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Bradley Edward Delp (June 12, 1951 – March 9, 2007) was an American singer and songwriter. He is best known as the lead vocalist of the rock bands Boston and RTZ.
Early life
Delp was born in Peabody, Massachusetts on June 12, 1951 to French-Canadian immigrants. He was raised in Danvers, Massachusetts.[1]
Musical career
In 1969, guitarist Barry Goudreau introduced Delp to Tom Scholz, who was looking for a singer to complete some demo recordings. Eventually, Scholz formed the short-lived band Mother's Milk (1973–74), including Delp and Goudreau. After producing a demo, Epic Records eventually signed the act. Mother's Milk was renamed Boston, and the self-titled debut album (recorded in 1975, although many tracks had been written years before) was released in August 1976. Delp performed all of the lead and all backing harmony vocals, including all layered vocal overdubs.[citation needed]
Boston's debut album has sold more than 20 million copies, and produced rock standards such as "More Than a Feeling", "Foreplay/Long Time" and "Peace of Mind". Delp co-wrote "Smokin'" along with Scholz, and wrote the album's closing track, "Let Me Take You Home Tonight".
Their next album, Don't Look Back, was released two years later in August 1978. Its release spawned new hits such as the title track, "Party", and the ballad "A Man I'll Never Be". As they did with "Smokin'", Delp and Scholz collaborated on "Party", and Delp penned "Used to Bad News".[citation needed]
After the first two Boston albums, Delp sang vocals on Barry Goudreau's self-titled solo album, released in 1980. Scholz's perfectionism and a legal battle with their record company stalled any further Boston albums until 1986 when the band released Third Stage. Delp co-wrote the songs "Cool the Engines" and "Can'tcha Say (You Believe in Me)/Still in Love" for the album, and both songs got significant airplay.[citation needed]
Though well known for his "golden" voice with soaring vocals and range and singing all harmony parts on every song, Delp was also a multi-instrumentalist, playing guitar, harmonica and keyboards. He wrote or co-wrote songs for Boston, RTZ, Orion the Hunter, Lisa Guyer, and other artists.
In 1991, Delp and Goudreau formed a band called RTZ. After Boston released the album Walk On in 1994 with Fran Cosmo on vocals, Delp and Boston reunited later that year for another major tour and Delp continued to record vocals on several albums and projects, including new tracks for Boston's 1997 Greatest Hits compilation and their 2002 release Corporate America.[citation needed]
From the mid-1990s until his death in 2007, Delp played in a side project when he had time off from Boston – a Beatles tribute band called Beatlejuice. The Beatles had been a personal favorite of Delp, and he revered them for their songwriting.[citation needed]
During this time. Delp also co-wrote and recorded with former Boston bandmate Barry Goudreau and in 2003 released the CD Delp and Goudreau.[citation needed]
Personal life
Delp was married and divorced twice, and had two children by his second wife, Micki Delp. He was a vegetarian for over 30 years, and contributed to a number of charitable causes.[2]
Death and aftermath
Sometime between 11:00 pm on March 8 and 1:20 pm on March 9, 2007, Delp committed suicide by carbon monoxide poisoning at his home on Academy Avenue, in Atkinson, New Hampshire.[3] It was due to many private reasons. Delp left the public notes scattered throughout his house from his car to the master rooms in the same way as the character's private notes from Twin Peaks. The Atkinson police discovered his body on the floor of his master bathroom after Pamela Sullivan saw a dryer vent tube connected to the exhaust pipe of Delp's car. A set pair of two charcoal grills were found to have been lit inside the bathtub causing the room to fill with smoke.[4] A suicide note was paper-clipped to the neck of his T-shirt, which read: "Mr. Brad Delp. 'J'ai une âme solitaire'. I am a lonely soul." Delp left four sealed envelopes in his office addressed to his children, his former wife Micki, his fiancée, and another unnamed couple.[5][6][7] He was 55 years old. The following day, Boston's website was temporarily closed down, the webmaster having replaced their home page with a simple black background and white text message: "We've just lost the nicest guy in rock and roll."[8]
