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
Surrender To Me
Boston Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Girl, you drive me out of my mind
Your fine and still kind of sleazy
Now I want to make you mine
Somehow, I don't believe you
I really need you now
You know you're so good at teasing
Sometimes you're hot when you're freezing
Don't want to let you out of my sight
Somehow, I don't believe you
I really need you
I don't believe you
And I really need you
Hey
You never believe what I say
You're gonna surrender someday
Surrender to me
Surrender to me
Surrender to me all the way
Surrender to me all the way (yeah, yeah)
Surrender to me
You've got an attitude
A hardheaded woman that I can't refuse
Your love is kind of rude
You love me like you got nothing to lose
Somehow, I don't believe you
I really need you
I don't believe you
And I really need you
Hey
You never believe what I say
You're gonna surrender someday
Surrender to me
Surrender to me
Surrender to me all the way
Surrender to me all the way (yeah, yeah)
Surrender to me
All the way
All the way
All the way
All the way
Surrender to me all the way (Yeah, yeah)
Surrender to me
Surrender
The lyrics of Boston's song Surrender To Me describe the struggle of wanting someone who is both alluring and frustrating. The singer describes the person as driving them "out of my mind" and being "fine and still kind of sleazy," indicating both physical attraction and a sense of distrust or unease. Despite this, the singer can't help but want to make this person theirs, even though they don't believe what they say. The person is good at teasing, making them hot one moment and cold the next, but the singer doesn't want to let them out of their sight because they really need them.
The chorus consists of the singer pleading for this person to surrender to them all the way, even though they're hardheaded and have an attitude. The person's love is "kind of rude" but they love the singer "like they've got nothing to lose." Ultimately, the singer needs this person and believes they'll surrender someday, but until then they'll keep asking them to surrender to them.
One interpretation of this song is that it's about the push and pull of a toxic relationship, where the singer is aware that the person is not good for them but they keep coming back for more. The lyrics highlight the struggle of being attracted to someone who you know doesn't have your best interests at heart and the desire to be wanted by them despite the negative aspects of their personality.
Line by Line Meaning
I know it never came easy
I know our relationship has been difficult
Girl, you drive me out of my mind
You make me crazy, but I can't help but be drawn to you
Your fine and still kind of sleazy
You're attractive, but there's something about you that's not quite right
Now I want to make you mine
I want to have a committed relationship with you
Somehow, I don't believe you
I don't fully trust you
I really need you now
Despite my mistrust, I still feel a strong desire for you
You know you're so good at teasing
You're skilled at flirting and leading me on
Maybe that's what I like
I find your teasing and mixed signals exciting
Sometimes you're hot when you're freezing
Your mood swings make me unsure of where I stand with you
Don't want to let you out of my sight
I want to keep a close eye on you to try and figure you out
Hey, You never believe what I say
You don't trust me either
You're gonna surrender someday
Eventually, you'll give in to your feelings for me
Surrender to me
Give in to your feelings and commit to me
Surrender to me all the way
Fully give yourself to me in this relationship
You've got an attitude
You have a strong and stubborn personality
A hardheaded woman that I can't refuse
You're a difficult woman to say no to
Your love is kind of rude
Your love is harsh and demanding
You love me like you got nothing to lose
You show your love for me in a reckless and unreserved manner
All the way
Completely and fully
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: DAVID ARTHUR SIKES, JOE LAQUIDARA, ROBERT LAQUIDARA, TOM SCHOLZ
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Don Quixote
Boston – Surrender To Me
I know it never came easy
Girl, you drive me out of my mind
Your fine and still kind of sleazy
Now I want to make you mine
Somehow, I don't believe you
I really need you now
You know you're so good at teasing
Maybe that's what I like
Sometimes you're hot when you're freezing
Don't want to let you out of my sight
Somehow, I don't believe you
I really need you
I don't believe you
And I really need you
Hey
You never believe what I say
You're gonna surrender someday
Surrender to me
Surrender to me
Surrender to me all the way
Surrender to me all the way (yeah, yeah)
Surrender to me
You've got an attitude
A hardheaded woman that I can't refuse
Your love is kind of rude
You love me like you got nothing to lose
Somehow, I don't believe you
I really need you
I don't believe you
And I really need you
Hey
You never believe what I say
You're gonna surrender someday
Surrender to me
Surrender to me
Surrender to me all the way
Surrender to me all the way (yeah, yeah)
Surrender to me
All the way
All the way
All the way
All the way
Surrender to me all the way (Yeah, yeah)
Surrender to me
Surrender
ACrackInTheWall2006
Walk On is such an underrated album. It's really great for what it is and this is the best song from the album.
Fuzzmosis R
It truly is! If only it was released when originally intended I think it would've done a lot better
Ken Simmons
The guitar solo at 3:56 is so awesome. Pretty simple yet has so much depth to it. This was the pinnacle of Tom Scholz Rockman sound. My favorite all time album from my favorite all time musician. When I heard Third Stage I had to learn how to play guitar. I was totally blown away and mesmerized by his sound.
Bradley Owen
It just takes off 👍
Kenneth Morrison 1
Boston was my first Rock Concert ! Absolutely Epic! Sounded exactly like the album; so technically Awesome! 1976 with the original line up.\m/
Dwain Sellers
that was the biggest shock to me was how they sounded just like their album in the concert I saw him at Oakland coliseum don't know what year it was it had to have been around 1984 they were awesome
12B4Christ
And you remember the ticket prices? I still have the first tour Boston concert ticket stub: $8.50 yes, I have the decimal in the right spot. And today? And for what?
Rick Gabehart
Kenneth Morrison 1 the best group ever
William c Colwart jr
u lucky dog
The Salty Dog
Very underrated song. Excellent riffing. Play this to anyone who thinks Boston can't totally rock.