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lzzoso

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46 minutes ago, Kiwi_Zep_Fan87 said:

Hahaha! That really cracked me up! Such a cool podcast! B) 

Many thanks for providing the link! :yourock: 

Glad you liked it too! If you have never seen The Trailer Park Boys episode called "Closer To The Heart" you need to see it! It's hilarious! It's from season 3. You can't watch the whole thing on youtube anymore, but you can watch it on youtube for like $1.99, otherwise you can only watch very small clips of it on youtube. If you haven't seen it before it's totally worth the $1.99. I highly recommend it!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=edf5kQsDO4Q&list=ELDVsdcpyy28A

Edited by luvlz2
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7 minutes ago, luvlz2 said:

Glad you liked it too! If you have never seen The Trailer Park Boys episode called "Closer To The Heart" you need to see it! It's hilarious! It's from season 3. You can't watch the whole thing on youtube anymore, but you can watch it on youtube for like $1.99, otherwise you can only watch very small clips of it on youtube. If you haven't seen it before it's totally worth the $1.99. I highly recommend it!

I think I know that one! It is the one where Alex is kidnapped from his hotel room, right? :lol: 

Haven't seen that in ages! Thanks for reminding me! :) 

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Going to try to get in line around midnight-2 am on Record Store Day to get the Jimmy Page & The Black Crowes marbled vinyl and hopefully one of these:

Rush Cygnus X-1 12 inch 180 gram Audiophile Vinyl EP for Record Store Day, limited to 5000 copies.

3905.f.jpg

http://www.rushisaband.com/blog/2017/03/20/4882/Rush-Cygnus-X-1-12-inch-180-Gram-Audiophile-Vinyl-EP-for-Record-Store-Day

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2 hours ago, luvlz2 said:

Going to try to get in line around midnight-2 am on Record Store Day to get the Jimmy Page & The Black Crowes marbled vinyl and hopefully one of these:

Rush Cygnus X-1 12 inch 180 gram Audiophile Vinyl EP for Record Store Day, limited to 5000 copies.

3905.f.jpg

http://www.rushisaband.com/blog/2017/03/20/4882/Rush-Cygnus-X-1-12-inch-180-Gram-Audiophile-Vinyl-EP-for-Record-Store-Day

Ooh, lucky you! :D 

Good luck! Hope you get a copy! Do let me know how it goes! :wave: 

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Just now, Kiwi_Zep_Fan87 said:

Ooh, lucky you! :D 

Good luck! Hope you get a copy! Do let me know how it goes! :wave: 

Thanks Kiwi! I'll definitely let you know how it went. I will take some pics as well if all goes good.

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22 hours ago, luvlz2 said:

Going to try to get in line around midnight-2 am on Record Store Day to get the Jimmy Page & The Black Crowes marbled vinyl and hopefully one of these:

Rush Cygnus X-1 12 inch 180 gram Audiophile Vinyl EP for Record Store Day, limited to 5000 copies.

3905.f.jpg

http://www.rushisaband.com/blog/2017/03/20/4882/Rush-Cygnus-X-1-12-inch-180-Gram-Audiophile-Vinyl-EP-for-Record-Store-Day

Good luck, luvlz2!

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On Fri Mar 24 2017 at 9:36 PM, luvlz2 said:

Going to try to get in line around midnight-2 am on Record Store Day to get the Jimmy Page & The Black Crowes marbled vinyl and hopefully one of these:

Rush Cygnus X-1 12 inch 180 gram Audiophile Vinyl EP for Record Store Day, limited to 5000 copies.

3905.f.jpg

http://www.rushisaband.com/blog/2017/03/20/4882/Rush-Cygnus-X-1-12-inch-180-Gram-Audiophile-Vinyl-EP-for-Record-Store-Day

Nice! Thanks for the heads up.