Delp's cause of death was ruled a suicide.[9] The reason for Delp's suicide has been the subject of contradictory news reports and lawsuits. A series[10] of interviews conducted by the Boston Herald alleged that lingering hard feelings from Boston's disbandment in the 1980s and personal tension between Delp and bandleader Scholz drove the singer to commit suicide. Scholz denied these claims but lost the defamation suits he waged in defense of his character.[11] Court documents from the trials show Scholz claimed that personal problems plagued Delp.[12] Boston Herald attorneys point to voluminous testimony from former Boston members, other local musicians, Delp's doctor, and Delp's friends, including Meg Sullivan (his fiancée's sister), many of whom say the singer did not like Scholz, desperately wanted to quit the band, and felt tormented by his role as middleman in an ugly conflict between Scholz and former band members. All of this was summarized in a 140-page statement filed by the Herald in April, 2012.[13]
However, additional sworn testimony by Meg Sullivan revealed a more tragic explanation for his motives. Delp was housemates with Sullivan, his fiancee Pamela's sister, for two-and-a-half years before his death. On February 28, 2007, Meg discovered a hidden camera planted in her room.[14] After confronting Delp, he admitted to planting the camera and later wrote a series of emails pleading for forgiveness. Todd Winmill, Meg's boyfriend, implored Delp to admit his wrongdoings to Pamela on March 3. After promising to tell her in a few days, Delp purchased the grills and tubing he later used to commit suicide. Pamela found his body on March 9. In the bathroom were several notes written by Delp, one of which read: "I have had bouts of depression and thoughts of suicide since I was a teenager … [Pamela] was my 'ray of sunshine', but sometimes even a ray of sunshine is no substitute for a good psychiatrist."[15]
On October 16, 2007, Barry Goudreau released one final song with Delp on vocals titled "Rockin Away". Written and recorded in the summer of 2006, co-written with Goudreau, it is an autobiography of Delp's musical career.[16] According to "America's Music Charts", the song reached #20 on the rock charts in January 2008.[17]
On what would have been Delp's 61st birthday, June 12, 2012, Jenna Delp, Delp's daughter and President of the Brad Delp Foundation, released an MP3 on the foundation website of a "never before released" song which was written and recorded by Delp in 1973. It also was announced that the foundation intended to release a complete album of Delp's solo work at some point in the future, which would encompass a span of 30 years of previously unreleased material written and recorded by Delp and his closest friends.[18]
On November 25, 2015, the Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts found in favor of the Boston Herald and Micki Delp in a defamation lawsuit brought by Scholz. In its ruling, the court said statements attributing Delp's suicide to Scholz were "statements of opinion and not verifiable fact, and therefore could not form the basis of a claim of defamation."[19][20] On February 23, 2016, Scholz filed a petition for certiorari asking the Supreme Court of the United States to allow his defamation lawsuit to go ahead. On June 6, 2016, the Supreme Court declined to revive the case.[21]
Discography
with Boston
Boston (1976)
Don't Look Back (1978)
Third Stage (1986)
Corporate America (2002)
Life, Love & Hope (2013)
with Barry Goudreau
Barry Goudreau (1980)
with Orion the Hunter
Orion the Hunter (1984)
with RTZ
Return to Zero (1991)
Lost (1998)
Lost and Found (2004)
with Delp and Goudreau
Delp and Goudreau (2003)
"Rockin' Away" (2007)
with Mark "Guitar" Miller
Whatcha Gonna Do! (2008)
Guest appearances
Bruce Arnold - Orpheus Again (2010)
Early life
Delp was born in Peabody, Massachusetts on June 12, 1951 to French-Canadian immigrants. He was raised in Danvers, Massachusetts.[1]
Musical career
In 1969, guitarist Barry Goudreau introduced Delp to Tom Scholz, who was looking for a singer to complete some demo recordings. Eventually, Scholz formed the short-lived band Mother's Milk (1973–74), including Delp and Goudreau. After producing a demo, Epic Records eventually signed the act. Mother's Milk was renamed Boston, and the self-titled debut album (recorded in 1975, although many tracks had been written years before) was released in August 1976. Delp performed all of the lead and all backing harmony vocals, including all layered vocal overdubs.[citation needed]
Boston's debut album has sold more than 20 million copies, and produced rock standards such as "More Than a Feeling", "Foreplay/Long Time" and "Peace of Mind". Delp co-wrote "Smokin'" along with Scholz, and wrote the album's closing track, "Let Me Take You Home Tonight".
