The group first formed in the mind of Tom Scholz, who had long expressed interest in melodic rock and the fine particulars of recording technology. Even as a child, he tinkered with just about anything mechanical or electronic that he could get his hands on. Prior to his musical career, Scholz received both a bachelor's degree, in 1969, and a master's degree, in 1970, in Mechanical Engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He then began working for the Polaroid Corporation as a senior product design engineer. Scholz would then reside in Boston.
Creating demos in his own home, inspired by contemporary 70s progressive rock and what came to be known as "album oriented rock" ("aor"), Scholz attracted the interest of Epic Records, who signed Scholz to a recording contract. Vocalist Brad Delp, who was born in Peabody, Massachusetts in 1951 (Scholz is about four years older) to French-Canadian immigrants and was inspired to sing after seeing The Beatles perform on The Ed Sullivan Show in 1964, served as a sort of not-so secret weapon for Scholz's project. Delp's "golden voice" has inspired numerous later rock artists to take up the microphone.
Scholz believed that his demos were good enough to be the released album but Epic told him to rerecord them. Most of the guitar, bass, and keyboards were performed by Scholz, although other players were involved sporadically throughout the recording of the album. Epic did not want the album recorded entirely in Scholz's home as Scholz intended (they suggested using a recording studio), but most of what ended up on the album was ultimately recorded by Scholz in his basement.
'Boston' was first released by Epic Records on August 25, 1976. Few industry insiders thought a guitar-heavy rock record could make much of a dent in the charts as disco ruled the airwaves at the time. The album broke out of Cleveland first, and the following week it had been added at 392 stations. Scholz, then 29, still worked at Polaroid during the first few weeks of the record's success and felt wary, changing his mind when the album quickly sold 200,000 copies. Critical praise also came to the band; for example, Rolling Stone wrote that Boston's "affinity for heavy rock & roll provides a sense of dynamics that coheres magnetically with sophisticated progressive structures."
The album was certified gold just two months after its release, and it sold another 500,000 copies within 30 days, going platinum for the first time in November 1976. With songs that became rock anthems such as the evergreen "More Than a Feeling", 'Boston' is the second best-selling debut album of all time in the United States, falling just short of Guns N' Roses' 'Appetite for Destruction'. Many critics have named it as one of the best American albums of all time. Its popularity was not only huge, but also durable: into the 2000s it was believed to be the only 1970s album that still had every single track in regular rotation on classic rock radio.
With a touring unit coming together around the line-up of Barry Goudreau, Tom Scholz, Sib Hashian, Brad Delp, and Fran Sheehan, the band played to a wide variety of crowds big and small, receiving strong fan support. Feeling an essentially unbearable amount of pressure to come up with another commercial mega-hit, Scholz still desired to experiment with his sound and had a growing sense of perfectionism. 'Don't Look Back' came out on August 2, 1978, viewed by Scholz as a hurried effort but picking up widespread success. It's been certified as multi-platinum, and its title track has become a classic rock staple.
Acrimonious fighting with label Epic Records, which soon became a long, drawn-out legal fight, left the future of the band stalled. Their next work, 'Third Stage' , came out in September 23, 1986, quite a while after their sophomore work. Bad luck and ill-will seemed to trail the group, with floods and power failures halting many studio sessions. Still, the album went to #1 on the Billboard 200, where it stayed for four weeks.
In addition, 'Third Stage' was only the second album to ever be certified triple-platinum in its first month of release, in November of 1986. As stated before, the first was Lionel Richie's 'Dancing On The Ceiling', which did it one month earlier. Nonetheless, Boston seemed to have gotten stuck.
On March 9th, 2007, Brad Delp (vocals) committed suicide at his home in Atkinson, New Hampshire. He was 55. Delp sang all the lead and harmony vocals on Boston's first three albums. Though well known for his "golden" voice with soaring vocals and range, Delp was also a multi-instrumentalist, playing guitar, harmonica and keyboards. Additionally he wrote or co-wrote several songs for Boston and many other artists.
More than 10 years in the making, Boston came out with a new studio album, "Life, Love & Hope" in 2013. Founding member, Tom Scholz stated, "These are songs from the heart, each of them taking many months of effort to write, arrange, perform and record, always up to the demands of Boston's harshest critic, me. They have all been meticulously recorded to analog tape on the same machines and equipment used for Boston's hits for the past 35 years."
The band, with Scholz and a new lineup, toured extensively in 2016-2017.
