Music of the Day, 14 November 2024

give your mind a ride

Well, it might be time to start watching the skies for flying pigs. A song from another band I thought would never be featured here came into my mind a few minutes ago. And now that I’ve listened to it once, I want to hear it again … which I thought would never happen, given how overplayed their music was in my teen years.

It’s been so long since I’ve heard this song that I wasn’t sure I remembered anything beyond the first line of the chorus accurately. Turns out that I likely didn’t know the song well back then, which may help explain why it’s so welcome.

“Feelin’ Satisfied” was the third single from Boston’s second studio album, Don’t Look Back, which was released in 1978. It did the worst of the three on the charts, which also may be part of why I’m enjoying it today: I don’t think it was nearly as overplayed as their other hits.

Like most of my high-school friends, I was walloped by Boston’s enormous rock sound when it first hit the scene. I knew nothing about Tom Scholz’s patient wizardry in creating it. I just knew that it sounded like no other band I’d heard, and I couldn’t get enough. The full lineup was Brad Delp on vocals; Barry Goudreau on guitars and co-lead guitar; Sib Hashian on drums; Scholz on keys, guitars, co-lead guitar, and special effects; and Fran Sheehan on bass guitar. After Boston’s first album went big, Don’t Look Back sold over 1 million copies in just its first 10 days in stores; as of 1996, it was RIAA certified as 7x platinum. That’s a lot of wax!

It turned out that it was possible to oversaturate the airwaves with Boston—for this listener, at least. With eight singles released from its first two albums over a span of 2.5 years, the repetition began to grate, and I started to rebel. If possible, I’d turn the station to avoid their songs; if not, I’d try to start a conversation to distract me.

Listening to “Feelin’ Satisfied” today, I am indeed satisfied. Its sound is tight and rich, with everyone pulling his weight. Through earbuds, Sheehan’s meaty bass comes through clearly and provides a nice balance to the higher end. What a perfect song to kick off a show. Wikipedia informed me that Boston is still making music, with Scholz as the sole surviving original member. I’m intrigued to hear some of the band’s more recent music.

I also discovered that I have Boston’s 1997 Greatest Hits compilation in my library. Given how different—and great—“Satisfied” sounds under better listening conditions, I am tempted to give it a spin. How can I not take a chance on rock ‘n’ roll?