In 2017, my cover band Maggie Speaks started a new program called Celebrity Sit-In. It has been an incredible addition for corporate events, charity galas and fundraisers, high-end weddings, and music festivals.
Celebrity singers from world-famous bands join Maggie Speaks on stage to perform their top four to six hits. I have been fortunate enough to do this over 30 times in the past few years and each time, I seem to learn something different from each of our guests. Here is what I learned from Fran Cosmo of Boston:
Boston had one of the most successful debut albums in rock history, selling over seventeen million copies and collectively over their 40-plus year span sold 75 million albums. In 1994, Boston founder Tom Scholz ventured back into the studio to record the Walk On album and Boston’s vocalist Brad Delp deemed himself unavailable for the project as he was focusing on solo work.
Fran Cosmo joined the band as the vocalist in Scholz’s absence. Having known the members of Boston since their inception in 1976 due to his career as the lead singer of guitarist Barry Goodreau’s band Orion the Hunter, it was an easy and fluid fit. Fran was the only vocalist to sing on the “Walk On” album, which peaked at number seven on the charts and spawned the hit single “I Need Your Love”, which peaked at number one on Billboard’s US Mainstream Rock Charts. On top of that, the album was certified Platinum.
Boston toured as the opening band for Aerosmith, supported by their hit single “So I Ran”. Later that year, Brad Delp returned for the tour where he and Fran shared lead vocal responsibilities. I was fortunate enough to see this show at Alpine Valley Music Theater in East Troy, Wisconsin while in college; it was truly a dream come true for me to see both Fran and Brad on stage hitting notes in the stratospheres that most vocalists only dream of.
In 2007, after the untimely death of his friend and fellow vocalist Brad Delp, Fran left the band. He has toured the world with his band, Cosmo, as well as the World Classic Rockers.
Fran first performed with Maggie Speaks in 2018 in Scottsdale, Arizona at a corporate event. Together we rocked through Boston classics like, “More Than a Feeling”, “Rock and Roll Band”, “Foreplay / Long Time”, “Peace of Mind”, “Don’t Look Back” and “Smokin’”. Fran always asks me to take the second verse on “Smokin’” which is truly an honor.
To go from a kid in the crowd in 1994 to singing a duet together in 2018 is quite surreal to me. Since that initial show, we have had the pleasure to perform together five more times for festivals and corporate events.
In talking with Fran, he shared some knowledge with me that I have taken to heart as a performer and a bandleader:
“Dave, this is rock and roll. The people watching you want to experience the dream that you are living, so you have to deliver. You have to play with passion and deliver a big sound with big endings. We work so hard to perform these songs and they deserve big-time rock and roll epic endings that impact people and leave them wanting more.”
So many bands slog through tunes in order to get to the next song, punching through the setlist so they can get to the end of their performance. The ending is the most poignant moment of the song as it is the last thing the crowd will hear so it is important to make it impactful and memorable.
