The USA have given us countless stellar rock n roll artists and bands throughout the decades. With pioneers like Chuck Berry, Elvis Presley, Little Richard, and Buddy Holly ; to the 60's counter culture California based heavyweights like The Mamas And The Papas, The Byrds, Jefferson Airplane ; to recent trailblazers like The Black Keys and The Strokes , our nation has no intention of slowing down.
Boston is without question part of that fantastic lineup mentioned above. Boston was formed in Boston, Massachusetts around 1975 by founding member and multi-instrumentalist Tom Schultz along with lead singer Brad Delp, guitarist Barry Goudreau, bassist Fran Sheenan and John (Sib) Hashian. The band is known mostly for "More Than A Feeling". While that song is great in its own right, my musical hot take is to dig deeper into the bands catalog and to offer my honest critique.
For starters, Boston, the bands self-titled debut record which was released on August 25th, 1976, is highly regarded as one rock n roll's greatest debut records and it's for good reason. It helps that "More Than A Feeling" was the song that kicked off the album because it became the bands cash cow and a FM rock radio staple. However, this whole LP is chalk fulled with fantastic tracks that are pure American rock n roll and gave the term 'arena rock" its name.
Key tracks to listen to are "Rock N Roll Band", "Smokin" 'Hitch A Ride" , "Foreplay/Long Time", and "Something About You"
"Foreplay/Long Time" is in the same league with Bohemian Rhapsody as one rocks greatest epics . The begging is all band members running full steam ahead with Tom Schultz at the helm with the iconic organ/synthesizer intro. Then all is quiet while more organ is played and then like a rocket, the blistering guitar dueling from both Barry and Tom kick in and they give us what is now the immortal Boston sound ; the harmonized guitar parts.
"Smokin" is a rock bar jukebox boogie in A with killer guitar work by both Barry and Tom (Tom gives it his all on the memorable organ solo) and Hashian's in pocket groove.
The best song off the album however is "Hitch A Ride". This song alone showcases what Boston is truly made of and shows each band member at their full potential . The Song structure itself is remarkable as the song is tuned up a half of step. Most rock songs are usually standard, drop D, or either tune down a half step. The song kicks off with the ear pleasing acoustic guitar and Brad Delp gives his best vocal performance. Fran Sheenan lays down a killer bass line as well. The kicker for this song however, is the outro guitar solos provided by both Barry and Tom. The iconic Boston harmonized guitar parts are in full swing here and what I love about the solo is that not only is it flashy , but also soulful.
My music hot take on Boston is this however. After their debut album , I believe the band truly never captured the raw/emotional feel that they once did like on their debut. Granted, they have made song decent songs like "Feelin Satisfied" but even that song alone seems timid compared to every single song on their debut.
Boston. A band that came into the scene like a lion, and it's footprint is forever stamped into music history.
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