Man in the Box by Alice In Chains

Return with us now to those grisly days of grunge…”Man in the Box” is one of that genre’s early landmarks, a key track in Alice in Chains’ career and one of the first songs to convince people that some powerful stuff was going down in Seattle.

Originally, Alice in Chains were glam-rockers who cross-dressed and spelled their name Alice’N Chainz, but that approach gave way to the slower, sludgier sound that the world came to know and love.

Not that they loved it right away: “Man in the Box” was only a small hit when it appeared on their debut album, but the groundswell started building when MTV added the video a full six months later. By mid-1991, the release of Pearl Jam’s Ten and Nirvana’s Nevermind would give Seattle way more attention than it wanted.

“Man in the Box” was the last song played at Alice in Chains’ last show in 1996.

This is a deceptively easy song, and you have to anticipate the tough parts it throws in. The drums are mostly straightforward, but there are a couple fills that involve fast moves between ride cymbals and toms, with some kick underneath—not a cinch, but survivable.

The guitar part kicks into gear once you get to the solo, and even that starts off easily enough with some long tremolo notes. Then come a few fast runs that can drop you fairly quickly. Overall, this is a good one to try out when you start moving into Expert.

Singer Layne Staley’s substance problems caused him to pull away from the band, and they hadn’t played in years when he overdosed in 2002. Guitarist Jerry Cantrell saluted him by playing Alice’s songs in his solo tours; and in 2005 the band reunited with new singer William Duvall.