Apple (album)
| Apple | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by Mother Love Bone | ||||
| Released | July 19, 1990 | |||
| Recorded | September–November 1989 at The Plant, Sausalito, California and London Bridge Studios, Seattle, Washington | |||
| Genre | Grunge, alternative metal, glam punk, alternative rock, heavy metal | |||
| Length | 57:59 | |||
| Language | English | |||
| Label |
Stardog/Mercury Lemon Recordings (reissue) | |||
| Producer | Bruce Calder, Terry Date, Mark Dearnley, Mother Love Bone | |||
| Mother Love Bone chronology | ||||
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| Singles from Apple | ||||
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| Professional ratings | |
|---|---|
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |   [1] |
| The New York Times | favorable[2] |
| Rolling Stone | favorable[3] |
| Uncut | [4] |
| Rock Hard (de) | 7.5/10[5] |
Apple is the only full-length studio album by the American alternative rock band Mother Love Bone. It was released on July 19, 1990 through Stardog/Mercury Records.
Overview
In September 1989, the group returned to the studio to record its debut album Apple with producer Terry Date at The Plant recording studio in Sausalito, California. The band finished the album in November 1989 at London Bridge Studios in Seattle, Washington. Compared with the band's debut EP, Shine, vocalist Andrew Wood's vocal stylings are more mature, drawing heavily upon similar techniques of guitarist and singer Marc Bolan. "Crown of Thorns" originally appeared on Shine, however on Apple the song is missing the opening "Chloe Dancer". The album was mixed by Tim Palmer. The album's cover art was photographed by Lance Mercer. Despite some initial difficulties, the record was on-time for its projected March 1990 release.
By early 1990 interest in the band had hit a fever pitch and it seemed destined that the band was going to make it big. Only days before Apple was slated to be released, however, Wood overdosed on heroin. After spending a few days in the hospital in a coma, Wood died, effectively bringing Mother Love Bone to an end. The album would see release later that year in July. The album eventually charted at number 34 on Billboard's Top Heatseekers chart in 1992. Kim Neely of Rolling Stone said that the album "succeeds where countless other hard-rock albums have failed, capturing the essence of what made Zep immortal – dynamics, kids! – and giving it a unique Nineties spin."[3] A music video was made for the song "Stardog Champion". The entire album later appeared on the 1992 compilation album, Mother Love Bone (also known as Stardog Champion). It was also remastered and reissued on September 8, 2003 by the UK-based Lemon Recordings.
Reception
In 2005, Apple was ranked number 462 in Rock Hard magazine's book of The 500 Greatest Rock & Metal Albums of All Time.[6]
Track listing
All lyrics written by Andrew Wood; all music composed by Jeff Ament, Bruce Fairweather, Greg Gilmore, Stone Gossard, and Wood.
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "This Is Shangrila" | 3:42 |
| 2. | "Stardog Champion" | 4:58 |
| 3. | "Holy Roller" | 4:27 |
| 4. | "Bone China" | 3:44 |
| 5. | "Come Bite the Apple" | 5:26 |
| 6. | "Stargazer" | 4:49 |
| 7. | "Heartshine" | 4:36 |
| 8. | "Captain Hi-Top" | 3:07 |
| 9. | "Man of Golden Words" | 3:41 |
| 10. | "Capricorn Sister" | 4:19 |
| 11. | "Gentle Groove[I]" | 4:02 |
| 12. | "Mr. Danny Boy" | 4:50 |
| 13. | "Crown of Thorns" | 6:18 |
Total length: |
57:59 | |
^ I Only available on the CD edition.
All lyrics written by Wood; all music composed by Ament, Fairweather, Gilmore, Gossard, and Wood.
| Reissue bonus track | ||
|---|---|---|
| No. | Title | Length |
| 14. | "Lady Godiva Blues" | 3:40 |
Total length: |
61:39 | |
Personnel
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Chart positions
| Chart (1992) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Top Heatseekers[7] | 34 |
References
- ↑ Henderson, Alex. "allmusic ((( Apple > Review )))". Allmusic. Retrieved May 20, 2009.
- ↑ Browne, David (1990-11-18). "RECORDINGS VIEW; Seattle Rock: Out of the Woods and Into the Wild". The New York Times. Retrieved 2009-05-20.
- 1 2 Neely, Kim (1990-10-04). "Mother Love Bone: Apple". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on February 10, 2008. Retrieved 2009-05-20.
- ↑ "Mother Love Bone: Apple". Uncut. Retrieved on May 20, 2009.
- ↑ Stratmann, Holger. "Rock Hard". issue 62. Retrieved 22 May 2013.
- ↑ [...], Rock Hard (Hrsg.). [Red.: Michael Rensen. Mitarb.: Götz Kühnemund] (2005). Best of Rock & Metal die 500 stärksten Scheiben aller Zeiten. Königswinter: Heel. p. 23. ISBN 3-89880-517-4.
- ↑ "Mother Love Bone – Billboard Albums". Allmusic. Retrieved 2007-11-13.