Music Review by Bill Rendall

Boston

It really is more than a feeling when I hear those old songs Boston used to play. The self referential nostalgia of 'More Than a Feeling' works for me every time. The lyrics mention a memory of a girl who slipped away but it seems that the old songs are more important than the girl.

'More Than a Feeling' has a deceptively complex structure. For example, there is a gap in the vocals between the verse and chorus. It is a real art to write such an interesting song that still fits within the format required for radio play.

The debut Boston album contains many great songs. 'Peace of Mind' is an autobiographical song about Tom Scholz's decision to quit his job for the life of a rock and roll musician.

'Rock and Roll Band' tells a familiar story of life on the road for a band struggling for success but it could not have been based on the experiences of Boston. The band was more a recording project than a performing band at the time.

'Smoking' utilises a southern boogie guitar rhythm and adds some extra spice with an organ lead break in which Scholz demonstrates he has great keyboard chops as well as great guitar chops.

Boston's music features dense guitar sounds. Most often the lead guitar lines in Boston songs are supported by one or two harmony lead guitar lines. While this is a little unusual there are other bands who have used harmony lead lines. What is more unusual is that Scholz plays multiple lead guitar lines in unison as well. This involves a great deal of playing precision. The price is a lack of spontaneity. Scholz has attracted criticism for over production but I admire his skilled craftsmanship and I love his guitar sound.

Brad Delp has one of the best voices in rock. He sings so high that he must be using falsetto at times. But his voice control is so good that I can't tell where he is flipping over to falsetto. My only complaint is that I can't sing along with the choruses because they are out of my reach.

Production of Boston's second album was an ongoing battle between Scholz and his record company. The record company wanted an album released quickly to capitalise on the success of the debut album while Scholz wanted to spend as much time as he thought necessary to perfect the album. Eventually the company prevailed upon Scholz to release the album before he was feeling satisfied with it. The end result was disappointing for all involved although 'Don't Look Back' enjoyed some success as a single. My favourite song from the album is the ballad 'A Man I'll Never Be.'

Scholz was determined he wouldn't be pressured into releasing the third album before he wanted to. He was involved in lengthy court battles with his record company about artistic control of the production of his music. The record company argued that Scholz was spending far too long creating his songs. It was claimed that he had recorded hundreds of takes of a single drum part to get the sound he wanted in one song.

Eventually Scholz won the court battle and released the third Boston album Third Stage some ten years after the debut album. By this time most of the members of the band from the first two albums had long since departed and some of them were involved in court battles with Scholz as well. For the recording of Third Stage Boston consisted of Brad Delp on vocals and Scholz doing everything else. Surprisingly the ballad 'Amanda' topped the US singles charts.

Tom Scholz had already refined the band's sound by the time the debut Boston album was released and this gets my recommendation. Subsequent albums suffered from Scholz's tendency to over-refine the sound.

A greatest hits compilation of Boston was released in 1997 and I recommend this as a summary of Boston's musical output, although it includes some recent songs which are weak. For example, a song called 'Higher Power' dedicated to people who have triumphed over drug addiction, which sounds disturbingly like Christian rock.