''Sap'' is the second studio EP by the American rock band Alice in Chains, released on February 4, 1992, through

Columbia Records Columbia Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music, Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the North American division of Japanese Conglomerate (company), conglomerate Sony. It was founded on Janua ...

. ''Sap'' is mostly acoustic and marks the first time that guitarist Jerry Cantrell sings lead vocals in an Alice in Chains release, with the song "Brother". The EP was produced by Alice in Chains and Rick Parashar and features guest vocals by Ann Wilson of the band Heart, Chris Cornell of Soundgarden and Mark Arm of

Mudhoney Mudhoney is an American rock band formed in Seattle, Washington, in 1988, following the demise of Green River. Its members are singer and rhythm guitarist Mark Arm, lead guitarist Steve Turner, bassist Guy Maddison and drummer Dan Peters. Orig ...

. The track "

Got Me Wrong "Got Me Wrong" is a largely acoustic song by the American rock band Alice in Chains, originally featured on the band's 1992 EP, ''Sap''. Written by guitarist and vocalist Jerry Cantrell, who also shared vocals with Layne Staley. A slightly diffe ...

" became a hit two years later after being featured on the soundtrack to the 1994 film '' Clerks''. On January 14, 1994, ''Sap'' was certified gold by the

RIAA The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/o ...

for the sale of more than 500,000 copies.

Background and recording

Following the tour for '' Facelift,'' Alice in Chains entered the studio to record a song for the Cameron Crowe movie '' Singles'', but decided to turn the engagement to their advantage. As the guitarist Jerry Cantrell recalled: "So in the session that was meant for recording that one song Would?'">Would?.html" ;"title="Would?">Would?' we ended up demoing about 10 songs, which included all the stuff that ended up on the [1992] ''Sap'' EP, ' Rooster' and a couple of others from ''Dirt (Alice in Chains album), Dirt''.” While in the studio, drummer Sean Kinney had a dream about "making an EP called ''Sap.''" The band decided "not to mess with fate," and ''Sap'' was recorded and mixed in 1991 with producer Rick Parashar at London Bridge Studio. The EP was recorded in four or five days in November 1991.

Music and lyrics

Lead vocalist Layne Staley encouraged guitarist Jerry Cantrell to sing lead vocals on the EP. Cantrell sings lead vocals on " Brother" and splits lead vocals with Staley on "

". The EP features guest vocals by Ann Wilson from the band Heart, who joined vocalist Layne Staley and guitarist Jerry Cantrell for the choruses of "Brother" and "Am I Inside". It also features Mark Arm of

and Chris Cornell of Soundgarden, who appeared together on the song "Right Turn", credited to "Alice Mudgarden" in the liner notes. The song was featured in the 2001 film '' Black Hawk Down''. It was guitarist Jerry Cantrell who invited Wilson, Cornell and Arm to sing on ''Sap''. Regarding the lyrical content, Cantrell said he wrote "Brother" about his relationship with his younger brother.Liner notes, '' Music Bank'' box set. 1999. The song specifically refers to the period after Cantrell's parents divorced, when his younger brother went off to live with his father while he stayed with his mother, and Cantrell said that the song "was a way of trying to build a bridge." Commenting on "

", Cantrell said he wrote the song about a relationship where one person thinks he or she can change the other person, and added that the song speaks of "the different ways that men and women see each other." A version of the song " Rooster" was recorded during the sessions for ''Sap'' and was to be included on the EP, but the band then decided to use the song on their second full-length album instead. This version is featured on the band's 1999 box set '' Music Bank''. The hidden track, "Love Song", described by Cantrell as "the most bizarre song we've ever recorded", was Kinney's idea. All four members switched instruments for the recording, with Kinney on lead vocals and piano, Starr on guitar, Cantrell on bass, and Staley on drums.

Release and reception

On February 4, 1992, Alice in Chains released their second EP, ''Sap.'' The band did not want any ads or promotion for the EP, they just put it in the stores to see if people would buy it. Cantrell said that Alice in Chains released ''Sap'' "without any fuss or fanfare so as the real Alice fans could find it." The EP was released while Nirvana's '' Nevermind'' was at the top of the ''Billboard'' 200 charts, resulting in a rising popularity of Seattle-based bands, and the term

grunge music Grunge (sometimes referred to as the Seattle sound) is an alternative rock genre and subculture that emerged during the in the American Pacific Northwest state of Washington, particularly in Seattle and nearby towns. Grunge fuses elements of pu ...

.Gill, Chris (September 1999). ''Dirt''. ''

Guitar World ''Guitar World'' is a monthly music magazine for guitarists – and fans of guitar-based music and trends – that has been published since July 1980. ''Guitar World'', the best-selling guitar magazine in the United States, contains original art ...

''. ''Sap'' was soon certified gold. The album was re-released on March 21, 1995, when "

" became a hit after its inclusion on the soundtrack to the 1994 film, '' Clerks.'' The re-released version included lyrics and slightly different artwork. The aforementioned song, as well as "Brother," were performed live during Alice in Chains' ''MTV Unplugged'' concert. In addition to the CD, the album was also released in a limited edition double vinyl along with '' Jar of Flies'' (''Jar of Flies'' was on sides 1 and 2, ''Sap'' was on side 3, and an etching of the Alice in Chains logo was on side 4). In the UK, ''Sap'' and ''Jar of Flies'' were issued as a double CD, as ''Sap'' had not previously had a UK release. In the UK, "Brother" and "Right Turn" were initially released on the "Would" single and "Got Me Wrong" and "Am I Inside" were released on the "Them Bones" single. Hidden track "Love Song" never appeared on a UK single release and was previously unreleased when ''Sap'' was released with ''Jar of Flies''.

Track listing

All lyrics and music written by Jerry Cantrell, except where noted. "Alice Mudgarden" is Alice in Chains with Mark Arm of

and Chris Cornell of Soundgarden. "Love Song" is a hidden track and there are no credits for it in the album. The

ASCAP The American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers (ASCAP) () is an American not-for-profit performance-rights organization (PRO) that collectively licenses the public performance rights of its members' musical works to venues, broadca ...

database lists all four members as songwriters.

Personnel

;Alice in Chains * Layne Staley – vocals, drums on "Love Song" * Jerry Cantrell – guitar, vocals, bass on "Love Song" * Michael Starr – bass, guitar on "Love Song" * Sean Kinney – drums, percussion, megaphone and piano on "Love Song" ;Alice Mudgarden (performs "Right Turn") *Alice in Chains * Mark Arm – vocals * Chris Cornell – vocals ;Additional vocalists * Ann Wilson – vocals on "Brother" and "Am I Inside" * Chris Cornell - vocals on "Right Turn" * Mark Arm - vocals on "Right Turn" ;Production *

Produced Producer or producers may refer to: Occupations *Producer (agriculture), a farm operator *A stakeholder of economic production *Film producer, supervises the making of films **Executive producer, contributes to a film's budget and usually does not ...

by Alice in Chains and Rick Parashar. * Mastered by Eddy Schreyer at Future Disc Systems, Hollywood, CA *

Art direction Art director is the title for a variety of similar job functions in theater, advertising, marketing, publishing, fashion, film and television, the Internet, and video games. It is the charge of a sole art director to supervise and unify the visi ...

by David Coleman * Photography by Rocky Schenck * Management by Kelly Curtis,

Susan Silver Susan Jean Silver (born July 17, 1958) is an American music manager, 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 co-owns the club T ...

Charts

Singles

Certifications

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sap (Album) 1992 EPs Alice in Chains EPs Columbia Records EPs Albums produced by Rick Parashar