Their next album, Don't Look Back, was released two years later in August 1978. Its release spawned new hits such as the title track, "Party", and the ballad "A Man I'll Never Be". As they did with "Smokin'", Delp and Scholz collaborated on "Party", and Delp penned "Used to Bad News".[citation needed]
After the first two Boston albums, Delp sang vocals on Barry Goudreau's self-titled solo album, released in 1980. Scholz's perfectionism and a legal battle with their record company stalled any further Boston albums until 1986 when the band released Third Stage. Delp co-wrote the songs "Cool the Engines" and "Can'tcha Say (You Believe in Me)/Still in Love" for the album, and both songs got significant airplay.[citation needed]
Though well known for his "golden" voice with soaring vocals and range and singing all harmony parts on every song, Delp was also a multi-instrumentalist, playing guitar, harmonica and keyboards. He wrote or co-wrote songs for Boston, RTZ, Orion the Hunter, Lisa Guyer, and other artists.
In 1991, Delp and Goudreau formed a band called RTZ. After Boston released the album Walk On in 1994 with Fran Cosmo on vocals, Delp and Boston reunited later that year for another major tour and Delp continued to record vocals on several albums and projects, including new tracks for Boston's 1997 Greatest Hits compilation and their 2002 release Corporate America.[citation needed]
From the mid-1990s until his death in 2007, Delp played in a side project when he had time off from Boston – a Beatles tribute band called Beatlejuice. The Beatles had been a personal favorite of Delp, and he revered them for their songwriting.[citation needed]
During this time. Delp also co-wrote and recorded with former Boston bandmate Barry Goudreau and in 2003 released the CD Delp and Goudreau.[citation needed]
Personal life
Delp was married and divorced twice, and had two children by his second wife, Micki Delp. He was a vegetarian for over 30 years, and contributed to a number of charitable causes.[2]
Death and aftermath
Sometime between 11:00 pm on March 8 and 1:20 pm on March 9, 2007, Delp committed suicide by carbon monoxide poisoning at his home on Academy Avenue, in Atkinson, New Hampshire.[3] It was due to many private reasons. Delp left the public notes scattered throughout his house from his car to the master rooms in the same way as the character's private notes from Twin Peaks. The Atkinson police discovered his body on the floor of his master bathroom after Pamela Sullivan saw a dryer vent tube connected to the exhaust pipe of Delp's car. A set pair of two charcoal grills were found to have been lit inside the bathtub causing the room to fill with smoke.[4] A suicide note was paper-clipped to the neck of his T-shirt, which read: "Mr. Brad Delp. 'J'ai une âme solitaire'. I am a lonely soul." Delp left four sealed envelopes in his office addressed to his children, his former wife Micki, his fiancée, and another unnamed couple.[5][6][7] He was 55 years old. The following day, Boston's website was temporarily closed down, the webmaster having replaced their home page with a simple black background and white text message: "We've just lost the nicest guy in rock and roll."[8]
Delp's cause of death was ruled a suicide.[9] The reason for Delp's suicide has been the subject of contradictory news reports and lawsuits. A series[10] of interviews conducted by the Boston Herald alleged that lingering hard feelings from Boston's disbandment in the 1980s and personal tension between Delp and bandleader Scholz drove the singer to commit suicide. Scholz denied these claims but lost the defamation suits he waged in defense of his character.[11] Court documents from the trials show Scholz claimed that personal problems plagued Delp.[12] Boston Herald attorneys point to voluminous testimony from former Boston members, other local musicians, Delp's doctor, and Delp's friends, including Meg Sullivan (his fiancée's sister), many of whom say the singer did not like Scholz, desperately wanted to quit the band, and felt tormented by his role as middleman in an ugly conflict between Scholz and former band members. All of this was summarized in a 140-page statement filed by the Herald in April, 2012.[13]
