Todem

78-88

Top 4 live album for me. Sounds thick and the band is as tight as ever. I was in the 6th row for the recording they took from the CP tour in Miami for Show Don’t Tell. And it is a bad ass live version for sure. A great live album and I consider it essential in their live catalog.

I loathe REM...but I will say easily: Orange Crush Candlebox - Happy Pills

As far as written on the keyboards. First one? Subdivisions.

2112 The Spirit of Radio Tom Sawyer Iconic in the Rush Catalog.

Check out the Steve Hoffman Forums. Sectors is considered absolute garbage. I could care less what he thinks. All that matters....is what my ears think. It's the forum members, not Steve Hoffman. The general consensus now is that the 2015 LP remasters, available as HD downloads, are far superior. I've been doing A/B comparisons & they are absolutely right. Interesting. Need to check those out!!

Check out the Steve Hoffman Forums. Sectors is considered absolute garbage. I could care less what he thinks. All that matters....is what my ears think.

I remember watching her film Witchboard - a painfully bad horror film. Some of the worse acting I've ever seen. Of course, they had her do a nude shower scene..... Witchobard is a cult classic. “Progressive Entrapment" Love that cheesy 80’s flick. Such good schlock. RIP to the hottest 80’s hair metal chick ever. She was a nuts though. When she beat up Chuck Finely she was stabbing him in the thigh with her 6 inch heals.....nut bar. She had a lot bouts of drug addiction and looks like it caught up to her. We will find out soon enough. Too young to die.

Dammit how could I forget? Achtung Baby is probably my favorite album of all time. Also in 1991: Temple of the Dog, Soundgarden's Badmotorfinger, REM's Out of Time, and Guns 'n' Roses Use Your Illusions 1 & 2. Rock has been in decline ever since. Yeah how can I forget Temple of the Dog. Probably the best album to come out of the “grunge” era IMO. Just a magical session. I think they made that album in under three weeks. So good to this day. I was a big fan of Superunknown s well. Badmortorfinger was gritty!!!. REM I cannot take for a minute LOL...not my cup of tea. I think Rock has had plenty of great moments since 1991.....especially progressive rock....but I can see what you mean by the decline. And today...it is on life support right now.

I actually love the sound on it....it was very slick and unique. Yeah it lacked bottom end and raw power.....but we got that with all the live versions of our favorite tunes from RTB (and Power Windows and Hold Your Fire while we are at it). I like the studio recordings as a moment captured. Again for me it is what makes the band so much more interesting to listen to still, to this day. If every album was mixed and recorded like Moving Pictures and Counterparts.....ugh....would become a bore to be honest.

The best part of those songs -- particularly the first two -- is that they sounded nothing, nothing, NOTHING like the other songs by other rock groups during the early nineties era. They were all playing in the same sandbox but were using different toys. I mean, I guess no one else was quite achieving the sound Rush did on RTB, but then I wouldn't really call that production job an achievement. Are you mainly implying that they didn't hop on the grunge bandwagon right away? That I do agree with. Yeah, exactly. 1991 was the year of Metallica's Black album, Nirvana's Nevermind, Pearl Jam's Ten, RHCP's Blood Sugar Sex Magik, and others. RTB sounds nothing like them, in the best possible way. Side note: Looking at that list, we could make the argument that 1991 would be the best year for rock music for a long time. All those bands, aside from Rush, peaked at that time. U2 - Achtung Baby was nothing like what was going on around them as well. And IMO is U2’s crowning achievement (of course everyone likes to point to The Joshua Tree....which is a great album....but Achtung Baby was like their “Signals” A total 180 from what fans always expected from them). Those two albums (RTB and Achtung baby) along with Pearl Jam’s Ten were in my constant rotation. I drew so much influence from those 3 records into my own music at the time (I was 21 in 1991). Great times.

Actually I was wrong..not a missing lyric but a very odd transition not on the original release going into the second verse. It sounds terrible actually. And it is an obvious mistake to my ears. Other than that I love the Sectors remaster of this record. More bottom end, the string section in Mission sounds glorious and some cool little guitar blasts from Alex on High Water.

Agreed. Also: Vaportrail Secret Touch Sweet Miracle Nocturne Sound better on the original mix. But Freeze.....oh like a new song on the remix as well as OLV. Ghost Rider too. The Star Look Down as well. Remix brought out those tunes much better. I couldn't disagree more, the remix ruined Ghost Rider. Bottrill's obnoxious clicky metal-style kick drum has absolutely no place in that song, it's incredibly distracting. I went back and listened to the original mix and master vs the remix and remaster. For the most part I do prefer the old mix...but prefer the new master LOL. It sucks the master was simply too compressed and brick walled on the original release. I agree the kick drum is blatantly overdone on the new remix and master. But there are some great things that you can finally hear on the new mix. But at the same time....they reeled in a lot of that raw power from the original release. They kept lot of the original demo jams on this album and it really shows. The passion and energy of this album was and is very unique in the catalog. The songwriting very strong in spots and really weak in others. It is a polarizing release for the band. And one that had to be made to get them back into the swing of things. Especially Neil. I have fond memories of this period. Just being so happy the band was back after thinking it was truly over for almost 5 years. We got a second life and of course they did to. We got more new Rush music and of course the incredible tours we were able to go to. I remember making that conscience decision when VT was released to see them live as much as I could from that point forward. And we did. So happy we had that chance!!!

