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Tai Shan and High Water


micgtr71
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I just pulled out side 2 of HYF and thoroughly enjoyed it. It took me back to being 16 in the fall of 87. Maybe it's because I go back there and remember what this was playing against...Echo and the Bunnymen, Level 42, Dirty Dancing Soundtrack, and even Big Generator that came out two weeks later. This was the era when Rush sounded like an orchestra. Yes, some of the key stuff was cheesy but the big powerful chords really open up with the right volume.

 

Lock and Key and Turn the Page are phenomenal songs and they grabbed me from the instant. Mission is great and probably has one of my favorite sounds from Alex (this period). The last two songs took a while for me to get into, probably because of the lyric in Tai Shan. I thought, in 1987, that the album should have ended with mission and been a 4x4 album like PoW. A couple of years later I got into Tai Shan and High Water because of the sound. There is some incredible bass work from Geddy in these tunes. Also, Alex has that signature chime on HW.

 

Sure, the lyric from Tai Shan (China sang to me...) is a bit dopey, but it got worse later on. Superconductor, You Bet Your Life, Speed of Love, Dog Years...and that is only one from each of the succeeding albums. Those songs lack (for me) the aforementioned aspects that help me to overlook the lyric. Give me that snappy melodic bass line in Tai Shan and that burbling bass figure in High Water any day.

 

I'm going on record as saying that I really like these songs. It may have taken me a few years to appreciate them and a couple of decades to like them, but there it is...fire away, I can take it.

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As I mentioned in the other Tai Shan thread, I find these two songs very uplifting, and I think the album ends on a real high note with them.

 

Hold Your Fire isn't my favorite Rush record, but it's quite strong in its own right. Lock and Key is a Rush essential in my book. Time Stand Still is a classic with a very sweet theme. Force Ten and (especially) Open Secrets feature awesome bass work. Second Nature has a nice hook; Mission, great choruses. Prime Mover and Turn the Page don't do much for me, but eight good ones out of ten ain't bad.

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QUOTE (micgtr71 @ Dec 29 2011, 03:19 PM)
I just pulled out side 2 of HYF and thoroughly enjoyed it. It took me back to being 16 in the fall of 87. Maybe it's because I go back there and remember what this was playing against...Echo and the Bunnymen, Level 42, Dirty Dancing Soundtrack, and even Big Generator that came out two weeks later. This was the era when Rush sounded like an orchestra. Yes, some of the key stuff was cheesy but the big powerful chords really open up with the right volume.

Lock and Key and Turn the Page are phenomenal songs and they grabbed me from the instant. Mission is great and probably has one of my favorite sounds from Alex (this period). The last two songs took a while for me to get into, probably because of the lyric in Tai Shan. I thought, in 1987, that the album should have ended with mission and been a 4x4 album like PoW. A couple of years later I got into Tai Shan and High Water because of the sound. There is some incredible bass work from Geddy in these tunes. Also, Alex has that signature chime on HW.

Sure, the lyric from Tai Shan (China sang to me...) is a bit dopey, but it got worse later on. Superconductor, You Bet Your Life, Speed of Love, Dog Years...and that is only one from each of the succeeding albums. Those songs lack (for me) the aforementioned aspects that help me to overlook the lyric. Give me that snappy melodic bass line in Tai Shan and that burbling bass figure in High Water any day.

I'm going on record as saying that I really like these songs. It may have taken me a few years to appreciate them and a couple of decades to like them, but there it is...fire away, I can take it.

Level 42 are awesome. Them and King's X are probably to two most under-rated bands on the planet. Mark King on bass may even be better than bass god Geddy Lee. Plus Mark sings over those insane bass lines just as Geddy does. I know Neil was a big Level 42 fan back in the day from a drumming perspective at least.

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QUOTE (Babycat @ Dec 29 2011, 06:29 PM)
Tai Shan and High Water are beautiful songs. wub.gif

yes.gif Two of the most beautiful songs in the world.

 

Tai Shan ranks somewhere among my top 5 Rush songs. I really can't believe people think it's a joke. My girlfriend isn't a huge Rush fan, and she can't believe it's one of the most hated songs, either.

 

"I thought of time and distance, the hardships of history. I heard the hope and the horror when China sang to me." Awesome.

 

There's a good amount of fat in HYF, but Tai Shan and High Water are definitely not it.