However, additional sworn testimony by Meg Sullivan revealed a more tragic explanation for his motives. Delp was housemates with Sullivan, his fiancee Pamela's sister, for two-and-a-half years before his death. On February 28, 2007, Meg discovered a hidden camera planted in her room.[14] After confronting Delp, he admitted to planting the camera and later wrote a series of emails pleading for forgiveness. Todd Winmill, Meg's boyfriend, implored Delp to admit his wrongdoings to Pamela on March 3. After promising to tell her in a few days, Delp purchased the grills and tubing he later used to commit suicide. Pamela found his body on March 9. In the bathroom were several notes written by Delp, one of which read: "I have had bouts of depression and thoughts of suicide since I was a teenager … [Pamela] was my 'ray of sunshine', but sometimes even a ray of sunshine is no substitute for a good psychiatrist."[15]
On October 16, 2007, Barry Goudreau released one final song with Delp on vocals titled "Rockin Away". Written and recorded in the summer of 2006, co-written with Goudreau, it is an autobiography of Delp's musical career.[16] According to "America's Music Charts", the song reached #20 on the rock charts in January 2008.[17]
On what would have been Delp's 61st birthday, June 12, 2012, Jenna Delp, Delp's daughter and President of the Brad Delp Foundation, released an MP3 on the foundation website of a "never before released" song which was written and recorded by Delp in 1973. It also was announced that the foundation intended to release a complete album of Delp's solo work at some point in the future, which would encompass a span of 30 years of previously unreleased material written and recorded by Delp and his closest friends.[18]
On November 25, 2015, the Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts found in favor of the Boston Herald and Micki Delp in a defamation lawsuit brought by Scholz. In its ruling, the court said statements attributing Delp's suicide to Scholz were "statements of opinion and not verifiable fact, and therefore could not form the basis of a claim of defamation."[19][20] On February 23, 2016, Scholz filed a petition for certiorari asking the Supreme Court of the United States to allow his defamation lawsuit to go ahead. On June 6, 2016, the Supreme Court declined to revive the case.[21]
Discography
with Boston
Boston (1976)
Don't Look Back (1978)
Third Stage (1986)
Corporate America (2002)
Life, Love & Hope (2013)
with Barry Goudreau
Barry Goudreau (1980)
with Orion the Hunter
Orion the Hunter (1984)
with RTZ
Return to Zero (1991)
Lost (1998)
Lost and Found (2004)
with Delp and Goudreau
Delp and Goudreau (2003)
"Rockin' Away" (2007)
with Mark "Guitar" Miller
Whatcha Gonna Do! (2008)
Guest appearances
Bruce Arnold - Orpheus Again (2010)
Brad_Delp
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Posted 5 y ago
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Love what he and the band have done, sad loss. RTZ "Return to Zero" is underrated IMHO, Boston well nothing to say there. Thanks Joe
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SCPO Morris Ramsey SGT David A. 'Cowboy' Groth SGT Jim Arnold (Join to see) Sgt Albert Castro PO1 H Gene Lawrence SSG William Jones Cynthia Croft PO1 William "Chip" Nagel CMSgt (Join to see) PO3 Lynn Spalding SSgt (Join to see) SGT John " Mac " McConnell SGT Elizabeth Scheck Sgt John H. SSgt Boyd Herrst Maj Kim Patterson PO2 Kevin Parker PVT Mark Zehner CW5 Jack Cardwell
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