Professionally, I’ve always thought of myself as an engineer. Uh, the music was strictly a hobby. We all know this one, don’t we? It’s an absolute classic and go-to for countless cover bands and rock bars all over the world. If you don’t sing along to this one, there’s something wrong with you. But like so many great tracks, it was almost lost altogether.
So, what’s the story? Well, it all started in the late 60s and early 70s with a very clever young man named Tom Schultz. A classically trained pianist, Schultz gained a master’s degree in mechanical engineering from the very prestigious MIT where he also morphed himself into a multi-instrumentalist whilst playing with college bands.
It was during this time that he met drummer Jim Mazdia and they started recording demos together. Singer Brad Delt would also come in around 1970, but they still weren’t technically a band. More on that later on. It was also around this time that Schultz started utilizing his mechanical knowledge to make homemade effects pedals and even recording and production gear.
Some of this would be used on the future hit. If I need a sound that I can’t get with my normal setup with my normal guitar, I I’ll put together any combination of effects or whatever or invent a new one, you know, whatever it takes. Schultz’s high qualifications had earned him a decent job with Polaroid, and so he had a bit of money to spend on his musical projects, but wasn’t exactly flush.
Despite having good resources in the audiovisisual engineering world, paying for studio time quickly started to mount up. So, he did what any self-respecting amateur musician would do. He built his own studio. There’s no need for the um you know, the fancy stuff that goes on in a typical recording studio.
You know, I don’t I don’t have any use for the pinball machines in the playroom and the uh the lounge chairs. Well, now I could use a lounge chair because I I got an injured back last year. But uh what I need is uh just the basic necessary equipment. Uh, no more complication than required. Soon as you add on more channels than you need or more gadgets, you have more trouble.
Squirreled away in the privacy of his bodgege job studio, Schultz worked relentlessly to try and get his musical visions off the ground. Unsatisfied with the musicianship of those he tried to bring in, Schultz would play every instrument other than drums, normally played by Mazdia. Now, he was a perfectionist. He would spend years refining and re-recording demo tapes to be mailed out to music labels and producers, but no luck.
None of the labels were interested, and Schultz even once got a letter of rejection from future label Epic. Epic flatout rejected it and sent me an insulting letter. I have that letter framed now, but it said that there was nothing new about this music and they were in no way interested. Then later someone went through the proper political channels with Epic and all of a sudden they were interested.
Still, we didn’t get signed until they heard more than a feeling. However, it wasn’t wasted time. Schultz had taught himself about every facet of music production and recording, as well as honing his songwriting skills on multiple instruments. He had effectively turned himself and Mazdia into a twoman band, at least on tape.
When he sent out tapes to record companies, his plan was to basically fool them into thinking this was a full band being recorded and produced in a studio. But it wasn’t. It was him, all his instruments, and Mazdia in a basement. I knew that I had to do it uh alone. So, uh the only way that was going to happen is if I built my own little studio and ran it myself.
uh very time consuming of course because I have to you know I’m the only engineer I’m the technician I’m the producer I’m the you know the guy that rerings the guitars and and of course I have to play all the parts even Brad Delp was fooled when he was sent demo tapes to sing over thinking it was a complete band at times understandably after 5 years of perseverance and rejection Schultz was starting to lose motivation and money and so without much hope he prepared and sent out one last demo tape.
I had enough money for one last demo and sent it off to 24 companies. Then figured I’d sit back and wait for the rejection letters. Lo and behold, three major labels were interested. I couldn’t believe it. This last Hail Mary included more than a feeling and finally grabbed the attention of the record labels with Epic eventually signing them.
So, finally Boston had a label and caught a break. Except Boston was still basically just Schultz creating the whole project with Brad Delt contributing vocals, which was a slight problem. See, part of the contract negotiations included that Boston go back and record all those demos that had got them a spot in the first place, even though those demos were rejected for years.
As far as Epic were concerned, Boston happily agreed to do so in a fancy professional studio with a producer of the label’s choosing, John Bolan. Somewhat cheekily, Schultz had other ideas. He convinced the producer that the only way he was going to do this was if he could return to his basement and re-record it the only way he knew how.
Oil agreed on the condition that they would then mix the song together in a studio in LA. Epic thought it was being recorded by a real producer in a studio somewhere. The only difference is that Sib Hashian played the drum tracks on those versions. I did the exact same thing. I went back to work and I played all of the parts myself.
When you hear More Than a Feeling, that’s a couple of weeks of me relaying the guitar tracks down just the way I did on the demos. Brad did the same thing with the vocals. It was done entirely like the original, but the record company didn’t know it. He went on to explain that the poor producer probably only agreed because he was worried about losing that gig and that they supposedly split the producers’s royalty check. Very cheeky.
Deceptive or not, it was the right way to go. The song was an instant smash hit and it’s easy to see why. It’s got those catchy riffs, a singalong anthem feel, an iconic solo. [Music] All those years perfecting his own sound and crafting his own equipment paid off. In years to come, Schultz would be praised for his signature guitar tone that others could never quite reproduce.
This was largely down to having his own one-off bits of kit, but was also down to his meticulous approach to recording. The song is covered in layers upon layers of sound with multi-tracked instruments adding texture and depth. This was nothing new, but here it was simply done beautifully. Boston’s sound was a unique thing that couldn’t easily be emulated and that’s a trait of any great song or band, right? But funnily enough, despite its upbeat singalong nature, the lyrics and inspiration are actually of a sad origin. Schultz has
said that the song was inspired by a failed first love while he was at school and is about the experience of heartbreak eventually turning into a pleasant nostalgia. It started with a love affair I had when I was in school. So, the song is written about something I went through myself. There was another song out then that whenever I heard it caused me to pine miserably for this particular girl and so I decided to write my own song about those feelings.
However, he’s also said in interviews that it was a fictional event created for the song that anyone could relate to. But Marianne, it turns out, was a real person. Schultz’s first cousin. Yeah. Would it really be a classic hit if there wasn’t at least one weird detail in there somewhere? There actually was a real Marianne.
She was my older first cousin who I had a crush on when I was 10. I ran into her many, many years later, and she was very annoyed at me for mentioning that she was my older cousin. Probably best not to think too much about that. Anyway, the song was eventually released in September 1976 as the lead single and opener of debut album Boston.
It was a hit, entering at 18 and reaching number five, finally introducing the band to the world and paving the way for their career. And to date, it sold over 20 million copies. But it’s its enduring legacy that really shows the quality of this song. It’s still a massive hit today. It’s been used on countless TV shows and movies and referenced by several other bands, whether intentional or not.
Many people have noticed that Nana’s smash hit Smells Like Teen Spirits main riff is almost identical to More Than a Feeling. But more importantly, More Than a Feeling is just a great time, and I’m glad it made it out of the basement and into the world for all of us to hear. Another song that was written in a basement and also nearly never saw the light of day is Brian Adams Summer of 69.
There’s a fascinating story behind that one, too. You can click over there to watch it next.
