Saturday, March 17, 2007

Something About You


I've finally heard the infamous Tom Scholz demos and it's clear to me that Boston would have been just another boogie band (a la Foghat) had Scholz not been driven to perfection by major label rejection. They were not another Yes or Led Zeppelin ,as early reviews suggested, but a straightforward Rock and Roll Band with a killer guitar sound. The first album is all you need to know and even the hardest of critics had to be impressed. Sound isn't everything though, which is why subsequent releases never lived up to the debut. How do you beat perfection?
Fast forward 30 years. Lead singer Brad Delp has taken his own life. No one will ever really know why this happened but one suspects the bitter split of the original "band" had something to do with it. Scholz claims he did it all with Delp.
Original guitarist Barry Goodreau and mates think otherwise. Delp was caught in the middle. The "nicest guy in Rock and Roll" still sang with both camps to this day.
One thing is clear. It's not nice to leave your family and friends this way. No one will ever look or listen to a Boston song or album the same way. You might expect a thirty year old kid who was thrown into the limelight (like Kurt Cobain) to commit suicide but not a teetotaling thirty year veteran of classic rock. And for those who think Boston was just classic schlock well...nevermind.
gonna hitch a ride (mother's milk version)

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Masterful vocalist...so sad.

Anonymous said...

No celebrity death has ever affected me before. His voice and Boston's music touched and enhanced this 38 year olds life many times. Even loved RTZ and Beatlejuice. Brad, you will be greatly missed, RIP.