Boston’s self-titled debut album released on August 25, 1976 will forever be remembered as one of the greatest rock n roll introductions of all time! Nearly 45 years later, almost the entire album lives in the annals of classic rock radio in a constant state of rotation. Before breaking records by becoming the best-selling debut LP of all time in the U.S., and since going on to sell 25 million copies worldwide, Boston’s impressive legacy almost never even happened in the first place. Initially forming under the name “Mother’s Milk,” what later came to be known as “Boston” spent most of the early 70’s playing the club circuit and churning out demos to send to major labels. One after the other, media juggernauts rejected Boston’s mixtapes with industry figurehead Lennie Petze of Epic Records infamously penning a scathing letter to the band urging them to give up because they “offered nothing new.” Ironically, A&R reps at ABC Records sudden interest in the band prompted CBS to enter into a bidding war resulting in Epic performing an epic about-face and ultimately signing the band via proxy of their CBS Records subsidiary. The behind-the-scenes race to acquire these “mad geniuses at work in a basement” coerced the suits at Epic to double down on their risky investment and step out of the band’s way entirely to allow them to record a debut that replicated the raw sound of the demos as much as possible through the scope of a precise studio finish with the label themselves remaining as hands off. Epic begrudgingly agreed to trust the band’s vision under one condition: they change their name from “Mother’s Milk” to “Boston” to fully capitalize on the mainstream magic that was destined to ensue once radio got ahold of the powerful, anthemic, and melodic singles set to inspire legions of 80’s glam metal bands in years to come and fill the void of the moment in the dying wake of disco’s demise. Song selection flowed seamlessly as singer Brad Delp belted out a curated track list of crowd favorites and set staples from the band’s six years of trial and error playing shows on the road. Just one year after the finished product was released, Boston had secured three top 40 hits competing for chart domination against the likes of well-established acts such as Fleetwood Mac and Stevie Wonder. They earned a Grammy nod for Best New Artist in 1977, had become the fastest selling RIAA certified platinum artists in history, and maintained the title of best-selling debut album for 10 years until they were dethroned by Guns N’ Roses’ “Appetite for Destruction.” Today Boston’s debut work of art remains the eighth best-selling album of all time in U.S. and is on its way to becoming certified double diamond. Hear this impressive feat for yourself by streaming the hits “More Than a Feeling,” “Rock & Roll Band,” and “Let Me Take You Home Tonight” now on Spotify!
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