Don't Follow Lyrics - Alice In Chains

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This one has always been it | Reviewer: Banjo | 1/23/12

I heard this song the first time when I was like 8 years old, and since then I've been a AIC fan. Twelve years listening to all the albums over and over again and the thing is that it's as powerful as the first time I really listened to it.
It seems that every AIC fan out there's special in a special kind of way. I think you know what I mean, deep in a pure but horrible dirty way. Holy in it's unholyness.

This song has always been it for me. It has traveled with me my whole life. Through extremely strong examples. My first love left me without any explenation, it was there. One of my best friends that took a heroin overdose the first time she took it in a age of 16, it was there.

Whatever, the song is it. I've thought that this is the song that will be played at my funeral but fuck that, I wanna hear it while I dies.

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Like every song ever written...... | Reviewer: Anonymous | 11/5/11

All you critics out there, can say what you want. More artists and songwriters will tell you that the song is what ever you the listener makes out of it. The songwriter will have his or her own feeling of what the song means to them selves and what ever personal notations written into to song are for the song writer to only know. Every song out there means something to someone and everyone will have their own interpretation of the song. This song in particular means a great deal of many things to all its listeners. Me it means that the final time I will ever hear is this song played will be at my girl friends funeral as a note for me and everyone else do not follow her when she finally succeeds to kill herself.... :'(.

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I get it.... | Reviewer: Steener | 1/22/11

Maybe because I've been through 6 years of heroin addiction myself, I've never wondered once what this song was about. It's always been pretty obvious what it was to me from the lyrics, especially the ones towards the end, which makes even more sense when reading them after reading Greg's story of the song and that the last part of the song was written by Layne in the throws of his addiction. This has always been one of the songs that spoke to me the most when I was in the deepest parts of my addiction and one that now always reminds me to want to stay clean.

That said it always too has seemed to me a death song too. I've always wanted it played at my funeral.

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Wow. You are all actually wrong... | Reviewer: greg | 12/22/10

Wow. You all managed to get it mostly wrong. In Alice there was a great amount of tension between all the members of the group. Layne was struggling and was the only one who couldn't be out on the road because of his condition. So the other members found this very frustrating and rightfully so. They had worked hard to get where they were and had the chance of a life time. Layne only wanted to participate part time. When they kept pushing him to clean up he viewed it as hypocritical because the all were doing drugs and drinking or at least had. Layne was a full blown addict though and it obviously was very serious he clean up. He decided he wasn't going to. That really crushed the rest of the group. This song was actually written as Jerry actually talking to Layne via the song (which is a common theme in their later work if you know where to look). Layne responds at the end. They both use it as a warning to others and they also communicated with each other. Jerry was begging for Layne to get better... but kind of admitting he had problems too. Layne was essentially saying "it's to late, man... but I will tell others why they shouldn't do this shit" Very sad. It didn't have to end that way. Having friends around like Mike Star(who clung to Layne like a security blanket up until he died) don't really improve your chances either... though it looks like he might be on the mend which is great for him.

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oh and for the record... | Reviewer: greg | 12/22/10

Layne did love the members of AIC and if you take what that idiot published in her interview with him near the end of his life you are not getting the whole story. Layne was actually contacting her to tell her not to screw this up. He was chastising her for contacting his family and friends. He knew he couldn't stop her and nobody else was asking to write his story at that time...he was very, very weak and couldn't really put up much of a fight. So he did what he could and she published some out of context BS. He was meaning that he doesn't talk to the members of AiC anymore... not that he didn't love them. They just weren't everyday pals...essentially because they weren't going to stand around and watch him die...

