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50 of 57 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Finally! How long have we all been waiting?!, June 26, 2006
| By | Squonk (The dark forests of Pennsylvania, where hunters follow by moonlight my silvery trail of tears) - See all my reviews |
My review for the remastered edition of the first Boston release, Boston (1976/r. 2006) is very similar to this one. Really, most people would consider Boston (1976) and Don't Look Back (1978) as an inseperable set. When put together they barely make the capacity of a standard compact disc (80 minutes). And, they are more alike than the slightly more exploratory Third Stage (1986).
I must begin this review with the same sentiments as I did the other one: If you don't like the band, nobody's asking you to listen to them. But in the name of God show some respect for the people who do. We don't go and badmouth your music; leave ours alone.
That aside, there is no need for me to go through each of the songs. After all, when one totals the sales of the first two Boston albums, one reaches an impressive 24,000,000 copies sold. There are artists today who will never sell that many albums if they released twenty different titles! Boston's albums were among the first to be transfered to the (then new technology) compact disc format. And it was a Boston album that became the first compact disc format release to reach the Gold (500,000 copies) standard. This just stands to prove the undying legacy of this band and these albums, as well as the reason I don't need to describe the songs. If you haven't heard them yet, you have simply not been on planet Earth for the past thirty years.
Which makes the fact that these albums haven't been remastered in 21 years very hard to believe. But then, Scholz always was notorious for taking his sweet time with things (remember the lawsuits for breach of contract?). I guess he just figured he would out-do himself in that department with these remasters. Actually, Tom himself hadn't even been consulted on the matter. He was rather upset at this, but rather than throwing things at the executives, his agent (and presumably his lawyers) asked Sony records very politely if Tom could make some nice 24-bit digital transfers of the first two albums and then handle the remastering himself. Obviously they agreed, and the fine item you are considering at this moment is one half of the result.
Don't Look Back (1978) was one of the most anticipated sophomore albums ever released. In all (to date) seven million copies have flown off the shelves, and though most people consider it slightly inferior to the first release, it has still received a great deal of airplay, and it has stood the test of time. Perhaps you already own some incarnation of the album (album, eight-track, cassette tape, or the original 1985 compact disc release), or maybe this will be the first copy you will be buying. In either case, my verdict stands: BUY IT NOW! DON'T HESITATE!
The remastering is what makes this album special. The original release is well-known for its substandard sound quality, and Tom Scholz himself is on record as having said that he couldn't listen to that edition of his album. Now he was finally granted a chance to craft the audio just as he brilliantly crafted 90% of all the songs and instrumental parts of Boston's music.
And he has risen magnificently to the task. His work on this and the Boston (r. 2006) release is stunning. And yet, as I said in my other review, the word that best describes the difference in sound between this release and the original release of Don't Look Back is subtle. It doesn't jump right out at you, but there is definitely an improvement. It might be hard to put into words just what's different, so I'll try and do that for you.
Having listened to the original releases of this and the first Boston album literally a few thousand times each, I can point out the major differences. Most noticible is the increase in overall volume that all new remasters enjoy. Nonetheless, it's very welcome. Next is the clarity and presence of the vocals: Brad Delp has never sounded better. No longer does his voice sound like it's underwater, or like it's had all the midrange frequencies notched. His words are clear and understandable, yet warm and pleasant. Typically high-range male vocalists suffer from poor remastering, and Brad was no exception. On Tom's remaster, however, you hear Brad as he was meant to be heard.
Overall, the bass frequencies have been tightened and cleaned up considerably, the midranges are vibrant and mellow yet distinct, and the high ranges are nice and clear without losing the warmth of a vinyl recording. Gone is the plethora of tinny, nasty treble that plagued the original edition of this album. Tom really knows what he's doing, because normally I would have found something wrong with the audio for which I would correct. I would not change a thing about what Tom did.
The final and most welcome change is the removal of all the artifacts from the original issue. All the piercing cymbal crashes, the siblants, and the painful Hammond organ percussive attacks (most noticible at the end of "A Man I'll Never Be") are utterly gone. The entire flow is smooth and rich as maple syrup.
