Lucas Posted December 3, 2015 Share Posted December 3, 2015 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 ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JARG Posted December 3, 2015 Share Posted December 3, 2015 "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. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JARG Posted December 3, 2015 Share Posted December 3, 2015 But seriously, I've long maintained that VS was about the situation Rush and Terry were facing. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
malnar Posted December 3, 2015 Share Posted December 3, 2015 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. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lorraine Posted December 3, 2015 Share Posted December 3, 2015 A few songs on CA I wonder who Neil is writing about - himself or someone else. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AnEggplant Posted December 3, 2015 Share Posted December 3, 2015 A few songs on CA I wonder who Neil is writing about - himself or someone else. I think Clockwork Angels is 90% Neil's agnostic/atheist beliefs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lorraine Posted December 3, 2015 Share Posted December 3, 2015 (edited) I'm talking about his personal life. Edited December 3, 2015 by Lorraine Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lorraine Posted December 3, 2015 Share Posted December 3, 2015 The Anarchist has interesting lyrics, but the lyrics that intrigue me the most are those to Halo Effect. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EagleMoon Posted December 3, 2015 Share Posted December 3, 2015 I think CA's was written entirely to the story in Neil's mind about his fictional character of Owen Hardy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Xanadu Posted December 3, 2015 Share Posted December 3, 2015 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. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lorraine Posted December 3, 2015 Share Posted December 3, 2015 (edited) 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 December 3, 2015 by Lorraine Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WorkingAllTheTime Posted December 3, 2015 Share Posted December 3, 2015 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. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ancient Ways Posted December 4, 2015 Share Posted December 4, 2015 Solaris Blueraven, is it you? 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lucas Posted December 4, 2015 Author Share Posted December 4, 2015 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 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnnyBlaze Posted December 4, 2015 Share Posted December 4, 2015 Solaris Blueraven, is it you?Mosbach secured his job partly due to Solaris'...thoughts. I'm joking. But I'm not far off the mark. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ancient Ways Posted December 4, 2015 Share Posted December 4, 2015 Solaris Blueraven, is it you?Mosbach secured his job partly due to Solaris'...thoughts. I'm joking. But I'm not far off the mark.Maybe mosbach is Solaris? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnnyBlaze Posted December 4, 2015 Share Posted December 4, 2015 Solaris Blueraven, is it you?Mosbach secured his job partly due to Solaris'...thoughts. I'm joking. But I'm not far off the mark.Maybe mosbach is Solaris?It'd make for a good suspense story with a plot twist. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
canadianice Posted December 5, 2015 Share Posted December 5, 2015 "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. Who cares? I mean really, who cares? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now