Oil Can Boyd Posted May 1, 2009 Share Posted May 1, 2009 I was never the biggest Boston fan, even as a kid when their songs were everywhere. But the infighting between past and current band members has just stepped up a notch based on the message Tom Scholz posted on the Boston website yesterday. BOSTON shows, myths, and truths by Tom Scholz In spite of recent misleading ads claiming BOSTON appearances and even reunions of original members, BOSTON is not touring or performing this year. While we're off this summer, several of our members are involved with other projects that are worth catching if you can: Kimberley Dahme is releasing her new CD "You Make Me Believe" this month and has many solo appearances scheduled. Gary Pihl contributed writing, performing and production help to her effort, and Jeff Neal and I also did a little playing on the album. Gary will be joining Kimberley at several of her performances ... check out her tour page: www.kdsongs.com Michael Sweet is touring with Stryper this fall in support of Stryper's new album "Murder by Pride." The tour marks their 25th Anniversary. Gary Pihl and I hope to catch up with them to sit in at some point. www.michaelsweet.com Also, Gary Pihl is compiling a series of good quality video clips from live shows soon to be available here on bandboston.com, watch for it! We are hoping to embark on another major BOSTON tour next year. Meanwhile, I am finally back working to complete the next BOSTON studio album with some help from the gang, and I think you are really going to like it! But I'm telling you it's not BOSTON... As many of you know, numerous dates have been announced for the band Cosmo, but have been promoted using the name, logo, or even the recorded music of BOSTON, which may have confused some as to whether BOSTON would be performing. Fran Cosmo has explained that he was unaware that BOSTON's name, logo, or music were being used by his agent to promote Cosmo as BOSTON. While most of it has stopped, there are still some problems with unauthorized use of the name BOSTON in connection with some scheduled Cosmo performances. Cosmo's extensive covers of older BOSTON songs recorded prior to Fran's involvement raised some eyebrows, but as long as these shows are not promoted in a misleading way using BOSTON, we see no problem with their performance of a few BOSTON songs, and wish them luck with their summer tour. 25 Year Reunion??? Unrelated, there have been extensive promotions for a band called Ernie and the Automatics fueled by the heir to the Boch car dealer fortune, Ernie Boch Jr., claiming a 25 year reunion of former original members of BOSTON. Oddly, the two musicians referred to in the ad campaign have appeared together repeatedly over many years, so the 25 year reunion claim is a bit strange. While they did indeed play live with BOSTON about thirty years ago, the claim that they were "original members" is questionable. There were only two performers signed to make the debut album in the original Epic Records agreements, Brad and myself. Possibly because we wrote all the music for the album, recorded the six demo songs that landed the deal, produced them in my basement, and funded all of it from my Polaroid salary. Between the two of us, Brad and I went on to physically record nearly 90% of the actual studio tracks for the BOSTON album. On most of the songs, once the drum track was laid down, all the instruments and vocals you hear were recorded by just the two of us, painstakingly overdubbing each part to create the recorded "band" that so many have become familiar with. The only other person who helped make those demos for the resulting album was drummer Jim Masdea. Masdea, forced out by the management Brad and I had signed with in 1975, was in fact the drummer for every demo I sent to record companies back in the 70's. The same manager who vetoed Masdea was also responsible for the back cover of the debut album, with the famous pic of five musicians, which by some coincidence, also omitted Masdea's performance credit from the initial pressing run. These ads almost seem to imply that including two musicians from our 70's tours on an unrelated CD somehow make it a BOSTON reunion. After this much time, is it really necessary to resort to something like this to get attention? Mother's Milk goes sour... On the subject of misleading promotions, a few months ago Wikipedia reported some outlandish claims purportedly made by Barry Goudreau based on a fancifully twisted version of Mother's Milk as the origin of BOSTON, and cited Goudreau's website. While I apologize for dwelling on ancient history, this has gained some traction in the music press and finally warrants a response. Elements of the story have also persisted on other Wiki pages. According to the Wikipedia post, "The way Goudreau tells it, when he was a student at Boston University, he led a band called "Mother's Milk". One day, a musician named Tom Scholz joined after answering an ad in a local