File this one under Dreams Do Come True: Tommy DeCarlo, unknown singer from Charlotte, North Carolina, just joined his favorite group, Boston, and he has MySpace to thank for it.
DeCarlo, 43, who up until recently was working as a credit manager at his local Home Depot, put MP3's of himself singing Boston songs in tribute to original lead singer Brad Delp, who committed suicide last year, on his MySpace page. A fan contacted DeCarlo and suggested he send it to the band's management.
Within days, Boston guitarist Tom Scholz was sitting at home when he heard something strange coming from his wife's computer. "I asked her whether it was us playing live and she said, 'It's some guy in North Carolina singing your songs,'" says Scholz. "I said to her, 'I know Brad's voice, and that's Brad.' She turned it up, and it was only when I heard the backing track that I knew it wasn't us."
As much as DeCarlo's MP3's impressed Scholz, it was his live audition that really blew him away. "During rehearsals, it can get downright eerie," says Scholz. "I forget it's not Brad. It makes me feel like someone was at work up there."
So far, DeCarlo's stage experience with Boston is limited to performing a couple of songs at the "Come Together: A Tribute To Brad Delp" concert held last year, but he's counting the days before the band's North American tour starts in June. "I never could have dreamed this," he says. "That first gig is going to be something."
By Joe Bosso
