The band went on a semi-permanent hiatus in 1996 due to the band members' conflicting schedules and Staley's problems with substance abuse. Attempts were made in the late 1990s to revive the group without Staley, and material for a follow-up release to Above had been worked on; however, the band dissolved following the death of bassist John Baker Saunders in 1999 from a drug overdose. Staley also died of a drug overdose three years later. Martin and McCready have since made two short partial reunions, one in 2012 and one from 2014 to 2015. A special edition box set containing a remastered edition of Above and various unreleased material was released in March 2013.
During the production of 1994's Vitalogy, Pearl Jam guitarist Mike McCready went into drug and alcohol rehab at the Hazelden Clinic in Minnesota, where he met bassist John Baker Saunders.[5] In 1994, when the two returned to Seattle, Washington, they formed a side band with drummer Barrett Martin. McCready played in such bands as Pearl Jam and Temple of the Dog, Martin with Skin Yard and the Screaming Trees and Saunders with blues talents such as Little Pat Rushing, Hubert Sumlin, Sammy Fender, and The Lamont Cranston Band.[6] Immediately the trio set up rehearsal time together and wrote the music for two songs that would later become Mad Season's "Wake Up" and "River of Deceit", both of which would later appear on the band's album Above. McCready then brought in friend and Alice in Chains frontman Layne Staley to round out the line-up. McCready had hoped that being around sober musicians would push Staley to get himself sober.
Despite not having a single song completely prepared (only beginnings of songs, according to Martin) and not even having a name for the band, McCready scheduled an unannounced show at the Crocodile Cafe on October 12, 1994, which turned out to be a big success. The song "Artificial Red", which was also to appear on the album, actually came together during the show itself. Two more gigs were scheduled (November 6 & 20, 1994) at the same venue, with the band calling itself The Gacy Bunch, after both the notorious serial killer John Wayne Gacy of Chicago and the 1970s sitcom The Brady Bunch. On January 8, 1995, the band made an appearance on Pearl Jam's Self-Pollution satellite radio broadcast, a four-and-a-half-hour-long pirate broadcast out of Seattle which was available to any radio stations that wanted to carry it, performing "Lifeless Dead" and "I Don't Know Anything".
After gaining more popularity, the band recorded its only album and changed its name to Mad Season, which is an English term for the time of the year when psilocybin mushrooms are in full bloom, and a term which McCready related to "the seasons of drinking and drug abuse." The album, Above, which was recorded in Seattle, Washington at Bad Animals Studio (co-owned by Ann and Nancy Wilson of Heart) and co-produced by the band and Pearl Jam sound engineer Brett Eliason, featured ten songs. It also included guest vocals and additional lyrics by Screaming Trees frontman and solo artist Mark Lanegan. McCready said, "We did all the Mad Season music in about seven days. It took Layne just a few more days to finish his vocals, which was intense since we only rehearsed twice and did four shows." The album was released on March 14, 1995 through Columbia Records to critical and commercial success. Over the course of 1995, Above scaled the Billboard 200, eventually peaking at No. 24 and spawning two singles: "River of Deceit" (#2 Mainstream Rock Tracks, No. 9 Modern Rock Tracks) and "I Don't Know Anything" (#20 Mainstream Rock Tracks). Above was certified gold on June 14, 1995.
McCready described the songs on the album as "some jazzy stuff, some blues, some arena rock." Stephen Thomas Erlewine of Allmusic said that the album "sounds like a cross between Alice in Chains and Pearl Jam, taking the ponderous seriousness of Alice and PJ's '90s update of winding '70s guitar rock." Staley's lyrics dealt with his personal troubles, with Martin saying, "Layne Staley felt as though he was on a spiritual mission through his music." During the lyric writing process, Staley was reading the book The Prophet by Kahlil Gibran, which was a strong influence on the lyrics and the overall tone of the album. "I Don't Know Anything" is a heavier, blues-influenced track, while "Long Gone Day" takes considerable jazz influence, combining the use of samba-style bass, xylophone, and saxophone.
Staley is credited for writing all the lyrics on the original release within the liner notes of the 2013 deluxe issue. As was the case with much of his work with Alice in Chains, Staley's lyrics dealt with his struggle against addiction as well as other personal troubles. Lyrically, much of "River of Deceit" was inspired by Khalil Gibran's The Prophet. Vocalist Mark Lanegan of Screaming Trees contributes guest vocals on "I'm Above" and "Long Gone Day"; he is also credited for co-writing the music to those tracks along with McCready and Martin. Lanegan also wrote the lyrics for the three bonus tracks on Disc 1 of the deluxe issue - "Locomotive", "Black Book of Fear", and "Slip Away". R.E.M. guitarist Peter Buck is credited for co-writing the music to "Black Book of Fear" along with McCready, Martin, Saunders, and Lanegan.
