Rush Appreciation Thread

Thanks for the help! I'll put them on my to-listen-to list!

 

I do agree that they were close to packing it in but I tend to view this period as a creative highpeak. A song like The Necromancer or Fountain of Lamneth is the product of a sudden burst of creative energy. It's just such a major step forward from the straight rock songs of their first two records.

As far as the negative energy surrounding the possibility of being dropped and packing it in, I think this translated to an even bigger surge of creative energy. After all, this is the period that they wrote 2112. Having their backs against the wall likely helped them create this masterpiece.

It's such a great story. A little band from Canada choosing to stand up to Mercury Records and coming out the victors. Man....I truly love this band.

 

Great thread. Brings to mind many of the reasons I also love Rush:
- the 78-82 albums
- musical chops and thoughtful lyrics
- BTLS doc
- Neil's books, esp Ghost Rider

 

Those are the Top 3 for me. If you dig deeper I would say these would be 4-6.

Roll The Bones
Power Windows
Hold Your Fire

 

One thing about this band that doesn't get nearly enough attention is how good Geddy is as a singer. He writes great melodies and manages to infuse such emotion into lyrics that are not stereotypically "emotional." The older I get, the more impressed I am by that.

 

I would love to see Rush do one final album. An album of instrumentals produced by Terry Brown.
What better way to round out their fantastic career?

 

I just want to see them do a tour again. With Neil purportedly retiring, I don't know if that is going to happen, sadly.

 

I'll take a disc or two of soundcheck jams from over the years, and if not that, then one of the June 1980 complete shows from the U.K recorded for Exit Stage Left.

 

I have the prior hi-res releases from HDTracks. I believe these are the versions that accompanies the LP releases. Either way, you can't go wrong. Like someone else posted, there is a fairly long thread dealing with all of this, and I know some people have quibbles with the earlier hi-res release, but I love it. Even Clockwork Angels sounds better, but the two that really shine are Signals and Hold Your Fire.


EDIT: I should add that the original Rush releases were severely discounted when I purchased them. I think I got all of the albums for $100.

 

And another FYI: HDTracks has 24/48 versions of the 2015 remasters of Power Windows and Signals on sale for $16. There may be the possibility of applying additional discounts, in which case, that's a screamin' deal.

 

Wow.

Never thought I'd see a thread like this here.

Love everything they've ever done but about a half-dozen or so songs. Love them even more live.

Still my favorite band.

That said, I'm not sure any album of theirs would make my Top 10.

I always suggest starting with the first one and get the rest chronologically to fully understand their growth and the kinds of things they focus on from album to album and era to era to get an idea of the context in which it happened.

I'll always say the music is the most important, but in this case the inspiration also comes from the people who created that music.

Rush is a wonderful freak of nature the likes of which may never come close to happening again.

They are the gift that keeps on giving.

 

This band has pretty much been a soundtrack to my life since 1975-76, my Junior year in HS. I've remained a dedicated fan ever since, right up to attending the LA Forum show last August, which could very possibly end up being their last. For me, what separated them from almost everyone else was the sheer joy of making music together. As far as I can tell, they never allowed any pressure outside of the three members influence their writing, recording, or touring.

And besides being masters of their craft, they seem to be just three pretty decent, and kinda goofy, guys (just watch the closing credits of Beyond the Lighted Stage).

 

I'm convinced it's the end of the big machine tours. Many fans are sad about that but the last 14 years have been a gift. I'd rather celebrate the whole thing and if more happens, great. If not, that's fine too.

That LA show was one show I really wanted to attend. I settled for a framed poster of that gig instead. I wish they filmed it.

 

Th-th-that's all folks!

 

1989. I was 13 years old. Just started getting into music few months earlier and I was chocking myself with new music, mostly hard rock from the 80's. One day I heard "Show Don't Tell" on the radio (first single from Presto) and it blew up my mind. I thought Rush was a new band....Bought Presto on CD and the journey started....No turn back. A huge Rush fan from that day.

