HigherWater

Right on! I didn't plan this thing. It was set up by K. Anderson to sell his crappy Clockwork Angels merch.

Depends on your audience and motivation. I'd do a trio of songs: Xanadu to show the goofy prog side and intense musicianship Limelight to show how tight the songwriting can be The Pass from Rush in Rio to show how versatile and ever-evolving they are Now that I have them hooked it's time for........... The Necromancer!!!

I can't seem to get this out of my head. The meet up at the Hard Rock, Denver felt really odd. I'm wondering if anyone else felt the same way. Anderson seemed shameless in his piggybacking and fleecing of us fans and the Hard Rock put out a RIP OFF "Rush Menu." We never eat corporate but my son and I made the trip so we could hang out with Rush fans. What we ended up with was a couple of below-average $10.00 comic books (list for $3.99 but were told they were 'out-of-print'. No surprise, they kinda suck) and a $60.00 tab for mediocre food. I guess I'm wondering if anyone else felt like the evening was a little 'off'. HW

Perfect Setlist for me would be Setlist B (The Wreckers is SO good live) with Natural Science replacing or in addition to Animate. Come to think of it I'd like to see Cut to the Chase or Stick it Out instead of Animate as well.

Thanks everyone!

Flash Seats has some good deals

I think I'm going to go with T4E-- Though I think VT and Presto are overlooked as well. T4E is just so.... different! True, there are some questionable moments-- Dog Years and Virtuality are, how should I say this, not very good-- but Totem is a hidden jem and Driven should find its way back into the live rotation.

It would be really cool if we could see all the set lists compiled in one thread. Anyone????

I'm starting to get the rumble in my stomach-- a little weak in the knees. It's almost show time. Denver is only four days away. I no longer give a damn which set list they play. I am soooo fired up.

Different Strings is the only on on that list that wouldn't cause a mass walk out! The rest would cause people to throw stuff... Speak for yourself. There is NO song that would cause me to walk out or throw things... Though Superconductor or Rivendell might cause me to hit the pipe a few times. Vapor Trail would be my choice if I only got one.

PJ and Bruce keep prices low by going around TM completely and setting caps. Maiden keeps the trolls out of pre-sales by managing them without a third party. They also block out a predetermined section for VIP only.

Snowjobbing? Take a look at their website and how they manage pre-sales. . Rush is an out of sight, out of mind band and that's a fact. Like I said, I don't care what their motivation is I just want to see a little honesty and perspective. Many bands use other ticket selling avenues to avoid the scumbags in the industry--- I think Bruce Springsteen and Pearl Jam can be considered "arena level' and they've managed to keep tickets in the right hands and at the right dollar amount. 85 bucks for Springsteen with NO FEES!

I have the inutshuk from the cover of T4E on my shoulder blade. I'll try to upload a pic later.

So I'm really late to reply here and I will say right off the bat that I did not read all the posts. So forgive me if I repeat the thoughts of others. Is the premise that if I speak out against escalating ticket costs, scalpers, or God forbid, bands that claim to be "all about the fans" proving to be everything but that-- WHINING??? If so, well.... Call me a whiner, because I will never stop seeing the world for what it is at times. I love Rush. I have loved them for 35 of my 45 years but I have no doubt that Rush is in fact, all about the money. If they wanted to control costs, they could and they would. If they wanted to take care of Backstage members and ensure that scalpers and bots didn't take over, the could and they would. The truth is--- and this may be a little hard for some--- Rush is about getting as much as they can from each and every one of us. Don't get me wrong, I have no problem with this. What I struggle with is this notion that Rush is engaged in some sort of musical philanthropy. They play exactly what pleases them at the time and they charge whatever they believe they can get for a ticket. If they could get $200 in Denver, a la Fleetwood Mac, they certainly would. Truthfully, it's not really the money that bothers me. It's the lack of protection for the fan club folks that have been with them FOREVER. Take a look at other bands with similar followings, nearly all of them take much better care of their fans. I've never drawn worse than row 3 for Iron Maiden (even in Europe) and I've never stood next to anyone that didn't have the cred of a long-time fan. On the C.A. tour I landed my first front row seat for Rush (by chance after seeing every tour since GUP) and I stood next to three people that had never seen a Rush show and were given their tickets by a work associate who, "had a bunch of extras." The Rush pre-sales have been awful since... Well since forever. People have asked/begged for a little fan-love from Anthem and we've never been heard. Or perhaps we have been heard but Anthem just doesn't really give a crap. I suppose that's their right. Sometimes we just want so desperately for our heroes to be someone they're not. Geddy Lee is not Steve Harris. When Harris says, "It's all about the fans" I can believe him. Now, on the flipside: They do give us one hell of a show and they are the greatest trio to ever take the stage.

So I'm listening to a little Maiden on up pops Prodigal Son. It dawned on me just how 'Rushy' this song is. I wonder if Harris ever claimed Geddy (and Alex for that matter) as an influence for this one. Such a great song-- reminds me of Here Again.