I think what Geddy really disliked about HYF and Presto and Roll The Bones (To a lesser degree) was the lack of the bottom end. I just finished reading Limelight Rush in the 80’s (A great read BTW as well as Anthem Rush In The 70’s and Driven Rush in the 90’s and In The End) and the biggest issues were after Grace Under Pressure they felt they lost their bottom end bass wise. Alex looking back really is proud of his playing during the synth period but felt pushed out because so many of the songs were written on the keyboards and the keys were recorded before his guitars and he had to find a way “in” with the songs. I happen to think some of his most brilliant playing came about from Signals thru Hold Your Fire. And learned a lot about his rhythm work, chord structures and he made a conscience decision to completely change his sound on Power Windows and Hold Your Fire. It really is the most fascinating period of the band and IMO what made Rush......Rush. I found the albums after Moving Pictures to be the absolute definition of Rush’s grip on “Progressive Rock” and what that really means. Signals today sounds so milky and so smooth....it was such a wonderful marriage of analog keyboard goodness to this day. And that is the album Alex looks back on as his least favorite. He was so buried in the mix on that one and to this day I am sure it annoys him. But at the same time the sound of that record to my ears has aged so well. It really has. It was probably the creamiest sound they ever achieved on tape. The Sectors Remix and the Mobile Fidelity Studios Remaster truly bring those qualities out big time. Grace Under Pressure was the last of the true analog recordings during the keyboard era. But it was a colder sound and quite relevant of their surroundings (recorded during the winter with snow all around them) and a conscience effort to bring up Alex in the mix. Grace has stood the test of time sound wise too and one of my all time favorites. With Power Windows they really stretched themselves out with the songwriting, the use of sequencers everywhere, Neils drum sound was bombastic and Geddy moved to the Wal bass and seriously was funking out and it sounded glorious to me. The songwriting was extremely strong on Power Windows. But Alex again found himself trying to “fit in” with the layers and layers of keyboards. It was a real tough go as they occupy the same frequency sonically. But I think Alex pulled it off incredibly well and some of best guitar work is on Power Windows: Big Money Marathon Territories Middletown Dreams Mystic Rhythms Emotion Detector Just Dynamite and his solo’s on Grand Designs and Emotion Detector are legendary. His riffage on the chorus on Manhattan Project s unmistakable. Then we get to Hold Your Fire and it is actually....to my ears a less dense record than Power Windows. I gave it a spin again yesterday (Sectors Remaster) and I love this album. The songwriting was in top form. The first 8 songs are simply top notch. I know people hate Tai Shan....I don’t. And I love High Water which is a sonic feast to my ears. But I get how some fans wanted Rush back to their heavier roots.....I get it. I love that stuff too. I love all of it. Moving on to Presto though.....the songwriting was simply not the strongest in their vast catalog. yeah there are some great highlights (Show Me Don;t Tell Me, The Pass, Presto and Available Light for me). But the rest was kinda mediocre for their high standards. Roll The Bones IMO was a much better record with better songs. I mean man.....the run of Dreamline, Bravado, Roll The Bones, Face Up (yep I love that song) and Where’s My Thing is amazing. And then toss in Ghost of a Chance.....Roll The Bones was a very well received Rush album and much needed for them coming off two straight Gold albums (gold lol.....500K units....I mean under Platinum was not good enough for them anymore think about that). But Bones still suffered that lack of the "bottom end” and they felt their work with Rupert Hine was “too soft”. Counterparts was that return to that thick heavy sound and for me that was and is their true dark horse album looking back in time. Full of amazing Rush riff’s, great songs and a wonderful mix and master. They had not sounded this heavy since Permanent Waves. Moving Pictures was not as raw as Waves. It was the first time they went to a digital mix. Counterparts had that raw quality and a lot of that was due to Kevin “The Caveman” Shirley. He to into some heated exchanges with Alex LOL about going totally dry...no reverb, no effects. Alex was like....What!!!! Anyway a lot of you know all this stuff....but it is cool to look back and see and hear the evolution of the band from 1974-1987 and then the walk back to their power trio roots. I think Counterparts was their best album post 1980’s. It really had that great Rush thickness that they lacked on Presto and Roll The Bones. And they had such strong songs on CP. Animate, CTTC, Alien Shore, Between Sun and Moon, Double Agent, Everyday Glory and Cold Fire and IMO the best instrumental since La Villa (yeah better than YYZ IMO) in Leave That Thing Alone. Man that song is a beast. I don’t agree with Geddy on Hold Your Fire and I know Neil loved that record. I do agree with him on Presto....it is near the bottom of my all time rankings. I still listen to it....an average Rush album is better than most bands good albums LOL....but I agree it was very hit or miss and the mix and master was just too soft.

1977 Kiss was my gateway drug. And in 1981 Rush became my heroin.

Agreed. Also: Vaportrail Secret Touch Sweet Miracle Nocturne Sound better on the original mix. But Freeze.....oh like a new song on the remix as well as OLV. Ghost Rider too. The Star Look Down as well. Remix brought out those tunes much better.

OP asked about the mix. It is garbage. Demo quality in many spots. Dense, way too hot recording as well as mastering. Some songs sounded good on the original mix compared to the remaster oddly enough lol. Anyway.....there are a lot of good tunes on the record. I wish it sounded better sonically as that does keep me from listening to it more. It just sounds bad compared to their entire body of work. Let’s be real about it.

The original if you want them as they were released. I really like the Sector remasters period. But with Hold Your Fire there are some differences in added guitars on High Water (great freaking song) and strings on Mission. A missing lyric from Time Stand Still. Just some oddities not on the original release. Kinda cool actually. Sound wise The Sector box set as a whole is excellent.

I disagree. In that song, his vocal is in too high a register. It spikes into the famous chipmunk wail that turned off listeners over the decades. Once Ged lowered down to chest voice, he sounded a lot more attractive to most casual listeners, e.g. non-fans. You can hear the change starting with HYF and thru Counterparts. My vote for his best melodic vocal performance is either Time Stand Still or The Pass. He had some good moments on MP and Signals too. If you cannot love Spirit Of The Radio......you ain't no f***ing Rush fan. If someone told me....Phew.....no way after listening to that majestic Rush song.....piss off. This band is not for you, you weak minded simpleton. Go listen to the soothing sounds of Barry Manilow. LOL!!

Far Cry Ghost Rider (remix) Caravan Armor & Sword Vaportrail (original) Clockwork Angels The Main Monkey Business The Anarchist The Wreckers Faithless Nocturne (original) Headlong Flight Bravest Face The Garden Clockwork Angels is the best album of the three.....by a lot. A tremendous way to call it a career and end on. I do like Vapor Trails and the record has a lot of meaning to me as it was the return of Rush. But there are songs that are simply highly skippable for me. And the can’t be said of Snakes or CA. I really like Snakes and Arrows. The album get’s too much flack. But it was a great return to form production wise from the sonic disaster that was VT (and the remix was not that great either....and it actually runied several of my favorite tracks from the album in particular, the title track, Nocturne, Secret Touch and Sweet Miracle but vastly improved Freeze, Stars Looked Down and OLV so it was hit and miss for me as far as the remix is concerned). Snakes and Arrows is a great collection of mid tempo Rush songs. But the ones I chose are my absolute favorites. As with the rest of this collection above. I wanted to represent all three albums as well.

Dreamline Show Don’t Tell Animate Driven Bravado Presto Leave That Thing Alone Totem Ghost Of A Chance Cold Fire The Pass Available Light These are all my favorites from this period. I had to leave some songs off that I hated too (Alien Shore, Chain Lighting, Test For Echo, Where's My Thing, War Paint). But I wanted to get a good representation from every record in the period. Driven and Totem are to me outstanding Rush songs on an album that was not looked upon highly from some. But they had to make the cut. I took the best 3 tunes from Roll The Bones (leaving off the title track which I love too so I can have the 4 stand outs from Presto which to me are truly awesome songs). Counterparts is well represented IMO here with three powerhouse tunes. Just missing the cut were Double Agent, Everyday Glory (I hated leaving that one off big time but again I tried to make a balanced album here) and the awesome Alien Shore.