 

My first day of high school, I sat behind a senior that had a Rush tour shirt from the "Signals" tour. I'd never heard anything by them but I filed the name away in my memory banks. The next year, I heard "Distant Early Warning" on the radio. I bought "Grace Under Pressure" and was hooked. 1980 - 1986 is my favorite period. They lost me after that but I've been a big fan of the last few albums.

I respect the 70's era but Geddy's voice was a little wild back then for my tastes. I couldn't relate to the lyrics as much and the songs were often a bit drawn out for me. 1987 - 2000 Rush just seemed a bit watered down. 2002 "Vapor Trails" got my attention again.

My favorite Rush albums are:

1) Grace Under Pressure
1A) Signals
3) Moving Pictures
4) Snakes & Arrows
5) Clockwork Angels
6) Permanent Waves
7) Power Windows

"Hemispheres" is one I need to listen to further. It was a bit before my time so it never got the due with me, it probably deserves. "2112" certainly has it's moments and was a landmark album for the band. It's definitely an "Essential" Rush album, but not a favorite of mine.

 

I've been a Rush fan since I first heard 2112 when I was a Junior in high school. I had never heard anything like that before and it's still one of my favorite albums of all time. My ranking of albums will change from time to time but it would go something like this (sorry Moving Pictures isn't as high as most would expect)

1. 2112
2. Clockwork Angels
3. A Farewarll to Kings
3. Rush
4. Caress of Steel
5. Fly by Night
6. Hemispheres
7. Permanent Waves
8. Moving Pictures
9. Signals
10. Vapor Trails
11. Test for Echo
12. Grace Under Pressure
13. Snakes and Arrows
14. Counterparts
15. Presto
16. Roll the Bones
17. Power Windows
18. Hold Your Fire

Am I forgetting any?

 

1991.Roll The Bones was released. I used to try recruiting friends into Rush by playing the first seconds of "Face Up" and showing Peart's awesome/huge sound drum intro.

 

Reading all of these stories is great. Thanks for sharing, everybody. I grew up knowing Rush's radio songs, but I didn't really start getting into Rush albums until recently. Now, I'm hooked and I am looking to expand beyond Signals.

 

Does anybody here own Clockwork Angels on vinyl? How does it sound? How is the pressing quality?

 

I'm a recent convert via the BTLS doc (and via Ernie Cline's enthusiasm!), and am really enjoying exploring their history! I've picked up original pressings of A Farewell to Kings, Fly By Night, 2112, All the World's a Stage, Exit.. Stage Left. Great stuff! Some of the sound stages on the old albums are a bit narrow and I find I have to crank them to really open up the sound. I don't want to create a remasters-comparison tangent here, but are the new pressings much different?

San Francisco was booming to mega-fireworks late into the night last night (Super Bowl), but I was planted at home watching Neil Peart's amazing drum solo (twice!) on the R30 DVD. What a great show that was! Were the dryers on-stage a common thing?

I'm hunting down more albums (might go for some remasters) and would like to see more Blu-rays/DVDs. I might order the R30 Blu-ray, though it doesn't include all the bonus stuff from the DVD set. And I'm encouraged by the great reviews for R40, but have to warm up to Geddy's straining voice at that point. There are 2 unofficial live CDs coming this spring according to Amazon (both have same material): Ohio 1975 and FM Broadcast 1975.

I was all about traditional blues, The Beatles, and the Japan/Sylvian/YMO bunch growing up and I think I just lumped Rush in with what I considered from afar to be kind of thick-headed rock with a macho vibe...But I never actually heard them until recently. I'm glad that doc film opened up their world to me so I could check RUSH out with fresh ears and eyes. Nice bunch of guys!

 

^^^^^^
Having to crank the early CDs to "open up the sound" is considered by many to be a huge positive attribute. The 2014/2015 Magee hi-rez masters that I have purchased are also quite crank-able, particularly the earlier titles.

 

Yes, good point re: loudness. My LPs have range.

 

Have you compared the OPs to the 200 gram reissues? I only have reissues, and they are among my absolute best-sounding vinyl.

 

Now listening to R40 Live. This set really takes off for me at "Natural Science" through "2112". The San Jose show on that tour was my fourth Rush show, and it was probably the best one I saw. Certainly the one I enjoyed the most.