LABT's Rush song rankings (1-165), with special dispensation from hi_water to reveal them concurrent with his list

[laughedatbytime]

1 minute ago, Mosher said:

#165     Need Some Love (Rush, 8th best of 8)

#164     Tears (2112, 6th of 6)

#163     Stick It Out (CP, 11th of 11)

#162     What You're Doing (Rush, 7th of 8)

#161     Here Again (Rush, 6th of 8)

#160     In The Mood (Rush, 5th of 8)

#159     Before and After (Rush, 4th of 8)

#158     Finding My Way (Rush, 3rd of 8)

#157     Second Nature (Rush, 10th of 10)

#156     Bravest Face (S&A, 13th of 13)
 

#155     Sweet Miracle (VT, 13th of 13)

#154     BU2B2 (CA, 12th of 12)

#153     Speed of Love (CP, 10th of 11)

#152     Good News First (S&A, 12th of 13)

#151     Madrigal (AFTK, 6th of 6)

BU2B2 almost shouldn't count, but even as an interlude it's still better than those below it. 
The other 4 in my latest inclusions might as well be the same song. Not that they sound alike, but that they leave me equally disinterested. They're okay in the background but they are eminently skippable.  

Nice to see you killed off Stick It Out so early. I can't stand that song, but I assumed most people were okay with it. 

 

 

Just an editing note, but second nature is off HYF, not the debut.

 

Although I have to admit seeing Alex's reaction if Geddy would have brought Second Nature to him in 1974 would be hilarious beyond words.

[Mosher]

1 hour ago, laughedatbytime said:

It should have been lower, the cultural appropriation of the pantoum by Western cultures is truly disturbing.  But it's too late to change the ranking now.

I'm always against cultural appropriation, which does not mean any artistic element from another culture should never be attempted. There's much more that goes into it. There is the element of the intended purpose of the art to that culture. 
There is the element of the intended purpose of the art to the person from outside that culture. 
There is the weight of how that culture's art has been appropriated before.

I have no opinion on this. I didn't look hard but I found no writing on how Malay poets feel about the use of the Pantoum. Is there a consensus in that opinion, or are there large differences where many Malay like the art being seen more broadly and some find it insulting? Do most find it insulting?

I have no idea. I will look into it further. 

That's a take I hadn't ever seen before. 
 

[Mosher]

6 minutes ago, laughedatbytime said:

Just an editing note, but second nature is off HYF, not the debut.

 

Although I have to admit seeing Alex's reaction if Geddy would have brought Second Nature to him in 1974 would be hilarious beyond words.

Nice catch. 

I have a feeling that would be it for the band. I mean Alex was feeling pretty bad about that nonsense by 1987. 

[laughedatbytime]

4 minutes ago, Mosher said:

I'm always against cultural appropriation, which does not mean any artistic element from another culture should never be attempted. There's much more that goes into it. There is the element of the intended purpose of the art to that culture. 
There is the element of the intended purpose of the art to the person from outside that culture. 
There is the weight of how that culture's art has been appropriated before.

I have no opinion on this. I didn't look hard but I found no writing on how Malay poets feel about the use of the Pantoum. Is there a consensus in that opinion, or are there large differences where many Malay like the art being seen more broadly and some find it insulting? Do most find it insulting?

I have no idea. I will look into it further. 

That's a take I hadn't ever seen before. 
 

I honestly have no idea.  But who knows, even if they were ok with it generally, they could still be opposed to having it associated wth "The Larger Bowl"...

[Mosher]

Just now, laughedatbytime said:

I honestly have no idea.  But who knows, even if they were ok with it generally, they could still be opposed to having it associated wth "The Larger Bowl"...

So I took you too seriously and you just wanted to underline your less than fond opinion on that song. I actually always liked it- it's 95th on my list right now. 

[1-0-0-1-0-0-1]

3 hours ago, 1-0-0-1-0-0-1 said:

 

For me, if I were making a list (and maybe someday I will) I'd start from the bottom, and with one thought in mind:  If I were to hear a Rush song and it was the first time I heard a song from them, would it encourage me to seek out more of their music? Obviously any song that answers  to that would be at the bottom part of the list, and Half the World, Second Nature and Anagram would be in the bottom three spots.

