INTERVIEW WITH SIMON APPLE FROM TheCelebrityCafe.com ARCHIVES
DM) Where does the name Simon Apple come from?
JM) Simon Apple is a fictitious name that Buzz came up with. He wrote a short story years ago called "The Legend Of Simon Apple"...just for fun - it was never published. If I remember correctly, Simon Apple was this spirited older gentleman who was in need of a loan. He went from bank to bank but was turned down by all of them. Out of frustration, he threatened to start his own loan company, offering much lower interest rates. He did so, & in a short period of time became quite successful by stealing away many of the customers from those banks in the process. The name of the band really has nothing to do with that story. It's just a fictitious name that doesn't mean anything. Sort of like Pink Floyd or Steely Dan...no one in the band is named Simon!
DM) Where was your first gig?
JM) We started out as a cover band in the late 80's. Although the faces have changed since then. Only Buzz & I remain from that line-up. But the first gig was in Reading, PA. at a place called The Silo. It's a pretty big room. It can hold maybe 1000 people. We were able to get in that room out of the gate because Buzz was in a successful cover band before that... which he left obviously. I believe the week after that, we played the same room opening for Bachman Turner Overdrive. So that wasn't bad for a first week....then it was all downhill from there! No, seriously, we actually did really well as predominantly a cover band. But that only goes so far and wears thin musically & creatively after awhile. That all seems like a lifetime ago!
DM) What were some of the covers?
JM) We played stuff that not too many other bands covered... considering that the late 80's & maybe into '90, most bands were still doing the hard rock/pop/pretty boy thing...we were doing Pink Floyd, Genesis, Supertramp, Kansas, Billy Joel, Rush, Elton John, Steely Dan, Queen, etc... On some gigs, we also had a horn section and included stuff like Earth Wind & Fire, Phil Collins, Paul Simon, Level 42, Howard Jones, etc... Naturally, we were told from the start that our set-list would never fly in clubs. But before too long, we were actually one of the biggest drawing bands around.
DM) Did you prefer any aspects of that period?
JM) For a little while, doing that type of gig is fun...especially when you're playing covers that you genuinely like and people are filling the rooms to see you. Certain songs in particular were fun to play. Like First/Second Home By The Sea by Genesis...Shine On You Crazy Diamond and Us & Them by Floyd...Scenes From An Italian Restaurant by Billy Joel... Funeral For A Friend by Elton John. But when you're a writer, even the coolest cover songs get old fairly quickly. Buzz & I were already writing together very early on simply because we had a lot in common musically. We had similar musical tastes and more or less envisioned the music the same way. We only performed maybe 5-7 original songs with the band during that time. We all wanted to become more of an original band, but the chemistry of the band wasn't right. There were too many stylistic differences.
DM) Was music your first love or did you have another career?
JM) Yes, for the most part music was my first love. That is, when I realized in 5th or 6th grade, I probably wasn't going to make it as a professional baseball, basketball, hockey or football player! I started taking piano lessons at age 5. But I didn't really love music until about 11 or 12...when I started to listen to rock music. At that time, I was turned on to ELO...and I loved them! Still do actually! That's when I was "bit by the bug"....I wanted to be Jeff Lynne! So it was at that time, that I started to take it pretty seriously, and began writing music.
DM) Does your piano teacher know about your new career?
JM) Absolutely! (Although this isn't so much my new career as it's been the ONLY career I've ever had!). My piano teacher was the organist at our church. I still belong to the same church, so I see her very regularly. I still play at the church a few times a year also. Plus, playing in church my whole life, and being exposed to that music, led me to write some sacred choral pieces for adult and children's choirs. So far I've had 7 of them published, which have sold 25-30,000 copies. It's a nice escape compositionally, and I try to write them when I can find the time.
DM) Now you've inspired me with even more questions! Most people are familiar with how record albums are sold and distributed, but how are compositions sold/distributed?
JM) Since this is print music, first the song has to be accepted for publication. So the first step is to send the manuscript to one publisher at a time. I was rejected quite a few times initially. It took me about a year until I finally had one of my songs accepted for publication. I have six songs published by Abingdon Press from Nashville, and one published by Choristers Guild which is a large publisher of children's choral music. The city they are based escapes me, but it is in Texas. After the chief editor makes editorial suggestions, if any...it goes to print. I'm not 100% sure of the distribution end, but there are music distributors that they go through nationwide that deal with print music. They might also distribute themselves in conjunction. But in either case, church music/choral directors nationwide, are usually sent samples, sometimes with cassette demos, that feature the new "catalog". Then the order is placed with the distributor or the publisher. From the composers' point of view...after the song is accepted, the rest of the work is basically handled by the publisher... so it's pretty painless! Unlike the recording industry where it's hard to get great distribution & promotion unless you're signed to a major label!
DM) What do you play at the church?
JM) Instrument? Piano. I played the 4 manual pipe organ for about a year or two when I was a teenager. It's pretty cool, but I just never had the ambition to keep up with it. It's easy for a piano player to switch to organ...but not vice-versa. If you're referring to what music I play...I fill in for services when the organist is on vacation, and also usually play "special" services like Christmas, Easter, etc.. When I fill in, I usually get to play a song by myself, and I usually take hymns and improvise around them...which is actually quite fun...putting a "jazz" spin on them. This is all pretty night & day from the band...so how did we get on this anyway?! (laughing).