dream & vapour

Here's a link to the FLAC format of Counterparts. This is the 2015 version, remastered by Sean Magee at Abbey Roads, as part of the Rush 40th anniversary vinyl re-releases: https://www.prostudiomasters.com/album/page/35620 Notes from Rhino Records: https://www.rhino.com/article/coming-soon-rush-counterparts-test-for-echo-on-vinyl

This: https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/The-World-Crisis-1911-1918/Winston-Churchill/9780743283434 This abridged version is distilled from Winston's multi-volume set covering World War 1. Winston went from being First Lord of the Admiralty (dismissed after the failed Dardanelles campaign), to being a front line officer, as he was determined to remain in play after his dismissal. You can benefit from his perspective at various levels of engagement. Plus, kudos to Churchill for having the vision to bring along a mobile bathtub he could occasionally access at the front line in France. There's nothing like a good soak in a hot bath to help sort the world out. I also recommend the film They Shall Not Grow Old, from filmmaker Peter Jackson (quite the WWI buff). It very vividly conveys what soldiers in the trenches faced (too vividly for some). Bonus video: German WWI ace Ernst Udet performing a dead stick landing in Chicago, 1933

https://www.andrew-roberts.net/books/napoleon-a-life/ Winner of the Grand Prix of the Fondation Napoleon 2014 (Yes, that's how 'foundation' is spelled in French.) Utilized material from the over 30,000 recently published letters of Napoleon. Before you know it, you'll be delving into Cavalié Mercer's G Troop Royal Horse Artillery's actions at the Battle of Waterloo. Tidbit: Napoleon was of typical height for a Frenchman of his time--5' 6".

The cars being auctioned comprise most of his 'collector' cars, but not all cars he owned. For instance, he had a Porsche 911 Speedster, 2001 BMW Z8 and a 2010 Aston Martin DBS. Many people have heard the story of Carroll Shelby taping a $100 bill to the passenger-side visor of a 427 Cobra. He would tell the passenger, "If you can grab that bill once I floor this thing, you get to keep it." And of course, nobody could power their hands up to the visor with that monstrous acceleration. I leave you with this curvaceous version of sex on wheels:

Jess nails the correct response at the end of the guitar solo--Woooo! One of the many elements which makes this song fantastic is the dynamic transition from the chorus leading into the guitar solo. Neil pounds the bass and two 16" crashes on every beat in 4/4. And then, whoosh!, that step into open space. Breathe. We're in 3/4 time, almost giving a half-time impression, as Neil now provides that open feel with only bass and ride. But he doesn't stay there long, as he introduces some snare, and before you know it, he's playing some triplets on the toms. Then going strong, really driving that third beat. Glorious. Then transitioning back into 4/4 for the chorus. As Jess says, Wooo! Incredible ensemble work. It's interesting (on an oblique point, here) that an opera singer would conduct an analysis of this song, as Neil had stated it was critical to monitor Geddy's vocal phrasing while providing the pace in Limelight. Does Geddy sound rushed? Pull back. Does it sound as if he's being stranded too long on a note? Pick it up at bit. Another group who are typically very good on detecting the time signatures? Dancers. It's a prerequisite for the job, apparently. I would sometimes challenge a past acquaintance (who went on to perform with the Paul Taylor Dance Ensemble) to identify a song's time signature. After about ten seconds of listening, he'd be able to correctly say, "7/8!" or "9/8!". Most impressive. He clearly had an impeccable sense of time. And he did some great comedic impressions too, but that's beside the point.

The fact that Mary lived a full 95 years, despite all the world threw at her, bears witness to how much chutzpah propelled her through this often chaotic realm. It might have helped if her son decided to become a doctor, or something respectable, but what can you do? Hopefully Geddy steps into the breach to take up hamantashen duties.

