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Cmutt

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About Cmutt

  • Birthday 04/15/1970

Member Information

  • Location
    Houston
  • Interests
    Basketball, Video games, movies, world history... and RUSH
  • Gender
    Male

Music Fandom

  • Number of Rush Concerts Attended
    11
  • Last Rush Concert Attended
    R40
  • Favorite Rush Song
    Too hard to pick just one
  • Favorite Rush Album
    Moving Pictures
  • Best Rush Experience
    Front Row seats for Snakes and Arrows Tour, in front of Alex. And first RUSH concert, Power Windows Tour, January 15th 1986.
  • Other Favorite Bands
    Early Van Halen, Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, The Police, Guns N Roses,
  • Musical Instruments You Play
    I wish - the guitar

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  1. January 15th or 16th, 1986 Power Windows Tour - The Summit - Houston, TX I was 15 yrs old. Prior to the concert, I liked Rush. But after the concert... I became a lifelong fan.
  2. As for me, I was at work last Friday when I got a text from my cousin (who took me to my first Rush concert when I was around 15 years old on the Power Windows Tour) informing me that Neil had died. I was shocked and at a complete loss for words. But I work at a hospital and was too busy for it to really sink in... it just lingered in the back of my mind until I got off work. I almost always have Rush playing in my car, so when I started it up it was on the Vapor Trails album, and the song playing was Earthshine. My first thoughts were about Neil riding and healing from his losses, and how Vapor Trails was the result of his return... and the bands return. And it made me sad thinking about how he was now leaving behind his new wife and daughter. A lot of thoughts flowed through my mind during my hour long drive home, and lots of emotions as well. And I don't mind admitting that my eyes teared up pretty often, from both sad and pleasant thoughts. One thing that I've noticed in all of my listening these past days... I find myself listening to almost EVERY song, even the ones that I didn't care for much, and that I used to just skip over. I've been going through the whole catalog just randomly, but listening intently to every song, soaking them in and paying closer attention to the lyrics than I ever did before. So in that way, even though he's gone, he's still giving me more and more... and I'm forever thankful.
  3. I don't know if they remixed it, or what other footage was used... but the other posts are correct that not only did the footage look better, but it also seemed to be presented/edited better, and everything MOST DEFINITELY sounded way better. It's like I could hear all of the instruments and music much better. And I just listened to some of the original R40 music again... and Geddy's voice DOES sound much, much better in the new film. (even on the same songs!) I too, wish that they would redo the whole R40 DVD the same way that they did this film.
  4. Overall, I enjoyed the show last night. At the theater I went to here in Houston, I'd say it was probably more than 3/4 full. And almost all of the fans had their various Rush concert shirts on, which was awesome to see. I even saw a young daughter wearing (probably her dad's) original "Signals" jersey, with the added "The Summit March 6-7, Houston, TX", which was something that was only added to various shows that tour. I remember that particular jersey very well because I have it, and I'm even wearing it in an old 8th grade yearbook photo. So it was cool to see that young girl wearing it. People were wearing shirts from so many different tours, I wish I had taken a picture of the whole theater. I was wearing an old "Presto" tour shirt. As for the show itself, I really like the interviews and behind the scenes stuff a lot, and I wish there was way more of that. The concert footage was good too, particularly because it seemed to me like they used a lot of alternate footage, from different angles and perspectives. For example, there seemed to be more close up footage of Alex playing some of his highlight parts, which was awesome. I can't say for certain that they used lots of alternate R40 footage, but that's what it seemed like to me. I think they should have done more of what they did for Jacob's Ladder, which was play a montage of footage from many of the different cities on the R40 tour... they should have done that for many of the other songs as well. That was was one of the coolest things from the movie. The fans in the theater applauded when the Houston footage came on, and I'm sure it was probably like that in all of the cities that were shown. That really made it even more personal, and I think the fans would have really liked more of that. What was really nice though, was seeing and hearing the show on big screen and in full blast. It was almost like being at the concert again, and with great seats. The sound was great, I could hear everything loudly and clearly, and the the guys were in tip top form on those performances. Even Geddy's voice and singing sounded good on the songs that they chose. And yes, even Lakeside Park sounded okay... his voice was much better that night than on some of the other performances of that song on that tour. Geddy wasn't straining and struggling as hard with it. So perhaps this was another alternate performance of that song. Anyhow, it all sounded great to me. The main thing that kept hitting me, more than anything else... was just how awesome and skilled those three guys were when they were on stage like that. Their technical proficiency and musicianship was just insane, even on that last tour. Billy Corgan's comment was right on the money when he said that the 3 hour performance he watched that night.. would have been extremely difficult for 25 year old musicians to pull off... much less musicians in their 60's. To me, that says it all. Rush... the greatest band of all time. (at least as far as most of us are concerned)
