Rush: A Musical Journey

Feedback - Rush
2004/2016 reissue.
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That's a very good album. I love the cover. It reminds me of a 1960's concert poster.

-Dave
 
2112

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Track list:

1. 2112
2. Passage To Bangkok
3. The Twilight Zone
4. Lessons
5. Tears
6. Something For Nothing

If Caress Of Steel was Rush's Apollo 13 moment; a near disaster that would later be viewed as a triumph, then 2112 must be "The Eagle Has Landed". Rush were no longer on Mercury's skid list. They had written their music, their way and had won the day.

With the release of the 4th album, Rush showed that they knew what they were about. I said at the outset that this would not be my personal journey, but since 2112 was the album that introduced me to the band, it's difficult not to reminisce a little.

2112 continues the band's series of program pieces. Side 1 of the LP is a 7 part masterpiece telling the story of a man living in a future dystopian society ruled by a caste known as The Priests. The man finds a guitar and learns to play it, and is then eager to share his discovery with the Priests. He is horrified when his discovery is rejected and destroyed and retreats to his cave, committing suicide just as the world of the Priests is about to be liberated by The Elder Race, previous inhabitants of the planet who had escaped as the Priests power multiplied, always intending to return and claim their homeland. The narrator had dreamed of their return but had dismissed his dreams as wishful thinking, not realising how close he was to the truth and the liberation.

On CD versions, Side 1 is a single track, indexed in 7 parts for CD players capable of reading them.

Side 2 consists of 5 tracks; A Passage To Bangkok is a romp around the world's cannabis growing regions, Twilight Zone appears to explore an LSD trip, Lessons and Tears are two gentle, very musical numbers that show the other side of Geddy Lee's voice. Something For Nothing concludes the album with a more conventional rock piece.

To say that the Starman has become the trademark of the band is an understatement. It has become one of the most recognisable symbols of rock music. 2112 is where I met the band for the first time, becoming captivated by the sound and lyrics that a) meant something and b) could actually be understood. For me, the musical landscape had changed, and I wasn't alone with that thought. I bought all of the band's albums from that point on and backtracked through the earlier releases. Some of the music, I have to admit, was difficult at first, but I've always known that sooner or later I'd find the key that would unlock the door.

I'll leave this post now for comments and recollections. Whatever I can write about 2112 pales into insignificance compared with the work itself. I'm sure there are many memories and thoughts attached to 2112...

A friend of a friend was selling a bunch of records. Turned out he had joined Columbia house record club and was selling the records he got to buy pot. I bought 13 albums for 20 dollars. These were my first records. 2112 was easily the one that I came back to over and over again. There is never a time I cannot listen to 2112. I can even play it from memory on drums. It is one of Peart's easier pieces. Love this album!
 
Hemispheres

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Track list:

1. Cygnus X-1 Book 2: Hemispheres
2. Circumstances
3. The Trees
4. La Villa Strangiato

Rush's second offering from 1978 would prove to be their last in which a single piece occupied an entire LP side. Telling the story of battling Greek gods, it is an epic work fully befitting the subject matter. Brief reprises from Cygnus X-1: Book 1, from A Farewell To Kings help to tie the two pieces together.

The 3 tracks on side 2 include La Villa Strangiato, Rush's first instrumental. Subtitled 'an exercise in self-indulgence', it allows all 3 members to show off their virtuoso skills, unencumbered with lyrics.

Hemispheres was later reissued on CD. Like 2112, By-Tor and the Snow Dog, The Necromancer and Fountain Of Lamneth, the first track was indexed for CD players able to read the encoding.

The Trees and La Villa Strangiato found their way into the concert set for many years to come.

As much as my kids love Rush, my boys constantly make fun of me for liking The Trees. My wife jokes about how heavy handed it is. I love that song and this may be my favorite Rush album. I miss the side long pieces.
 
Alex is on fire in this video. Opens with an instrumental Cover of Paint it Black
Edit: This is concert footage from Sarstock. Benefit that was played after the Sars scare. AC/ DC and Rolling Stones and others were also there. If You listen until the end it says ladies and gentlemen please welcome AC/DC. Imo they should have opened for Rush
 
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A normal band would require 4 if not 5 people to play this . A joy to watch them perform this seemingly straight through with no edits. Geddy's bottom on his double neck is a six string. So he sings ,plays bass, keyboards and rhythm guitar.
 
No i haven't. Will check into it.
It may be hard to find, but, I don't know if it may have also ended up on Netflix or something. It's a Canadian broadcast, and I recorded mine over the antenna. (So it has commercials...I need to get into the video editor to remove those for permanent storage. ;) )
 
I’m such a fool for never seeing them live.
That’s one of very few regrets in my life.
Same here, although ticket prices were kind of absurd (like they all are these days for major tours). It's a matter of deciding to take my youngest to see Rush, or having food for two weeks. (And given how Ticketmaster has been under scrutiny lately...the less money we feed them, the better.)

Still, how cool would it have been to get a good seat on their last tour? :)

My consolation prizes are the concerts released on BluRay. :D

We've only recently gotten into Rush here, over the past three or four years (I had a couple of compilations prior to that--we actually discovered the full Moving Pictures via playing Rock Band and that kind of sparked the whole thing), so only their last one or two tours would have been on our radar.
 
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