Amanda

This was the first single Boston released after a seven-year layoff. Remarkably, it was the first and only #1 hit for the band, whose songs "Don't Look Back" and "More Than A Feeling" got constant airplay. The song was written by Boston mastermind Tom Scholz, who was more concerned with crafting meticulous melodic rock than with pouring his heart out. The song is actually very romantic, with Brad Delp singing about telling his girl "I Love You" for the first time, which for most guys happens in a fit of passion, and in the famous Meat Loaf song, leads to a life sentence. This amorous spontaneity is typical of Boston's music, which is all about feeling and living in the moment. "Amanda" was most likely chosen as a name because it scans so well, the perfect word to follow lines like "I'm gonna tell you right away, I can't wait another day..." Girls' names ending in A have a great history in song, with Rhonda, Layla, Lola and Rosanna preceding Boston's Amanda.

Boston's first album was released in August 1976, and their second in August 1978. They were on schedule for a third album, which they started recording in 1980, when industry politics and creative differences shelved the project and the band broke up, with guitarist Barry Goudreau releasing a solo album and drummer Sib Hashian joining Sammy Hagar's band. Before the split, however, Boston put a lot of effort into recording this song, and by the time Third Stage was finally released in September 1986, the band had used up about 12,000 hours of studio time. When the album was released, it was on MCA Records (Boston's first two albums were on Epic), and the band was Tom Scholz, Brad Delp, Gary Phil (guitar) and Jim Masdea (drums). "Amanda" was the first track and first single from the album. It was followed by "We're Ready" (#9 US) and "Can'tcha Say (You Believe In Me)," which was their last Top 40 hit, peaking at #20 in 1987.

In 1984, a bootleg copy of this song was leaked to radio stations. The band was still signed to Epic Records at the time, and someone at the label apparently delivered the 5-inch demo reel of the song to at least one program director at a small-market station. If the record was leaked in New York or LA, it would have been pulled quickly as word got to Epic, but with the song circulating in small markets, it took a few weeks before the label caught on. Charlie Mitchell, who was music director/DJ at one of these stations, explained to Forgotten Hits that jocks were instructed to talk over the beginning and end of the song so competing stations couldn't steal it off the air. Said Mitchell: "We went along for a few weeks, playing our bootleg 'Amanda'... the corporate PD had even copied it and sent it to the other couple of properties in our group. None were within earshot of a CBS Records (parent company of Epic) office so I guess everything was fine. Until it wasn't. I was told that one of the other PD's in our chain had gone ahead and reported 'Amanda' as an add to Radio & Records, and the conversation went roughly like this: R&R: 'What new Boston record?!' PD: 'It's called 'Amanda.' I've got it here on a 5-inch reel.' A cease-and-desist immediately followed. Apparently from Walter Yetnikoff himself to our corporate PD via telephone. And as we all know, when it finally came out for real, 2 1/2 years later, it was on MCA!"