Overall, this is a must-have supplement to Boston (1976/r. 2006). If you own every incarnation of this album, or if you've never bought it before, this remastered edition is for you. Don't think, just buy this and the Boston (1976/r. 2006) album at the nearest outlet (or, of course, from Amazon).
What are you still reading this for?! Get out there and buy!
P.S. I've heard quibbling about the lack of bonus tracks. While most new remasters include them, I wouldn't worry too much with this one. According to Tom, the live cuts Sony had on hand were very poor recordings. Tom has all the good ones, and he plans on releasing an entire live disc, complete with his signature remastering prowess. Just take heart in this and you'll be fine!
P.P.S. Since this review appears as a Spotlight review, it will be more visible than my other reviews for various albums. Therefore, I have to say the following out of respect:
R.I.P. Brad Delp, lead and harmony vocalist of one of the greatest classic rock bands ever. NOBODY will ever forget your talent or your contributions to music in general. You were one of my absolute favorite vocalists, and I consider you an inspiration. Many people do. More than you will ever know.
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20 of 26 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Not quite the debut, but still a great album, July 10, 2006
Boston's classic sophmore album has finally been remastered.
Boston became an overnight sensation with their self-titled debut album (1976) which was one of the best selling albums of 1976 (as of this writing, it has sold over fifteen million copies and remains the best selling debut album of all-time). Needless to say, Epic wanted an immediate follow-up album to capitalize on the band's momentum. Not wasting any time, Tom Scholz, (guitar) Brad Delp, (vocals) Barry Goudreau, (guitar) Sib Hashian, (drums) and Fran Sheehan (bass) started work on their new album.
Released in 1978, the two year gap between the debut and the follow-up was considered a long wait. Despite working on the follow-up for two years, Scholz, always the perfectionists, was unhappy with the final result, especially the second half. He considered the album rushed and incomplete. Be that as it may, it was still a strong seller, debuting at number one on the billboard chart and yielding three hit singles, the title track, "Feelin' Satisfied", and "A Man I'll Never Be."
While "Don't Look Back" is overshadowed by the debut, it's still a fine album. It's essentially cut from the same cloth as the debut. The title track is more-or-less this album's "More than a Feeling," "The Journey" is this album's "Foreplay," "Party" is this albums "Smokin'" and so on. The downdraught semi-epic "A Man I'll Never Be" is probably the album's most ambitious song and the one track that separates this album with its predecessor. While "Don't Look Back" is more or less a carbon copy of the debut, it's not quite as strong. There isn't anything wrong with the album; the songs are catchy, the album is well-paced, there isn't any filler, the production is top-notch, it's just that compared to the debut, "Don't Look Back" plays second fiddle, in terms of memorable, great songs. Boston's debut is such a classic; it would be a hard, almost an impossible task, to try to top.
While "Don't Look Back" isn't the classic that the debut is, it's still a great collection of songs. And while Boston's music hasn't aged as well as some of their peers and is definitely dated, their good-time classic 70s brand of rock n' roll is certainly worth a spin now and again.
Although Tom Scholz himself was in charge of the remastering of both this album and Boston's self-titled debut, he has stated that he is less-than-thrilled with the results. He has gone so far as to call both remasters "abortions." I honestly have no idea what Mr. Scholz is talking about or if I am listening to the same remasters as him. Both remasters sound superb. It's the same music that people have known and loved for three decades, but now with a crisp, fresh sound.
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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Boston Helps You Travel In Time, February 22, 2007
Listening to Boston: Boston and Boston: Don't Look Back is like taking a trip back in time. As a teenager in the late 1970's, Boston was the background music of our lives - along with Genesis, Kansas, Supertramp, Pink Floyd, Bob Seger, Alan Parsons Project...
But just listening to any of the songs from Boston's two defining albums takes me back. Boston's sound was distinctive, all their own. Brad Delp was the voice behind the band, and what a voice it was! Coupled with the soaring harmonies from the guitars of Tom Scholz, Boston had a sound all its own, a sound that will instantly transport you back to your teen years.
If you're getting to know Boston for the first time around, I recommend Boston and Don't Look Back. Beyond that, though, Boston's trademark classic rock sound is watered down by the intermittent usage of lesser lead vocalists and weaker material.
Boston and Don't Look Back are both perfect examples of what rock and roll used to be, before disco and rap. Boston is the definition of classic rock.
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