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
Stare Out Your Window
Boston Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
She's dolled right in so well, this can't be you
So come down, so come see
You don't want to wake and believe
You don't know, you don't dream
But somehow you make me so dizzy
I want to stare out your window
Let me in
I want to stare out your window
You don't want to let me in
Let me in
She's calling out to her friend, just give me two
(You don't want to let me in)
She words right under her breath, they don't want you
So come down, so come please
You don't want to make me believe
You don't know, do not tease
But somehow you make me so free
I want to stare out your window
You don't want to let me in
Let me in
I want to stare out your window
You don't want to let me in
Let me in
So come down, so come please
You don't want to make me believe
You don't know, do not tease
But somehow you make me so free
I want to stare out your window
You don't want to let me in
Let me in
I want to stare out your window
You don't want to let me in
Let me in
I want to stare out your window
Let me in
I want to stare out your window
Let me in
I want to stare out your window
Let me in
The lyrics of Boston's "Stare Out Your Window" is about the singer's desire to get close to someone who is deeply involved with herself. The first lines of the song already set the tone, describing the person in question as someone who is too self-centered to be true. The singer wants to get closer to this person, the same way he wants to look closer at what she is looking at through her window. The person in question seems uninterested in letting the singer in, but the singer remains persistent.
As the song progresses, the singer's desire to connect with the person intensifies. "She's calling out to her friend, just give me two," is a plea for attention from someone who doesn't seem to have time for anyone outside of herself. The singer can sense this, but still wants to break through the barrier. He wants to be let in and be part of whatever the person is experiencing. Perhaps because he sees something in her that she can't see herself.
Despite the person's reluctance to let him in, the singer persists. "Somehow you make me so dizzy/free" could be seen as a reference to how the person's self-centeredness makes the singer feel trapped, but also exhilarated. He wants a piece of her world, but she remains uninterested.
Overall, the lyrics of "Stare Out Your Window" expresses a desire to connect with someone who is too involved with herself to be open to anyone else. The singer's want to look out her window is a metaphor for wanting to see what she sees, to be part of her world. It's a common sentiment to want to be part of something that seems unattainable, and Boston captures it perfectly in this song.
Line by Line Meaning
She's downright into herself, it's so untrue
The girl is overly concerned with herself, but it's actually not true.
She's dolled right in so well, this can't be you
She appears to be the perfect image of herself, but it doesn't seem genuine.
So come down, so come see
Come down from your high social status, and let's talk.
You don't want to wake and believe
You're afraid of facing the reality
You don't know, you don't dream
You're not aware of what you're capable of.
But somehow you make me so dizzy
You still create an impact on me despite all that.
I want to stare out your window
I want to see the world from your perspective.
You don't want to let me in
You're resisting vulnerability and not letting me get to know the real you.
She's calling out to her friend, just give me two
She's trying to avoid interacting with you.
(You don't want to let me in) She words right under her breath, they don't want you
You're getting the message that they don't want to spend time with you.
So come down, so come please
Lower your defenses, and let me be a part of your life.
But somehow you make me so free
Despite all the barriers, being around you makes me feel liberated.
Let me in
Open up to me fully.
You don't know, do not tease
Don't play around with my emotions, be real with me.
I want to stare out your window
I want to be a part of your world.
I want to stare out your window
I want to understand your perspective.
Let me in
Open up to me fully.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: ANTHONY MIGLIACCIO
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
The Meh
Why does everyone think this album was so bad? I mean it's not their best but it's still good!!
Paul Cavigliano
Idk. This song is pretty fuckin good tho, and I a big fan of the older stuff. This doesn't nothing like old Boston
Josh R.
Title track is kinda filler-ish but I like most the other tracks, has diversity
banana
@Matheus Faria Agreed. Besides, any GOOD band's sound evolves or changes over time
Alan Boas
I think it's a good album too. It still sounds like Boston to me so why is it so bad? Because it's not.
Zach Fair
@Animal Expert that’s a straight fact, the last album was an atrocity and should never have been released. At least this one had a few decent songs
BellaireBoy
Great bands have more than one sound and they express themselves in different ways.
Steve Blair
I can’t believe I never heard this album. I want it. I have been to many Boston concerts and loved them all. This is making me feel like I’m in my 20’ again.
emarieg1
This band has bonded my family in so many ways!!!!! Thank You!!! God Bless Brad Delp......I Miss him soooo much......He still makes me cry!!!! I met him in 1979 in Germany.....what a wonderful soul!!!
am2boni
I've been listening to this song for the past few days!!! Very nice! God Bless Boston!!!