"I think we're getting into a weird area here." "I'm just afraid that you're going to burn in Hell for all this." "Mike, I really appreciate you're doing this, but . . . it is just for the money, isn't it? It's not just so you can wear these little outfits?" Some classic lines delivered by Bill playing Jeff (Michael Dorsey's roommate) in Tootsie. Inspired casting choice. And of course there's Charles Durning's (playing Les) line, "Bulls are bulls, and roosters don't try to lay eggs!" Not that I would ever drop that line into a conversation. Certainly not.

Since this is the place where the cool cats who rightly dig the F#11 chord--strange, beautiful music, as that Satriani fellow might say--hang out, here's another way (or two) you can pull that sensation into the Tom Sawyer outro. But using the E11 chord, rather than (or in addition to) the F#11 chord. Play the simple arpeggiation of the F# power chord (2,4,4), then strum a DMb5 (x,5,6,7,7,x), then back to the F# arpeggio, then let this beauty ring out . . . an E11 (0,5,6,7,5,5). You may want to mute that low E. Other variants you may want to sample might be (x,7,6,7,5,5), (x,x,0,1,0,2--which would be a D6b5 maybe) and (x,x,0,1,3,2--another version of DMb5). These, and other exciting destinations, can be found right on your fretboard. Have fun, and protect those ears!

I know these videos of which you write. The iVideosongs videos. They're clearly popular on YouTube, as the Limelight (for instance) video has over one million views. It would have been quite nice to have such tools at my disposal when I was learning guitar. These kids got it made today. (Well, the ones who learn to play an actual instrument.) It's his video for Tom Sawyer in which he forthrightly states he doesn't know the name of a chord. It's the second chord played in the song, an E7sus4. Back in the day, when I'd be hanging out with friends--or at the local mom & pop guitar store--sharing how to play the song, I might get asked the question, "What chord is that?" And my response would be, "Beats the hell outta me, but that's what it is!" The vast majority of guitarists probably have no idea what the name of a beyond-the-mundane chord they're playing might be. And unless you're a session guitarist who's expected to quickly read changes on a chart you've just been handed, it's not critical. After one has played guitar long enough, you develop that sense of, "If I put my fingers like this, it should sound good. And if I'm lucky, it'll sound exquisite." After all, in music, creativity trumps knowledge of structural orthodoxy.

Firstly: Is it acceptable to play an F#11 chord (aka, the Hemispheres intro chord) during the outro of Tom Sawyer? Absolutely! Do your own thang. Did Alex typically play an F#11 chord (2,4,4,3,0,0) during the outro? No. He typically played a simple F# power chord (2,4,4,x,x,x). But, finger your fretboard to play a F#sus4 (2,4,4,4,0,x), and let that whole thing ring out occasionally. Heck, you could even ring out an F#7sus4 (2,4,4,4,0,0). Maybe you won't like the aural taste of that open E when you're supposed to be stepping out of E into F#. Maybe you'll savor it. Another possible fretboard excursion would be playing--as a substitute for the E power chord--an E6sus4 (0,2,2,4,2,5). Or follow me into the realm of the exotic and esoteric and throw in an E5add14 (0,7,9,9,0,11). P.S. I should qualify my assertion about Alex typically not playing the F#11 during the outro (before I catch flak). When I was but a wee lad, this was true. But later, he seemed to use it by default. One need only watch the Snakes & Arrows or Time Machine performances, and there's The Alex Lifeson Chord®.

Neil's grievous error is easy enough (like a sore thumb!) to detect. It occurs immediately prior to his break into this section:

My first message links to Spooner's work titled The Dream. The skeletal automata appearing during the closing moments of the Mystic Rhythms video can be viewed at greater length here: This work is titled The Last Judgement, created after Mr. Spooner found inspiration in viewing Jan van Eyck's work of the same name. The linked video refers to it as 'Hell's Kitchen'. This is incorrect. Initially, this was on display in a small shop in Falmouth, Cornwall (~1982-83). The Cabaret Mechanical Theatre then secured a much more visible space in Covent Garden, London. This is likely where the video's director (or someone on the production crew) first encountered the great hulking machine.