 

33 minutes ago, goose said:

Interesting approach.  I actually don't mind Second Nature so much, but based on that criterion it definitely deserves a low ranking

 

Another way of looking at that approach -- if I were looking to introduce somebody to Rush, what are the absolute last songs I'd recommend?

[1-0-0-1-0-0-1]

1 hour ago, laughedatbytime said:

It should have been lower, the cultural appropriation of the pantoum by Western cultures is truly disturbing.  But it's too late to change the ranking now.

 

1 hour ago, 1-0-0-1-0-0-1 said:

Anywhere in the bottom-20 is fitting for that song. Would I recommend it to a Rush-curious person? Hell no.

 

51 minutes ago, laughedatbytime said:

How about if they were Malaysian?

 

Only if I were in the mood to be caned to death.

[1-0-0-1-0-0-1]

42 minutes ago, laughedatbytime said:

Just an editing note, but second nature is off HYF, not the debut.

 

Although I have to admit seeing Alex's reaction if Geddy would have brought Second Nature to him in 1974 would be hilarious beyond words.

 

That indeed would have been something, seeing as Celine Dion wasn't a thing yet.

[laughedatbytime]

36 minutes ago, Mosher said:

So I took you too seriously and you just wanted to underline your less than fond opinion on that song. I actually always liked it- it's 95th on my list right now. 

Probably.  I'm not looking to insult anyone's culture, but it was more a shot at the song than anything.

[Nova Carmina]

58 minutes ago, Mosher said:

I'm always against cultural appropriation, which does not mean any artistic element from another culture should never be attempted. There's much more that goes into it. There is the element of the intended purpose of the art to that culture. 
There is the element of the intended purpose of the art to the person from outside that culture. 
There is the weight of how that culture's art has been appropriated before.

I have no opinion on this. I didn't look hard but I found no writing on how Malay poets feel about the use of the Pantoum. Is there a consensus in that opinion, or are there large differences where many Malay like the art being seen more broadly and some find it insulting? Do most find it insulting?

I have no idea. I will look into it further. 

That's a take I hadn't ever seen before. 
 

 

11 minutes ago, laughedatbytime said:

Probably.  I'm not looking to insult anyone's culture, but it was more a shot at the song than anything.

 

Yeah, I assumed he was kidding, as being worried about cultural appropriation hardly seems like the kind of thing LABT would get exercised over! Just for what it's worth, poetry travels pretty well, and there's a reason every middle school kid has to write limericks or haiku. We should be glad we don't pressure kids to write in dactylic hexameter, but I'm a little disappointed Neil never tried. With some of Rush's time signatures, I'd have thought they could make it work!

 

I guess I'm a fan of this one for the value I see in the lyrics, and the music marries up pretty well. This'll just have to be one of those gaps that makes the lists so interesting in the first place!

[goose]

36 minutes ago, 1-0-0-1-0-0-1 said:

 

That indeed would have been something, seeing as Celine Dion wasn't a thing yet.

But Joan Baez was

[1-0-0-1-0-0-1]

1 hour ago, laughedatbytime said:

Although I have to admit seeing Alex's reaction if Geddy would have brought Second Nature to him in 1974 would be hilarious beyond words.

 

39 minutes ago, 1-0-0-1-0-0-1 said:

 

That indeed would have been something, seeing as Celine Dion wasn't a thing yet.

 

2 minutes ago, goose said:

But Joan Baez was

 

Joan Baez was more of a folk singer. I couldn't picture her singing Second Nature. Can't say the same for Celine Dion.

[laughedatbytime]

21 minutes ago, Nova Carmina said:

 

 

Yeah, I assumed he was kidding, as being worried about cultural appropriation hardly seems like the kind of thing LABT would get exercised over! Just for what it's worth, poetry travels pretty well, and there's a reason every middle school kid has to write limericks or haiku. We should be glad we don't pressure kids to write in dactylic hexameter, but I'm a little disappointed Neil never tried. With some of Rush's time signatures, I'd have thought they could make it work!

