Rocktrospectiva: The Cult Classic And Posthumous "Apple" Turns 35

Released on 14 August 1990 "Apple" was the only full-length studio album by the US rock band Mother Love Bone. Considered an essential landmark from the grunge era, the album spawned three singles "Stardog Champion", "Stargazer" & "This Is Shangrila"

 

Unfortunately, days before Apple was slated to be released, lead singer Andrew Wood overdosed on heroin. After spending a few days in the hospital in a coma, he died, effectively bringing Mother Love Bone to an end. Two of its original members (Jeff Ament & Stone Gossard) went on to start Pearl Jam, but it all started here with the Andrew Wood fronted band. 

 

Mother Love Bone was an interesting band, pioneers of the game changer genre "grunge" started around 1987 in Seattle, when guitarist Stone Gossard and bassist Jeff Amente, decided to set them apart from Green River to join an amateur young but charming singer who were looking for musicians to started his brand new project, his name was Andrew Wood, they started as a cover band, but around 1988 changed their name for Mother Love Bone also the guitarist Bruce Fairweather joined them, alongside the drumee Greg Gilmore, so, the official line-up was set and ready-to-go.

Wood was not only a singer, he was a truly frontman with a vocal tune closed to Robert Plant, the guy really knows how to handle on stage, also his outfit quite bizarre and flamboyant gave an intense scenic presence, this practically brought some attention and definitely the band was intended for stardom and the brand new grunge music promise, 

In 1989, the band signed with Polygram and released "Shine" a 4-track EP, this gather heavily success to the band, so they decided to move forward with their brand new record "Apple". When the album was finished and set to be released, the tragedy overcome the band. Wood was found at his home by his girlfriend totally incouncious due a heroin overdose and died on 19 March aged 24. His dead was a tremendous shock and heavy hit for the band, so after this, decided to split, four mouths later the album was released, their sound was quite interesting, a sort of hard rock sound with some alternative rock slices and grunge hooks, Gossard and Fairweather guitars were truly intense, the rhythm section incredible due the intense labor by the bassist Ament and drummer Gilmore, to encapsulate the magnificent vocal duties by Wood, you can noticed that on the anger "This Is Shangrila", the powerful mid-tempos on "Stardog Champion", the power ballad full of acoustic and electric guitars on "Bone China" and "Stargazer" the intense "Heartshine" the touchy "Man Of Golden Words" and the bluesy "Crown Of Thorns" 

The album had good critics, many considered an intense record that succeeds where countless other hard-rock albums have failed, one of the first great hard-rock records of the 90's. Unfortunately the deceased of Wood changed certain things forever, after his tremendous loss, a brand new branch will emerge in 1991, some of his partners will join Chris Cornell (great friend of Wood) alongisde Matt Cameron and Eddie Vedder as a guest on the creation of the band Temple Of The Dog to honour Wood with a record, then Gossard, Ament and Vedder joined force and created Pearl Jam. 

Is hard to predict how succesful Mother Love Bone would be, as a paradox, the band and the record remain buried due the huge success of Pearl Jam, Soundgarden, Nirvana and Alice In Chains, all of these bands gave their style and sound, in the case of Mother Love Bone, they added hard rock to grunge with such dignity leaving behind a masterpiece, a cult record and a cult artist on Andrew Wood. 

 

Apple Track List:  

 

1. This Is Shnagrila

2. Stardog Champion

3. Holy Roller

4. Bone China

5. Come Bite The Apple

6. Heartshine

7. Stargazer

8. Captain Hi-top

9. Man Of Golden Words

10. Capricorn Sister

11. Crown Of Thorns