Edited by Steel Rat
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QUOTE (presto123 @ Dec 29 2011, 04:52 PM)
QUOTE (micgtr71 @ Dec 29 2011, 03:19 PM)
I just pulled out side 2 of HYF and thoroughly enjoyed it. It took me back to being 16 in the fall of 87. Maybe it's because I go back there and remember what this was playing against...Echo and the Bunnymen, Level 42, Dirty Dancing Soundtrack, and even Big Generator that came out two weeks later. This was the era when Rush sounded like an orchestra. Yes, some of the key stuff was cheesy but the big powerful chords really open up with the right volume.

Lock and Key and Turn the Page are phenomenal songs and they grabbed me from the instant. Mission is great and probably has one of my favorite sounds from Alex (this period). The last two songs took a while for me to get into, probably because of the lyric in Tai Shan. I thought, in 1987, that the album should have ended with mission and been a 4x4 album like PoW. A couple of years later I got into Tai Shan and High Water because of the sound. There is some incredible bass work from Geddy in these tunes. Also, Alex has that signature chime on HW.

Sure, the lyric from Tai Shan (China sang to me...) is a bit dopey, but it got worse later on. Superconductor, You Bet Your Life, Speed of Love, Dog Years...and that is only one from each of the succeeding albums. Those songs lack (for me) the aforementioned aspects that help me to overlook the lyric. Give me that snappy melodic bass line in Tai Shan and that burbling bass figure in High Water any day.

I'm going on record as saying that I really like these songs. It may have taken me a few years to appreciate them and a couple of decades to like them, but there it is...fire away, I can take it.

Level 42 are awesome. Them and King's X are probably to two most under-rated bands on the planet. Mark King on bass may even be better than bass god Geddy Lee. Plus Mark sings over those insane bass lines just as Geddy does. I know Neil was a big Level 42 fan back in the day from a drumming perspective at least.

I certainly did not mean anything derogatory toward level 42. I have all of their albums and they are fantastic. I was comparing Rush's then output to what was happening at the time. I like the Cure and some Echo as well. Not so much on the Dirty Dancing though. Mark King is a killer bass player. One of the best.

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QUOTE (An Enemy Without @ Dec 29 2011, 05:13 PM)
Those two songs are a load of bollocks. Tai Shan really gets the ears burning.







6 User(s) are reading this topic (2 Guests and 0 Anonymous Users):
An Enemy Without, Cosy Toes, presto123, gornhay

Hmm...

I guess that it is perspective. You are certainly entitled to yours. I like the songs.

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QUOTE (presto123 @ Dec 29 2011, 04:52 PM)
QUOTE (micgtr71 @ Dec 29 2011, 03:19 PM)
I just pulled out side 2 of HYF and thoroughly enjoyed it. It took me back to being 16 in the fall of 87. Maybe it's because I go back there and remember what this was playing against...Echo and the Bunnymen, Level 42, Dirty Dancing Soundtrack, and even Big Generator that came out two weeks later. This was the era when Rush sounded like an orchestra. Yes, some of the key stuff was cheesy but the big powerful chords really open up with the right volume.

Lock and Key and Turn the Page are phenomenal songs and they grabbed me from the instant. Mission is great and probably has one of my favorite sounds from Alex (this period). The last two songs took a while for me to get into, probably because of the lyric in Tai Shan. I thought, in 1987, that the album should have ended with mission and been a 4x4 album like PoW. A couple of years later I got into Tai Shan and High Water because of the sound. There is some incredible bass work from Geddy in these tunes. Also, Alex has that signature chime on HW.

Sure, the lyric from Tai Shan (China sang to me...) is a bit dopey, but it got worse later on. Superconductor, You Bet Your Life, Speed of Love, Dog Years...and that is only one from each of the succeeding albums. Those songs lack (for me) the aforementioned aspects that help me to overlook the lyric. Give me that snappy melodic bass line in Tai Shan and that burbling bass figure in High Water any day.

I'm going on record as saying that I really like these songs. It may have taken me a few years to appreciate them and a couple of decades to like them, but there it is...fire away, I can take it.

Level 42 are awesome. Them and King's X are probably to two most under-rated bands on the planet. Mark King on bass may even be better than bass god Geddy Lee. Plus Mark sings over those insane bass lines just as Geddy does. I know Neil was a big Level 42 fan back in the day from a drumming perspective at least.

