MeanMeanPride

I'm sure I'll probably buy them all.

Power Windows has so many cool song endings. I remember listening to this album for the first time and thinking that other bands would perhaps fade out the song, while Rush always seemed to come up with an inventive way to end. Grand Designs, The Big Money, and Territories are great examples of this.

I've spent a lot of time with Cygnus X-1 the past few days.

I mostly made the topic just to use the Picard face.

Yes, I didn't know they played more than one night. Is that video the entire show or is some of it left out? The show is only a little over an hour, and that's odd for Rush to only play that short time. That video is definitely edited. They played a full show both nights. The band was great as always but it was the most dead crowd I had ever been part of at a rock concert. They stood up and cheered when the band came on and left the stage and for the big hits. Then they would sit down and act like they would rather be anywhere else. Lame ass Canadians. In Vegas I sat in the upper bowl, and this was my experience. I actually had the lady behind me ask me routinely to sit down so she could see. They stood up for the very beginning and Tom Sawyer. I still had a good time, but it was nothing like being on the floor.

The Enemy Within. Love the imagery evoked by the lyrics, and the tune itself is extremely catchy. The others: 2. Witch Hunt 3. The Weapon 4. Freeze

I'm so ready for this tour on sweet, sweet Blu-ray.

I intentionally did not look at anything until my first show. I wanted it to all be a surprise, which it certainly was.

I just decided to be more positive today. It worked great!

I wish I could experience The Camera Eye for the first time again! Go have yourself a Rush afternoon. Pour a beverage.

Those are amazing. I would love to have something like that. Much better than the cheap foam Caravan/BU2B coasters I bought on eBay a few years back...

How cool is that? If it's true, of course...I'm still kinda skeptical. Have you kept up with the band at all

Thanks for the heads up! Also while we're on this topic - Drummers: free R40 shirt when you buy any Paragon cymbal and show a receipt online. Thru september. http://www.rushisaband.com/blog/2015/08/04/4439/Get-a-free-Neil-Peart-R40-t-shirt-with-the-purchase-of-a-Sabian-Paragon-Cymbal

I'm sure a bunch of people have recommended Louis C.K. by now, but I'll go ahead and add my nod of approval as well! Especially if you like Carlin and Bill Hicks and the like. You'll dig him.

I'd really be interested to hear what the guys themselves say to this question. You know they'd be really humble and everything, but I would just want to know who they consider to be the top dogs on their instrument.

(cont.) So, Lorraine, Neil is famous for his use of rudiments and the very of percussion (drum) instruments he builds into his song parts. He has great complexity and "musicality" in that sense. Where Neil falls short of other drummers is in his "feel", or the way he plays those parts that he constructs. If there's one valid knock against Neil it's that he is almost always pounding on the drums. He hits them so hard that it lacks subtlety. And that pounding actually impacts the sound of the drum - or cymbal. Think of a piano being pounded on versus lightly played. There's also a question of timing. Some drummers play slightly behind the beat - intentionally - which gives a sense of swing to the rhythm. Neil is almost always driving the rhythm. This constant driving, combined with the forceful pounding, comes across as harsh. It's technical...scientific playing. I think something that makes La Villa Strangiato so special is that it is a rare moment where Neil does swing. He backs off, and the variation in striking power brings emotion to the entire piece. I like Presto for that reason. On Presto, Neil's drumming has great feel, in my opinion. OK...enough of that for now. Great question, Lorraine. This is fun for me. Indeed! I like the "scientific playing" description. There's a reason they call him "The Professor," after all! And is it just me, or did Neil not always used to hit as hard as he does now? I've watched some older videos where he has a little more touch, a little more finesse...but he really does pound these days!

One cannot objectively judge art, so while you may not believe he is the best, many here do, and it seems somewhat unkind to call out others' subjective opinions on music as ridiculous. I would agree with this, but I want to clarify something. There is a difference between art and artistic ability. Art is always going to be subjective, but artistic ability is not always going to be. For instance, a community orchestra isn't going to play Beethoven nearly as well as a professional major symphony. That much is objective. In other words, you can tell when an amateur is playing the drums, and you can tell when Neil is playing. There's a clear difference, and that is objectively true. The scenario isn't always so clear cut, however. The difference is not so obvious when you're comparing two things of closely-related worth. And that is where you get into the realm of subjectivity, and it's all based on the listener's tastes and preferences. In short, different listeners with varying degrees of musical experience and very unique musical stories are of course going to listen for different things and in different ways. So who is the best rock drummer of all time? There's no way to know. It's just personal opinion. To us and our personal stories, it may feel like fact, especially those of us who have made music a career. But even those opinions are not absolute. Just want to preface what I am going to ask by saying that it isn't an attack on what you wrote. I don't know what you are talking about and I'm not a musician. In short, I'm ignorant. Are you saying that Neil is only capable of playing rock music? If so, how do you know he isn't versatile? What type of drummer do you have to be to be able to play all types of music? This is a great post because it illustrates perfectly what I'm trying to explain above. I'm listening for different things than other people when I hear a drummer, and so when I hear Weckl and Gadd I use words like "tasteful" to describe their playing. What does tasteful even mean? It doesn't mean anything in terms of actual ability - it's just a descriptor. And you're right - who is to say that Neil isn't a "tasteful" drummer in the ear of the beholder? I'm starting to feel like a rambler. I don't even know if I've actually answered any of these questions. :)

Who? Yeah, this is where I get conflicted as well. I am a huge fan of Neil...I mean, that can't be overstated. No drummer has taught me more than Neil has - by far, period, end of story. But I wouldn't put him ahead of some of the great studio drummers like Dave Weckl, Steve Gadd, Vinne Colaiuta, etc. Steve Smith is another great example. I just like the tastefulness of their playing, and the fact that they are so versatile in that they can play with anyone for any type of music. Now then, all of that said...Neil's presence and importance is still very significant. Neil is and was the right drummer for Rush, even ahead of those guys I listed above, for so many reasons. He did things for rock drumming that (in my opinion) no one had done up until that point. He truly carved his own path. For instance, I feel that Neil truly was a pioneer in the sense that he was also a percussionist - a bit of a lost art these days when it comes to rock drummers. This is all just my opinion. The Rush fan in my wants to put Neil at the top, but the objective drummer in me is just astounded by the sheer ability of some of the other greats.

Creeping closer to the end of season 1. Beyond the Sea is by far the best episode I've seen so far, in my opinion. What a great show!

Seems to me it's chemistry.

I ought to listen to Foo Fighters more.

That's why I specifically said in rock history. Indeed. I was probably just going too fast and missed it. In any case, I think most people consider Neil as a top 3 rock drummer of all time.

No way, man. Listening to Rush is still relevant and current. It's cutting edge, even the stuff from the 70s. Especially that stuff, actually...just look at what is littering the radio today.

Sort of going along with the above post, it is hard to rank them when there are so many excellent musicians across different genres of music. For instance, I definitely feel that Neil ranks up there pretty high among rock drummers, but I wouldn't put Neil on the list of best jazz/swing drummers.

I love the remixed Vapor Trails, and I'd love to see more remixed releases. I don't think the band feels urgency to treat other albums like they did VT though, so I doubt if we'll ever see that.