4 None Adult Admissions 122 12 1 - 4 $126.00 $504.00 Sub Total $504.00 Convenience Fee $81.20 Facility Fee $16.00 Amount to be charged to your credit card $601.20 This is what 4 tix toward the back of the arena costs in Denver. 81.20 in CONVEINENCE fees!!! I want to eat a bullet right now!

I hear you, but compared to other ticket prices, I really don't think that Rush is out of line. I'm sure you can get lawn seats at an outdoor venue for $40 or so, maybe less at the time on craigslist or something. Granted, not the best "seats," but still, you can get in. When the Rolling Stones, The Who, some of these huge pop stars come, basic tix are often $200. That I don't get. The days of $20 seats are long gone. Again, I think you give too much lattitude for what the band can contribute to the charges. Also, let's keep in mind, this is tough work for 60-year old musicians. We cannot expect them to do it out of the goodness of their hearts, they have lives too and even only tour b/c of the fans. At some point, in their shoes, you also have to realize that there's a price that makes it worth it and anything less than that and not so much. It's easy to sit here and talk about how the band should cut us all a break, but they make sacrifices too. When I'm that old I hope that I don't feel obligated or need to for financial reasons, have to do something as physically stressful and demanding as a tour like that. I for one would not want to go to a concert at which they felt undercompensated to the extent that it might reflect in their energy level or level of performance and that they were just doing it out of a deflated sense of obligation. I hear ya though, but I really think that a good chunk of the ticket prices go to other elements besides the band and that they have less control over much of it than we think. Also, these M & Gs, which I have no interest in, are what cost so much. And rather than tickets in the first 20 rows on the floor, how about within the first three rows on the sides up front? I've never had troubles getting those for relatively reasonable. In Charlotte for the CAs tour I got tix first row in the first part of the second level, off the floor, directly facing the stage across the arena. Had a fantastic time and sat throughout most of the show, very relaxing, allowed me to focus on the music. It's all a matter of perspective. I don't necessarily disagree with you but I find your "they're 60 and they can't work out of the goodness of their heart" comment a little silly. It reminds me of Patrick Ewing back in the day trying to justify his 40 million dollar salary by saying, "We need a lot of money because we spend a lot of money." I have no problem with capitalism. They should get what they can get. They just won't get it from me this time around.

This one is very plausible

Set One: New Instrumental Medley The Big Money The Larger Bowl Cut to the Chase Leave that thing alone Fear I Fear II Fear III Fear IV Circumstances Jacobs Ladder Vital Signs Xanadu Intermission Natural Science Prime Mover Animate Drum Solo Acoustic Guitar Thingy Nobody's Hero Spirit of Radio Tom Sawyer Fly By Night Working Man Encore: Far Cry Limelight 2112

I love how these posts sometimes go. I never thought this one would end up as a discussion about how/why or what bands charge for tickets. My only question was whether or not Rush had priced anyone else out of this tour. I for one am a school teacher with very limited funds. I am definitely priced out!-- At least as far as taking my family goes. It's really sad actually. We are a Rush house. We look forward to tours and we've even traveled a bit. This would have been my 11-year-olds 4th show and the third for my 8-year-old. It will be the first tour I have missed since Signals. Bummer. As for the direction of this post: I truly believe that bands, especially Hall of Fame bands with serious draw and clout, can have as much say as they choose when it comes to ticket prices. I think we Rush fans give the boys a certain amount of plausible deniability (yes, that's a T4E reference). Don't you all think that Eddie Vedder could get $200 a pop if he wanted to? Why do you think he settled for such a low ceiling on the last tour? Well, we know he hates ticketmaster, and we know he truly loves his fans. I think that Rush love their fans too-- just in a very different way.

I think this is where I am as well. The notion that the band has NO control over pricing is just not true. The band CHOOSES to not have control over pricing. Springsteen has control, Pearl Jam has control. Bands can have control if the want it. My current plan is to "pick-up" a show on the day-of if the mood and the wallet meet up in harmony. The $600.00 that would have been spent taking the family to see Rush will be spent on a condo at our favorite ski resort during Spring Break. This makes me really sad but I have to think bang-for-the-buck.

So Denver is $130.00 plus $16 per ticket fees. Does this seem a little high to anyone else? I know, it's Rush and I've seen every tour since Signals but I think this might be a just a bit out of my range. I paid $70.00 for Springsteen last year and he's still a much bigger draw. Just sayin'. Before I get blasted here, I'm totally okay with the guys getting every penny they can. I'm just wondering if anyone else might be at their limit for what they will pay. HW

Denver pre-sale is sold out. Oh well.

Super frustrating. Still NOTHING. I have the worst luck with this s@#t.

Did anyone get Denver pre-sale? I was on right at 10 and got "no seats available"