The 1980 Listening Post - Barry Goudreau - Barry Goudreau

 Barry Goudreau - Barry Goudreau

#312

August 1980

Barry Goudreau

Barry Goudreau

Genre: Boston minus the Boston magic

3.5 out of 5

Highlights:

Hard Luck

Life is What We Make It

Take Tom Scholz out of Boston and this is what you get. But that’s fine. Barry’s a pretty good guitarist and I love me some Brad Delp, when he’s on board. Otherwise it’s a little more ELO glam than soaring arena rock. 

“Mean Woman Blues” might as well be “Smokin’” and there’s a bunch of middling rockers but, the album is fun. Even if it is driven entirely by Goudreau while every other instrument takes a back seat. Holy Smokes do “Dreams” and “Life is What We Make It” sound like Boston tracks. Boston should sue…every other member of Boston.

https://music.apple.com/us/album/barry-goudreau/397749382

The 1986 Listening Post - Boston - Third Stage

Boston - Third Stage

#392/2071

September 23 1986

Boston

Third Stage

Genre: Glorified Power Pop

3 out of 5

Highlights:

Amanda

The lead single, “Amanda”, was huge but I can’t help thinking it reminds me of “Someone Save My Life Tonight” by Elton John. There’s something about the melody that makes me want to add “Sugar Bear” to it and then I just wanna turn it off and go to the John classic. 

I loved those first two Boston records. Well, the first one, a LOT. The second was pretty darned good, too. 

The first one sounded fresh, like a bolt out of the rock and roll blue/. And the follow up had that sense that there was still something left to be said. 

Third stage sounds like the band is saying, “We gotta make a ‘Boston’ record. It’s gotta sound like a ‘Boston’ record!”.

It’s big and full and all epic and everything. But motifs are rerun to diminished effect and there’s little joy in the crafting of these giant set pieces Scholz calls songs. 

The secret to Boston is easily found in the penultimate cut, “Can’tcha Say You Believe In Me”. Beneath the pyrotechnics of guitar playing and the wanna be prog rock is a pretty fun and simple Raspberries song. Delp sounds like eric Carmen at times. Boston didn’t reinvent anything, they just added more “Power” to the “Pop”. 

https://music.apple.com/us/album/third-stage/875661411