In a recent appearance on the Jasta Show, Alice In Chains frontman William DuVall recounted a pivotal moment in his career, crediting Ann Wilson for her selfless act during a 2006 tribute event, which celebrated Seattle’s own Ann and Nancy Wilson of Heart at VH1’s Decades Rock Live.
Alice In Chains played the event alongside other rock legends, including Phil Anselmo of Pantera and Duff McKagan of Guns N’ Roses. During the show, Alice In Chains performed ‘Would?’ with Anselmo and McKagan, while DuVall, who was then the vocalist for Comes with the Fall, had been invited to sing ‘Man in the Box.’ Ann Wilson was originally scheduled to perform ‘Rooster’ with the band, but things took an unexpected turn during rehearsals.
DuVall explained how, while filling in for Wilson during a camera-blocking run-through of ‘Rooster,’ he caught the attention of both Ann and Nancy Wilson, who were watching from the sidelines. At the end of the song, Ann approached DuVall and insisted that he should perform ‘Rooster‘ in her place. By giving up her moment to shine with Alice In Chains, Ann Wilson displayed an act of generosity, allowing DuVall to take the spotlight.
Here is how DuVall recalled Wilson’s selfless act:
“I went out, and I did ‘Man in the Box.’ That was sort of my allotted song. Phil [Anselmo] came out and did ‘Would?’ and then, Ann Wilson was supposed to sing ‘Rooster,’ and so at some point during like the rehearsals or the camera blocking, we’re all standing there; director, stage manager… ‘Okay, we want to do ‘Rooster’ guys,’ and Ann wasn’t there.
So I just sort of stood in so they could get the camera blocking, and they could get the audio and all that. And midway through, I look to my right, and I see Ann and Nancy standing in the wings. At the end of the song, she comes over to me and says, ‘You gotta do ‘Rooster.’ You have to do it. You have to sing that.’ So she gave me her slot with Alice In Chains. It was this band that she obviously had known from the beginning.
That’s why Alice was invited to participate in the show, and this was going to be her big moment with those guys, right, and have this sort of Seattle homecoming thing on stage between the different generations of Seattle bands. The newspaper was talking about it in advance, about Ann’s singing ‘Rooster,’ and she gave it to me. The thing about it is if she hadn’t done that, I probably wouldn’t have been in the show.”
This event marked a turning point for DuVall, who believes that had Ann not made that selfless decision, he might not have had the opportunity to join Alice In Chains as their lead singer. As the world now knows, William DuVall has gone on to enjoy a successful career with the band.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dWks_IwKylA&ab_channel=TheJastaShow
