What Was Brad Delp's Net Worth?
Brad Delp was an American singer and songwriter who had a net worth of $500 thousand at the time of his death in 2007. Brad Delp was best known for being the lead vocalist and founding member of the rock band Boston. Delp also played guitar, harmonica, and keyboards.
Boston's 1976 self-titled debut album was certified 17x Platinum. Their albums "Don't Look Back" (1978) and "Third Stage" (1986) both reached #1 on the "Billboard" 200 charts. He was also featured on the Boston albums "Corporate America" and "Life, Love & Hope." The band's hit singles include "More Than a Feeling" and "Amanda." Delp was featured on the RTZ albums "Return to Zero," "Lost," and "Lost and Found." Tragically, Brad Delp committed suicide on March 9, 2007, at 55 years old.
Early Life
Brad Delp was born Bradley Edward Delp on June 12, 1951, in Peabody, Massachusetts. His parents, George and Pearl Delp, were French-Canadian immigrants who raised their son in Danvers, Massachusetts. He grew up with his sisters Dorothy and Phyllis. Brad became interested in music when he saw The Beatles perform on "The Ed Sullivan Show" at the age of 13, after which he decided he would learn to play the guitar.
Throughout high school, he played in a couple of bands like the Iguanas and the Monks. After graduating, he worked making the heating coils for Mr. Coffee machines while he continued performing at various clubs around town.
(Photo by Richard Creamer/Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images)
Boston
In 1969, guitarist Barry Goudreau introduced Delp to Tom Scholz. At the time, Scholz was looking for a singer to complete some demo recordings. Scholz formed the short-lived band Mother's Milk officially in 1973, which included Delp and Goudreau. After producing a demo, Mother's Milk was signed to Epic Records and renamed Boston.
Boston released their debut self-titled album in August 1976. It peaked at the third spot on the "Billboard 200" charts and remained on the charts for an impressive 132 weeks. The album continues to be ranked as one of the best-selling debut albums in U.S. history, as it went on to sell over 17 million copies. Boston was nominated for the Grammy Award in the Best New Artist category. The album produced three singles – "More Than a Feeling," "Long Time," and "Peace of Mind." All three singles made the national charts.
Their debut album was followed by "Don't Look Back" in 1978. That album reached #1 in both the U.S. and Canada, with the album's title track becoming one of the band's greatest hits. The band then took a bit of time off from making music together, and the three members pursued various solo projects. However, they reunited in the mid-1980s, and in 1986, Boston released their third album – "Third Stage." The album's lead single, "Amanda," made it to the top spot on the "Billboard Hot 100." Other singles from the album include "We're Ready" and "Can'tcha Say," both of which also charted.
RTZ and Later Career
In 1990, Delp decided that he wanted to concentrate on other projects and might not be available to work with Boston for some time. In 1991, he joined Goudreau to form a band called RTZ. He also worked with vocalist Fran Cosmo to release the album "Walk On" in 1994. Later in 1994, he reunited with Boston to embark on a tour. Brad continued recording vocals on several albums and projects, including new tracks for Boston's 1997 "Greatest Hits" compilation album and for their 2002 release, "Corporate America."
Throughout this time, Delp also played in a side project band when he had time off from working with Boston. The band was a Beatles tribute band called Beatlejuice. In 2003, he also released an album called "Delp and Goudreau" with Goudreau.
Delp is well-known for his unique and soulful voice and impressive vocal range. Some have described his voice as flawless and he is considered to be one of the top classic rock vocalists.
Personal Life and Death
Delp was married and divorced twice in his life. Not much is known about his first wife, but he married his second wife, Micki, in 1980. They had two children together before divorcing in 1996. Brad had a longtime relationship with Patricia Komor at some point in his life, and in the 2000s, he began dating Pamela Sullivan. The two were engaged to be married in 2007 at the time of Delp's death.
In the late hours of March 8, 2007, Delp died by suicide through carbon monoxide poisoning in his home in New Hampshire. The police found his body on the floor of his master bathroom. He had placed two charcoal grills in the bathtub and lit them, causing the bathroom to fill with smoke. Following the death, the media speculated about the reason for Brad's suicide, with some reports claiming that Delp remained upset about lingering tension between him and Scholz due to various interpersonal issues. Another theory put forth related to possible interpersonal tension between Delp and his fiancée, Pamela. A month before his death, Pamela's sister Meg had testified that during a period of time in which Brad had lived with her as a housemate, she had discovered a hidden camera planted in her room. After Meg confronted Brad, he admitted to planting the camera and promised to tell his fiancée about having done so. He purchased the grills shortly afterward and later used them to commit suicide.
Several months after his death, Barry Goudreau released a song with Delp on vocals called "Rockin Away." It was co-written by the two and recorded in mid-2006, and it is an autobiography of Brad's career. The song reached #20 on the U.S. rock charts in January 2008.
