If that is indeed the perspective from which the question is being asked I guess my next question would be how would one know which songs fans consider underrated vs. overrated? The Rover thread aside, to my way of thinking I would think it entirely possible that one fan could find a certain song to be overrated while another might think that same song is underrated. That's where I don't understand when, where and how a consensus could ever possibly be reached.

Because of Geddy's voice I'd say they're definitely in the "acquired taste" category but by the same token I've also encountered people that were never into Zeppelin because of Plant's "banshee wail". Personally I've always liked both bands. I first got into Rush when a friend gifted me with All the World's A Stage back in the 70s before they really enjoyed a whole lot of mainstream radio airplay aside from maybe Workingman and Fly By Night. Upon first listen it dawned on me that their stock in trade at the point was their gift for executing very excellent and extremely well thought out epic songs. That aspect of them has also turned people off but not I. When they were on The Colbert Report a few months back even Steve Colbert joked with them by asking if any other epic songs came to them while they were in the midst of performing one of their epic length songs.

When it comes to these underrated and overrated threads I've always wondered exactly who it is that's doing the rating. The fans? The critics? Is it based on the amount of airplay? If so, where does one go to find these ratings before commenting?

I think along with Zeppelin, Rush have explored many different musical styles and diverse lyrical themes over the years. Zeppelin had Tolkien, Peart is inspired by Ayn Rand and sci-fi as well as several other avenues of thought.

I was never too big on Joan but when I saw her during a traveling version of the Newport Folk Festival back in the 90s she did an Indigo Girls cover and also broke into her dead on Dylan impersonation at one point that had everyone rolling in the aisles. I've had a newfound respect for her ever since. As for Dylan and the Dead, the album from that tour has gotten some less than rave reviews but I understand there was actually some pretty standout shows. Also, Silvio came out of that pairing which is one of my favorite Dylan songs. I also need to pick up the album below and have been meaning to for years. One of the many highlights from my first ever Grateful Dead show back in '89 was hearing them break into Stuck Inside of Mobile With the Memphis Blues Again.

Dylan on Dharma & Greg

While I respect your opinion, asking 11 friends if they've heard of Rush is no way a proper gauge of Rush's popularity in the UK. As for Pink Floyd being discussed in hushed tones, of course they're going to be on their home turf. Well, unless you're Johnny Rotten. Point taken though, I still believe they've had a very profound effect on rock n' roll and not just in England but around the world. It's not as though they're playing back road bars in any of these locales, they're playing huge outdoor (as well as indoor venues). Playing the Hammersmith isn't akin to them performing some unknown club.

Funny you mention Gilliam as someone suggested him on another board as well. According to the article, Kesey specifically wanted Van Sant to do it so we'll see how it turns out if indeed it does get the big screen treatment.

I'll admit I much prefer his work with the Beatles over the vast majority of his solo material but if you're going to a Paul McCartney concert one should fully expect him to perform a good deal of his own stuff as well.

I remember the day the news broke as well. I can say I was shocked but was definitely not surprised. Afterall, this is the same guy that had tried to kill himself in Rome not too long before that and had penned a song called I Hate Myself and I Want to Die. Not to even mention, the set of Nirvana's Unplugged appearance was like that of a wake. Coincidence? I think not. Still very tragic nonetheless. Despite him playing down the "voice of generation" stuff it was quite obvious in the days following his death that he had indeed struck a chord with an entire generation of young people.

Even though I'm a big fan I never did see him in concert until the early 90s when he was on tour with Santana. I also had a hard time making out what songs he was playing. Oftentimes he would be halfway through one before I recognized it. His playing was superb but his vocal delivery and the sometimes radical rearrangements of the songs are what threw me off. The next time I saw him (this time with Paul Simon) was a completely different ballgame. I could make out the lyrics distinctly and he was very animated onstage, dancing a jig and even placing a cellphone call to his buddy Elvis Costello at one point. Unfortunately I haven't seen him in concert since the tour for Love & Theft back in the early 00s.

A comedy short from Seth MacFarlane: Backstage With Bob Dylan

The Ultimate Trip: "Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test" Heads to the Big Screen Film version of Tom Wolfe's book on Ken Kesey's Merry Pranksters comes closer to reality JOHN CLARKE JR. The onscreen version of Tom Wolfe's literary cult hit The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test is primed to hit theaters by 2010. When published in 1968, the book shattered cultural perceptions of the peaceful, passive hippie zeitgeist by introducing the Merry Pranksters, author Ken Kesey's roving gonzo army of LSD-fueled pioneers who tripped about the country, mixing it up with rowdy Oregonians, Bay Area hippies, Hollywood rockers, Hell's Angels and a flurry of left-handed characters that launched the psychedelic movement into mainstream America and ushered in the Grateful Dead. You can read the rest of the article here.

