Jar of Flies

Jar of Flies
Extended Play from Alice in Chains
Publication (s)	January 25, 1994
admission	September 7, 1993 - September 14, 1993
Label (s)	Columbia Records
Format (s)	CD, LP, MC
Genre (s)	Acoustics, blues-rock , grunge
Title (number)	7th
running time	30:37
occupation	Singing: Layne Staley Guitar, vocals: Jerry Cantrell Bass, guitar: Mike Inez Drums, percussion : Sean Kinney
production	Alice in Chains
Studio (s)	London Bridge Studios, Seattle
chronology Dirt (1992) Jar of Flies Alice in Chains (1995)

Jar of Flies is the third studio EP from grunge band Alice in Chains . It was released on January 25, 1994 on Columbia Records . It was the first release with new bassist Mike Inez , who previously played for Ozzy Osbourne . It was also the first number one for the band and the first EP to ever hit number one on the Billboard 200 , and it remained the only one until the release of Jay-Z's and Linkin Parks Collision Course in 2004.

style

In Jar of Flies is a predominantly rehearsed with acoustic guitars plate. Similar to Sap , the band's first acoustic EP, the songs are mostly accompanied by drums and bass, and distorted electric guitar solos can also be heard. Mostly a quieter mood dominates, even if the first single No Excuses is played a little faster. An instrumental piece is also included with Whale & Wasp . Strings ( I Stay Away ) and background choirs are incorporated in some places. The first piece of Rotten Apple starts with a talk box effect. In Do not follow a harmonica is used.

title

The title of the album, which is reflected on the cover picture with a glass full of flies with a shadowy child behind it, refers to a school experience by Jerry Cantrell : In an experiment, two glasses were filled with flies, one with food and one without. The students observed how the flies ate each other without food.

History of origin

After returning from the Lollapalooza tour in 1993, the band was left without an apartment because they hadn't paid the rent, so they lived for a while in the London Bridge studio in Seattle . During this time Jar of Flies was created . The EP was written in a week and recorded with Toby Wright , who later also produced the next album Alice in Chains . Within a further week the record was mixed. It was released in January 1994 and debuted at number one on the Billboard charts. The single No Excuses got a lot of airplay on American radio. Other singles were I Stay Away (April 1994, there was a music video for this like No Excuses ) and Don't Follow (1994). Whale & Wasp was released as a promo single in January 1995. After the release of Jar of Flies , the band took a burned out hiatus and gave no interviews, which encouraged the emergence of rumors about drug addiction in particular Layne Staleys .

Track list

Chart positions Explanation of the data

Albums

Jar of Flies   DE 25th 02/07/1994 (13 weeks)   AT 22nd 03/13/1994 (7 weeks)   CH 31 02/20/1994 (3 weeks)   UK 4th 02/05/1994 (5 weeks)   US 1 02/12/1994 (59 weeks)

1. Rotten Apple - 6:58 (Music: Cantrell, Inez. Text: Staley)
2. Nutshell - 4:19 (Music: Cantrell, Inez, Kinney. Text: Staley)
3. I Stay Away - 4:14 (Music: Cantrell, Inez. Text: Staley)
4. No Excuses - 4:15 (Music: Cantrell. Text: Cantrell)
5. Whale & Wasp - 2:37 (Instrumental. Music: Cantrell)
6. Don't Follow - 4:22 (Music and Text: Cantrell)
7. Swing on This - 4:04 (Music: Cantrell, Inez, Kinney. Text: Staley)

Awards for music sales

Country / Region	Award	Sales
Awards for music sales (country / region, Award, Sales)
Canada (MC)	2 × platinum	200,000
New Zealand (RMNZ)	platinum	15,000
United States (RIAA)	3 × platinum	1,500,000
United Kingdom (BPI)	silver	60,000
All in all	1 × silver 6 × platinum	1,775,000

Web links

• Jar of Flies at Allmusic (English)

Individual evidence

1. ↑ ^{a b} www.allmusic.com: Band biography Alice in Chains by Stephen Thomas Erlewine and Greg Prato
2. ↑ www.allmusic.com: Jar of Flies review by Steve Huey
3. ↑ Hanno Kress: Aspirin and Hefeweizen , in Rock Hard, No. 105, February 1996.
4. ↑ ^{a b} www.aliceinchains.net: Band biography ( Memento from March 1, 2000 in the Internet Archive )
5. ↑ Charts DE Charts AT Charts CH Charts UK Charts US
6. ↑ Award in Canada
7. ↑ Award in New Zealand
8. ↑ Distinction in the United States
9. ↑ Award in the United Kingdom