What made Rush so special for you?

[Rutlefan]

As an sci-fi reading and hard rock listening adolescent, ATWAS and ATFK were a revelation. Hemispheres made them sui generis (why use English when Latin will do?). Great guys, bright guys, great musicians. And the music wasn't just great, but it was smart in an innocent, earnest way, as Neil often says in interviews about the music of that time... kids (relatively speaking) experimenting and having fun. So Rush didn't just seem really capable and smart, but they had an exuberance that was free of the snide, cynically condescending air of what was usually considered "smart" music. Why jaded critics hated them was a big reason I loved them, though I didn't really think about it at the time. They wrote and played fantastic music without the usual morose and self-destructive baggage that comes with most gifted musicians, and even having enjoyed enormous success, they've remained regular, friendly, down to earth people. Even if you don't love the music, you've still got to like those guys. As one of the guys from South Part said, if you still can't give Rush credit, you're just being a d*ck.

 

And there's what Kirk Hammet said, re the original question, that if you wanted the power of Sabbath and the complexity of Yes, you turned to Rush. Exactly. I loved the combination of power and sophistication. Still do.

[Mr. JD]

Being part of my daily life for over 40 years makes Rush special to me.

[JARG]

What made Rush special to me was the age I was when I got into them (12ish), the kind of music that was popular when I got into them (disco, I was 12 in '77) versus the kind of music they were doing, and the style and content of Peart's lyrics. Edited November 23, 2016 by JARG

[Verena]

"So many lives wrapped up in the work of three musicians."

TRF is a great testimonial of this.

[Verena]

"So many lives wrapped up in the work of three musicians."

 

I was just thinking that exact thing today. I was listening to Snakes & Arrows Live and when Natural Science came on I was overcome with grief that it is really over. I was in tears while I was listening. How can three guys mean so much to so many because of doing something that they love? It's surreal. I get why Neal has arrived at his decision, but I am struggling with not feeling a bit of resentment towards him. I am heartbroken that there will most likely be no more albums to look forward to. No more concerts and DVD's. No more Rush. Sigh

We're still here, there, anywhere: together for the same cause! :rush:

 

We might not know each other in person, but when a Rush fan sees another with a Rush T-shirt around... things happen!

[Lorraine]

"So many lives wrapped up in the work of three musicians."

TRF is a great testimonial of this.

It is. Very much so.

[catherine]

"So many lives wrapped up in the work of three musicians."

 

I was just thinking that exact thing today. I was listening to Snakes & Arrows Live and when Natural Science came on I was overcome with grief that it is really over. I was in tears while I was listening. How can three guys mean so much to so many because of doing something that they love? It's surreal. I get why Neal has arrived at his decision, but I am struggling with not feeling a bit of resentment towards him. I am heartbroken that there will most likely be no more albums to look forward to. No more concerts and DVD's. No more Rush. Sigh

We're still here, there, anywhere: together for the same cause! :rush:

 

We might not know each other in person, but when a Rush fan sees another with a Rush T-shirt around... things happen!

 

 

Yes that is so very true. It happens to me a lot when I am out wearing a Rush shirt, which is quite often. I love it when that happens. :-)

[Eel Yddeg]

1. In terms of melody writing, they were the best in their class. They could create an epic, dramatic feel like no other. Hard to put in words, but stuff like the intro to Xanadu, Natural Science, the Overture of 2112, Subdivisions, Tom Sawyer, etc. They could deliver scorching hard rock in stuff like Finding My Way, Anthem, Temples of Syrinx section of 2112, The Big Money, Something For Nothing, etc. And they could write beautiful, tender ballads like Tears, Resist, and Losing It.

2. All of their instrumental skills are amazing. Lifeson has a bottomless pit of amazing riffs at his disposal, and his soloing is often a highlight. Neil Peart is a great drummer, who's complex, jazzy yet powerful rhythms helped boost their sound a ton. And Geddy Lee was a top-notch bassist, and his keyboard playing in stuff like Subdivisions was stellar.

