The History of Rush v. Discography Thread: Epilogue

[jammindude]

This is where Rush went full-blown prog, which I thought was awesome.  They were great as a power trio (a term you don't hear much anymore, but which was common in the 70's) and transformed into a "power prog trio" in just a few years.  Bravo!

This was also the first time I saw them live.  It was an amazing show.  After the opening band (New England, who were also very good), they came out and played "2112".  The live version, five movements instead of all seven, but still, it was mind-blowing that this was their opening song.  In the darkness, we heard the taped opening sound effects to "2112" and they took the stage while it was dark.  Then they dove into the "Overture" and on into "The Temples of Syrinx".  When Geddy started singing, there were three insanely bright yellow lights behind them, one behind each of them.  They were low behind the stage, so they weren't blinding; they shined up into the rafters, and we could really only see the guys in silhouette.  After "The Temples of Syrinx" the question was whether they'd continue the suite, and if so, would it be the whole thing?  Alex started "Discovery" and the question was answered.

The lighting had changed, more subdued, as the song had a different mood to it, but whenever "the priests" spoke (sang), those bright yellow lights came on again.  "Yes we know, it's nothing new!"  It was how the priests were symbolized.  They carried on with "Soliloquy" and "Grand Finale".  Wow, what an opening song!

Geddy said "Good Evening" and a few other brief words, then they started "Cygnus X-1 Book 1: The Voyage".  At the end, during the spacey taped sounds, Geddy says "We'd like to welcome you to Side One of our new album.  This is called Hemispheres."  And they played "Hemispheres" all the way through.  It was amazing.  Nearly 50 minutes into the show, they've played three songs so far.

Then Geddy said the real greetings.  Once again, good evening.  Talked about how great it was to be back, etc. etc.

I don't remember exactly what the rest of the set list was, but I will never forget how they opened with that amazing back-to-back-to-back killer combination.  Wow.  I know they played "La Villa Strangiato"; it may have been the encore.  Incredible night.

If I could go back in time to ANY TOUR AT ALL...it would be the Hemispheres Tour. 

From Cygnus X-1 dot net, the setlist was:

Anthem
A Passage to Bangkok
By-Tor and the Snow Dog
Xanadu
Something for Nothing
The Trees
Cygnus X-1
Hemispheres
Closer to the Heart
Circumstances
A Farewell to Kings
La Villa Strangiato
2112 (abbreviated)
Working Man
Bastille Day
In the Mood
Drum Solo

(they did open with 2112 on the Permanent Waves Tour....but then abbreviated versions of CXI and Hemispheres were played later in the set)

https://www.cygnus-x1.net/links/rush/setlists.php#HEMISPHERES

[jingle.boy]

My 3rd fave of the big 5. It is virtually flawless, but I agree with Paul to some extent that the title track does go off course at times, and it does feel like an 18 minute song. For me, the true character of an epic track is where you don't even notice its length, or girth. 

Circumstances is my favorite short tune, and The Trees is just there as great tune.  La Villa though.... God-tier. #3 Rush song, and likely a top 10 of all time for me.

[KevShmev]

Speaking of The Trees, one thing I really love about is that guitar lead Alex plays for about the first 2/3 of the instrumental section (prior to the guitar solo); awesome tone there and a gorgeous melody.

[jammindude]

I always felt like 2112, while still being completely amazing, ultimately feels like several unrelated ideas that were pasted together with an Overture.

Hemispheres, OTOH, feels like a complete and cohesive piece, and if anything, feels a bit out of place without CXI preceeding it.   I have always considered CXI and Hemispheres to be a single and complete 30 minute "song".

The lyrics for Hemispheres in particular are very strong.  In my case, life altering.   It was the first song I actually sat down and *taught* my sons about....going into depth about its meaning, applications of principles in life. 

Even though I only slightly consider Supper's Ready to be a better song, its so abstract that it can't really be described, just experienced.   But Hemispheres message is clear, profound, and extremely well articulated.

[KevShmev]

I've never thought of them as one song, and quite frankly, the only thing that connects the two musically is the little part of Cgynus X-1 that is thrown into the background during the mellow part around the 12-minute plus mark, and even that feels like a token "Okay, we'll throw this on in the background so there is at least something that connects the two musically" moment.  Not to mention that the production and sound of the two albums are different - A Farewell to Kings is more in-your-face and meaty, while Hemispheres is brighter and more organic, sonically - so the songs don't even have that similar of a feel.