This will probably seem familiar. From British automata artist Paul Spooner:

John at Cygnus-X1.net offers an indexed archive of Neil's blog at: https://www.cygnus-x1.net/links/rush/peart-news-weather-and-sports.php

. . . which, in this case could overlap with that old joke 'how can you spot a happy cyclist?'. Anyhow, here's a sign--set amidst beautiful countryside--seemingly made to bring a grin to a drummer's face: https://www.google.c...!7i13312!8i6656

The 'whip cracking noise' is a 1/4" piece of plywood being enthusiastically smacked upon a wooden stool (with a flavourful dash of reverb). The assertion of wind chimes being attached to said plywood is a case of somebody misremembering a wee bit.

Upon mention of Rush group photos, the first image which comes to mind is the great group portrait by the legendary Yousuf Karsh, which graced the back of, er, Grace Under Pressure. It was cleverly composed, showing the guys as they would appear to audience members during live performances: left to right, Alex, Neil and Geddy. They sat for the Yousuf Karsh session on February 16, 1984, while they were still recording p/g at Le Studio (wrapping recording in March '84). If you are not familiar with the work of Yousuf Karsh, it's worthwhile to peruse his catalogue. To say it is comprised of a Who's Who of 20th century figures would be an understatement. Included amongst these figures is Ernest Hemingway, whose line 'guts [courage] are grace under pressure' inspired the album title.

When recording Signals, Neil was using Tama wood timbales, with Remo Ambassador Clear heads. I doubt you will disappointed by the snappy sound of your new LPs.

A most appropriate day for Countdown, as on this date in 1981, our three protagonists found themselves at the Kennedy Space Center, watching Columbia's maiden flight launch. Bright and early--well before 7 a.m.--after playing San Antonio the night before. They were at KSC for the originally scheduled launch of April 10th, which was scrubbed. They were zipping from Texas to Florida and back a couple times via chartered jet in order to experience the event.

I'm ever later on the reply! But, if this doesn't benefit the original poster, perhaps it will aid others with the same question. Most modern stands use an 8mm (aka, M8) size wing nut. Most older American stands used a 1/4"-20 wing nut. I qualify these specs with 'most', as there are stands which use 6mm nuts (like some Ludwigs), or 5/16" nuts, but these are less common. One nifty 8mm replacement set available from DW (part DWSM2230) includes the seat, felt, stem and wing nut for ~$15. Pearl offers their 'WingLoc' set for about the same price.

Yeah, yeah. I know, I'm chiming in a bit belatedly. But I thought, eh, maybe you've not yet made your move on the bass amp. So, here's my two cents . . . Gallien-Krueger MB115-II - 200w, 1x15 plus high frequency horn, XLR direct out, headphone jack (for unobtrusive practicing), made in USA, currently priced at $639 (Sweetwater) Tech 21 VT Bass 200 - 200w, 1x12, XLR direct out, headphone jack, good variety of tones, $499 Orange Crush Bass 100 - 100w, 1x15, XLR direct out, headphone jack, $569 All three of these are combo amps, so they're easy to transport. They would also be useful if he starts to gig, as any of these would work in any setting up to a medium-size space (might want to put on a stand when gigging). If you seek that Geddy Lee connection to your equipment purchase, any of these could be rationalized as possessing that quality. Let's see . . . Geddy used Gallien-Kreuger amps back on the Roll the Bones tour. He's been using Tech 21 equipment since the Test for Echo days (they offer Geddy Lee signature equipment, including the GED-2112 Sansamp, which he's used on the past few tours). And Orange . . . he used an Orange amp on the Time Machine tour, plus he has an AD200B MK3 in his home studio.

Mike Clark's response:

Have you tried applying a lubricant, such as Big Bends Nut Sauce, to the nut slots? You could apply a bit to the bridge saddles as well. It's possible your tuning machine heads have too much 'play', and an upgrade may be in order. But trying a bit of lubricant first may be a very economical (and effective!) solution.