3. Geddy Lee is one of the greatest vocalists of all. His '70s singing was truly incredible, power, control, and range second to none. His '80s and '90s voice was lower, with less range, but at the same time richer and warmer. And his '00s and '10s voice is deep and mature.

4. Diversity. From the Hard Rock of Rush-2112, to the prog of AFTK-Moving Pictures, to the synths of Signals-HYF, to the pop rock sounds of Presto and RTB, to the alt-rock and grunge of Counterparts, TfE, and VT, to the return to the Rush of old on SnA and CA.

5. Great live performances. Instead of going off into long, self-indugent jams, they would stick to the original arrangements, but add tons of power and energy, especially in the Signals-GUP years.

 

Those are what made Rush my favorite band.

[Lucas]

Being a Rush fan allowed me to join the cool kids. Wearing my kimono to school left people open mouthed in admiration and everyone thought I was great.

 

That's because you left the sash open, wearing no underwear, of course

[Lucas]

I won't be watching that documentary again anytime soon.

 

I ran out of tissues.

 

But Lorraine, how then can you say that you don't belong here ??? .. If a band's farewell makes you that emotional, they must be special, right ??

 

Just because some people obsess on memorabilia and following bands around doesn't make the band any more meaningful to them than what you feel ..

Edited November 26, 2016 by Lucas

[Disembodied Spirit]

The drummer writes the lyrics?????????????

 

Let me process that for awhile

[RUSHHEAD666]

This thread is inspired by these two posts from my thread in MOTS.

 

Here they are:

 

Stormtron: "Rush - For whatever reason, just something about Rush hit me in a way no other band has. Add in the friends I've made because of them and bonding even more with my wife who fell in love with them too, and they're just a band who's always going to be special to me."

 

 

Ancient Ways: "I like a lot of other bands but only one took me from being a casual listener to a fanatic. Only one inspired me to pick up an instrument. Only one made me want to do dig into music and find out how it all works. Only one made lyrics that spoke to me on a different level than others. Rush."

 

I've been here for four years, and it still amazes me the depth of the attachment many of you have for this band.

 

What was it about them that touched you as no other band ever has?

 

For me, I think that the men behind the music added immensely to their allure and staying power.

 

NEIL PEART! I LOVE ASSHOLES!

[Segue Myles]

I won't be watching that documentary again anytime soon.

 

I ran out of tissues.

 

But Lorraine, how then can you say that you don't belong here ??? .. If a band's farewell makes you that emotional, they must be special, right ??

 

Just because some people obsess on memorabilia and following bands around doesn't make the band any more meaningful to them than what you feel ..

 

This is what I wanted to say the other day...

[Lucas]

I won't be watching that documentary again anytime soon.

 

I ran out of tissues.

 

But Lorraine, how then can you say that you don't belong here ??? .. If a band's farewell makes you that emotional, they must be special, right ??

 

Just because some people obsess on memorabilia and following bands around doesn't make the band any more meaningful to them than what you feel ..

 

This is what I wanted to say the other day...

 

I have not seen Time Stand Still yet, but as a KISS fan, I can say that I have seen and known some fanatical fans

 

But the obsessive hoarding of memorabilia, the transforming rooms, cars, even houses into shrines, and going to 100s of shows - there is something inherently diseased about that, and I don't find that sort of compulsive behavior to be any more of a bond with an artist than simply listening and being brought to a place emotionally - even for a moment ..

 

Seriously, if a band moves a person to fill their closets with shit they will never look at - for the sake of satisfying something that has nothing to do with the music - how is that more meaningful than listening and having the music effect you in a positive way ??

