When I was discussing our respective stacks of old LPs we had, a colleague of mine and I decided that most of our albums wouldn’t be worth very much, due to the items’ availability and/or condition.
I wondered, though, if there might be an oddball piece or two that would be more interesting to the collector. The second item I thought of was the eponymous first album by a group called Silver Apples.
From a history of the band:
“Formed in 1967 as an electronic rock duo featuring Dan Taylor on drums and Simeon [born Simeon Oliver Coxe III] on a homemade synthesizer consisting of 12 oscillators and an assortment of sound filters, telegraph keys, radio parts, lab gear and a variety of second hand electronic junk, the band quickly gained a reputation as New York’s leading underground musical expression.
“First full-length album was released in 1968 on KAPP Records. The self titled album rode the Billboard Magazine Top 100 list for 10 weeks.” Hmm, my Billboard book said it never got high than #193 and was in the Top 200 for a mere three weeks.
However, the album was legendary in some circles. I bought it in the early 1980s based on its reputation. It’s… interesting.
And at least a little valuable. The Discogs site has it going for $50 and up. Of course, that has never been why I purchase music.
The first song is Oscillations, which failed to chart, but is well-known in certain circles. Even though I hadn’t played the album in two decades, I could replicate, fairly accurately, the vocals from that first line:
“Oscillations, oscillations
Electronic evocations of sound’s reality
“In 1996, Simeon re-activated Silver Apples, recording and performing with many musician friends and admirers. On March 10, 2005, original drummer, Danny Taylor, passed away of a heart attack in Kingston, New York. He was 56 years old. Working as a solo performer, with Danny’s drum sounds recreated by electronic means, Simeon has continued the Silver Apples live concerts with performances literally all over the world.”
Listen to: