Some Junkie Cosmonaut said:

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TP Ag '87 said:

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Embarrassing: I think my initial exposure to Rush was actually Geddy singing Take Off with Bob and Doug McKenzie. Loved his voice so much that I started the long, deep dig,..

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Man...his voice is the reason I just can't get into Rush. I know they're amazing musicians. I play guitar. Their musical prowess is undeniable. I get it. But I just can't take his voice.

Do they still tour? People tell me I need to see a show and I think I finally agree.

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Neil died in early 2020.
Their last tour was in 2015. R40 Tour. It was excellent and done in a very clever way. It was very Rush.

Geddy's voice changed over time. The early days of him trying to sound like he was singing The Immigrant Song on Helium gave way to lower and more controlled vocals. Still a high register for most people to try to hit, but not the shriek of the early albums.

I never minded Geddy's voice. Even Geddy has said he doesn't like listening to his early vocals, but it's just part of what made them legends to Rush fans. They evolved. Their sound changed many times over the decades. And that includes the vocals.

Sorry you never got to see them live. Check out the Rush in Rio concert video. It's a great show. The liner notes about it explain a lot. They basically got up and did it with minimal sound check and really no sound check between the concert audio and the film/recording audio.

Best crowd ever. Singing along to every song even though English is not their native tongue. And singing along to instrumentals.

One more thing about a live concert that you missed by not seeing them is now tight they were live. Cinema Strangiato is their last concert video (featuring the R40 tour) and is very well done and does show a lot of background stuff, especially the Director's Cut version that was released in September.

I remember seeing Van Halen on the 5150 tour and it being a great show and having a blast. And a year or so later hearing a live recording of it and realizing that there was a decent amount of slop there, especially with the vocals.

You didn't get that with Rush. They weren't a party band like VH, but they didn't just stand in one place all night either. They were very tight onstage. Not "play it exactly like the album" like The Scorpions or The Cars did live (both boring), but close enough to the album with the right amount of stepping out to make it special live.

In the backstage stuff on Cinema Strangiato you heard quick interviews from other big musicians. I'm not a big fan, but at one time Billy Corgan of Smashing Pumpkins was a big deal. He said in the film that the set he had just witnessed from Rush would be a major achievement for professional musicians in their 20's to pull off, and here was Rush in their 60's still nailing incredibly difficult music multiple times per week on a long tour. He was floored.

Yeah, Geddy's voice wasn't what it was 20-30 years ago, but he adjusted and made it work and gave up dairy for the tour. And it's not like he regressed to David Lee Roth level. He still brought it every night.

Quote:

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Sorry you never got to see them live. Check out the Rush in Rio concert video. It's a great show. The liner notes about it explain a lot. They basically got up and did it with minimal sound check and really no sound check between the concert audio and the film/recording audio.

Best crowd ever. Singing along to every song even though English is not their native tongue. And singing along to instrumentals.

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Definitely will. Thanks.

I get the high falsetto grates on people but get past that early work past Caress of Steel through MP and listen and keep in mind he's doing all that without the benefit of modern processing and auto tune. He is actually very accomplished as a singer. And he's playing bass and often keyboards all at the same time.

Rush was so good live. It was amazing watching Geddy work!

Username checks out

Geddy's voice was at its best in the 80s. Check out the Grace Under Pressure Live DVD/album. He sounded awesome that night.

Rush in Rio blows me away every time I watch it. The crowd was part of the show.

I really dig Clockwork Angels. It's a great album. And Headlong Flight jams. I love the callback to La Villa that they put into Headlong Flight.

I've seen it discussed before somewhere and have discussed it with friends and family that are Rush fans, but it's amazing they opened their discography with Working Man, and 40 years later closed it with The Garden. Perfect bookends to an incredible run.

maroon barchetta said:

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Rush trivia question:

Rush made a guest appearance on one song for another band on an album that band released in the 80's.

Without using a search engine, give me the name of the other band, the name of the album, and the name of the song.

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I'm sure someone has gotten it already, but I'm going with

Battlescar
Max Webster
Universal Juveniles

I think the name of the leader of Max Webster is Kim Mitchell and he's a pretty well traveled dude in Canadian rock.