 

I guess I'm a fan of this one for the value I see in the lyrics, and the music marries up pretty well. This'll just have to be one of those gaps that makes the lists so interesting in the first place!

Exercising over The Larger Bowl seems kind of strange; it's not exactly Jock Jams material.

 

Getting exorcized (I'm sure you were a victim of spellcheck here) over cultural appropriation is not something I'd necessarily do, but there are degrees of it that I am definitely opposed to.  But (without trying to bring politics into the discussion), some accusations go overboard to the point of silliness and deserve mockery.  It strains credulity that Malaysians dismayed by the use of pantoums in Western culture would fit that category.

[Nova Carmina]

2 hours ago, laughedatbytime said:

Exercising over The Larger Bowl seems kind of strange; it's not exactly Jock Jams material.

 

Getting exorcized (I'm sure you were a victim of spellcheck here) over cultural appropriation is not something I'd necessarily do, but there are degrees of it that I am definitely opposed to.  But (without trying to bring politics into the discussion), some accusations go overboard to the point of silliness and deserve mockery.  It strains credulity that Malaysians dismayed by the use of pantoums in Western culture would fit that category.

 

From Dictionary.com, "exercise" as a verb:

9. to worry; make uneasy; annoy: to be much exercised about one's health.

exercised about (something)

Upset or agitated because of something. We can't tell Mom we broke the vase—she'll get totally exercised about it! Before you get exercised about it, let me tell you exactly what happened.

 

Oh, man, I haven't thought about Jock Jams in years!

[laughedatbytime]

5 minutes ago, Nova Carmina said:

 

From Dictionary.com, "exercise" as a verb:

9. to worry; make uneasy; annoy: to be much exercised about one's health.

exercised about (something)

Upset or agitated because of something. We can't tell Mom we broke the vase—she'll get totally exercised about it! Before you get exercised about it, let me tell you exactly what happened.

 

Oh, man, I haven't thought about Jock Jams in years!

Thanks, I was wrong.   Seems strange that that's a definition for that particular word (especially when exercise can make you less exercised about it)  but I can't argue with your source, no matter how certain I was.

[Rick N. Backer]

4 hours ago, Mosher said:

#165     Need Some Love (Rush, 8th best of 8)

#164     Tears (2112, 6th of 6)

#163     Stick It Out (CP, 11th of 11)

#162     What You're Doing (Rush, 7th of 8)

#161     Here Again (Rush, 6th of 8)

#160     In The Mood (Rush, 5th of 8)

#159     Before and After (Rush, 4th of 8)

#158     Finding My Way (Rush, 3rd of 8)

#157     Second Nature (HYF, 10th of 10)

#156     Bravest Face (S&A, 13th of 13)
 

#155     Sweet Miracle (VT, 13th of 13)

#154     BU2B2 (CA, 12th of 12)

#153     Speed of Love (CP, 10th of 11)

#152     Good News First (S&A, 12th of 13)

#151     Madrigal (AFTK, 6th of 6)

BU2B2 almost shouldn't count, but even as an interlude it's still better than those below it. 
The other 4 in my latest inclusions might as well be the same song. Not that they sound alike, but that they leave me equally disinterested. They're okay in the background but they are eminently skippable.  

Nice to see you killed off Stick It Out so early. I can't stand that song, but I assumed most people were okay with it. 

 

 

Holy cow, you'd put What You're Doing and In The Mood below anything on HYF?  Or T4E?  Or Presto?

[Mosher]

53 minutes ago, Rick N. Backer said:

Holy cow, you'd put What You're Doing and In The Mood below anything on HYF?  Or T4E?  Or Presto?

Two reasons-
1: I barely see that first album as counting because it's so fundamentally different.
2: Lyrical strength. The cheesy ridiculous lyrics on the later albums are still better than the first album.

A caveat- if it's background music I'll play the rockers from Rush over those fluff pieces later. 

[_hi_water._]

Any "Stick It Out" fans here?

[_hi_water._]

5 hours ago, Mosher said:

#155     Sweet Miracle (VT, 13th of 13)

My favorite song you've killed this far...

