"Boston" is a song by American rock band Augustana, from their debut album '' All the Stars and Boulevards'' (2005). It was originally produced in 2003 by

Jon King Jonathan Michael King (born 8 June 1955) is an English musician, songwriter, and Grammy nominated Art Director in the post-punk band Gang of Four. Biography King attended Sevenoaks School, where he was a member of the 'Art Room' that produce ...

for their demo, ''Midwest Skies and Sleepless Mondays,'' and was later re-recorded with producer

Brendan O'Brien Brendan O'Brien may refer to: *Brendan O'Brien (bishop) (born 1943), Roman Catholic archbishop of Kingston, Ontario, Canada *Brendan O'Brien (cricketer) (born 1942), Irish former cricketer *Brendan O'Brien (journalist), senior Irish journalist on R ...

for '' All the Stars and Boulevards''.

Composition

The sheet music for "Boston" is published in the

key Key or The Key may refer to: Common meanings * Key (cryptography), a piece of information that controls the operation of a cryptography algorithm * Key (lock), device used to control access to places or facilities restricted by a lock * Key (map ...

C major C major (or the key of C) is a major scale based on C, consisting of the pitches C, D, E, F, G, A, and B. C major is one of the most common keys used in music. Its key signature has no flats or sharps. Its relative minor is A minor and ...

, and is set in

time signature The time signature (also known as meter signature, metre signature, or measure signature) is a notational convention used in Western musical notation to specify how many beats (pulses) are contained in each measure (bar), and which note value ...

common time The time signature (also known as meter signature, metre signature, or measure signature) is a notational convention used in Western musical notation to specify how many beats (pulses) are contained in each measure (bar), and which note value ...

with a

tempo In musical terminology, tempo (Italian, 'time'; plural ''tempos'', or ''tempi'' from the Italian plural) is the speed or pace of a given piece. In classical music, tempo is typically indicated with an instruction at the start of a piece (often ...

of 147

beats per minute Beat, beats or beating may refer to: Common uses * Patrol, or beat, a group of personnel assigned to monitor a specific area ** Beat (police), the territory that a police officer patrols ** Gay beat, an area frequented by gay men * Battery ( ...

. Dan Layus's vocal range spans from A₃ to G₅. Augustana bassist Jared Palomar has stated that the song is loosely based on one of Layus' high school classmates who left to attend Duke University. Palomar said, "It's more the idea of getting away from everything and starting over." Asked about the meaning of "Boston" in the song, Layus replied: "You know, growing up, I had extended family on the outskirts of Boston, and we’d fly out there for the holidays fairly often, and I always loved it out there, in my mind it always seemed like the farthest point away from California that you could go.... I must have been tapping into that when I was writing that song 'Boston' ...."

Music video

The music video starts with the lead singer ( Dan Layus) playing a piano on a beach with the sea at low tide initially, later showing numerous other abandoned pianos on the beach. As the video progresses, other band members appear. Soon after, high tide comes up and the entire band continues to play as they are submerged in water over and over. Band members have been shown to be struggling to keep up with their musical instruments, but they do not seem to give up playing even in such adverse conditions. The video ends showing all musical instruments left shattered by the sea waves.

Use in popular media

"Boston" was used in the third season finale of ''

One Tree Hill One Tree Hill may refer to: * "One Tree Hill" (song), a 1987 song by U2 referencing One Tree Hill, New Zealand volcanic peak * ''One Tree Hill'' (TV series), a 2003–2012 American drama series named for the U2 song ** ''One Tree Hill'' (soundtr ...

'', "The Show Must Go On", when Brooke Davis and

Lucas Scott Lucas Eugene Scott is a fictional character and the main protagonist from The WB /CW television series ''One Tree Hill'' created by Mark Schwahn and portrayed by Chad Michael Murray. Lucas is a talented basketball player and writer. He is rival ...

have their last dance as a couple. Nathan and Haley drive away to their honey moon meanwhile Lucas confesses to Peyton that he told Brooke about their kiss in the library. It was also featured in ''

Scrubs Scrub(s) may refer to: * Scrub, low shrub and grass characteristic of scrubland * Scrubs (clothing), worn by medical staff * ''Scrubs'' (TV series), an American television program * Scrubs (occupation), also called "scrub tech," "scrub nurse," o ...

'', 19th episode of the fifth season, " His Story 3", in ''

The Big Bang Theory ''The Big Bang Theory'' is an American television sitcom created by Chuck Lorre and Bill Prady, both of whom served as executive producers on the series, along with Steven Molaro, all of whom also served as head writers. It premiered on CBS ...

'', 3rd episode of the first season ("The Fuzzy Boots Corollary"), in "Here Comes the Judge", the 15th episode of season one of ''

Shark Sharks are a group of elasmobranch fish characterized by a cartilaginous skeleton, five to seven gill slits on the sides of the head, and pectoral fins that are not fused to the head. Modern sharks are classified within the clade Selachimo ...

'', and in the season finale of the first season of

Boston's Finest ''Boston's Finest'' is an American reality television series on TNT which chronicled the daily operations of the Boston Police Department. The series was green-lit on May 11, 2012, with the premiere on February 27, 2013. It was announced in May 20 ...

. It's also heard in the film ''

A Warrior's Heart ''A Warrior's Heart'' is an American 2011 romantic sports drama film directed by Michael F. Sears and written by Martin Dugard. It stars Kellan Lutz, Adam Beach, Gabrielle Anwar and Ashley Greene. The film was released at the 2011 Cannes Film ...

''.

Charts

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Boston (Song) Songs about Boston 2005 singles Augustana (band) songs Song recordings produced by Brendan O'Brien (record producer) 2005 songs Epic Records singles