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

[laughedatbytime]

The next five has a pretty heavy Presto flavor (though degree of blandness might be a better fit when talking about Rush's most unexciting release)

 

#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)

#150     Scars (Presto, 10th of 11)

#149     Superconductor (Presto, 9th of 11)

#148     Heresy (RTB, 9th of 10)

#147     The Way the Wind Blows (S&A, 8th of 13)

#146     War Paint (Presto, 8th of 11)

 

Let the hate, especially from Presto lovers (do they even exist?) flow!

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

48 minutes ago, laughedatbytime said:

The next five has a pretty heavy Presto flavor (though degree of blandness might be a better fit when talking about Rush's most unexciting release)

 

#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)

#150     Scars (Presto, 10th of 11)

#149     Superconductor (Presto, 9th of 11)

#148     Heresy (RTB, 9th of 10)

#147     The Way the Wind Blows (S&A, 8th of 13)

#146     War Paint (Presto, 8th of 11)

 

Let the hate, especially from Presto lovers (do they even exist?) flow!

 

I'm starting to make up a list, but I'll take my time with it and probably wait till you and hi_water are close to finished with yours. I've got the top-10 and maybe the bottom-70 done. Ranking the songs you don't like is pretty easy. The hard part is ranking the songs that you do like but aren't in the top-10.

 

Starting at the bottom, our lists were looking kinda similar, but after the bottom-10 or so, there are some obvious differences.

[laughedatbytime]

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

 

I'm starting to make up a list, but I'll take my time with it and probably wait till you and hi_water are close to finished with yours. I've got the top-10 and maybe the bottom-70 done. Ranking the songs you don't like is pretty easy. The hard part is ranking the songs that you do like but aren't in the top-10.

 

Starting at the bottom, our lists were looking kinda similar, but after the bottom-10 or so, there are some obvious differences.

Glad to see you're making a list, we can do some statistical analysis like seeing who's most alike, most different, and who's completely mistakes Half the World (at #164 or better.).

[Mosher]

#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)
 

#150     Faithless (S&A, 11th of 13)

#149     Half the World (TFE, 11th of 11)
#148     Out Of the Cradle (VT, 12th of 13)

#147     Red Lenses  (P/G, 8th of 8)

#146    Tai Shan (HYF, 9th of 10)

We're getting into the songs I like. I am a big fan, and I always find something I like in every song. But overall the bottom 18 don't work for me. Those first album songs might be okay in another band, but they suffer on my list because whether I like it or not, they are Rush songs. So I grudgingly included them. 

But Red Lenses and Tai Shan are both songs I like as they are. But they are the bottom of the songs that I can genuinely say I like. Tai Shan should have been cut in half and presented as the intro to a grander piece. Red Lenses is musically fine, but I don't like the vocal choice at all. That didn't ruin the song for me- but it came close. So it's in last place among songs I like. 

Some of the upcoming songs share the Red Lenses problem, where the vocal choices hurt the song. Most inclusions off S&A and VT are due to the vocals. 

 

 

 

[Mosher]

I have no problem at all with your most recent additions to your list, L@BT.

I have Heresy at 73rd, and that's the highest of those 5 you just added. 

So a middling song at best for me. 

[_hi_water._]

Oh boy, I hope that I am not the only one here who really enjoys "Faithless".

 

I know my GUP rankings will be odd, but "Red Lenses" does make my Top 100

 

Interesting to see someone rank "Tai Shan" above "Red Lenses", though

[_hi_water._]

24 minutes ago, Mosher said:

I have no problem at all with your most recent additions to your list, L@BT.

I have Heresy at 73rd, and that's the highest of those 5 you just added. 

So a middling song at best for me. 

It's a RTB deep cut that has grown for me over the last few years for sure

[BastillePark]

De gustibus non est disputandum

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

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

 

I'm starting to make up a list, but I'll take my time with it and probably wait till you and hi_water are close to finished with yours. I've got the top-10 and maybe the bottom-70 done. Ranking the songs you don't like is pretty easy. The hard part is ranking the songs that you do like but aren't in the top-10.

 

Starting at the bottom, our lists were looking kinda similar, but after the bottom-10 or so, there are some obvious differences.

 

1 hour ago, laughedatbytime said:

Glad to see you're making a list, we can do some statistical analysis like seeing who's most alike, most different, and who's completely mistakes Half the World (at #164 or better.).