Boston's web site is at www.bandboston.com
Boston
Boston Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Did you know that? You know how I found out. They left me a note in my mailbox, said, sorry, we're unable to get to your mailbox.
Just got home, I was on the airplane coming home, and I you know, they do those safety announcements when you fly. And then it doesn't matter where you traveling now, they translate everything into Spanish as well, because so much of our world speaks Spanish these days. Yeah, but I'm always on a plane full of people from Boston flying home to Boston. We don't really speak Spanish as much as we speak. Boston.
I want to hear that pilot just once, wouldn't you like to get on a plane and hear a real Boston pilot.
South Boston Airlines. That'd be fun. Wouldn't it be the only plane with a screwdriver jammed in the ignition? Right.
And before we fly, when we back the plane out, we leave a beach chair to mark our parking spot.
We come back, your plane better not be parked there. Buddy, I'll tell you that, rightnow. Go ahead. I dare you to park your plane. Go ahead. I'll call my cousin in Chelsea. You'll find a chopped up tomorrow. Go ahead. park you're plane there, I dare you.
The lyrics to Boston's song "Boston" are actually a stand-up comedy routine by comedian Steven Wright. In the routine, Wright reflects on his experience coming home after a vacation to find his mailbox filled with snow and a note from the post office about not being able to deliver mail. He then goes on to imagine what it would be like to hear a pilot speaking with a thick Boston accent before jokingly suggesting the creation of an airline called "South Boston Airlines". Wright uses his deadpan delivery to convey the absurdity and humor in these situations, highlighting how even the most mundane or frustrating experiences can be turned into jokes.
One interesting fact about this routine is that it was originally recorded for a radio station in Boston in the 1970s. However, it received national attention and was eventually included on Boston's self-titled debut album in 1976. The album went on to sell over 17 million copies, becoming one of the best-selling debut albums of all time.
Line by Line Meaning
I went away last winter, I went away for three weeks, right?
The singer left for about three weeks during winter and returned home, expecting his mailbox to be full of bills. Instead, he found it empty due to the snow due to which he could not shovel out the mailbox. The post office had left a note indicating that they could not deliver the mail to him.
Just got home, I was on the airplane coming home, and you know, they do those safety announcements when you fly.
The singer is back in Boston after a flight. During the flight, safety announcements were imparted, including a translation into Spanish for the benefit of Spanish-speaking people, though flying home to Boston means many people on the plane are speaking Boston dialect. The singer expresses his rather humorous desire to listen to a Bostonian pilot making safety announcements in the Boston accent.
I want to hear that pilot just once, wouldn't you like to get on a plane and hear a real Boston pilot.
The singer wants to hear the safety announcements of a Bostonian accent pilot once in his life. He thinks it would be an interesting experience.
South Boston Airlines. That'd be fun. Wouldn't it be the only plane with a screwdriver jammed in the ignition? Right.
If the artist had an airline, he would name it South Boston Airlines. The artist thinks of South Boston as an interesting airport to fly out of and imagines that the planes must always have some sort of issue. The joke is that one of the planes must have a screwdriver jammed in the ignition.
And before we fly, when we back the plane out, we leave a beach chair to mark our parking spot.
Before the flight, the airplane is backed out of the parking space at the airport, and a beach chair is left to mark its spot. The artist is making a joke about how unusual it would be to fly from South Boston Airport.
We come back, your plane better not be parked there. Buddy, I'll tell you that, right now. Go ahead. I dare you to park your plane. Go ahead. I'll call my cousin in Chelsea. You'll find a chopped-up tomorrow. Go ahead. park you're a plane there, I dare you.
If someone were to accidentally park their plane in his spot by mistake, the singer warns of his anger and that he will tell his cousin in Chelsea, who will chop you up.
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Written by: Jimmy Dunn
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@tball5677
So glad I grew up in a time when this music came out. What an incredible time to be a rock n roller.
@jakub9473
Metalhead here. I'm glad I grew up listening to 90's black and death metal.
@emperortrevornorton3119
Dad gave me great taste in classic rock if I ever get a better record player he gets all my Boston vinyls and if I don't get a better one I will send him off with the classic shit he got me into
@halbunner8899
We were blessed
@jayaudette2063
Some would argue this is the greatest rock and roll album of all time. I'd have to agree!
@chrisleehey8079
are you gone...or what?
@1HUFFMAN
I concur !
@billysimmons5982
It is Bad Ass I seen them in concert in mobile Ala back in the late 70 great show . I ride are smoke weed get high and be kicking it with Boston
@steveb796
Not even close
@letsgowinnietheflu5439
Min top 10