[Mosher]

2 minutes ago, _hi_water._ said:

My favorite song you've killed this far...

Fair. People already think I'm nuts for my treatment of that first album.

[_hi_water._]

1 minute ago, Mosher said:

Fair. People already think I'm nuts for my treatment of that first album.

"Sweet Miracle" ranks pretty high on my list, and takes over most of the debut

[laughedatbytime]

2 minutes ago, _hi_water._ said:

"Sweet Miracle" ranks pretty high on my list, and takes over most of the debut

I may have it even higher.  Will be fun to find out.

[TheAccountant]

13 hours ago, laughedatbytime said:

today's five in bold

 

#165     Half the World (T4E, 11th best of 11)

#164     Good News First (S&A, 13th of 13)

#163     The Speed of Love (CP, 11th of 11)

#162     Tai Shan (HYF, 10th of 10)

#161     Bravest Face (S&A, 12th of 13)

#160     Second Nature (HYF, 9th of 10)

#159     Faithless (S&A, 11th of 13)

#158     Neurotica (RTB, 10th of 10)

#157     Anagram (for Mongo) (Presto, 11th of 11)

#156     High Water (HYF,  8th of 10)   

#155     Spindrift (S&A, 10th of 13)

#154     Stick It Out (CP, 10th of 11)

#153     Peaceable Kingdom (VT, 13th of 13)

#152     The Larger Bowl (S&A, 9th of 13)

#151     Out of the Cradle (VT, 12th of 13)

 

Let the hate flow!

 

Spindrift I would have higher than you have it.  Likely top 100 but near the bottom part of the top 100.  Sick It Out shocks me that you have it so low.  But I don't really disagree.  I don't really enjoy it.  I might have higher than you do but thats only because there are worse songs out there.  So no drastic argument - just shock a I thought I was about the only person out there who was not thrilled by the song. 

 

Peaceable Kingdom is one of the best VT songs so that means you have ranked just about where it should be - just the rest of VT would be below it.  With the exception of Ghost Rider - that would be just above it.  So I am fine with that ranking.

 

Out of The Cradle is terrible - lower please.  But you have it fairly low so I don't have a huge disagreement there.

 

But The Larger Bowl at 152???  What???  No, no, no.  Does not compute.  Must respectfully disagree.  Its a very solid top 100 song.  One of the better songs on a very strong album.  Should be much higher IMO.  I really like this song.

 

Next batch please.

 

[TheAccountant]

9 hours ago, Mosher said:

#165     Need Some Love (Rush, 8th best of 8)

#164     Tears (2112, 6th of 6)

#163     Stick It Out (CP, 11th of 11)

#162     What You're Doing (Rush, 7th of 8)

#161     Here Again (Rush, 6th of 8)

#160     In The Mood (Rush, 5th of 8)

#159     Before and After (Rush, 4th of 8)

#158     Finding My Way (Rush, 3rd of 8)

#157     Second Nature (HYF, 10th of 10)

#156     Bravest Face (S&A, 13th of 13)
 

#155     Sweet Miracle (VT, 13th of 13)

#154     BU2B2 (CA, 12th of 12)

#153     Speed of Love (CP, 10th of 11)

#152     Good News First (S&A, 12th of 13)

#151     Madrigal (AFTK, 6th of 6)

BU2B2 almost shouldn't count, but even as an interlude it's still better than those below it. 
The other 4 in my latest inclusions might as well be the same song. Not that they sound alike, but that they leave me equally disinterested. They're okay in the background but they are eminently skippable.  

Nice to see you killed off Stick It Out so early. I can't stand that song, but I assumed most people were okay with it. 

 

 

I had the same exact reaction to Stick it Out!!!  Assumed everybody loved it.

 

Guess you don't care for the ST album.

 

Most of your bottom 15 I would roughly agree with.  I might rank them slightly higher but thats only because there are worse Rush songs.  The only real head scratchers for me are (1) Tears, (2) Second Nature (3) Speed of Love and (to a lesser extent) (4) Madrigal.  They would be top 100 songs for me.

[yyz305]

6 hours ago, _hi_water._ said:

Any "Stick It Out" fans here?

Yes