[Carvan Alex]

^{Hello, everyone! I am brand new to this website and I would like to introduce myself. I am 29 year old Rush fan with Aspergers and I am new to this forum. What made Rush so special to me was it was one of the first bands I ever heard. My Dad had been a fan for over 30 years, and when I was little, I used to watch Neil Peart on the videos play the drums really well that at times I tried to replicate what he did (though his moves were tough). Now that I am older and I've grown to understand the lyrics more, they grew to be special with me because I've been going through a lot of soul searching recently through my past. Their songs form a special connection with me in terms of relating to the lyrics, such as wonder, fantasy, understanding of one's self, realizing their is a bigger universe than we knew about, etc. And they were also one of the first bands I ever heard.}

[Permanent-Rush]

^{Hello, everyone! I am brand new to this website and I would like to introduce myself. I am 29 year old Rush fan with Aspergers and I am new to this forum. What made Rush so special to me was it was one of the first bands I ever heard. My Dad had been a fan for over 30 years, and when I was little, I used to watch Neil Peart on the videos play the drums really well that at times I tried to replicate what he did (though his moves were tough). Now that I am older and I've grown to understand the lyrics more, they grew to be special with me because I've been going through a lot of soul searching recently through my past. Their songs form a special connection with me in terms of relating to the lyrics, such as wonder, fantasy, understanding of one's self, realizing their is a bigger universe than we knew about, etc. And they were also one of the first bands I ever heard.}

 

:hi: Welcome to TRF.

 

That was a nice story :)

[Segue Myles]

The thing that amazes me and annoys me the most is that Rush fans seem to think their fandom is unique and I think Rush caters to this by marketing themselves as something profoundly out of the ordinary.

 

I have seen fanatical country fans that far outstrip the fandom of any single Rush fan I have come across. Modern bands like Green Day, My Chemical Romance and others have extremely devoted fans and the sake goes for Maiden, Metallica and Black Sabbath.

 

Rush were underrated in many ways and I think fans have really embraced the fact Rush is a cult band and yes it can feel like a little club being amongst Rush fans but, truth be told, fans of anything come together and make great noise.

 

The Rush fandom doesn't come close to the Harry Potter fandom. Trust me, it might not be music related but it's extraordinary all the same.

 

I will see the Time Stand Still documentary and I do find it very sad that an era is coming to an end, but I am fanatical about many bands and I never found the Rush fandom particularly unique. Larger than others? Yes. But one of a kind? Nope. Just older.

 

This forum however is one of a kind. But then you get Counterparts which is basically the typical fan forum and it shows just how easy it is to mistake this forum as a reflection of the fanbase at large. It isn't. It's just for the most part the nice fans stuck around here.

[The Honest Man]

Because they are unique! Who else is like RUSH? ✌️

[g under p]

Amongst many reasons....One that stood out to me was how these three guys seem to just be ordinary guys who for the most part never got into trouble or cause a rockus. While being pioneers in playing their instruments in a major rock band. I would always get such pleasure from friends, people would ask me who is your favorite rock band....I would say RUSH. Then they would say, Rush really but that guy's voice.....Yeah I know but they're number one one the list after now seeing them a perfect 50 times since 84'.

[patjnev]

The Bass player didn't stick out his tongue and spit blood.

They wrote interesting songs,left the party stuff for other bands,

They actually knew how to play their instruments

Synthesizers :D-13:

Real cool name for a band

Neato album covers.

Exit Stage Left on Videocassette

[Stinkerbell]

First off, the music is so complex as is the lyrics. They are fun to see live in concert and Geddy's voice is so unique.

[EagleMoon]

I was a fan of progressive rock before I was even a Rush fan. It was just a normal progression to them. Actually the mythology and literary references attracted me the most and made me really want to delve into their music. Once I did I realized how accomplished they were as musicians and how creative they were. Plus Neil didn't write sappy love song lyrics which was also very appealing.

[MMCXII]

I was/am what I would call a "classic" fan of Rush in that I'm on the intellectual/nerdy end of the scale where social skills would be at the opposite end.. if that makes sense. Rush is a band that no one I knew "got" (except my older brother of course).

 

Among my school mates I basically had my own weird band to myself which seemed to suit my personality just fine at the time and was actually a source of comfort at times..

[IwillchooseFreeWill]

I like the absence of "Ooh, Baby, I need you so much" songs and crashing chords. Instead the songs are about destiny and freedom, and the music is really complicated. They don't even look like other rock bands, except in the '70's and everyone had long hair then. And to persevere without critical support for FORTY years! Who else is like that? I do like other bands but I never get tired of Rush.