SOUNDTRACK: RUSH-Moving Pictures (1980).
The other night on the show Chuck, Rush was described as “the music of the universe” (which enabled our hero to defeat Missile Command and get secret codes–thereby saving the lives of millions. I have taken this as a sign that geeks have totally taken over the world. They played “Tom Sawyer” 3 times during the show. It was pretty awesome. And my 13 year-old self would have been so excited, it might have been too much for me.
Since about 8th grade, I’ve been a huge Rush fan. And, yes, I do play bass guitar, thank you for asking. I’m still a fan, although not nearly as rabid as I was back in the day. Nevertheless, it’s pretty exciting to see these guys making inroads into pop culture, and it has only taken some thirty-four years after their first record.
Having said that, everyone knows Side A of this record (“Tom Sawyer”, “Red Barchetta”, “YYZ” and “Limelight”). So, I’m not even going to mention it. Rather, I’ll focus on Side B (how quaint am I with this terminology?). I think the overexposure of Side A led me to really investigate Side B. And, for my money, Side B is the more enjoyable side.
“The Camera Eye” starts it out with a wondrous eleven-minute epic. It has different sections, it has repeating motifs, and it’s probably the most overlooked song in their catalog (their other epic tracks were usually A sides which meant more notice). It doesn’t have a lot of the drama of Rush’ other ten-minute-plus songs, rather, it’s a meditative look at life in the city. And yet, all of the parts are essential, with a few minutes of little bits and pieces throughout the track. And then suddenly you’re eight or so minutes in and totally hooked. I’ve always has a soft spot for this song.
“Witch Hunt” has such a fantastic drum opening. My friend Joe was the drummer with whom I jammed to Rush back in the day. Now, no kidding, Neil Peart is an amazing drummer, but sometimes you have to really listen to a song through the ears of a drummer to hear how amazing he is. The opening drum motif is so complex, it’s amazing that one man could play it. And then he throws in a cowbell to boot! It also has some fantastic lyrics that I find myself singing a lot lately when I think of rabid right-wingers: “Confident their ways are best. The righteous rise with burning eyes, of hatred and ill-will….” “Those who know what’s best for us, must rise and save us from ourselves….””Ignorance & prejudice and fear walk hand in hand….”
As “Witch Hunt” has a crazy opening drum motif, “Vital Signs” has a great guitar intro. The guitar chords aren’t terribly complex, but Alex Lifeson plays the chords in a different pattern during alternate lines. Boy is that fun to play. This also features one of the great early keyboard workouts for Geddy Lee. The keyboard riff in “Tom Sawyer” is pretty memorable, but in “Vital Signs” it’s intense. The two main sections of the song don’t seem like they should fit together, but they segue nicely with drum fills and a smooth and fun bass solo.
It was in listening to the the Snakes and Arrows live CD recently that I was reminded how much I love “Witch Hunt” and what a great song it is. My only regret is that I never got to see that one live.
[READ: October 31, 2008] “Don’t Cry”
I was introduced to Mary Gaitskill’s writing about a decade ago. I really liked her short stories. It’s been a while since I’ve read her work, and I basically forgot what her main themes were. So it surprised me to find that this story was set in Ethiopia. (more…)
I Just Read About That... 