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I know that this is rather old news, but this book sure looks interesting (from a little peek that I had over at Amazon) and I think I'll buy it when it comes out in May! :) 

Rush: Album by Album Book Coming May 2017

Rush: Album by Album Book Coming May 2017
Martin Popoff, the author behind the 2004 Rush biography Contents Under Pressure as well as 2013's Rush: The Illustrated History, will be publishing his third Rush-inspired book in May of 2017.

Rush: Album by Album, which will be published by Voyageur Press, will include reviews of each of Rush's 20 studio albums by 20 rock journalists. From the book's description:
Formed in Toronto in 1968, the rock trio Rush has gone on to multiplatinum success behind the distinctive high register and virtuosic bass-playing of frontman Geddy Lee, the legendary drumming and lyric-writing of Neil Peart, and the guitar heroics of Alex Lifeson. Despite having just four chart-topping singles since the release of their debut LP in 1974, Rush has nonetheless sold more than 25 million albums in the U.S. and more than 40 million worldwide. Indeed, the Canadian trio may be the definition of an "album band," and this new book from prolific rock journalist and acknowledged Rush authority Martin Popoff pays tribute to the band's discography by moderating in-depth, frank, and entertaining conversations about all 20 of Rush's studio albums. 

Inside, the author gathers 20 rock journalists and authors who offer insights, opinions, and anecdotes about every release. Together, the conversations comprise a unique historical overview of the band, as well as a handsome discography. Popoff also includes loads of sidebars that provide complete track listings, details on album personnel, information on where and when the albums were recorded, and sidebar facts about the albums, their songs, and the band.
The book is currently available for pre-order via this LINK.

Source: 

http://news.cygnus-x1.net/2016/09/rush-album-by-album-book-coming-may-2017.html

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Kind of a funny April Fools Day joke Ed Stenger (rushisaband administrator) did, posting that Geddy Lee, Alex Lifeson, Olivia Newton-John to perform Xanadu mash-up with ELO at Rock Hall Induction Ceremony: http://www.rushisaband.com/blog/2017/04/01/4883/Geddy-Lee-Alex-Lifeson-Oliva-Newton-John-to-perform-Xanadu-mash-up-with-ELO-at-Rock-Hall-induction-ceremony

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On 4/5/2017 at 7:42 AM, luvlz2 said:

There is a rumor that Geddy Lee may play bass for Yes when they are inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of fame. http://www.rushisaband.com/blog/2017/04/04/4889/Alan-White-on-Yes-upcoming-Rock-Hall-induction-and-the-possibility-of-Geddy-Lee-performing-with-the-band

Yeah, I heard about this. I really hope it's true! 

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Read Rush's Enthusiastic Yes Rock Hall Induction Speech

"Through Yes, I was tuning into a wider world of possibilities. One where music seemed to have no limitations," says Geddy Lee

yes-alex-lifeson-lee-inductee-speech-rock-and-roll-hall-of-fame-1c43012e-44d2-4267-b41c-df8e358a8d37.jpg

Rush's Geddy Lee and Alex Lifeson inducted Yes into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Friday night at Brooklyn's Barclays Center. It came four years after Rush's own entrance into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, a memorable event in which Lifeson said nothing but "blah blah blah" over and over as a way to mock long-winded speeches. But when it came time to honor one of his greatest influences, Lifeson found he had a lot more to say than gibberish. 

Alongside Geddy Lee, who told the crowd how early Yes albums influenced his own upbringing and music, it was a very moving tribute to the forefathers of prog rock. Read the full speech below.

Lifeson: We're honored to be here tonight doing this. It's really, really great. We all start somewhere. For me, my journey with Yes began when I was a teenager gently fishing out the Yes album out of its sleeve being just a bit freaked by the disembodied head on the cover, placing the needle on the groove, sitting back, letting the music wash over me. I may have smoked a cigarette or something [laughter] but Yes were my gateway band in so many ways. There's nothing so fleeting yet enduring about the way music feels when you're 17 years old. 

