Rush: Classic or Dud?

I read this article-while at work. Even if i disagree with some of the rankings, this is one of the best pieces of rock journalism ive read in a long time.Nice job, A. !!

Thanks , Bill!

Glad to see Hold Your Fire get some love, unfairly maligned era imo

Great write up, still working through the whole thing.

Albums I'd bump up higher in my own personal list: Test For Echo (I still prefer it over Caress and Roll The Bones), Vapor Trails, Counterparts, Power Windows, Grace Under Pressure

Albums I'd bump down: Roll The Bones, Hold Your Fire, Snakes & Arrows, A Farewell To Kings, 2112

I agree that the Time Machine tour album is pretty bad, Geddy's vocals sound terrible. It's a shame because it was an excellent tour. Weirdly, I find the DVD much more palatable.

I'd rank Different Stages much higher, it's my favorite of their live albums. The version of 2112 is absolutely brutal, improving on the original studio recording, and the bonus 70s concert is a lot of fun.

Good choices.

Was Roll The Bones "monstrously" successful though? Yeah, it went platinum and debuted in the top five, but in the end still sold less than the much more successful early eighties albums that also produced charting Hot 100 singles.

The album's chart success was astonishing. Dreamline was a massive single, I don't think anyone saw that coming. Maybe not quite the right word there, but that initial reaction to the album and single was a big surprise.

A massive single on the AOR chart though, not on pop radio.

What a band. I fucking love this band.

"Dreamline" was everywhere I went in 1991. But then again I lived in AOR country.

didn't have a clear perspective on it at the time because everything Rush did seemed huge to me. Roll The Bones was the first time I saw them live and also the only tour my wife saw until hooking up with me.

The only time I've seen 'em was the RTB tour.

Rush has had a long history of ignoring Western Canada. I finally got to see them in person in 2008 and 2012.

Was Roll The Bones "monstrously" successful though?

"Roll the Bones" was a big deal in the circle of Rush fans/theater tech dorks/computer nerds I knew, it was a crucial car stereo jam I was oft subjected to as I didn't have a ride of my own.

I have mostly erased the rap section of the title track from my memory thanks to many yrs of intensive psychotherapy

Al, have you watched any of their recent tour DVDs?

One thing I love about Rush's brand of prog rock, is that at its best, it actually does rock. Unlike, say, a band like Genesis, who (mostly) rock about as hard as a granny in front of a TV set.

love the quotes you dug up from christgau and his ilk. it's almost endearing how aggressive they are about not getting rush

Rush is a permanent blind spot for many "music lovers"

Those old Rolling Stone reviews are fascinating. Fricke's always been a vocal supporter of the band, I'll give him that.

One thing I love about Rush's brand of prog rock, is that at its best, it actually does rock. Unlike, say, a band like Genesis, who (mostly) rock about as hard as a granny in front of a TV set.

― Toni Braxton-Hicks (Turrican), Wednesday, June 11, 2014 11:48 AM (1 hour ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

love the quotes you dug up from christgau and his ilk. it's almost endearing how aggressive they are about not getting rush

― reggie (qualmsley), Wednesday, June 11, 2014 1:02 PM (36 minutes ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

Both posts totally OTM. THe writeup about how much 2112 rocks in this article, while still being prog, is fantastic. 2112 is my #1 by the way.

just listened to permanent waves for the first time in forever

holds up great

Haha I did too, while reading adriens article on the train. Fucking "Jacob's Ladder", man...

Jeez, make that three train ride commutes jammin Perm Waves thanks to that article today.

Shared article w/ a bunch of Rush heads locally, and one smart-ass buddy dared we all rank too, here's mine:
Dare answered - Here's mine (haven't we done this before?):

Moving Pictures - easy number one pick for me, one of my fave records period - how cool was it to see 'Camera Eye,' 'Witch Hunt,' and 'Vital Signs' a few summers back? A Sgt. Pepper/Revolver for the 80s.

Hemispheres - Cygnus rules so hard.

2112 - Just a bonkers record musically that never really gets old. I think Alex's best.

Grace Under Pressure - Really no surprise the year is 1984 here - it's a more artful side of Rush, it's a Glasnost response to the Cold War outside, and 'Between the Wheels' fuckin' smokes.

Power Windows - I probably place this higher than most - I just have good memories of having the tape forever checked out from Manteno library, until I bought it myself. Always liked the synthesizer sound on this record, and how Lifeson echoes it well with his own jazzy responses. How cool was it to see 'Marathon' a few summers back?

Permanent Waves - And here's where the list goes to what I call 'the threes' - 'cause the order from P.W. on are all equally 'there' for me, until the last two clunkers - guess I could throw in the EP Feedback to make it five sets of three. Strangely, this record is currently the only full/all tracks present on my iPhone's iTunes, and I listen to it on the train a lot. I've never been a fan of 'Natural Science and that's what drags this down.

A Farewell to Kings - 'WHEN THEY TURN THE PAGES OF HISTORY' - yeah this one is awesome. Only 'Madrigal' brings it down.

Signals - I've always thought Signals was over-rated. Never really liked 'Digital Man' or 'Chemistry' and 'New World Man' lyrics are kinda cringe-worthy today.

Counterparts - There's a lot to like here, and I really call this the great overlooked Rush record. 'Everyday Glory,' 'Animate,' 'Nobody's Hero,' all are fun, great Rush tracks.

Presto - I really think this album rocks, and I'm so glad they're playing 'The Pass' again regularly live.