  5. Some of my absolute favorite solos and guitar parts... (particularly the live versions) Marathon, Bravado, The Larger Bowl, La Villa, Mystic Rhythms, Animate, Leave that Thing Alone, The Garden, and of course... Limelight. (and I love the ending solo variation he did on Witch Hunt, at the Time Machine Cleveland show)
  6. Full setlist. If only they could unearth the unused film.... 2112 Part I: Overture 2112 Part II: The Temples of Syrinx Freewill Limelight Cygnus X-1 Book II: Hemispheres Part I: Prelude Beneath, Between & Behind The Camera Eye YYZ Drum Solo Broon's Bane The Trees Xanadu The Spirit of Radio Red Barchetta Closer to the Heart Tom Sawyer Vital Signs Natural Science Working Man Cygnus X-1 Book II: Hemispheres Part IV: Armageddon By-Tor & The Snow Dog In the End In the Mood 2112 Part VII: Grand Finale Encore: La Villa Strangiato Oh man, that would probably be the crème de la crème of all their concert videos, just based on pure nostalgia alone. Much less the fact that it's the full Moving Pictures Tour and set list. Just seeing some of the songs on the video that were not on the album is a tease that there probably was a lot more footage originally shot from those shows. They should dig it up and put it together. I'd certainly buy it and watch the hell out of it!
  7. My 2 cents... it took a few years for the album to grow on me, but that's the way almost ALL of the Rush albums have been for me since the 90's. In fact, every single album since GUP has been that way for me, some more than others. I tend to like just a couple of songs initially, then after seeing the show and hearing them play the songs live, I end up liking a few more. Then as time goes on, the songs grow on me even more, and I start hearing them and appreciating them a little differently. Of course there are always some songs on every album that just don't ever end up grabbing me. But I like at least 8 of the 13 songs from Vapor Trails, and I prefer the Remix.
  8. Don't get me wrong, I do understand all of the various reasons why Neil may have chosen to retire and completely stop playing, and I don't begrudge him at all. I'm not of the opinion or mindset that he owes anyone anything, My post was merely expressing that it's just a bit hard for me to comprehend that he would choose to quit playing his instrument, and quit creating music altogether. Of course, it's not that he doesn't have the right to do that. I was just contemplating about how difficult it is for me to imagine an artist doing that, especially after a lifetime of doing it. I don't think he necessarily lost his love for the instrument or for making music, but like we have all been suggesting... perhaps he just felt like there were too many other important things in his life that he needed to concentrate on. Music was just one of his many interests, albeit probably the most significant one throughout his life. And from what he has mentioned many times, he has to be 100% committed to something, if he's going to do it at all. So perhaps he no longer feels he can invest himself 100% to playing and making music. And for all we know, he may take random trips to the DW workshop and get some leisure playing in once in a while. (doubtful, I know) But whatever the case may be, yeah, I think many of us share the feeling that it would seem like such a shame if he never plays again, much less creates any new music ever again.
  9. This is a bit of a departure from the topic of the OP, but it's in the same frame of mind. I've often wondered why Neil felt the need to retire from everything band related. I mean, I completely understand the his retiring from touring, but why completely rule out the possibility of making music with the band ever again? It's hard for me to imagine someone giving up something that they have "loved" doing almost all of their life. I mean, I have read and heard what his various reasons are for doing so, but it's just difficult for me to totally relate to all of those reasons. For instance, I know he has said before that one of his biggest challenges is, (and I'm paraphrasing) "can I still labor over drum parts and lyrics like they are the most important things in the world?" I guess I understand that. For a person like Neil, maybe it's all or nothing. Either I'm 100% committed or it's not worth doing. So maybe he feels like he doesn't have the desire to practice his drums and stay at top form anymore. And that, itself, is reason enough for him to not want to play drums or make music anymore. But even though I understand that kind of reasoning, it's still hard for me to swallow. I feel like, man, if I loved music that much, and I've loved playing and creating it so much throughout all of my life... I'd still want to play it and create it, even if I wasn't as good as I was when I was young. I mean, the music could still be very good, even if my technical and physical abilities weren't as good. And let's be real, even if Neil was only half as good as his younger self, that would probably still be better than 50% of the drummers in the world. So I think he could still make great music. Another thing he has said is that after Clockwork Angels, he felt like they had reached the pinnacle of their creativity as musicians. Maybe he meant that like there was nothing left for Rush to explore musically, for him. But can an artist ever really know that? Does he know definitively that there is no more musical inspiration left in him? Don't get me wrong, I understand Neil's personality and how serious he is about his convictions, and I respect him. So I'm not questioning his decision to retire as if it were not real, or justified. I'm simply pondering (out loud) whether or not it was absolutely necessary for him to retire from all of it. Seems like that would be very hard for many people to do in the same circumstances... but, we're not Neil.