weekly newspaper. Scholz was a recent MIT engineering graduate who worked at Polaroid who was primarily a keyboard player, but who rapidly developed as a guitar player after joining Goudreau's band. After years of practice in Scholz's home studio with singer Brad Delp and other local musicians, Mother's Milk evolved into what we know as Boston, and Scholz took over the leadership of the band. In 1976, after years of having their demo tapes rejected, the band got signed to Epic Records after (in Goudreau's words) Scholz "refine[d] the songs and recordings to a point where they could no longer be denied." This would be true except for a few minor details: Mother's Milk was never led by Goudreau, he wasn't a student at BU when Mother's Milk existed, I didn't meet Goudreau in Mother's Milk, there was never a newspaper ad for a keyboard or guitar player for Mother's Milk, I didn't join Mother's Milk, Mother's Milk did not practice in my home studio, it did not evolve into the band BOSTON, it was not signed to Epic Records, and most of the songs on the eventual demo that Epic liked had never been shopped to a record label before, because most of them hadn't been written yet. Other than that, totally accurate. The Wikipedia blurb went on to say "According to Goudreau's story, he was the founder of the band Boston Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Analogman Posted May 1, 2009 Share Posted May 1, 2009 I guess if Bruce Kulick can play for Grand Funk Railroad, Michael Sweet can play in Boston. How bizarre. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
lamradio Posted May 1, 2009 Share Posted May 1, 2009 I'm surprised this doesn't mention Tommy DeCarlo. Is he still the lead singer? I still find the story very interesting how Tommy was just a Boston fan, posted himself singing Karaoke on the net, and next thing you know, he's getting an offer from the band to be the new lead singer. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Central Scrutinizer Posted May 1, 2009 Share Posted May 1, 2009 I'm embarrassed to say Boston was my first concert (at the *then* Rosemont Horizon). But I'm better now. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
ction Posted May 1, 2009 Share Posted May 1, 2009 The first Boston album is better than most of the flavor-of-the-month hipster indie drivel championed in this forum. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
lamradio Posted May 1, 2009 Share Posted May 1, 2009 The first Boston album is better than most of the flavor-of-the-month hipster indie drivel championed in this forum. Yes. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
jff Posted May 1, 2009 Share Posted May 1, 2009 I'm surprised this doesn't mention Tommy DeCarlo. Is he still the lead singer? I still find the story very interesting how Tommy was just a Boston fan, posted himself singing Karaoke on the net, and next thing you know, he's getting an offer from the band to be the new lead singer. Is that true? That's the same way Neil Schon found Journey's current singer. I've heard the theory before that if you name your band after a place, the bigger the place is the worse the band will be. So I guess that means Boston > Kansas > Europe. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Analogman Posted May 1, 2009 Share Posted May 1, 2009 Speaking of Boston, this guy has some Boston boots to download. Boston: Acetate Demos 1975-1976 Boston: Boston Garden 1978 (VG Aud) Boston: Cleveland, Ohio 1976 (Pre-FM CD Source) Quote Link to post Share on other sites
lamradio Posted May 1, 2009 Share Posted May 1, 2009 Is that true? That's the same way Neil Schon found Journey's current singer. Yes, true. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tommy_DeCarlo You can even hear clips of him singing on his official site, which is pretty amazing. He's no Brad, but he's pretty damn close. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
John Smith Posted May 1, 2009 Share Posted May 1, 2009 I was just thinking of Boston the other day. I liked and still like their first album. It brings back a lot of memories when I hear it. That was my high school days and a bunch of albums from that era I hear them today as if it were 30+ years ago. BOC, Ted Nugent, druggy Aerosmith, Journey, KISS, Van Halen, Cheap Trick, Schenker era UFO & Scorpions etc Quote Link to post Share on other sites
bleedorange Posted May 1, 2009 Share Posted May 1, 2009 The first Boston album is better than most of the flavor-of-the-month hipster indie drivel championed in this forum. Definitely. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
cryptique Posted May 1, 2009 Share Posted May 1, 2009 The first Boston album is better than most of the flavor-of-the-month hipster indie drivel championed in this forum.No argument here. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