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jeez people! | Reviewer: AIC fan | 11/4/10

OK! Jerry wrote most of the MUSIC but he and Layne each wrote about half of the lyrics. different on different songs/albums of course. No matter who wrote them, they made these as a BAND, not what Jerry did or what Layne did. They were good friends for the most part. I definitely understand where people are coming from. I am one of the biggest LS fanatics out there. haha. And it really pisses me off when people think that he was the one writing all of this and not giving credit to the rest of the band. But it really makes me mad when people say that Jerry is/was the one behind the music. yeah, Layne had his problems and is the reason they canceled tours and sh*t, but that band never would have made it without him. Just listen to his voice compared to Jerry's---they are so different, and while they sound good together, Jerry is not anything special on his own. Just listen to the Unplugged version of a song like Down in a Hole or Would? and tell me that Layne's voice is not what makes those songs what they are... most AIC fans like the fact that they let ppl know they are not the only ones feeling that way, sad, lost, alone, regretful, etc. And this is all due to their unique sound and songwriting. Just wanna say William Duvall sucks, they should have changed their name to Lenny Kravitz Band after they brought him on. AIC will never be the same, they are missing such a big part of their sound. RIP Layne Thomas Staley! You will always live through the music that you left us, and in the hearts that you have touched.

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Composing | Reviewer: Telcontar | 9/8/10

No doubt Layne could write a good song, but if you look at credited writing and listen to most of the band members talk you'll find that Layne had a hand in perhaps 30 percent of Alice's songs. He did write almost all of at least one album (Jar of Flies). Layne was a great singer, wrote some good songs, but far as I'm concerned Jerry was the power behind AIC.

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Take it for what it means to you | Reviewer: MadSeasonsAic25071 | 8/18/10

Personally i think you should let the song mean whatever you want it to mean TO YOU.Also layne had a big part of writing almost all of the aic songs there were only a few that cantrell actually wrote alone...Personally i thing jerry is a self absorbed asshole...His solo album boggy depot or what the hell ever it was called was shit yet laynes band mad season was a hit...and is a great album... take it for whatever but Staley was and is alice in chains thus why now noone give 2 shits or piss abou them no layne = no good AiC also mike inez is a fag..Mike starr is way better on bass...sean kicks ass tho..but treasure AiC with layne and Mad Season bc AiC sucks donkey balls now.

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bob | Reviewer: Anonymous | 8/11/10

The song is about leaving the ones who were important to you behind, due to drug addiction. Leaving them behind, and letting them know they should give up on ever getting you back. They should not follow.

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Powerful | Reviewer: john | 7/22/10

The song...mrly is not about a breakup...wow. Talk about seeing things at face value. If you knew the slightest bit about AIC and drug addiction you would know this is about the path of addiction. Jesus. Anyways...this song is extremely powerful to me...I am a recovering heroin addict. I am lucky to be alive today. I wish Layne was too because the music that he created and helped create is incredible. The album Jar of Flies is haunting and dark...but it is also poetic and beautiful. It is my favorite album of all time. And I can't help but get choked up when I listen to the lyrics because the pain is right there and it is REAL. It isn't fake like so much of today's music. The song is called Don't Follow for a reason...it is talking about the deadly and dark disease of drug addiction and how following that path would be the biggest mistake of your life.

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Totally different take on things,others may not agree! | Reviewer: Joe | 4/26/10

As a person who suffers from bipolarism and manic depression, and a recovering drug addict and alcoholic. I see this as somewhat of a suicide note to those that you leave behind that you love. Everytime I hear this song it makes me sad and It's how I feel sometimes. Thanks

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yup yup | Reviewer: Anonymous | 4/7/10

Yeah Jerry cantrell Wrote 99% of the lyrics if not 100% and layne sang the last part of this song "forgot my women and lost my friends" that part. and on most of the songs Jerry backed up Layne. Them Bones is a perfect example. but on the earlier heavier stuff was just Layne

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Think again... | Reviewer: Melanie Specht | 3/31/10

So all of you are morons..Jerry wrote most of it..but it wasent about a break-up..sleep in sweat the mirrors cold..seen my face? its growin old..get it right..and jerry wrote about half of all the lyrics through-out their career..layne the other half..

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MORONS | Reviewer: Anonymous | 2/21/10

Hey Ana, u are a moron. Obviously the song was written for a reason. To make money and ya Jerry Cantrell wrote 99% of the lyrics for their songs and also backed up Layne on most of them. Jerry actually sang most of "Dont Follow".

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get yo facts straight. | Reviewer: mrly | 1/24/10

jerry wrote the song, layne didnt.
its about a breakup.
done.

but if youre looking for songs about how much heroin sucks by layne please feel free to check out angry chair, hate to feel, head creeps, sickman.

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