BTW, I love King's X as well. Saw them a few times back in the day. Gretchen and Ear Candy are two of my favorite records.

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QUOTE (Babycat @ Dec 29 2011, 04:29 PM)
Tai Shan and High Water are beautiful songs. wub.gif

yes.gif

 

Both of them are very emotionally moving for me. And, as the OP pointed out, they are both brilliant musically as well. Love them both, always will. tongue.gif

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QUOTE (Cyclonus X-1 @ Dec 29 2011, 03:31 PM)
As I mentioned in the other Tai Shan thread, I find these two songs very uplifting, and I think the album ends on a real high note with them. 

Hold Your Fire isn't my favorite Rush record, but it's quite strong in its own right.  Lock and Key is a Rush essential in my book.  Time Stand Still is a classic with a very sweet theme.  Force Ten and (especially) Open Secrets feature awesome bass work.  Second Nature has a nice hook; Mission, great choruses.  Prime Mover and Turn the Page don't do much for me, but eight good ones out of ten ain't bad.

I feel pretty much the same about the album as a whole but my favorites are Prime Mover and Turn The Page (along with Mission).

 

It's difficult for me to understand any open minded Rush fan truly hating these two songs. They lean more the lighter side of Rush (which isn't my favorite) but they're not awful by any means. I get the feeling that Tai Shan was kind of an experiment on their part to try to capture an exotic Asian atmosphere. After all, Rush is all about trying new things and it really is a wonderfully melodic song. And High Water just has this driving, pulsing rhythmic groove that I can get into pretty easily. I don't have much of a problem with either.

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HYF is definitely in my top 5 favorite Rush albums, and I love all the songs on it. From the opening of Force Ten (The version from R30 is heavy and epic sounding and you can just feel the power!) to the closing notes of High Water. Scratch my beginning statement, it is my favorite Rush album. Start to Finish!
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QUOTE (micgtr71 @ Dec 29 2011, 08:14 PM)
QUOTE (presto123 @ Dec 29 2011, 04:52 PM)
QUOTE (micgtr71 @ Dec 29 2011, 03:19 PM)
I just pulled out side 2 of HYF and thoroughly enjoyed it. It took me back to being 16 in the fall of 87. Maybe it's because I go back there and remember what this was playing against...Echo and the Bunnymen, Level 42, Dirty Dancing Soundtrack, and even Big Generator that came out two weeks later. This was the era when Rush sounded like an orchestra. Yes, some of the key stuff was cheesy but the big powerful chords really open up with the right volume.

Lock and Key and Turn the Page are phenomenal songs and they grabbed me from the instant. Mission is great and probably has one of my favorite sounds from Alex (this period). The last two songs took a while for me to get into, probably because of the lyric in Tai Shan. I thought, in 1987, that the album should have ended with mission and been a 4x4 album like PoW. A couple of years later I got into Tai Shan and High Water because of the sound. There is some incredible bass work from Geddy in these tunes. Also, Alex has that signature chime on HW.

Sure, the lyric from Tai Shan (China sang to me...) is a bit dopey, but it got worse later on. Superconductor, You Bet Your Life, Speed of Love, Dog Years...and that is only one from each of the succeeding albums. Those songs lack (for me) the aforementioned aspects that help me to overlook the lyric. Give me that snappy melodic bass line in Tai Shan and that burbling bass figure in High Water any day.

I'm going on record as saying that I really like these songs. It may have taken me a few years to appreciate them and a couple of decades to like them, but there it is...fire away, I can take it.

Level 42 are awesome. Them and King's X are probably to two most under-rated bands on the planet. Mark King on bass may even be better than bass god Geddy Lee. Plus Mark sings over those insane bass lines just as Geddy does. I know Neil was a big Level 42 fan back in the day from a drumming perspective at least.

BTW, I love King's X as well. Saw them a few times back in the day. Gretchen and Ear Candy are two of my favorite records.

Cool. Ear Candy is just that. Ear candy. LOL Also love Dogman and Tapehead. What is your fav Level 42 record?(or song)

 

BTW I think it's great that Rush fans have so many different fav record. The last poster said HYF is his fav. It happens to be one of my least favs but that's cool. It's still Rush which means it's still good regardless.

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I was 17 in '87 when HYF came out. That was back when you still had the awesome sense of anticipation when the new Rush album was about to come out... you just didn't know what it was going to sound like, but from a musician/Rush fanatic perspective, you knew it was going to be great!!