Snakes & Arrows - 'Far Cry' is a pretty dang good Rush single, and a great opener to three great Rush tracks in row. I really like it up to track 7, and then after that it loses me, and I rarely play it all the way through now. It was a Rush record that helped me through a tough time, though.

Rush - ever hear that blog post a few years back of 'Working Man' slowed down - it's long lost Doom Metal! 'Here Again' shreds.

Hold Your Fire - Just listened to it again last night, and while I love the drums and keyboard sound on the record, the overall tone is preachy and poppy. The Professor pivots from Ayn Rand-isms to Eastern mysticism and it comes off kinda clunky. Sorry YT.

Clockwork Angels - I'll admit it - I need to spend more time with it. It's not one I go back to readily - maybe it's just not clicking, 'cause overall it's good.

Fly by Night - still like 'Best I Can,' 'By-Tor,' and 'Fly By Night.' It's kinda jarring to listen to this after playing Clockwork Angels again.

Roll the Bones - Had to play it again on Spotify, 'cause I'm pretty sure I sold this back at some point. 'Dreamtime' still sounds pretty good. Otherwise it's just kinda 'samey.'

Vapor Trails - the album's sound defects are well documented, and admittedly that has always colored my view of it (I still haven't heard the 'remixed' version). 'One Little Victory' and 'Vapor Trail' are pretty cool, otherwise nothing else here really grabs me.

Caress of Steel - 'Necromancer' and 'Fountain of Lamneth' are pretty fun. I never liked Bastille Day. I probably need to listen to this all the way through again.

Test for Echo - Wish I didn't have to list it, and I could just put three or four excellent live albums to the list instead.

Something like: Moving Pictures > A Farewell to Kings > Permanent Waves > "Subdivisions" > "Distant Early Warning" > Hemispheres > "Big Money" > "Time Stands Still" > Clockwork Angels > 2112 > the rest of Signals > Presto (riding almost entirely on its singles) > Caress of Steel > Fly by Night > the rest of Grace Under Pressure Snakes and Arrows > Vapor Trails

The remix of Vapor Trails would rank higher than Snakes and Arrows.

And, hm, the remaining Grace singles are at least tied with the Presto singles.

Roll The Bones' album tracks, particularly "Face Up," aren't bad at all.

Oh, Presto > "Ghost of a Chance" > "Driven" > "Dreamline"

love "Ghost of a Chance" -- the synth doubling that poignant chorus guitar.

Mine looks like this, guess my preference for 80s over 70s really shows:

Moving Pictures
Power Windows
Grace Under Pressure
Counterparts
Signals
Permanent Waves
Hemispheres
Clockwork Angels
A Farewell To Kings
2112
Vapor Trails
Presto
Snakes & Arrows
Test For Echo
Fly By Night
Rush
Hold Your Fire
Caress of Steel
Roll The Bones

when i was in 5th grade (which would be 1982, i think) i went on a week-long school trip to this academic competition in georgia. wedged between the seats of my greyhound bus was a c-60 -- no case -- with R U S H inked on the label of both sides in the style of the debut. it was taped off the radio, and the first song was the 'exit' version of 'the trees' and the second was 'working man'. i don't remember the rest, but that is how i became a rush fan. that cassette is probably still at my dad's house somewhere

One of the kids who hung out at my high school's computer lab had a cassette copy of Exit... that he played *all* the time. It may have been the only album he owned. I liked New Wave Rush a lot and ended up seeing them three times - GUP, RTB, and Counterparts tours.

Honestly, I never really got why ppl like Counterparts so much.

Also I feel a Caress of Steel challops coming on.... Might have to pull that up, been way more than a decade but I remember digging it

Also, was on their Spotify page today and ho lee fuck have they released 15 live albums since 95?

they basically do one for each tour now, which is definitely excessive, but I've enjoyed all the HD tour DVDs

yeah i mean i was just shocked...i guess i knew about rush in rio, but god i thought they had that and maybe one other one after show of hands

The most recent one, Clockwork Angels Tour, is great.

rush is a great live band but i dunno they usually stick so close to the originals i've never listened to a ton of their live stuff, except show of hands which i had as a kid

On the last tour, they added a live string section for about 2/3 of the set. It really transforms some of the older songs.

oh cool, that's different for them using outside musicians...that must be a first to have any backing musicians right?

Yeah, first time ever. I saw the show in Newark - it was really amazing.

I saw it in Dallas. It was fantastic. I think that was the show in the dvd

Yeah, that tour was incredible. Wonderful setlist.

I'm majorly disagreeing with the low assessment of Caress Of Steel. I think "Fountain Of Lamneth" is one of the best things Rush ever did. I just wish the Didacts And Narpets section was 5 minutes longer, it rocks the fuck out and I think they didn't fully exploit the brilliance of the ideas in it. I think "Necromancer" is really dull though.

But I'm glad Signals was high up, some of their best stuff on that. But I have to say I feel no Rush album is totally classic from start to finish.

there isn't a song on 'hemispheres', 'permanent waves', or 'moving pictures' i don't love. i'm more fond of "natural science" than say "different strings" but still, i wouldn't change a thing. three classic albums as strong as any other band's best three

Hemispheres still does it for me in the same way as it did on my first listen. If I had to choose one, and only one Rush album, then that one would definitely be it.

I might say Hemispheres too.

Don't get me wrong, they are one of my favourite bands and they have more great albums than most great bands do but I always think there is a substantially weaker track (or two or three) on their albums, which makes it difficult for me to know which album to recommend to other people as a starter.
But all I have is all the albums from 1975 to 1984. I've got catching up to do but I doubt anything will top that period.