’t have sweet moments with him.“
When the band came together to make music again in 2009, for the first time since Staley’s death, the result was the album Black Gives Way to Blue. The title track is a compelling tribute to Staley, concerning the persistence of love and grief for him seven years after his death. Cantrell opens the mellow tune with a statement of that grief, before moving into the chorus:
“I don’t want to feel no more
It’s easier to keep fallin’
Imitations are pale
Emptiness… all tomorrows
Haunted by your ghost
Lay down, black gives way to blue
Lay down, I’ll remember you”
Cantrell knows there will never be another quite like Layne Staley, but as the ‘black gives way to blue’, it can be seen as Cantrell learning to carry his grief, with brighter days ahead. Nevertheless, in the same way that Roger Waters longs to be alongside Syd Barrett again, Cantrell admits that Staley’s memory will never leave him.
Staley and Barrett are two of the greatest musicians of their time. More importantly, the impact they’ve had on the lives of those who knew them, and those who have experienced their music, is immeasurable –
“I spent a lot of time laughing with Layne, arguing which one of us was more metal. At the end of the day it was, perhaps, him – though I’m still trying.”
Tom Morello – Rage Against the Machine, Audioslave
“As a singer and as a human being, I felt that [Staley] was speaking to another realm, and that really stuck with me. It was beautiful.“
Ann Wilson – Heart
“I can’t tell you how sad I feel [Following Barrett’s death]. Syd was a major inspiration for me. The few times I saw him perform in London at UFO and the Marquee clubs during the ’60s will forever be etched in my mind.”
David Bowie (1947 – 2016)
“Layne Staley was one of the best friends I’ve ever had. He had a real mischievous sense of humour, a high intelligence, and he was the most powerful singer ever.”
Mark Lanegan (1964 – 2022) – Screaming Trees
“Syd’s songs were the things that were different. They had that weird English-romanticism about them. They were beautiful.”
“I do wish he was here.”
Roger Waters
“[Alice In Chains is] something we created together and [it] still makes me feel good to continue that, and makes me think of him. Of course, I miss him to death, but I appreciate the time we had, and the music we made together, and I carry on the tradition we started together.”
Jerry Cantrell
Throughout the series on mental health in music, we’ve looked at how important it is to listen to and support those we care about, to cherish the memory of those we’ve lost, and to keep going onwards in their memory. The stories of Layne Staley and Syd Barrett only emphasise the significance of those messages. They are still a tragic reminder of how easy it is for us to feel alone, to remove and isolate ourselves from those who care most about us. However, they are just as much evidence for how the support of those closest to us persists, even when we might not see it. Whenever you’re struggling, please reach out – whether it’s to family, friends, or to the helplines and support systems listed below. You are not a burden, and there will always be people who care about you.
You are never as alone as you may think you are.
Help is available. Here’s a link to a range of support services, including 24-hour helplines, for whenever you need to talk to someone about how you feel. https://mydiscombobulatedbrain.com/help/
Alice In Chains on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/64tNsm6TnZe2zpcMVMOoHL?si=mLgGQBVDSvO8-FKvpykWNQ
Pink Floyd on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/0k17h0D3J5VfsdmQ1iZtE9?si=DRs2YeNZTliB2_s_jTw6Yg
“Musicians Talking About Layne Staley” from Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3MkLupoMle4
Alice In Chains Rolling Stone Interview, Via the Wayback Machine: https://web.archive.org/web/20060405040931/http://www.rollingstone.com/artists/aliceinchains/articles/story/5934699/to_hell_and_back
The Seattle Times Article on Layne Staley, Via the Wayback Machine: https://web.archive.org/web/20151010164819/https://www.seattletimes.com/entertainment/alice-in-chains-singers-legacy-lives-on-through-music/
Roger Waters on The Joe Rogan Experience Podcast: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V5gEso2nkXQ
‘The Last Days of Layne Staley’ by Charles R. Cross for Rolling Stone. June 1, 2002. Cited in Far Out magazine: https://faroutmagazine.co.uk/final-days-alice-in-chains-layne-staley/
Jerry Cantrell Interview with The Skinny Magazine: https://www.theskinny.co.uk/music/interviews/a-looking-in-view-jerry-cantrell-on-alice-in-chains-legacy
Jerry Cantrell Interview with Rick Beato on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vBlfo0GVqqE
David Bowie discusses Syd Barrett, via Louder: https://www.loudersound.com/features/david-bowie-syd-barrett-influences
Ben Parr, 1st May 2025