X-Ray Mind
Mad Season Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
One such as I run
And allow myself
Time for own true needs
When convincing me
That you're on my team
May not lie to me
So sit back and have
An hysterical
Laugh at tiny holes
Buy and trade men's souls
X-ray mind reads plenty
Worth no more than pennies
You, they, it or what
Have been fair, I thought
May you never free
You from you or me
See the more I think
I'm afraid to blink
I don't move an inch
Slowly draining me
Hire a spy and bug me
Pimp your friends for money
Rich and growing sicker
Sell the dead ones quicker
Mad Season's song "X-Ray Mind" explores the concept of betrayal and distrust within a relationship. The opening lines "Do the laughs die when / One such as I run / And allow myself / Time for own true needs" suggest that the persona in the song has been neglecting their own needs due to their devotion to someone else. They wonder if the laughs in the relationship disappear when they allow themselves time to focus on their own needs. The following lines bring up the issue of dishonesty, with the persona questioning whether the person they trust is truly on their team or if they are lying by omission. The lyrics "So sit back and have / An hysterical / Laugh at tiny holes / Buy and trade men's souls" suggest a world where people are willing to profit from the suffering of others.
The chorus of the song features the lyrics "X-ray mind reads plenty / Worth no more than pennies". This could be interpreted as the persona's ability to see through the lies and deceit of others, however, this insight is not valued by those around them. The final verse of the song further highlights the theme of exploitation and betrayal, with references to hiring a spy to bug the persona and selling the dead for profit. Overall, the song paints a bleak picture of a world where loyalty and honesty are in short supply.
Line by Line Meaning
Do the laughs die when
Do people stop laughing when
One such as I run
I run away, being the type of person I am
And allow myself
And give myself permission
Time for own true needs
To focus on my own true needs
When convincing me
When you try to convince me
That you're on my team
That you're supporting me
May not lie to me
You may not tell me a lie
But not mentioning
But not telling me everything
So sit back and have
So relax and enjoy
An hysterical
A very funny
Laugh at tiny holes
Laughter at insignificant things
Buy and trade men's souls
The buying and selling of people's souls
X-ray mind reads plenty
A perceptive mind reads many things
Worth no more than pennies
But they aren't worth much
You, they, it or what
Whether it's you, them, something or other
Have been fair, I thought
I used to think you were fair
May you never free
May you never escape
You from you or me
Yourself from yourself or myself
See the more I think
The more I consider
I'm afraid to blink
I'm scared to even blink
I don't move an inch
I don't even make a single movement
Slowly draining me
Slowly sapping my energy
Hire a spy and bug me
You might hire a spy to wiretap me
Pimp your friends for money
Selling out your friends for money
Rich and growing sicker
Getting wealthy but becoming more unwell
Sell the dead ones quicker
Selling the deceased faster
Lyrics © Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd., ST MUSIC LLC
Written by: BARRETT MARTIN, JOHN SAUNDERS, LAYNE STALEY, MIKE MCCREADY
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Samurai
Do the laughs die when
One such as I run
And allow myself
Time for own true needs
When convincing me
That you're on my team
May not lie to me
But not mentioning
So sit back and have
An hysterical
Laugh at tiny holes
Buy and trade men's souls
X-ray mind reads plenty
Worth no more than pennies
You, they, it or what
Have been fair, I thought
May you never free
You from you or me
See the more I think
I'm afraid to blink
I don't move an inch
Slowly draining me
Hire a spy and bug me
Pimp your friends for money
Rich and growing sicker
Sell the dead ones quicker
POPEYEUGUY 68
How they pulled this off, barely rehearsing and wiping this show together just shows you, they really master their craft
Kevin Whiting
They were having fun.. real low pressure ...Layne was fresh out Rehab
theDiReW0lf
Because look who’s in the band. Legends.
Jon Thebeau
It really is remarkable how good this is given how little they played together
jesse_j_hutchings
Layne's voice here sounds so unique even for him. It's totally fascinating how he gets these very subtle tones to blossom out while singing so powerfully
ClassyBlueV
When you always prefer hearing Layne sing live to the studio album you know they are a badass singer
theDiReW0lf
Yeah you don’t truly realize how great he was until you DO hear him live.
Steve Brewer
Very true!!!❤👍
John Martinez
💯💯💯
g medeiros
The bass and drummer team is off the chart
Everything around it falls perfectly in place
The lead riff lines are also classic
Vocals top of mountain
It is a masterpiece live
And album