I remember hearing More Than A Feeling on a Saturday morning in the Fall of 1976, in our station wagon as my Mom drove me to gymnastics class. I liked the song so much that it caused me to make my first and worst mail order record purchase. The TV had advertised a record called Muskrat Love, which had this song plus many other popular songs of the time, like Rubberband Man, Nadia's Theme, Theme from Airport '76, Car Wash, Boogie Fever, Sorry Seems to be the Hardest Word. Some real tepid stuff. Unfortunately, what I failed to understand about Muskrat Love from the commercial, was that these songs were not the original artist recordings. They were covers that sounded very close to the originals but not quite. I think my Mom tried to explain this to me before she helped me send $3.99 to some PO box in Michigan, but I probably didn't understand. After waiting 4-6 weeks for delivery, which is a lifetime to a nine year old, the album arrived and I eagerly placed it on the turntable. Right away, I knew something was amiss. More Than A Feeling sounded weird. I still listened to the album, but soon soured on it and eventually tossed it in the creek across from our house. I was disappointed, flabbergasted. How could someone be allowed to sell crap like this? Apparently, Canadians were spared this monstrosity.
I finally heard the actual Boston album years later, I heard the real More Than A Feeling. And Peace of Mind. And Foreplay/Long Time. As my brother would say, may your birthday be as cool as side one of Boston's first album. It is a great side. Side Two is good also, but I never cared for Something About You and Let Me Take You Home Tonight (Mama now it's all right). By the way, when did guys start referring to women as 'mama', and when did it end? Was it just a hippie thing?
Later on in life, I heard Nirvana's Smells Like Teen Spirit, and noticed that the chord structure was very similar to More Than A Feeling, albeit an angrier angst-ridden 90s yin to Boston's happy 70s yang. The guitar solo in More Than A Feeling is like taking a dose of serotonin. It sends joy and pleasure right into your bloodstream.
I bought an album like that too, thinking it was the original artists and I was getting a great deal. Didn't have a creek to throw it in, so it's probably still around here someplace collecting dust.
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