"Get Born Again" is a song by the American

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wale ...

band

Alice in Chains Alice in Chains (often abbreviated as AiC) is an American rock band formed in Seattle in 1987. Since 2006, the band's lineup has comprised vocalist/guitarists Jerry Cantrell and William DuVall, bassist Mike Inez, and drummer Sean Kinney. Voca ...

and, along with "

Died Death is the end of life; the irreversible cessation of all biological functions that sustain a living organism. Death eventually and inevitably occurs in all organisms. The remains of a former organism normally begin to decompose sho ...

", one of the last two songs recorded with vocalist

Layne Staley Layne Thomas Staley (born Layne Rutherford Staley; August 22, 1967 – April 5, 2002) was an American singer-songwriter and musician. He was the original lead vocalist of Alice in Chains, which rose to international fame in the early 1990s as p ...

before his death in 2002. The song was released as the lead single from the compilation '' Nothing Safe: Best of the Box'' (1999) on June 1, 1999. It peaked at No. 4 on the ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

Mainstream Rock Tracks Mainstream Rock is a music chart published by '' Billboard'' magazine that ranks the most-played songs on mainstream rock radio stations in the United States. It is an administrative category that combines the " active rock" and " heritage rock" ...

chart, and at No. 12 on the

Modern Rock Tracks Alternative Airplay (formerly known as Modern Rock Tracks between 1988 and 2009, and Alternative Songs between 2009 and 2020) is a music chart published in the American magazine ''Billboard'' since September 10, 1988. It ranks the 40 most-playe ...

chart. "Get Born Again" was nominated for the

Grammy Award for Best Hard Rock Performance The Grammy Award for Best Hard Rock Performance was an award presented to recording artists at the Grammy Awards from 1990 to 2011. The academy recognized hard rock music artists for the first time at the 31st Grammy Awards in 1989. The category ...

in 2000. The song was also included on the compilation albums ''

Music Bank ''Music Bank'' () is a South Korean music program which airs every Friday at 17:15 KST on KBS2. the show is also broadcast in more than a hundred countries through KBS World. Episodes are filmed at the KBS New Wing Open Hall in Yeouido-dong, Ye ...

'' (1999) and ''

The Essential Alice in Chains ''The Essential Alice in Chains'' is a two-disc compilation album by the rock band Alice in Chains, and part of Sony BMG's ''The Essential'' series. Originally scheduled to be released on March 30, 2004, it was delayed until September 5, 2006. T ...

'' (2006).

Origin and recording

The music was written by guitarist

Jerry Cantrell Jerry Fulton Cantrell Jr. (born March 18, 1966) is an American guitarist, singer, and songwriter. He is best known as the founder, lead guitarist, co-lead vocalist, and main songwriter of the rock band Alice in Chains. The band rose to internatio ...

for what would eventually become his second solo album, ''

Degradation Trip ''Degradation Trip'' is the second solo album by Alice in Chains guitarist and vocalist Jerry Cantrell, released on June 18, 2002. It marks his difficult transition from Columbia Records to Roadrunner, and was dedicated to Alice in Chains lead si ...

''. However, after he showed the song to Alice in Chains vocalist

, Staley decided to write lyrics to the song, and it was eventually recorded with Alice in Chains in 1998. In interview with radio program

Rockline ''Rockline'' was a nationally syndicated radio interview program hosted by Bob Coburn that was broadcast live via satellite every Monday and Wednesday night from 8:30pm-10pm PT to radio stations in the United States and Canada. Founded in 1981, ...

in 1999, Staley stated that the song is based around "religious hypocrisy". In the

liner notes Liner notes (also sleeve notes or album notes) are the writings found on the sleeves of LP record albums and in booklets that come inserted into the compact disc jewel case or cassette j-cards. Origin Liner notes are descended from the prog ...

of 1999's ''

'' box set collection, Jerry Cantrell said of the song: Also of note was Staley's condition while recording the song which was made known by ''

Dirt Dirt is any matter considered unclean, especially when in contact with a person's clothes, skin, or possessions. In such cases, they are said to become dirty. Common types of dirt include: * Debris: scattered pieces of waste or remains * Du ...

'' producer Dave Jerden—who was originally chosen by the band for the production—who said "Staley weighed eighty pounds...and was white as a ghost." Cantrell refused to comment on the singer's appearance, simply replying "I'd rather not comment on that…", and band manager

Susan Silver Susan Jean Silver (born July 17, 1958) is an American music manager and businesswoman, best known for managing Seattle rock bands such as Soundgarden, Alice in Chains and Screaming Trees. Silver also owns the company Susan Silver Management, and ...

said she hadn't seen the singer since "last year".

Release and reception

"Get Born Again" was released to radio stations on June 1, 1999. The single peaked at number four on the ''

chart, and at number 12 on the ''Billboard''

chart. The song was nominated for the

in 2000. The song is sometimes credited with being one of the band's most bleak singles. James Hunter of ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. The magazine was first known fo ...

'' described the song as "a drone lifted by ominous chorales, hardened by slashing guitars and set off with Layne Staley intoning, 'Just repeat a couple lies.'"

Music video

The

music video A music video is a video that integrates a song or an album with imagery that is produced for promotion (marketing), promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a music marketing device intended to ...

for "Get Born Again" was released in 1999 and was directed by Paul Fedor. The video shows a disfigured insane scientist trying to duplicate his own version of the band. Footage of Staley, Cantrell, and drummer

Sean Kinney Sean Howard Kinney (born May 27, 1966) is an American musician, best known as the drummer and co-founder of the rock band Alice in Chains. Kinney also founded the short-lived Supergroup (music), supergroup Spys4Darwin, and has collaborated with ...

was pulled from the " Sea of Sorrow" video and bassist

Mike Inez Michael Allen Inez (born May 14, 1966) is an American rock musician and bassist. Since 1993, Inez has been the bassist of the American rock band Alice in Chains. He is also recognized for his work with Ozzy Osbourne from 1989 to 1993. Inez also ...

from the " What the Hell Have I" video. The video is available on the home video release '' Music Bank: The Videos''.

Track listing

Personnel

– lead vocals *

– guitar, vocals *

– bass *

– drums

Chart positions

References

External links

* {{authority control 1999 singles Alice in Chains songs Songs written by Jerry Cantrell Songs written by Layne Staley Songs critical of religion 1998 songs Columbia Records singles