jakobnicholas Posted May 1, 2009 Share Posted May 1, 2009 Whenever I hear "Don't Look Back" on the classic rock station, I crank it REAL loud....especially for the finale. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Sir Stewart Posted May 1, 2009 Share Posted May 1, 2009 I live in Boston! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
John Smith Posted May 1, 2009 Share Posted May 1, 2009 I live in Boston! Damn you annd your Celtics! They go down this weekend. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Sweet Papa Crimbo Posted May 1, 2009 Share Posted May 1, 2009 The first Boston album is better than most of the flavor-of-the-month hipster indie drivel championed in this forum. QFT Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Rusty Shackleford Posted May 1, 2009 Share Posted May 1, 2009 I like the first Boston album okay, but it's really annoying the way that guy keeps writing the name as BOSTON. Is he writing it that way for emphasis, or is it some sort of acronym? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
suites Posted May 1, 2009 Share Posted May 1, 2009 Interesting stuff. Shame what happened to Brad Delp......I still think about that and how he did it.....weird. I love the guitar solo in Hitch A Ride....great stuff. Tom is the man....for some reason he reminded me to Roger Waters...don't ask me why. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Sir Stewart Posted May 1, 2009 Share Posted May 1, 2009 Tom is the man....for some reason he reminded me to Roger Waters...don't ask me why.I think it's because they look alike. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Analogman Posted May 1, 2009 Share Posted May 1, 2009 And they are both control freaks and dominated their respective bands. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
suites Posted May 1, 2009 Share Posted May 1, 2009 And they are both control freaks and dominated their respective bands. yep...that is what I was thinking. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Central Scrutinizer Posted May 1, 2009 Share Posted May 1, 2009 And they are both control freaks and dominated their respective bands.That's what always struck me about him. Classic Rock radio in the late 80s just killed the band for me. On the Cheap Trick comment, that band was/is Rick Nielsen's head, shoulders and fuzzy sweater above Boston. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Analogman Posted May 1, 2009 Share Posted May 1, 2009 Of course, they had to do that. I think that is one of reasons Tom is upset about a drummer he has not worked with in decades using the name (although he says he didn't know). How many Boston songs did he write? I would guess none. That makes me think of this: Jon Bauman (Bowzer from Sha Na Na) has also spoken on behalf of musicians who are upset about contemporary groups who use classic groups' names even though none of the original members are in the former's lineups. Supporters include Charlie Thomas of The Drifters, Mary Wilson of The Supremes, and Carl Gardner of The Coasters. Before his death, Drifter Bill Pinkney was also a supporter. Bauman has also helped create laws stating that any group using the name of a classic group must have at least one of the original members. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
hardwood floor Posted May 1, 2009 Share Posted May 1, 2009 The first Boston album is better than most of the flavor-of-the-month hipster indie drivel championed in this forum. god bless you it's an absolutely remarkable record when i was 18 i was working at a record store, and the guy from epic records would always give us backstage passes so i was backstage at a boston show at nassau coliseum when boston was at the height of its powers, probably 1977? they were all really nice guys. one of them -- i think the guy with the big hair (sib hashinian?) was hitting on my girlfriend. which was cool. i went to school the next day bragging to everybody how the dude from boston was hitting on my girlfriend fucking awesome they were really great live too. just killed it Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Central Scrutinizer Posted May 1, 2009 Share Posted May 1, 2009 god bless you it's an absolutely remarkable record when i was 18 i was working at a record store, and the guy from epic records would always give us backstage passes so i was backstage at a boston show at nassau coliseum when boston was at the height of its powers, probably 1977? they were all really nice guys. one of them -- i think the guy with the big hair (sib hashinian?) was hitting on my girlfriend. which was cool. i went to school the next day bragging to everybody how the dude from boston was hitting on my girlfriend fucking awesome they were really great live too. just killed itI was disappointed about them in concert, even at 16. I remember the songs being pretty much note for note performances. The build up to Long Time was pretty cool, but I wasn't wowed. EDIT: Sounds like you had a pretty sweet gig. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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