Godsmack
In 1995, the streets of Lawrence, Massachusetts spawned a band that would become known as Godsmack. Nurtured on a steady broth of heavy metal, they went on to see seven of their nine albums hit #1 in either the Billboard 200 or the Billboard Top Hard Rock Albums chart, a legacy rivaled by only a handful other metal groups in the past 30 years, and have a global fan base that’s at least as rabid as it ever was.
FORMATION “WHATEVER,” “KEEP AWAY”
Godsmack is the brainchild of Lawrence native Sully Erna. The son of a trumpet player and a drummer, he endeavored to reinvent himself as a frontman and wound up doing precisely that. Recruiting the riffology of North Andover native Lee Richards, bass player Robbie Merrill of Lawrence and drummer Tommy Stewart, the group was initially called The Scam. They renamed themselves Godsmack after recording their first demo because they felt as if karma had come full circle in bringing the group together, as if they’d been “smacked down” by the hand of God. Pretty cool, right?
Erna would prove himself not only as the frontman of a major rock ‘n’ roll outfit but also on the production side; he’s co-produced eight of the band’s nine studio albums. On the strength of their first LP, All Wound Up – recorded in just three days for $2,600 and self-released in February 1997 on the band’s label, EK Records – they attracted the attention of Rocko, a deejay on Worcester-based WAAF who became instrumental to the band’s success by playing the songs “Whatever” and “Keep Away” in the late-night slot.
DEBUT ALBUM, PARENTAL ADVISORY, NOTABLE OPENING SPOTS
“Whatever” became one of Godsmack’s most successful songs and found its way onto their self-titled major-label debut, recorded in Boston in 1998 at New Alliance Studios, co-produced by Erna and Andrew Murdock and released by Republic/Universal in August 1998. The disc reached #22 in the Billboard 200 and total sales exceeded four million.
Along with all of the album’s accolades came a bit of that aforementioned karma, however, when two major American retailers, Walmart and K-Mart, pulled the album from the shelves and it was “godsmacked” with a Parental Advisory notice. Ironically, many noted that the warning only served to boost sales, proving that the group’s notorious badassery probably has a commercial upside. With the album’s success – propelled by its razor-tongued lyrics, the heaviest-of-heavy metal riffs and hooks that would give Jaws a seriously bad day – the group embarked on a US tour as headliners and as an opening act for the likes of Black Sabbath and Ozzy Osbourne.
LINEUP CHANGES, AWAKE, FIRST EUROPEAN TOUR
Prior to recording their first record with a major label, guitarist Richards would leave the band occasionally in an effort to support his six-year old child, and he was replaced by Norwood native Tony Rombola, who not only provided some haunting melodies and thundering power chords but also took on back-up vocal duties. Joe D’Arco replace Stewart on drums until Steward rejoined the band in 1998, only to vacate his throne once again in 2002 to his successor, Shannon Larkin (previously of Ugly Kid Joe, Souls At Zero and Wrathchild America).
Godsmack’s next studio effort was Awake, issued by Universal/Republic on Halloween in 2000. Recorded at River’s Edge Productions in Haverhill and co-produced by Erna and Murdock, the disc debuted at #5 in the Billboard 200, sold over two million and the song “Vampire” was nominated for a Grammy (Best Rock Instrumental). To support the release, the band embarked on their first European tour, opening for Limp Bizkit, and the accolades kept rolling in as the US Navy chose two of the bands razor-edged tunes, “Sick of Life” and “Awake,” for inclusion in their recruitment commercials.
LATER ALBUMS, GSHQ STUDIOS, GODSMACK DAY
When Tommy Stewart exited the band and Shannon Larkin joined, Godsmack entered into a new era of success,. IN 2002, their song “I Stand Alone,” which appeared on the soundtrack for The Scorpion King and later on their album Faceless, was the most played “active rock song” for 14 consecutive weeks, earned Grammy nominations in two categories (Best Rock Song, Best Hard Rock Performance) and was nominated for Top Rock Song at the Billboard Music Awards. Over the next seven years, they cut three albums that hit #1 in the Billboard 200, all released by Republic/Universal: Faceless (2003), recorded at The Hit Factory in Miami, produced by Erna and David Bottrill; IV (2006), recorded at Spiral Recording Studios in Hollywood, produced by Erna and Andy Johns; and The Oracle (2010) recorded at Serenity West Studios in Los Angeles, produced by Erna and David Fortman.
The band’s studio hopping left them very well-traveled and with indispensable experience yet they longed for a place of their own, so in 2014 they build their own customized digs, GSHQ Studios, in Derry, New Hampshire: a 4,000-square-foot space where they recorded their last three albums, all of which went to #1 in Billboard’s Top Hard Rock Albums chart: 1000hp (2014, Republic/Spinefarm), produced by Erna and Fortman; When Legends Rise (2018, BMG), produced by Erna and Erick Ron; and Lighting Up the Sky (2023, BMG), produced by Andrew Murdock (aka Mudrock).
Because after all, there’s no place like home. And the “homecoming” of sorts was not lost on Boston Mayor Marty Walsh, who in 2018 officially declared August 6 “Godsmack Day” in the city. I speak for countless others in New England, the greater US and across the globe when I say, at the top of my lungs, “Rock on Godsmack!”
(by John Cappello)
