"Angry Chair"
US commercial cassette single
Single byAlice in Chains
from the albumDirt
Released	November 1992[1]
Recorded	1992
Genre	Grunge[2]
Length	4:48
Label	Columbia
Songwriter(s)	Layne Staley
Producer(s)	Alice in Chains Dave Jerden
Alice in Chains singles chronology
"Them Bones" (1992) "Angry Chair" (1992) "Rooster" (1993)
Music video
"Angry Chair" onYouTube

"Angry Chair" is a song by the Americanrock bandAlice in Chains. It was the third single from their albumDirt (1992). It is the eleventh song on most copies of the album and twelfth or tenth song on others. The song was included on the compilation albumsNothing Safe: Best of the Box (1999),Music Bank (1999),Greatest Hits (2001), andThe Essential Alice in Chains (2006).

The song was one of the few written entirely by vocalistLayne Staley for the band. In theliner notes of 1999'sMusic Bank box set collection, guitaristJerry Cantrell said of the song:

Such a brilliant song. I'm very proud of Layne for writing it. When I've stepped up vocally in the past he's been so supportive, and here was a fine example of him stepping up with the guitar and writing a masterpiece.^[3]

"Angry Chair" was released as a single in 1992. "Angry Chair" peaked at number 34 on theBillboardMainstream Rock Tracks chart and at number 27 on theBillboardModern Rock Tracks chart. It is notable for being the only song by the band to chart higher on the Modern Rock Tracks chart than on the Mainstream Rock Tracks chart and most Alice in Chains singles usually either fail to enter the Modern Rock chart or chart lower. The UK single was released in May 1993.^[4] "Angry Chair" reached the top 40 in the UK and the top 30 inIreland.

Ned Raggett ofAllmusic said that "Layne Staley and Jerry Cantrell unsurprisingly are the ones who transform the song into something really spectacular" and added that the song features "entrancing verses, ominous, echo-swathed and charged with a looming destruction."^[5]

AMIDI version of "Angry Chair" appears on Map 25: Bloodfalls of the popular PC computer gameDoom II.

Themusic video for "Angry Chair" was released in 1992 and was directed byMatt Mahurin, who later directed the "No Excuses" music video for the band. The video is available on the home video releaseMusic Bank: The Videos.

Dirt marked the introduction of Staley's guitar playing contributions to the group, and "Angry Chair" was one of the few songs he regularly played guitar on during live performances. The song is also a fan favorite. The ending to the song was often used as a lead in to another famous Alice in Chains song "Man in the Box" in concert. The current members of Alice in Chains performed an acoustic version of "Angry Chair" with ex-Stone Temple Pilots/ex-Velvet Revolver lead singerScott Weiland in concert on September 30, 2007 in Austin, Texas.

Alice in Chains performed an acoustic version of "Angry Chair" for its appearance onMTV Unplugged in 1996 (although the song was omitted from the aired performance) and the song was included on theUnplugged live album and home video release. This version opens with an impromptu rendition by Cantrell of "Gloom, Despair and Agony on Me" from the TV showHee Haw. Live performances of the song can also be found on the "Heaven Beside You" and "Get Born Again" singles and the live albumLive.

1. "Angry Chair" – 4:47
2. "Brother" – 4:27 (fromSap)

Limited Edition 4 Track Picture CD

1. "Angry Chair" – 4:51 (fromDirt)
2. "I Know Somethin' (bout You)" – 4:24 (fromFacelift)
3. "It Ain't Like That" (live) – 4:40
4. "Hate to Feel" (live) – 5:35

• Both live tracks recorded March 2, 1993

• Layne Staley – rhythm guitar, lead vocals
• Jerry Cantrell – lead guitar, vocals
• Mike Starr – bass
• Sean Kinney – drums

• 1992 singles
• Alice in Chains songs
• Songs written by Layne Staley
• 1992 songs
• Columbia Records singles

• Articles with short description
• Short description matches Wikidata
• Articles with hAudio microformats
• Single chart usages for Ireland2
• Single chart called without song
• Single chart usages for UKsinglesbyname
• Single chart usages for Billboardmainstreamrock
• Single chart usages for Billboardalternativesongs