«Boston» is Boston’s debut album and it came out in August 1976 through Epic Records. Behind it is mostly Tom Scholz, an MIT graduate who built his own studio in his basement and recorded almost every instrument himself, from the guitars to the keyboards. The vocals belong entirely to Brad Delp, while Jim Masdea played drums on the demos. The cover shows spaceship-shaped guitars flying away from an exploding Earth.
“`Country: USA
Genre: Hard Rock
For fans of: Journey, Foreigner, Styx
The sound is built on layered guitars and vocals that ring like a choir, resulting in a clean, loud and at the same time melodic rock. Scholz’s production work gives every track a lot of space, while the compositions keep a balance between the acoustic atmosphere and the electric riffs.
«More Than a Feeling» opens the album with its distinctive acoustic riff and became the band’s best-known song. «Peace of Mind», «Foreplay/Long Time» with its instrumental opening part, «Hitch a Ride» and «Smokin’» stand beside it. Few debut albums have so many songs that are still played on the radio.
The story behind the record is as well known as the music: Scholz built his own multitrack machines in his basement and worked for hours on every detail, while he had been turned down several times by record labels. When the album came out, all of its tracks became known almost at once, something few debuts have managed.
«Boston» became one of the most commercially successful debut albums in rock history, with sales of many millions, and it showed how far an album made with technical mastery and patience can go. The official Boston website has more material on their discography. The band later lost Brad Delp, who sang on every track of the record.
See also
See also: Van Halen – 1984 and Whitesnake – Whitesnake.