As Yes played in my room, I played too. I spent hours picking my way through songs like "Starship Trooper" and "Yours Is No Disgrace." How wonderful is that swirling outro in "Starship Trooper"? I must've played that a million times. But I loved their music. Even more, once I learned to master ... not that I never really did. I never did them justice. But I loved them still. Yes helped give me the gift of music, which is everything as you know. They made me want to be a better musician and that provided some of the determination to one day stand on this stage giving tribute to this amazing band.

I'll leave you with this: the musical choices we make in our youth help to mold who we become. Choose the guitar intro for "Going for the One." Choose learning to play "Starship Trooper" on a cheap secondhand guitar. Choose Chris Squire's amazing bass tone. Choose Jon Anderson's ethereal vocals. Choose Fragile. Choose wearing a cape before Rick Wakeman did. This guy right here. Choose staying out all night to see your favorite band. Choose "Roundabout." Choose the glorious guitar work in "Owner of a Lonely Heart." So beautiful. Choose the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. And definitely, choose Yes.

Lee: Blah, blah, blah. [Laughter] I'd like to ask the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame to indulge me a few moments to share some personal experiences of Yes, the band. So picture this: in the early Seventies, I spent from one to three years in Grade 10 in high school seated at the back of the class with my new pal Oscar. He sat just across from me, and the teacher's words were bouncing aimlessly off us as Oscar riffed on some of our favorite Monty Python skits. He had me at the dead parrot gag. How could we not become friends? But it wasn't just the Ministry of Silly Walks that we bonded over. 

I could still recall one of the days that we opted out of school and were sitting cross-legged on the floor of Oscar's room as he introduced me to an album called Time and a Word by a band called Yes that I never heard of. I still thrill to the bass part in "No Opportunity Necessary, No Experience Needed" the way I did the first time I heard it that day. For years people asked me why I played a Rickenbacker bass, and all I have to do is point to that album, that song and Chris Squire's incredibly original playing. Then Oscar played me "Yours Is No Disgrace" then "I've Seen All Good People." We both sat there open-mouthed as the songs rose up around us and our musical worlds shifted and fell from its axis. I might've been a young musician jamming in basement grooves in Toronto, but through Yes, I was tuning into a wider world of possibilities. One where music seemed to have no limitations.

It was a crisp night in 1972 when Oscar and myself and this guy, Alex Lifeson, wind up overnight around the block in what was then Toronto's Maple Leaf Gardens to finally witness Yes live for ourselves. The sky was a high dome of stars, and as I recall, Alex kept us going by nipping to the store and bringing back honeydew drinks. Really. I could close my eyes now and I'm back there. Intellectually, visually, viscerally sitting in row 10. It was like nothing I'd ever seen or experienced before. It was actually profound. 

It's not overstating things to say it changed the way I played and listened to music forever. So here we are, decades later, and the music of Yes is still echoing down through the years, showing me that music truly is a continuum. On behalf of Oscar, my good friend and Alex's Neil, who is not here tonight, Alex and myself, I say thank you, Yes. It's our great, great privilege and our great honor to right a terrible wrong and to finally welcome Yes into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. 

Source: http://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/read-rushs-enthusiastic-yes-rock-hall-induction-speech-w475774

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  • 3 weeks later...

A very Happy 10th Birthday to the exquisite masterpiece "Snakes and Arrows". I'll admit that at first, I didn't get it, but thankfully, I changed my mind after a couple of listens!!! ;) My favourite tracks off the album are (off the top of my head): "Far Cry", "Armor and Sword", "Workin' Them Angels", "The Larger Bowl", "Spindrift", "The Main Monkey Business" and "The Way The Wind Blows". As usual, beautiful messages and stories and mind blowing musicianship!!! So proud to be a fan of this incredible band!

10 Years Ago: Rush Connect the Dots With ‘Snakes and Arrows’

By Martin Kielty May 1, 2017 10:57 AM

When Rush released their 18th album, Snakes & Arrows, on May 1, 2007, it heralded a most glorious era of the Canadian trio’s already-glittering career. It also seemed to herald the beginning of their end – although it did so in impressive style.