 

Mine has it at #164, but only because I have 166 songs on the list, not 165.

 

164. Half The World
165. Anagram (For Mongo)
166. Second Nature

 

There's no arguing that bottom-2.

[laughedatbytime]

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

 

 

Mine has it at #164, but only because I have 166 songs on the list, not 165.

 

164. Half The World
165. Anagram (For Mongo)
166. Second Nature

 

There's no arguing that bottom-2.

I'll bite, what's the 166th song?   Do you have Garden Road on there or something?

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

1 hour ago, laughedatbytime said:

I'll bite, what's the 166th song?   Do you have Garden Road on there or something?

 

No, Garden Road was not released on an official live album. If that were the case I would have included it.

[laughedatbytime]

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

 

No, Garden Road was not released on an official live album. If that were the case I would have included it.

Then is it Broon's Bane?  Any one of Neil's titled drum solos?

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

5 minutes ago, laughedatbytime said:

Then is it Broon's Bane?  Any one of Neil's titled drum solos?

 

Yeah, Broon's Bane. It's a standalone original track and not just the intro to The Trees, so my list will include it.

 

You could make the argument that the drum solos are also original compositions, but I wouldn't include them in my rankings.

[laughedatbytime]

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

 

Yeah, Broon's Bane. It's a standalone original track and not just the intro to The Trees, so my list will include it.

 

You could make the argument that the drum solos are also original compositions, but I wouldn't include them in my rankings.

That's fair.   It's better than anything on my list so far.

[Mosher]

7 minutes ago, laughedatbytime said:

That's fair.   It's better than anything on my list so far.

Yep. Broon's Bane is a very nice track. 

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

22 hours ago, laughedatbytime said:

I'll bite, what's the 166th song?   Do you have Garden Road on there or something?

 

BTW, if Garden Road was included on the debut it'd be my third favorite track from that album, possibly second fave.

[TheAccountant]

7 hours ago, laughedatbytime said:

The next five has a pretty heavy Presto flavor (though degree of blandness might be a better fit when talking about Rush's most unexciting release)

 

#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)

#150     Scars (Presto, 10th of 11)

#149     Superconductor (Presto, 9th of 11)

#148     Heresy (RTB, 9th of 10)

#147     The Way the Wind Blows (S&A, 8th of 13)

#146     War Paint (Presto, 8th of 11)

 

Let the hate, especially from Presto lovers (do they even exist?) flow!

They exist.  I know because I would fall into that boat.  Did not like the album  a lot when it came out because it was to much of a departure from the awesome HYF.  Excellent tour however.  Took me years (actually almost 2 decades) for it to catch fire with me.  But when it did it really did.  Now I would say its my 5th or 6th favorite Rush album.

 

So it won't be a shock when I tell you that 4 of the 5 songs you just listed are in my top 100.  Those 4 would be (1) Scars, (2) Superconductor, (3) The Way The Wind Blows & (4) War Paint.  As for Heresy, no drastic disagreement.  I might have it a bit higher as their are a number of songs I would rank lower than it but basically I am ok with that ranking.  I think I would be roughly in that area with Heresy.

 

Next please.

[TheAccountant]

6 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)
 

#150     Faithless (S&A, 11th of 13)

#149     Half the World (TFE, 11th of 11)
#148     Out Of the Cradle (VT, 12th of 13)

#147     Red Lenses  (P/G, 8th of 8)

#146    Tai Shan (HYF, 9th of 10)

We're getting into the songs I like. I am a big fan, and I always find something I like in every song. But overall the bottom 18 don't work for me. Those first album songs might be okay in another band, but they suffer on my list because whether I like it or not, they are Rush songs. So I grudgingly included them. 

But Red Lenses and Tai Shan are both songs I like as they are. But they are the bottom of the songs that I can genuinely say I like. Tai Shan should have been cut in half and presented as the intro to a grander piece. Red Lenses is musically fine, but I don't like the vocal choice at all. That didn't ruin the song for me- but it came close. So it's in last place among songs I like. 

Some of the upcoming songs share the Red Lenses problem, where the vocal choices hurt the song. Most inclusions off S&A and VT are due to the vocals. 

 

 

 

For me Faithless is a decent song but nothing I go wild for.  But I would rank it much higher than you have it.  Top 100?  Maybe.  If so, likely near the bottom of the top 100.  If out of the top 100 it would be close to the top 100.