In April 1994, Kurt Cobain died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound in his Washington home. Fifteen years later, we're still celebrating his contributions to rock & roll. Look back at Nirvana's leader in photos, interviews and more. Kurt Cobain Remembered

MUSIC Bring Out Your Dead Nicholas Roberts for The New York Times From left, Phil Lesh, Bob Weir, Bill Kreutzmann and Warren Haynes of the Dead at the Gramercy Theater in Manhattan last month. By BEN RATLIFF Published: April 10, 2009 I WENT to a Phil Lesh concert in New York last fall, on the third night of a 14-night run. I sat next to a man who looked informed: he listened with familiarity and good humor and a touch of impatience, as if he wanted to fast-forward through certain parts. “Seen any of the other shows?” I asked. “I’ve been to every show since 1972,” he said. “In the New York area.” His name was Jimmy . By his definition, “every show” meant every concert by the Grateful Dead, the San Francisco rock band, until the death of Jerry Garcia, its guitarist and singer in 1995, and then every subsequent show by Phil Lesh, the band’s bassist, who has led various touring bands with a sound much in the spirit of the Dead. We got to talking. I asked when he thought the Dead reached its peak, game to try out a half-formed argument for 1975, or thereabouts. You can read the rest of the article here.

It's where record collectors set up, usually for a weekend, sometimes longer, to buy, sell and trade vinyl and CDs to the general public. One outfit I'm aware of is called Show Logic. You can read more about them here. They're based out of the Southeast but record shows take place all across the U.S.

I've heard a few here and there but not the entire record. From what I understand it's good but not necessarily great. If you want to sample it there should be a few videos on YouTube. You can also check out the film I just posted about on Neil's website.

To coincide with the release of his new record, Fork In the Road, Neil Young has put a short film up on his website.

Not I. I recently invested in my first ever digital camera and even had it on hand but didn't bring it into the show.

Record stores in this area are a dying breed but there is CD Alley in Chapel Hill that is wall to wall CDs. That can make it kind of hard to find stuff but they definitely have a lot of stock. Closer to me is Schoolkids Records in Raleigh (only the second store left in that chain, the other one is in Athens, GA) which just moved into a smaller space. Thankfully they have a pretty large selection of both new and used vinyl. Other than those two there are some other places to buy vinyl and CDs but they're all of the used variety. There's also several record shows a year that are worth going to just to see what you can find.

That's Fox News for ya...

From CMT.com: Levon Helm's new album, Electric Dirt, will be released on June 30 on Dirt Farmer Music/Vanguard Records. The new project follows his Grammy-winning album, Dirt Farmer, released in 2007. Multi-instrumentalist Larry Campbell produced the sessions that were recorded at Helm's studio. Selections include covers of the Grateful Dead's "Tennessee Jed," Happy Traum's "Golden Bird" and Randy Newman's "Kingfish," as well as "Growing Trade," a new song written by Helm and Campbell, about a farmer's struggle to preserve his livelihood.

From jambands.com: Patterson Hood Murdering Oscar (And Other Love Songs) Drive-By Truckers frontman Patterson Hood will release the solo album Murdering Oscar (And Other Love Songs) this summer. The album will arrive on Ruth St. Records on June 23, shortly before Hood hits the road on a solo tour. As of now, Hood’s only confirmed date is a June 27 stop at Athens, GA’s Athfest with the backing band The Screwtopians: John Neff (pedal steel), Will Johnson (guitar),Scott Danbom (keyboard, fiddle) and David Barbe (bass). The Drive-By Truckers recently played its first official show with Booker T. in Atlanta on April 1 (no joke). The setlist consisted primarily of songs of the keyboardist’s forthcoming great album Potato Hole. The tour will continue at Melbourne AUS’s Prince Bandroom tomorrow.

Thanks, I'll definitely keep that in mind. By the way, here's a link to some photos from last night's show plus photos from some previous Hitchcock appearances in the area (including my first ever Robyn concert from 2008 also at the Cradle).

Brief writeup on last night's Robyn Hitchcock and the Venus 3 show at the Cat's Cradle in Carrboro from Raleigh, News & Observer music writer David Menconi's On the Beat blog here.