If the follow-up to 2002’s comeback Vapor Trails appeared to connect a row of dots from the band’s history, that was the desired effect, mainly as a result of co-producer Nick Raskulinecz’s input. He’d applied for the job as soon as he heard the record was in the works, and, in an informal meeting with the band, he sold the trio a concept of performing with as much virtuosity as possible, while revisiting an exploration of complex rhythms and melodies. Everything, in short, that Rush loved to do.

Guitarist Alex Lifeson made a conscious decision to focus on acoustic guitar for his songwriting after a discussion with Pink Floyd’s David Gilmour (who received a credit for his advice). “I was playing a lot of acoustic guitars before we started the record,” Lifeson told Guitar Player. “I had a meeting with David, and he was a very engaging, charming guy. We talked a lot about the power of the acoustic in terms of writing. It doesn’t lie. It tells you straight up whether an idea has merit.”

On hearing the demo tracks laid down by Lifeson and singer and bassist Geddy Lee, drummer Neil Peart used the world “spiritual.” “When I first listen to a rough sketch of guitar, bass, vocal, and drum machine, I am hearing it as the lyricist, and I am also listening as the drummer,” he wrote in an essay. “In a larger sense, though, I’m really listening as a fan – someone who wants to love that song. Even on first listen, I felt that way about ‘Bravest Face’ and ‘The Way the Wind Blows,’ and I was especially excited by how different they were from anything we had done before – fresh and vital, yet rooted in some deeper musical streams.”

Speaking of how the new music compared with their earlier work, Peart noted, “While the arrangements remained intricate and dynamic, the elements were often simple and direct – basic hard rock and blues forms.”

Spirituality became one theme of the album’s lyrics, along with the concept of expressing the individual’s relationship with the world within the terms of a “lover’s quarrel.” Peart even offered some words he’d written 15 years previously, on the subject of “fortunes and fates.” “It must have been the right time, because, to my delight, Alex and Geddy responded to the challenge,” he said, adding of lyrics, “Many are sent; few are chosen.”

In November 2006, Rush decamped to Allaire Studios in New York for what was supposed to be a two-week stint. But they discovered the location suited them well, so they abandoned plans to do another three weeks in Toronto, and instead stayed at Allaire for six weeks total. Under the guidance of Raskulinecz – who’d been nicknamed “Booujze” as a result of his frequent use of vocal sound effects to make a musical point – they worked on a track-by-track basis, aiming to make each recording a proper performance. “Even if we were playing alone to a recorded guide track, it was still us, and we ‘meshed’ automatically,” Peart reported.

Along with the usual brand of ambitious compositions came another new move for the band: three instrumental tracks, ‘The Main Monkey Business,’ ‘Hope’ and ‘Malignant Narcissism’ made the final cut. Peart described ‘Hope’ as Lifeson’s “secular prayer” and revealed he’d recorded ‘Malignant Narcissism’ on a small, four-piece drum kit rather than his usual giant setup “just for fun.”

The title Snakes & Arrows, which the band felt summed up the lyrical themes, was a merging of the kids’ board game Snakes and Ladders with the “slings and arrows” line from Shakespeare’s Hamlet. Peart discovered that the term did actually exist, and had been used in a Buddhist karma-based educational game for 2,000 years. An illustration of Leela, the main character in the game, became the cover artwork co-created between Peart and Hugh Syme.

On March 12, 2007, Rush released “Far Cry,” the debut single from Snakes & Arrows. To emphasize the point they were trying to make, the accompanying video nodded to the band’s earlier eras, while embracing modern, moody stop-motion production. The track did seem to encompass everything the band had tried to achieve with the project, and it became a live staple, being performed on every tour since its release (complete with a victory salute shared between Lee and Peart after the last note is struck).

“I remember with ‘Far Cry,’ I was working on lyrics and brought them in at the end of the day,” Peart later said. “Geddy looked at them and went, ‘Wait a minute!’ It went with what he had been stitching together that day. So that song was inter-created. It grew organically. Most of our songs have grown that way. Writing songs is really an exchange of ideas. And the synchronicity between us is remarkable sometimes.”