  10. I think "Half the World" is one of their great songs that maybe hasn't been appreciated fully. (although I do feel it's strength is mostly in the lyrics, but a great song to me nonetheless)
  11. My initial thoughts on Presto... well, funny thing for me is that my reaction to almost all of their new CD's/albums after Signals was pretty much the same... I didn't like any of them very much initially, and it took years for each album to really sink in and grow on me. But in the end, I almost always wound up liking every album, some more than others obviously. As for Presto specifically, I didn't think it was much different from HYF. The songs and vibe still felt like Rush was starting to lean more towards a "soft rock" sound, vs a "hard rock" sound, at least to me anyway. At the time, I couldn't distinguish or make out the nuances of their new music. I didn't know what they were doing, or where they were going... and I was still too young and rigid, as a listener, to fully appreciate and embrace the changes in their music. I liked a few songs a little, like Superconductor, but otherwise I was pretty much indifferent. But that NEVER stopped me from going to see them live, because I already knew that no matter what I thought of their current albums... they were always going to be awesome in concert. And one of my enduring memories of all the Rush concerts in my life, was at the Presto show, when the two giant bunnies were inflated and bouncing to the beat of Tom Sawyer. That awesome memory is burned in my brain. Side note, I recall reading that all three of them feel like Presto is the one album that they are all disappointed with the mix, and that it's the one album that they'd like to go back and remix. (other than VT, which they already did remix) As for the present, as the years have gone by I have come to like Presto more and more... as I said, which seems to be the case with most of their albums for me. They eventually grow on me... like fine wines.
  12. "I'm not trying to be argumentative either, but I take slight exception that you omitted this line from my post and then tried to argue like I didn't say it. "That's not to imply he didn't always give 100% when writing, recording or performing live." So again, I never said he didn't invest himself completely into the creation of those post-hiatus albums. Or that he didn't go out on stage and push himself to give a perfect performance up through the last night of R40. Even while suffering through various ailments. True professionals like Neil always strive to do their best whenever there is a task at hand. By "heart", I meant it more like enthusiasm at being in Rush again and connection with his bandmates, NOT effort. So maybe I should have said that Neil's heart wasn't in it as much BY THE END. By all accounts, he was done after the CA tour. As in he would've been fine with Rush quietly disappearing into the history books at that point without as much as a goodbye. He had to be prodded (gently, I'm sure) into even doing R40. He took to calling Alex and Geddy "the guys from work"......repeatedly. He was gleefully counting down shows while Ged and Alex were dreading that every day was closer to the end of a tour they really wanted to continue. Ged especially was obviously a little pissed after it was over that Neil was so firm in excising himself so completely from Rush. But that's how it goes when it's a three or none democracy. At first, I felt a little disappointed in Neil too for not sticking it out long enough to say goodbye to the European fans. But I got over it. It's no one's fault. Neil gave all he could and it ended the way it ended. As long as they're all alive and healthy enough for their age, sure, another chapter is possible. I just see zero indication that Neil has budged from his position of nearly three years ago or that he's ever likely to." ---------- I didn't omit the line from your post in order to discount it, or to evade it. And I didn't say that you did or didn't question Neil's commitment to the band, or his work ethic. My reply wasn't really about that. I was responding to the assumptions that you were making. So I included most of your other statements which seemed like you were taking the liberty of "presuming" what Neil did or didn't feel, or think. For example, you just said, "So maybe I should have said that Neil's heart wasn't in it as much BY THE END." That's something that you just can't know. And many of the statements you made seem to have that same issue. You're stating them like they are fact, rather than saying "perhaps", or "maybe". Semantics? I don't know. Don't get me wrong bro, I'm not against different theories or opinions. That's what good communication and learning is all about. I don't necessarily agree with your theories on Neil's mindset, or his frame of mind, or how much his heart was in it, and whatnot. But I won't argue against those possibilities. From what I could see, and from all of the interviews, videos, and books... it seems like he was very happy doing what he loved, which was writing and making music with his old friends. The secondary part of that music creation was touring, which Neil has long kept saying, is both a pleasure and a pain, in various different aspects. I also agree with many others who believe that Neil's ultimate reasons for retiring pretty much stem from a few core sources. - Touring, and the toll it takes mentally, physically, and emotionally. - Age and health - Family, time, emotions, etc. Exactly how much of each of those things factored in, who knows. That's not something we can ever know, and it's probably not all that important. Everyone is right about the bottom line though. Neil has retired. He did it his way, and on his own terms. He did not short change the band, and he didn't leave them high and dry. He came to them and told them that he felt like it was time for him to hang it up. They asked to do one more tour, and he agreed to a limited number of shows. It was hard for Geddy and Alex to hang it up that soon, but they are friends and they respect each other. I don't believe that they harbor any bad feelings. Alex had been contemplating retiring from touring too. So it happened, and they've probably each been dealing with it in their own personal ways. Anyhow, all I'm saying is that I, like many others, only hopes that Neil will get the itch to play and make a little bit more music someday soon.
