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
Higher Power
Boston Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Take me home to your religion for the night
Let me touch you
Teach me how to see your vision through my eyes
Turn the pages
Tell my story, let me face another day
Safe embraces, I feel it comin' now
Hey, my high power
The world is spinnin', but I'm not afraid
Yeah, give me the power It's the beginnin', the beginnin' of another day.
Yeah
Let me hold you
Take me back into the secrets of my mind
Let me know you
Come and save me Lord
Don't let me cross the line
Hey, my high power
The world is spinnin', but I'm not afraid
Yeah, give me the power It's the beginnin', the beginnin' of another day.
Ooh, let me love you
Ooh, let me love you
Hey, my Higher Power
The world is spinnin', but I'm not afraid
Yea, my Higher Power
It's the beginning of another day.
Hey, my Higher Power
The world is spinnin', but I'm not afraid
Yeah, my Higher Power
It's the beginnin' of another day.
Hey, my high power
The world is spinnin', but I'm not afraid
Yeah, give me the power It's the beginnin', the beginnin' of another day.
Hey, my high power
The world is spinnin', but I'm not afraid
Yeah, give me the power It's the beginnin', the beginnin' of another day.
Yea, yea, yea.
In Boston's song "Higher Power," the lyrics convey a message of seeking comfort and guidance from a higher power. The singer is looking for a sense of belonging and purpose, asking to be taken home to a different religion for the night to experience a new perspective. They long for intimacy with this higher power, to be able to see their vision through their own eyes and to be taught how to face each day. The singer is looking for salvation and feels it coming, waiting for their captain to arrive.
The chorus repeats the phrase "Hey, my Higher Power," with the singer acknowledging that even though the world is spinning and changing, they are not afraid because they have this higher power on their side. It's the beginning of another day, another chance to start fresh and to feel empowered to take on whatever comes their way. The song ends on the repetition of the chorus, emphasizing its central message of strength and guidance from a higher power.
Overall, "Higher Power" is a song about seeking connection and meaning in life, and finding comfort in a higher power. It is a reassuring message of hope and strength in the face of challenges, encouraging listeners to hold onto their faith.
Line by Line Meaning
Let me love you
I want to express my love for you
Take me home to your religion for the night
Take me under your wing and show me the way
Let me touch you
Let me make physical contact with you
Teach me how to see your vision through my eyes
Help me understand your point of view
Turn the pages
Help me move forward through life's challenges
Tell my story, let me face another day
Give me the strength and courage to continue on
Safe embraces, I feel it comin' now
I sense a better future ahead
My captain's on his way.
Someone or something is guiding me forward
Hey, my high power
Addressing a higher being, possibly God
The world is spinnin', but I'm not afraid
Despite what's going on around me, I have faith
Yeah, give me the power It's the beginnin', the beginnin' of another day.
Grant me the strength to start anew
Let me hold you
I want to embrace and feel close to you
Take me back into the secrets of my mind
Help me remember my deepest thoughts and desires
Let me know you
Help me understand who you truly are
Come and save me Lord
A plea for help and protection from a higher power
Don't let me cross the line
A request for guidance to stay on the right path in life
Yea, yea, yea.
An exclamation of affirmation or agreement
Lyrics ยฉ Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: DAVID ARTHUR SIKES, TOM SCHOLZ
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Jorge Dรญaz
What a GREAT SONG!!!. I do not understand why this song is unknown and underrated. It remind me to Def Leppard style. A hope song for hard times as nowdays.
Michele Laraia
Guitar pure Scholz style
Timetraveller
Yes a bit Def Leppard. Good.
DM143
Def Leppard used(s) the Rockman: especially for the Hysteria album. So, that's where you hear the similarity in guitar tone: thanks to Tom!๐
Billy Stokes
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ะะฐะปะตัะธะน Valery
ะะพัะตะผั ะฝะตะธะทะฒะตััะฝะฐั? ะฏ ะฒ ะ ะพััะธะธ ะบัะฟะธะป CD Boston "Greatest Hitsc" ะฒ 1997 ะณะพะดั. ะ ะ ะพััะธะธ ะณััะฟะฟั Boston ะปัะฑัั ะธ ัะฒะฐะถะฐัั! ๐ค
Francisco Juarez
Very uplifting. If you're on the ground, this will get you back on your feet.
ray collette
Being a recovering addict and alcoholic, this song really hits home.
Brian Rush
That is the message for you. And it is for you. And every other soul suffering an active addiction.
Rachael McCann
Fellow recovering alcoholic here! This song is part of my morning routine ๐