“It’s Been Such a Long Time” - Summer road-trip to Rhode Island to see a BOSTON tribute band, Part 2

Finally made it up to Rhode Island last weekend to see the Boston tribute band, DON’T LOOK BACK — which ultimately turned out to be worth the trek.

Getting to the show was a bit arduous, but really rather fun. I had the best copilot and travel partner with me the whole way: Gretchen the Great. A truck fire on the upper deck of the George Washington Bridge slowed us down, but once in Connecticut we stopped in Greenwhich, refueled ourselves and the car, and made it to Providence around 4:45. It was only a hop, skip, and a jump to the theater and show in Woonsocket at 8.

To be fair, I’ve seen the real BOSTON perform live on four separate occasions: twice in 1987, once in 2003, and again in 2004. They’re a hard act to duplicate. This tribute band, DON’T LOOK BACK, tried to do them justice, but I’d ultimately give them a B-.

Sure, the requisite amount of distortion, pull offs, and pick slides were all present— but the band had a last-minute replacement singer, no one properly adjusting their sound levels, and a wonky-looking stage set and bad-fitting wigs. (The drummer’s ‘fro, however, does earn high marks for 1970s authenticity …).

On the plus side, the crowd was really into it and the show was interactive, but the group was sloppy. I guess I’ve been spoiled by the likes of GET THE LED OUT, a Philadelphia-based Led Zeppelin tribute band that painstakingly recreates the sounds you hear exactly on the studio recordings. GARY MULLINS & THE WORKS also do an amazing rendition of Freddie Mercury and early Queen. The bar’s set high when your whole raison d’etre is to be a believable facsimile of an original legend. On this score DON’T LOOK BACK was just … OK.

And even though I’d probably built things up in my mind in a way that no BOSTON tribute band could’ve surpassed, the night was still nostalgic, the excursion fun, and the whole thing meaningful and entertaining.

At the end of the day, it was worth it and we’re never too old for fun and meaning. If it’s affordable, innocent, and no one gets hurt, just go for it. Life’s too short and time’s too fleeting.

There’s one final addendum specifically about Tom Scholz I’d like to add to my previous post; I’ve come to regard the guy today much like I do George Lucas: a talented genius who lost the magic and couldn’t top his earlier efforts. Just as Lucas’ later Star Wars movies are considered subpar, every BOSTON album released by Scholz was flatter and a step-down from the one preceding it. It’s not by accident DON’T LOOK BACK only covers tracks from Boston’s first three albums, specifically those that feature original vocalist Brad Delp — they’re the best of the six albums Scholz released over a 40-year period, and nothing on later albums stands out as either something special or anything worth revisiting. You’ll never hear BOSTON’s later stuff on rock radio (thank God) — though their best songs now live on forever in our popular consciousness and musical zeitgeist.

Thanks for accompanying me on this musical journey — time now to “Cool the Engines”.

Geoffrey W. Jackson

DON’T LOOK BACK Concert Set List

ROCK & ROLL BAND

DON'T LOOK BACK

FEELIN SATISFIED

SOMETHING ABOUT YOU

A MAN I'LL NEVER BE

SMOKIN'

AMANDA

PARTY

PEACE OF MIND

MORE THAN A FEELING

FOREPLAY/ LONG TIME

HITCH A RIDE

COOL THE ENGINES

WE'RE READY

LET ME TAKE YOU HOME TONIGHT

DON'T BE AFRAID