  13. Well, you're certainly entitled to your own opinion.... and I'm not trying to be argumentative, but I disagree with much of what you're saying. You use the phrase "doesn't understand Neil", and yet you say that you believe his heart wasn't really in it after 1997. Personally, I don't see how "understanding Neil" would lend to that opinion at all. Neil has pretty much defined his whole career as being 100% involved with whatever he was doing. Age, time, experience, motivations, and other various factors may have had some influence on his mindset, but I doubt he ever felt like it was all "just part of the job". Even though you preface your statements saying that they're your opinion... it's presumptuous to "assume" what Neil's feelings and thoughts might have been. There's no way to say what may or may not have been in Neil's mind, or what his feelings were during those times. Anyhow, I don't think many people believe that Neil will decide to make music again. In fact, I think most Rush fans acknowledge that he's probably called it quits for good... but people are just saying that they "hope" he will decide to make more music again. I don't see anything wrong with hoping. I’m with you 100%. As far as Peart’s heart not being into it post-‘97, Vapor Trails seemed the exact opposite of this thought. He poured his heart out on that album. It’s far from being my favorite Rush album but the care he took in contributing to it is apparent imho. Even with Snakes (definitely my least favorite Rush release), Peart had plenty to say and (I believe) put his heart into it. Point blank: I dislike that album overall but I can’t deny what Peart was trying to do. Not only that, but Neil has said himself in many interviews and videos how much inspiration, devotion, and hard work went into all three of the post 1997 albums. He's stated in many different ways how much pleasure and satisfaction the band had making those albums. And he's continually professed that they always feel like they're making their best and most important music... as their making it. Based on Neil's own words, and his penchant for honesty, I have to believe that he probably was very happy creating the music and showcasing it with the band over their final decade... and I also believe him when he says he's extremely satisfied and proud of the music they made, and of the legacy they left behind.
  14. Well, you're certainly entitled to your own opinion.... and I'm not trying to be argumentative, but I disagree with much of what you're saying. You use the phrase "doesn't understand Neil", and yet you say that you believe his heart wasn't really in it after 1997. Personally, I don't see how "understanding Neil" would lend to that opinion at all. Neil has pretty much defined his whole career as being 100% involved with whatever he was doing. Age, time, experience, motivations, and other various factors may have had some influence on his mindset, but I doubt he ever felt like it was all "just part of the job". Even though you preface your statements saying that they're your opinion... it's presumptuous to "assume" what Neil's feelings and thoughts might have been. There's no way to say what may or may not have been in Neil's mind, or what his feelings were during those times. Anyhow, I don't think many people believe that Neil will decide to make music again. In fact, I think most Rush fans acknowledge that he's probably called it quits for good... but people are just saying that they "hope" he will decide to make more music again. I don't see anything wrong with hoping.
  15. Just to chime in... my own personal wish is that they would at least choose to get together and try to make some new music again. After all, all three of them have said many times throughout the years that they are, first and foremost... musicians. Their primary motivation and desire is to make music. Touring was always the means to promote and showcase their new music. Not only did they feel obligated to tour, but they also felt like it was just the proper thing to do. (besides the fact that touring probably also generated a good portion of their income) That said, I imagine that deep inside, Neil probably still has the urge to make more music. Now, how often does he feel that way, or how strong is that desire? Who knows. I mean, as many others have said, Neil has a ton of other interests, as well as a family to keep him busy. I like to hope that he DOES or WILL have a strong enough urge and desire to feed his musical needs sometime in the near future... and that he'll just call up Alex and Geddy one day and say,(with a chuckle) "Hey guys, I think I'd like to seek out some more gainful employment!" Then maybe he'll say something like, "You guys wanna get together and have a jam session... see if there's still some music in these old bones?" And maybe it'll start off like that, and they'll agree on making some new music, but without any touring or major shows. No pressure for them to get into tour playing shape, or even crowd pleasing shape. Just enough playing shape for them to jam together and make music together in a studio setting. Comfortable, no pressure, no deadlines, no agendas... just their artistic desires, their love of music,... and their deep bonds of friendship. And new music for their fans. That's my wish.
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