 

Half the World is ok but nothing special.  I would rank it higher than you have it but likely not top 100.  

 

Out of the Cradle - lower please.  Much lower.

 

Red Lenses is a ok song but nothing special.  Agree with you comments about the vocals (lyrics for me).  It is a wear link on P/G.  I would rank it higher than you have but mostly because there are worse songs out there.  Not certain if it would make my top 100.  Probably not.

 

Tai Shan is the head scratcher of this batch of songs for me.  IMO its a top 100 song.

 

Next please.

[grep]

Tai Shan should be so low on the list that it's written like a negative number.

[goose]

Who knew RUSH was so popular among the deaf?  

[laughedatbytime]

The next 5

 

#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)

#150     Scars (Presto, 10th of 11)

#149     Superconductor (Presto, 9th of 11)

#148     Heresy (RTB, 9th of 10)

#147     The Way the Wind Blows (S&A, 8th of 13)

#146     War Paint (Presto, 8th of 11)

#145     You Bet Your Life (RTB, 8th of 10)

#144     Open Secrets (HYF, 7th of 10)

#143     In the Mood (Rush, 8th of 8)

#142     Time and Motion (T4E, 10 of 11)

#141     Hand Over Fist (Presto, 7th of 11)

 

Let the hate flow!

 

 

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

1 hour ago, laughedatbytime said:

#145     You Bet Your Life (RTB, 8th of 10)

#144     Open Secrets (HYF, 7th of 10)

#143     In the Mood (Rush, 8th of 8)

#142     Time and Motion (T4E, 10 of 11)

#141     Hand Over Fist (Presto, 7th of 11)

 

 

Songs like Peaceable Kingdom and Open Secrets would be near the bottom of most Rush fans' lists, but I consider them underrated gems. PK has all those snarky dirty guitars and Neil actually does a decent job of grooving -- an accomplishment for him. Open Secrets has that adult contemporary sound, but it's deceptively upbeat and propulsive, with lots of great bass work by Geddy and one of Alex's very best solos.

 

Time and Motion is my third fave from T4E. hi_water also had it ranked relatively low on his list. What bothers you about it?

[Mosher]

#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)
 

#150     Faithless (S&A, 11th of 13)

#149     Half the World (TFE, 11th of 11)
#148     Out Of the Cradle (VT, 12th of 13)

#147     Red Lenses  (P/G, 8th of 8)

#146    Tai Shan (HYF, 9th of 10)

#145   Peacable Kingdom  (VT, 11th of 13)
#144   Freeze  (VT, 10th of 13)
#143   Stars Look Down  (VT, 9th of 13)
#142   Lakeside Park  (CoS,  5th of 5)
#141   Leave That Thing Alone (CP, 9th of 11)

Again, we're at songs I essentially like now. As I mentioned before this is primarily the "vocals annoy me" section. Vapor Trails, and Snakes to a lesser extent, bothered me vocally more than any other albums. I never liked how Geddy sang Lakeside Park, although I really like the song- don't hate me too much. I know it's immensely popular. 

And and instrumental because although I like every instrumental, most of them can't beat many songs with words. 
 
 

[Mosher]

Just noticed we're doing the (#of#) differently. I'm using that to show where it ranked on the album, your showing where it's located on the album. In case anyone is paying attention- I do know what order the songs are in.)

You Bet Your Life is the highest I have of what you just killed off, at 80th. I don't dispute any of the criticisms, I know it's loathed by many. I can't explain really why, but I have always really liked that song. 

[Mosher]

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

 

Songs like Peaceable Kingdom and Open Secrets would be near the bottom of most Rush fans' lists, but I consider them underrated gems. PK has all those snarky dirty guitars and Neil actually does a decent job of grooving -- an accomplishment for him. Open Secrets has that adult contemporary sound, but it's deceptively upbeat and propulsive, with lots of great bass work by Geddy and one of Alex's very best solos.

 

Time and Motion is my third fave from T4E. hi_water also had it ranked relatively low on his list. What bothers you about it?

I have Time and Motion at 115th and Open Secrets at 98th. 

 

I was relistening to Vapor Trails yesterday as well as Snakes and they are both continuing to grow on me- I think the list I created when Hi-Water started this is already woefully out of date. 

But I like being able to respond quickly with my counter in this thread, so I'm just shrugging off my own befuddlement at "what was I thinking". 

I'm sure both Hi_Water and L@BT would have a different list if they did theirs again, too.