Looks like a fantastic Rush album to me. To me it is more about the songs than the length of the song. Rush made that great transition on Permanent Waves and more so on Moving Pictures being able to play incredible but compact it into under 6 minutes and have great melodies and riffs. The songs simply got much better 1980-1987 for my taste. Don’t get me wrong. I love to listen to Hemispheres all the way through as it is my 2nd favorite Rush album ever. But it is not a “hey let’s pop on some Rush” kind of album. It is one for a longer drive lol. Your album has 2 outstanding epics in Natural Science and La Villa. And the bonus track of Hemispheres. Hell mine had those 2 plus Jacobs Ladder, Xanadu and the bonus track of The Camera Eye. The side long epics for me simply don’t make the cut above the incredible songs they wrote during the 77-81 era. They really went to a new level of songwriting vs being too self indulgent. And even the epics out did Hemispheres in Xanadu, Natural Science, Jacobs Ladder and even the Camera Eye. 2112 is a different animal. That is a side long epic for the all time greatest of side long epics LOL. If someone asked me “I hear Rush are incredible musicians and write these long songs so which one should I listen to?” I would immediately play them La Villa Strangiato from Exit Stage Left. That is all they need to hear to know who Rush really is in that vein. If they asked for a song with vocals The Spirit Of Radio may be the greatest tune they ever wrote. Seriously. It has it all. Pop, Prog, Fun, Power......it is all wrapped up neatly inside that 4:56 song length.

The official releases and my take? 1. Exit Stage Left - Rush at their sonic and live peak. Sterile? No....it's called a band in complete command of their music and sound. 2. A Show Of Hands - Again for me Rush is in top form pulling off tunes from Power Windows and Hold Your Fire with laser precision. A brilliant tour. It is so interesting to listen to this knowing just 6 years before they were sounding like ESL. The contrast is stark and so cool and really highlights how the band really embraced a different direction sonically. It is what made them so great to listen to. 3. Different Stages - Meaty, driving and a huge set list that is compiled here. I love this release. And the AFTK Bonus disc was a cherry on top. There was a time we all thought this was it for Rush. And they delivered an impressive package here. 4. Grace Under Pressure Tour 1984 - Another example of Rush in top live form. Taut, tight, precision playing and the signs of the transition of the setlist heading into the synth era. I wish we had the complete show though. 5. Snakes & Arrows Tour - I felt this was the last time Geddy was in good form vocally. The set list was a who’s who of deep nuggets. And the S7A material really sounded great live. 6. R30 - You could tell that Neil got his feet back under him on this tour. So many great versions of songs like Force 10, Red Sector A, Mystic Rhythms and of course the R30 Overture sizzles. 7. All The Worlds A Stage - Raw, Power, and a band that is about to take over the world. I still love cranking this album up, but Geddy’s Shreek is sometimes tough on this one. I prefer Permanent Waves thru Hold Your Fire vocals. 8. Clockwork Angels Tour - A banner set list. One of the best since the Signals tour for my money. If you loved the synth era (me!!!) then this show was a love letter to us. 9. R40 - A great set list, a bittersweet listen though. So hard knowing this was the end while listening to it. But there are some great moments here. 10. Time Machine Tour - I simply only listen to Presto and The Camera Eye. Everything else like another poster stated has been captured far better. Geddy had a rough....rough night. 11. Rush In Rio - The energy is undeniable. But I cannot listen to this much at all. Sonically it was the worst live release for the band. The set list was epic, the sound was a tinny mess.

Ok I will play.....and these are what I feel are the 12 true cream of the crop from 77-81: The Spirit Of Radio Freewill Jacobs Ladder Tom Sawyer Red Barchetta The Trees Xanadu YYZ Natural Science Entre Nous Limelight La Villa Strangiato Bonus song - The Camera Eye So yes....we left out Cygnus X1 and Hemispheres.....why? There are better songs on those albums. And Yes I only have one from A Farewell To Kings. And that is the epic Xanadu which to be is the crowning achievement of that great album. And on Hemishperes....The Trees and La Villa speaks volumes and are the best of that amazing album. Permanent Waves and Moving Pictures are in my opinion Rush’s two most perfect albums they ever made. I am talking the masterworks of their careers. It is funny......for as many times as I have listened and heard Tom Sawyer......that song is still one of the most bad ass f***ing rock songs of all f***ing time. The opening riff......and of course the majestic bad assness of the riff when Geddy is singing “What you say about his company is what you say about society.....that is Rush at their absolute sonic peak. Crazy.....but true. Tom Sawyer still get’s me fired up cranked to 11 to this day. Red Barchetta and Limelight are about as perfect songs they have ever written and the same can be said of The Spirit Of Radio and Freewill. And for prog master works I will take Xanadu, La Villa Strangiato, Jacobs Ladder and Natural Science as my absolute go to from that era. Precision song writing, prog masterpieces that have influenced an entire generation of prog musicians. My dark horse song is Entre Nous. The more age this song has taken on.....the better and better it has become. A true unsung gem of a tune. When they busted this out on the Snakes & Arrows Tour (first leg 2007) I was almost in tears of joy. YYZ......actually defined the band in the 80’s among musicians who were unfamiliar with this trio from the great white north. To this day a sizzling tour de force both technically and sonically.

Top 5 1. Nirvana 2. The Ramones 3. Motorhead 4. Judas Preist 5. Twisted Sister