Mother Love Bone was supposed to be H-U-G-E! But unfortunately, lead singer Andrew Wood died from a heroin overdose in March 1990, just before the release of their debut album, Apple.

But who were Andrew Wood and Mother Love Bone, and why should you give two shits about their debut album Apple? Well, because it’s a great album that’s mostly been forgotten as an obscure relic of the 90′s Seattle grunge scene. Mother Love Bone formed when Wood left the band Malfunkshun to join drummer Greg Gilmore and former Green River bandmates Stone Goassard, Bruce Fairweather, and Jeff Ament. They oozed classic 70′s arena rock like Aerosmith and Kiss, without ever really venturing into the Hair Metal side of things, and in the late 80′s/early 90′s, to loads of A&R men, represented the perfect bridge from Hair Metal to whatever was to come next. In 1989, they issued their debut EP, Shine, followed by a tour opening for Dogs D’Amour (which I suppose was a big deal back in the early 90′s). Soon after, the band attracted a decent amount of hype as they set to work on Apple. It was around that time when Wood developed a bad heroin problem. The band sent him to rehab as they awaited the official release of their album. Early in 1990, Wood rejoined the band, and they played shows to work the hype surrounding their upcoming release later that spring. In March, not long before the album was set to come out, Wood was found dead in his apartment. Apple’s release was pushed to later in the year, and while it was showered with praise, because of Wood’s death, the album never reached the level of fame that many predicted it would.

Into the flood again
Same old trip it was back then
So I made a big mistake
Try to see it once my way

If anyone understood Wood’s pain it was Layne Staley, who coincidentally died from a heroin overdose a few years after Alice in Chains penned a song in honor of their fallen contemporary. And so Wood’s legacy is best remembered now for the tributes his friends and fellow musicians paid him, rather than the actual music he produced. There is the afore-quoted Alice in Chains hit “Would?”, and of course the tribute album Temple of the Dog (whose name is taken from lyrics off the Apple track “The Man with Golden Words”), which saw former roommate Chris Cornell join his Soundgarden bandmate Matt Cameron, Mike McCready, and former Mother Love Bone members Stone Goassard and Jeff Ament in penning a whole album in memory of their friend that released in early ’91. That album produced a few radio singles and one megahit when later that summer Gossard, Ament, and McCready were joined by drummer Dave Krusen and a dude named Eddie Vedder, and released a little album you may know called Ten. After Ten’s release and Pearl Jam’s quick rise to stardom, the Temple of the Dog track “Hunger Strike” (featuring Eddie Vedder) propelled the entire album to stardom and gave Wood (or his memory, at least) his moment in the sun.

In 2005, director Scott Barbour made a documentary about the life and death of Andrew Wood called Malfunkshun. Unfortunately, much like Mother Love Bone, it flew mostly under the radar.

Mother Love Bone – Apple

- My Pal the Crook