TO "B" OR NOT TO "B" !

This is “B” day of the 2015 A to Z Blogging Challenge. My theme this year is an A to Z look at various bands or artists whose name begins with the letter of the day. 

   Today I’ll be talking about the band Boston and Pat Benatar. Boston and Pat Benatar are two of my favorite musical acts. Their music spoke to me during different periods of my life.

Pat Benatar appealed to me as a rock star with an incredibly powerful voice. It came as no surprise to me that she was trained to sing Opera. She certainly had the vocal range to succeed singing opera. Pat Benatar also struck me as being personally strong, independent, decent and good.

One of her songs that appealed to me on a deep emotional level was Hell is for Children. She co-wrote this song with her husband and guitarist, Neil Giraldo, after reading about a particularly horrific child abuse case in the newspaper. There is a special place in hell for anyone who abuses a child.

After four decades, Pat is still rocking and is still married to Neil. Both items are a rarity in the world, much less in the world of Rock & Roll. I admire that!

Another of my favorite artists beginning with “B” is BOSTON. Their music is still a staple on Classic Rock radio stations today. However, back in their heyday their music was part of the music background of my life.

The driving force behind BOSTON was Tom Scholz. He graduated from MIT with a Master’s Degree in Mechanical Engineering. He worked for Polaroid, the camera people, and developed his ideas for a unique musical sound while working there. 

Scholz was joined in his effort by Brad Delp, Lead Singer. Brad had a singularly unique and powerful singing voice that helped define BOSTON’s unique sound. BOSTON’s first album was one of the highest selling debut albums in history, selling over 17 million copies. Their song “Rock and Roll Band” follows in the tradition of the Monkee’s “Hey, Hey We’re the Monkee’s” and the Mama’s and the Papa’s “Creeque Alley.” A song that tells the story of their beginnings.

   Another song that spoke to me during a particularly down time of my youth was “A Man I’ll Never Be.” It’s a song about a guy that can never become the person that his significant other wants him to become. 

BOSTON spoke to a generation with their music ranging from hard driving rock and roll to romantic ballads. They are a band for a generation. 

“C” you all tomorrow!