 

Hemispheres was my first Rush album. Exit Stage Left after that was sonic bliss. Of course, Freewill and Moving Pictures were a given. Signals and Subdivisions, GUP and the love/hate relationship with it.

 

I still very clearly recall wandering a public library where someone was listening to an album in an isolated and closed carol very loudly... the high pitched, soulful guitar licks are what grabbed my wandering attention. Sure enough, I recognized those as Lerxst, and it was HYF all over the place.

 

I appreciate a lot of styles of music, but I mostly appreciate the musical peaks that Rush achieved with HYF. Show Don't Tell was a very intriguing change of pace, but Presto overall only rated as a very good album with several songs. Keep in mind back then we didn't have the CD loudnes wars, so volume was never a problem. Still, it wasn't until CP that things rocked Rush again. Here's hoping that CA is a return.

 

HYF is still a great culmination to my musician bass player ears and soul. A testament to Rush's great diversity...

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QUOTE (presto123 @ Dec 30 2011, 12:58 AM)
QUOTE (micgtr71 @ Dec 29 2011, 08:14 PM)
QUOTE (presto123 @ Dec 29 2011, 04:52 PM)
QUOTE (micgtr71 @ Dec 29 2011, 03:19 PM)
I just pulled out side 2 of HYF and thoroughly enjoyed it. It took me back to being 16 in the fall of 87. Maybe it's because I go back there and remember what this was playing against...Echo and the Bunnymen, Level 42, Dirty Dancing Soundtrack, and even Big Generator that came out two weeks later. This was the era when Rush sounded like an orchestra. Yes, some of the key stuff was cheesy but the big powerful chords really open up with the right volume.

Lock and Key and Turn the Page are phenomenal songs and they grabbed me from the instant. Mission is great and probably has one of my favorite sounds from Alex (this period). The last two songs took a while for me to get into, probably because of the lyric in Tai Shan. I thought, in 1987, that the album should have ended with mission and been a 4x4 album like PoW. A couple of years later I got into Tai Shan and High Water because of the sound. There is some incredible bass work from Geddy in these tunes. Also, Alex has that signature chime on HW.

Sure, the lyric from Tai Shan (China sang to me...) is a bit dopey, but it got worse later on. Superconductor, You Bet Your Life, Speed of Love, Dog Years...and that is only one from each of the succeeding albums. Those songs lack (for me) the aforementioned aspects that help me to overlook the lyric. Give me that snappy melodic bass line in Tai Shan and that burbling bass figure in High Water any day.

I'm going on record as saying that I really like these songs. It may have taken me a few years to appreciate them and a couple of decades to like them, but there it is...fire away, I can take it.

Level 42 are awesome. Them and King's X are probably to two most under-rated bands on the planet. Mark King on bass may even be better than bass god Geddy Lee. Plus Mark sings over those insane bass lines just as Geddy does. I know Neil was a big Level 42 fan back in the day from a drumming perspective at least.

BTW, I love King's X as well. Saw them a few times back in the day. Gretchen and Ear Candy are two of my favorite records.

Cool. Ear Candy is just that. Ear candy. LOL Also love Dogman and Tapehead. What is your fav Level 42 record?(or song)

 

BTW I think it's great that Rush fans have so many different fav record. The last poster said HYF is his fav. It happens to be one of my least favs but that's cool. It's still Rush which means it's still good regardless.

My favorite song is either Love Games or 88...especially the live version from A Physical Presence. The first album is fantastic and I also like The Pursuit of Accidents. I am going to be honest and say that I have not heard the newest album or Guaranteed, but I thought Forever Now was a departure from what I grew up with and not the same sound. Staring at the Sun was a great sounding record and was the last one I got. Tracie was a great song from that record.

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QUOTE (Weakly Criminal @ Dec 30 2011, 12:52 AM)
Give me Super Conductor and Dog Years over TS and HW any day.

It's interesting how people think of songs. Those are two that I never listen to with Superconductor being probably my least favorite song by them. I am sure that there are people that would consider them to be favorites.

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Funny how people are so divided over these songs. For me, if I was going to trim any songs from HYF (which I wouldn't, but let's just say), I would get rid of "Open Secrets" and "Lock and Key" before I got rid of HW or TS.

 

Peace,

Ron

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