During their meteoric rise, the Massachusetts-based group consisted of guitarist and songwriter Tom Scholz, singer Brad Delp, guitarist Barry Goudreau, drummer Sib Hashian and bassist Fran Sheehan. Much of their first, eponymous 1976 Epic Records release was recorded by Scholz, Delp and Goudreau in a project studio in Scholz's basement. It was only after the label insisted on seeing the band perform that Hashian and Sheehan were added.
Boston was an immediate success, and ranks as one of the highest selling albums of all time, with more than 16 million copies sold. The band followed it with Don't Look Back (1978), Third Stage (1986), Walk On (1994), and a "reunion" release entitled Corporate America (2002). The band also released a Greatest Hits album in 1997.
Scholz was often described as a "genius", both musically and technically. During the early 1980s he formed an audio-electronics firm (Scholz Research & Design), which marketed the highly-successful "Rockman" guitar amplifier. These pursuits garnered him at least as much wealth as his work with Boston. Scholz was also, less flatteringly, known as a perfectionist: according to one rumor, he is said to have re-recorded a set of drum tracks more than one hundred times. His autocratic nature and unwillingness to complete albums in a timely manner led to a series of conflicts which culminated in lawsuits from fellow-bandmember Goudreau and the label, Epic Records.
Boston's music is still in heavy rotation, mainly on "classic rock" radio stations. As of 2002, the band continues to produce new music, though Scholz and Delp are the only original members.
Discography