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Zager and Evans - 2525 (Exordium & Terminus)

Zager and Evans

This was an interesting score: a Canadian first pressing of the Zager and Evans classic 2525 (Exordium & Terminus). Finding albums like this for a buck always seems like a surreal score. The vinyl was in passable shape, with some expected wear but nothing too visible. It did, though, clean up remarkably well. Then, while I was putting it back into the sleeve, I dropped it on the floor.

Putting the record on, there's something undeniably appealing about "In the Year 2525" that seemed to sum up all the trepidation people were feeling about the future and the headlong charge to oblivion through the wanton pursuit of technology. Or something. It's a lot to take in for my little brain. It's always been a weird and goofy song that managed to go to number one all over the world. Heck, even the official science fiction nerds who ran the Hugo Awards nominated it for some type of special award. It's not clear whether they won or not, but it's an interesting bit of trivia.

Ted Daryll

Reading the back cover, Ted Daryll, who produced the album, seemed convinced that Zager and Evans were on to something special and had something to say. Heck, he even made a backhanded reference to Robert Heinlein's The Door into Summer when he wrote, "From out of Nebraska, Denny and Rick have emerged with one of the hottest records of '69 and with it a fresh approach to the conscience and heart of the listener. Much like '2525,' which opened a sober door to the future, the boys are into more thought-provoking analyses in this, their first album."

Okay, maybe The Door into Summer is a stretch, but the point was that it really seemed like a lot of people thought this was just the start of something for the two lads from Nebraska. It wasn't. 1971's Food for the Mind would mark the end of the duo's recorded output, and like their previous releases it too would fail to chart or yield any hit singles.

Listening to 2525 with the benefit of hindsight, the era of folk rock was coming to an end. Even Peter, Paul and Mary wouldn't make it into the '70s. To borrow from Dylan, "The times they are a-changin'."

back cover

However, as a time capsule, this really is a pretty solid album. Of course the hit overshadows the rest of the record, but that doesn't mean the remaining songs are merely filler. If anything, many of them are underdeveloped. "Woman" doesn't even break the two-minute mark and had the makings of a really good song, but it finishes just as it's getting going. The entire album runs under half an hour, and if Ted Daryll is to be believed and Zager and Evans had something to say, it's too bad they didn't take the opportunity to say more while they had the chance.

In the end, Zager and Evans would be filed away with the other one-hit wonders, but if you're able to find the album, don't dismiss it too quickly. It's worth a listen.


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