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Personal Messages In Rush Songs


Lucas
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When the topic of Rush comes up, and the meaning or inspiration behind the songs, sometimes the first things that come to mind are Neil's great cinematic imagery or more recent, a broad commentary on current social or world views ..

 

But there are definitely more personal meanings put into some of the songs ..

 

Awhile back I posted something about Different Strings, after having gone back to Permanent Waves and basically rediscovering it .. It struck me that Geddy, at least in part, wrote Different Strings about his relationship with Alex . .

 

At this point, there is no doubt in my mind this was the case, and while a childhood friendship that carries over not only into adulthood, but also into livelihood is enough to celebrate, it also strikes me as a comment on the distance between the two and Neil ..

 

Vital Signs is another interesting example of some personal expression, and the recent discussion here regarding Terry Brown has me thinking that bits of Vital Signs could have been directed at him ..

 

The impulse is pure

Sometimes our circuits get shorted

By external interference

Signals get crossed

And the balance distorted

By internal incoherence

 

How about What You're Doing ? .. That one seems to be inspired by someone in particular, much like Queen's Death On Two Legs

 

 

Any ideas about who the person might be ?

 

 

Any other Rush songs you feel might have a particular person in mind ?

 

 

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"JARG, it's important to drink plenty of water" is in Marathon...which is pretty amazing as the song was recorded long before I became JARG.
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Interesting-I'd never thought of Different Strings or Vital Signs that way. Lessons sounds like it's about Alex's pursuing and realizing his rock star ambitions in spite of the resistance he was met with from his parents early on.
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A few songs on CA I wonder who Neil is writing about - himself or someone else.

 

When I hear the line "the lenses inside of me that paint the world black", I think it could apply to Neil. But it could apply to a lot of people.

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A few songs on CA I wonder who Neil is writing about - himself or someone else.

 

When I hear the line "the lenses inside of me that paint the world black", I think it could apply to Neil. But it could apply to a lot of people.

 

I don't think I said that it definitely applies to him personally. I'm just speculating.

 

I used to write, and I know that it is a lot easier to write from personal experiences. You may create fictitious characters and plots, but they are largely drawn from people you have known and stuff you have been through. That's the way it was for me.

 

Again, just speculating.

Edited by Lorraine
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That's an interesting perspective on Different Strings. It could have been Ged thinking of his relationship with Alex, but it could easily have been Ged thinking of his relationship with his wife, or anyone else for that matter.

 

That said, I think there are definitely some people Neil would have in mind withe some of his lyrics. The entire Counterparts album seems to be about his relationship with his first wife. The Garden seems to clearly have him thinking about his relationships with everyone.

 

I don't think you can be a writer and not have your personal realities bleed into the work.

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That's an interesting perspective on Different Strings. It could have been Ged thinking of his relationship with Alex, but it could easily have been Ged thinking of his relationship with his wife, or anyone else for that matter.

 

That said, I think there are definitely some people Neil would have in mind withe some of his lyrics. The entire Counterparts album seems to be about his relationship with his first wife. The Garden seems to clearly have him thinking about his relationships with everyone.

 

I don't think you can be a writer and not have your personal realities bleed into the work.

 

That's definitely true

 

Woody Allen is the first to come to mind - he threw it out there completely uninhibited - almost therapeutic

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