"Amanda" is a

power ballad A sentimental ballad is an emotional style of music that often deals with romantic and intimate relationships, and to a lesser extent, loneliness, death, war, drug abuse, politics and religion, usually in a poignant but solemn manner. Balla ...

by American

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wale ...

band

Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

written by

Tom Scholz Donald Thomas Scholz (born March 10, 1947) is an American musician. He is the founder, main songwriter, primary guitarist, keyboardist and only remaining original member of the rock band Boston. He has appeared on every Boston release. Scholz, a ...

. The song was released as the first single from the band's third album, ''

Third Stage ''Third Stage'' is the third studio album by the American rock band Boston, released on September 24, 1986, on MCA Records, as the band's first album on the label. It was recorded at Boston co-founder Tom Scholz's Hideaway Studio over a long, s ...

'', in

1986 The year 1986 was designated as the International Year of Peace by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 ** Aruba gains increased autonomy from the Netherlands by separating from the Netherlands Antilles. ** Spain and Portugal en ...

, six years after it was recorded. Although the song did not have a promotional music video, "Amanda" became the band's highest-charting single in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

and

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

. In the United States, the single entered ''Billboard'' Hot 100 on September 27, and topped the charts in November 1986 for two consecutive weeks (the band's only number one on the Hot 100), and also reached number one for three consecutive weeks on the

Mainstream Rock Mainstream rock (also known as heritage rock) is a radio format used by many commercial radio stations in the United States and Canada. Format background Mainstream rock stations represent a cross between classic rock, active rock and alternativ ...

chart, in October of the same year, while in Canada, the single topped ''

RPM Revolutions per minute (abbreviated rpm, RPM, rev/min, r/min, or r⋅min−1) is a unit of rotational speed (or rotational frequency) for rotating machines. One revolution per minute is equivalent to hertz. Standards ISO 80000-3:2019 def ...

'' magazine's Top Singles and Adult Contemporary charts. It was the band's first officially released single since 1978 and their first released by

MCA Records MCA Records was an American record label owned by MCA Inc. established in 1972, though MCA had released recordings under that name in the UK from the 1960s. The label achieved success in the 1970s through the 1980s, often by acquiring other ...

. The

12-string guitar A twelve-string guitar (or 12-string guitar) is a steel-string guitar with 12 strings in six courses, which produces a thicker, more ringing tone than a standard six-string guitar. Typically, the strings of the lower four courses are tuned in ...

parts are played by Scholz.

Background

Guitarist Tom Scholz recorded the demos in 1980, including the guitar solo that would later be featured in "Amanda". Between then and 1981 Scholz had to rework the song to finish it. He stated: "Amanda" was not a real woman. Instead, the name was chosen because it flowed well with the lyrics. In early 1984 a raw demo of the song was leaked to radio stations via a syndicated satellite feed. Despite the poor audio quality the first new studio Boston song to be heard in six years became the most requested song at AOR (

album-oriented rock Album-oriented rock (AOR, originally called album-oriented radio) is an FM radio format created in the United States in the late 1960s that focuses on the full repertoire of rock albums and is currently associated with classic rock. US rad ...

) stations that played the bootleg. "Amanda" is a relatively rare example of a song that reached number one on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 in or after the 1980s without having a performance music video made for it. An interview for British television, made while the band was promoting the ''

'' album, does show a couple of minutes of a music video near the end. The band does not appear in that video, which intersperses shots of a model smiling for the camera with special effects footage of the band's spaceship logo flying over the

skyline. One shot shows the animated spaceship almost colliding with the

John Hancock Tower The John Hancock Tower, colloquially known as the Hancock, is a 60-story, skyscraper in the Back Bay neighborhood of downtown Boston, Massachusetts. The pinnacle height (including antennas) is . Designed by Henry N. Cobb of the firm I. M. Pe ...

. Despite being released in that country, the single failed to chart on the UK Singles Chart. The song was eventually certified gold by the

Canadian Recording Industry Association Music Canada is a non-profit trade organization that was founded 9 April 1963 in Toronto to represent the interests of companies that record, manufacture, produce, and distribute music in Canada. It also offers benefits to some of Canada's leadin ...

with sales of over 50,000 units.

Reception

Cash Box ''Cashbox'', also known as ''Cash Box'', is an American music industry trade magazine, originally published weekly from July 1942 to November 1996. Ten years after its dissolution, it was revived and continues as ''Cashbox Magazine'', an online ...

'' called it a "romantic ballad that features...Tom Scholz' trademark guitar" and a "pretty and memorable song." ''Classic Rock'' critic Paul Elliott rated "Amanda" as Boston's 5th greatest song.

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Amanda (Boston Song) 1980 songs 1986 singles 1980s ballads Boston (band) songs Billboard Hot 100 number-one singles Cashbox number-one singles RPM Top Singles number-one singles American soft rock songs Glam metal ballads Songs written by Tom Scholz Song recordings produced by Tom Scholz MCA Records singles Arena rock songs