Listen to Rush’s ‘The Main Monkey Business’

“Far Cry” (the staccato hook, the howling guitar break that’s more of a sound than a solo) reached No. 22 on the Billboard Hot Mainstream Rock chart. It’s successor, “Spindrift” (which featured a heavy riff that flirts round the edge of doom, with its feet firmly in the ‘80s) didn’t chart, while later releases “The Larger Bowl (A Pantoum)” (close harmony vocal riff and leading acoustic guitar phrase) and “Workin’ Them Angels” (anthemic rocker featuring a few trademark time changes) reached No. 16 and 30, respectively. The album fared better, reaching No. 3 on the Billboard 200, and remained in play for 14 weeks. Their record label chose Snakes & Arrows to be the debut title of the new Music Video Interactive format.

Raskulinecz compared Snakes & Arrows to the band’s ‘70s output. “I feel they’ve written some of the best material they’ve written, and they’re playing at the top of their abilities,” he said to Brightcove . “We’ve made a performance record. And I think it’s got a different sound – it sounds like all the elements of classic Rush, but it doesn’t sound like a classic rock record. It has all the energy and sonics of a relevant, modern-day rock record.”

It worked for the majority of Rush fans, and it most certainly worked for the trio. (Giving it three stars out of five, Rolling Stone dryly observed: “If you’re a fan, add two stars; if not, subtract two.”) In 2014, Lee told TeamRock, “I think I’d place Snakes & Arrows among our top three albums. We found that space we’ve been wanting to get to in terms of keeping the balance of influences. There are so many ways we can go, and because we’re over-ambitious when putting our songs together, it’s very easy to bloat in one direction or lose yourself in the excitement of a new sound.

“I think it began with Vapor Trails, and I think Feedback helped because it reminded us of our roots, and fundamental things about rock songs that may have got lost in the technocratic attitude that we sometimes have.”

“When we finished that record, we really felt that its closest cousin was Moving Pictures,” Lifeson noted. “To us, there was something about it that had the same feel that Moving Pictures had. We were very happy with Snakes & Arrows. And that level of confidence was something we took into Clockwork Angels.”

By the time Clockwork Angels – Rush’s only full concept album – came along in 2012, the band had experienced the greatest height of its fame. Snakes & Arrows was the opening scene in a story that included an appearance in the 2009 film I Love You, Man, the release of the acclaimed 2010 documentary Beyond The Lighted Stage, their 2013 induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and receipt of a string of musical and humanitarian awards.

If the band’s career is now at an end, as it seems, it’s nice to know that at least five songs from Snakes & Arrows had been written by Lee and LIfeson before Peart or Raskulinecz got to work – meaning that, even if there’s no more Rush, there could still be new material of the caliber of Snakes & Arrows. “Nick really pushed us to be true to ourselves,” said Lee, before adding: “I think we were headed there anyway.”

Source: http://ultimateclassicrock.com/rush-snakes-and-arrows/?trackback=tsmclip

Edited by Kiwi_Zep_Fan87
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On 5/1/2017 at 11:38 AM, Kiwi_Zep_Fan87 said:

A very Happy 10th Birthday to the exquisite masterpiece "Snakes and Arrows". I'll admit that at first, I didn't get it, but thankfully, I changed my mind after a couple of listens!!! ;) My favourite tracks off the album are (off the top of my head): "Far Cry", "Armor and Sword", "Workin' Them Angels", "The Larger Bowl", "Spindrift", "The Main Monkey Business" and "The Way The Wind Blows". As usual, beautiful messages and stories and mind blowing musicianship!!! So proud to be a fan of this incredible band!

Definitely! Some of my favorites from that album are "Hope", "Hold On", "The Way The Wind Blows", "Spindrift", "The Main Monkey Business", and "Far Cry". The inner gatefold album cover with the baby on the road is some of my favorite album artwork I'd have to say too. :)

Edited by luvlz2
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