TX AG 88 said:

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maroon barchetta said:

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Rush trivia question:

Rush made a guest appearance on one song for another band on an album that band released in the 80's.

Without using a search engine, give me the name of the other band, the name of the album, and the name of the song.

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I'm sure someone has gotten it already, but I'm going with

Battlescar
Max Webster
Universal Juveniles

I think the name of the leader of Max Webster is Kim Mitchell and he's a pretty well traveled dude in Canadian rock.

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Correct! Yeah, it was covered earlier but you are right about Kim Mitchell.

That Max Webster album is really good. I enjoy listening to that one still. Kim was a great guitarist!

He was hosting a radio show for awhile in Canada. Not sure if that is still the case.

Next trivia question:

This lyricist for Max Webster assisted Neil Peart with the lyrics of one the biggest hits Rush ever had.

Name the lyricist.

Pye DuBois

Big Cat `93 said:

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Pye DuBois

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Good memory!

Name the song.

maroon barchetta said:

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Good memory!

Name the song.

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Diane Sawyer

AstroAggie15 said:

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maroon barchetta said:

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Good memory!

Name the song.

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Diane Sawyer

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Opus from Bloom County would approve.

It is astounding how those lyrics are in the last song on the last album and Neil began his battle not too long after their last tour.

That whole album is good although I could do without Seven Cities of Gold sometimes when I listen on a long drive.

Agreed on all counts. I'm still kicking myself for skipping the Clockwork Angels tour stop in Houston. Made it for R40, though.

A bit of trivia I learned from the book Wandering the Face of the Earth: one of of their shows at the Sam Houston Coliseum was marred by flooding in the building because someone dropped a cherry bomb in a toilet.

Agreed. I enjoy Clockwork Angels…one of those albums you put in and just hit play and let it run. Headlong Flight is a great song!

Oh and these guys are crazy!

Big Cat `93 said:

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Agreed on all counts. I'm still kicking myself for skipping the Clockwork Angels tour stop in Houston. Made it for R40, though.

A bit of trivia I learned from the book Wandering the Face of the Earth: one of of their shows at the Sam Houston Coliseum was marred by flooding in the building because someone dropped a cherry bomb in a toilet.

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Not super familiar with the RUSH stuff post 2112 or Fly By Night, but the last 2 albums sounded like they were transitioning away from the nerd rock feel and back to their original harder (better) roots. I wish I had gone with the boss to at least 1 of the concerts. Always will regret that.

Still nobody answered the Warren Cromartie album question.

Signals

Next trivia question with a Max Webster connection:

On the inside cover or the liner notes (I forget which) for "Exit…Stage Left" there is a shoutout of sorts to Max Webster.

What does it say?

maroon barchetta said:

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Next trivia question with a Max Webster connection:

On the inside cover or the liner notes (I forget which) for "Exit…Stage Left" there is a shoutout of sorts to Max Webster.

What does it say?

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That's not fair, I only have (still have in storage somewhere) the cassette tape.

I remember reading it way too long ago and way too many drinks ago, but I do remember a shout out. Need to look it up because no way I have that good of recall.

1836er said:

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maroon barchetta said:

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Next trivia question with a Max Webster connection:

On the inside cover or the liner notes (I forget which) for "Exit…Stage Left" there is a shoutout of sorts to Max Webster.

What does it say?

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That's not fair, I only have (still have in storage somewhere) the cassette tape.

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Better get a magnifying glass for the liner notes!

It has been a long time. My brother played that album and that cassette a lot back in the day!

maroon barchetta said:

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I don't know where snowdog went.

Guess By-Tor got revenge.

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I'm back, and I was



Wait for it....







VICTORIOUS!!!


I was very surprised to see this thread on the front page. I still have many posts to read. Rush was one of the greatest influences of my life. When Neil passed, I posted a couple of things on Facebook. I guess I'll retrieve them and put them here as well.

The Snowdog has been busy, but rest assured...

The land of the Ovrrworld is safe again.