Self-Titled Summer | Boston (1976, US)
Our next Self-Titled Summer spotlight is on number 284 on The List, submitted by baz. Here’s a quick rundown:
- Point of origin(s): At the beginning, Boston was essentially the solo project of Ohioan multi-instrumentalist, engineer, and inventor Tom Scholz, with a little help from Boston-area friends from an MIT frat band called Freehold (c. 1970, particularly guitarist Barry Goudreau and drummer Jim Masdea), and then one of Scholz’s short-lived bar bands, Mother’s Milk (c. 1973-74, had Goudreau and Masdea, as well as vocalist Brad Delp). Early demos for this album, Boston’s debut, featured all these friends, but the demos were continuously rejected. In 1974-75, as a last ditch effort, Masdea and Delp helped record new demos in Scholz’s basement recording studio, where, with the aid of some self-invented devices and ridiculous amounts of overdubbing, Scholz played all the instruments except for the drums. These demos got “the band” a management deal (that unfortunately included dumping Masdea) and then a live audition with Epic Records; a full band was recruited to accompany Scholz and Delp on the audition, with Goudreau on second guitar, Fran Sheehan on bass, and Dave Courier on drums. After waiting a while for a verdict, Scholz sent Epic a couple more demos to give them a nudge, including “More Than a Feeling”, and this finally snagged a contract…with only Scholz and Delp actually signed. Most of the instrumentation on the released album was still primarily played and recorded by Scholz (with Sib Hashian on drums, except for Masdea on “Rock & Roll Band”). Indeed, only one song (“Let Me Take You Home”) contains performances of all “the band” members pictured in the album’s liner notes. When the album was finished, the duo of Scholz and Delp was officially named “Boston”.
- Tasting notes: Hard rock, arena rock…from a basement, just another “band” out of Boston
- Standout track: I’m fairly certain it’s illegal to say anything other than “More Than A Feeling”.
- Where are they now?/RIP: Boston would go on to release five more studio albums and are currently on hiatus (at least partially due to the fact that Scholz’s analog equipment needs repairs). Boston has changed its line-up multiple times, with Scholz as the only constant original member. Delp left us in 2007.
- Websites: Band website, Wikipedia
Happy listening.
#1970s #Boston #BostonBand #BradDelp #hardRock #music #musicDiscovery #rock #selftitled #TomScholz