RENAISSANCE MAN

A celebration of the musical artistry and technological ingenuity of Boston's Tom Scholz.

- JEFF JACOBSON

WHEN I WAS 10 years old, I began taking guitar lessons with Bob, a teacher who would become my all-time favorite. Sadly, after one year, Bob left to pursue life as a truck driver, and our paths would never cross again. True to form, though, at our final lesson, he gave me a couple of his favorite albums, one of which was Boston's 1976 self-titled debut. I can still remember putting the vinyl on my turntable and instantly being mesmerized. Years later, things would come full circle when, as a professional music transcriber, I had the opportunity to create the official note-for-note guitar tab books for Boston and its 1978 follow-up, Don't Look Back. I may have known Bob for only a year, but the records he left me - which are arguably Boston's most classic and enduring albums continue to fascinate and inspire me, and they'll be our focus throughout this lesson.

Boston is the musical brainchild of songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Tom Scholz, who also has a background in electrical engineering and is an accomplished inventor. As a young man, Scholz attended Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), and later worked as an engineer for Polaroid, a corporation best known for its instant film and cameras. This engineering prowess enabled Scholz to design and build his own outboard effects and pedals, all of which would become the foundation of Boston's signature sound.

Musically, Scholz melded searing rock guitar with songs you might feel you've known for years after having heard them only once. The hallmarks of his style are soaring melodies and harmonies vocal harmonies, yes - but the core of Scholz's sound lies in his use of layered harmony lead guitars.