[jingle.boy]

I'm with Kev.  And I feel exactly the opposite Ben wrt to Hemispheres and 2112.  Musically there are a couple of distinct changes in 2112, but I feel it flows exactly as the concept/story would suggest.  I don't get those same vibes from Hemispheres.  Don't get me wrong, it's a fantastic song (Top 10 Rush tune for me for sure), but imo, it's not as cohesive as 2112. 

Just listened to the album tonight, and I may have understated how good La Villa is in my last post.

[KevShmev]

Yep, 2112 is far more cohesive than Hemispheres, IMO.  Not saying Hemispheres isn't, but while 2112 has the many stop and starts in between sections which give you that feeling of seeing snapshots, like a door opening to that part of a story, Hemispheres completely comes to a stop after the first part and then the rest of the song never does it; it's kind of strange in that regard.

[jammindude]

PER...FEC....TION I SAY!!!   I WILL HEAR NONE OF YOUR INSOLENCE!!!!

   

[ThatOneGuy2112]

I myself hold this record about on the same level as 2112. It's fun, it's exhilarating, it's fantastic. Circumstances is definitely one of Rush's best shorter pieces and the praise spoken unto La Villa speaks for itself.

The run of albums from 2112 to Hemispheres is one of the best 3-string of albums I know of from any artist.

[Zydar]

My least favourite of the classic/big 5. I usually only listen to Circumstances and La Villa Strangiato. The other songs don't do anything for me, I'm sad to say.

I'm glad you all love it though

[Cruithne]

Hemispheres is a tiny notch down from A Farewell To Kings in my estimation. The title track is just too damned long: the opening is great, iconic even, and from about 14 minutes in to the end it's also great, but there's about 10 minutes of filler in between, which is still a couple of minutes more than the two average tracks on AFTK.

The Trees, Circumstances and La Villa Strangiato are superb.

[?]

Hemispheres is a great album, although I don't listen to it very often. When it comes to epic title-tracks, I find 2112 stronger and more cohesive.

[Orbert]

If I could go back in time to ANY TOUR AT ALL...it would be the Hemispheres Tour. 

From Cygnus X-1 dot net, the setlist was:

snip

Interesting.  I wonder why they listed the songs in that order.  There's no question at all that this isn't the actual set list order.  At first I thought they were just listing the songs alphabetically, but that's not it, either.  Memory is a fallable thing, but they came out with "2112" then dove into both books of "Cygnus X-1".  We all remember it. 

I did screw up, though.  They skipped both "Discovery" and "Oracle: The Dream".  It was the same version as on All the World's a Stage.  As far as I know, Rush has never played "2112" in its original arrangement.  On the 2112 tour, they had already removed the two slower movements, and later when they played all seven parts, they had lowered the key to accomodate Geddy's voice.

[Ultimetalhead]

Hemispheres is so fucking good. On most days it's a 4-way tie with Farewell to Kings, Moving Pictures, and Clockwork Angels as my favorite Rush album.

[jingle.boy]

As far as I know, Rush has never played "2112" in its original arrangement.

Jumping ahead 20 years from where we are, they did revive it in '97 for the Different Stages tour.

PER...FEC....TION I SAY!!!   I WILL HEAR NONE OF YOUR INSOLENCE!!!!

   

 

[nicmos]

The title track on Hemispheres is perfect.  Not a note out of place, not a second too long.  I think that's what happens when you take the time composing and revising in order to make sure everything fits perfectly.  The transitions that need to be seamless are just that. This album made my top 50, I think somewhere around 16-18 (too lazy to check).

I feel like the rest of the songs share the same compositional tightness as the title track.  Each measure seems to flow organically from the previous one, it's like you're surfing along effortlessly.  What a feeling.

And La Villa, what can you say?  The (first) solo section alone (what is it, Lerxst in Wonderland or something) puts Alex in the all-time rock guitar hall of fame.  I'd love to hear some of the alternate takes from the studio, wouldn't that be something.  I guess you can hear a lot of his variations on the live versions, and the ESL version is roll-your-eyes-back good, but it would just be great to get to hear clean studio versions where presumably Alex could compose himself before playing that section.

[jjrock88]

Top five overall Rush album for me.

Circumstances and La Villa Strangiato are two of my favorites from Rush.

[Lowdz]

I'm with Kev.  And I feel exactly the opposite Ben wrt to Hemispheres and 2112.  Musically there are a couple of distinct changes in 2112, but I feel it flows exactly as the concept/story would suggest.  I don't get those same vibes from Hemispheres.  Don't get me wrong, it's a fantastic song (Top 10 Rush tune for me for sure), but imo, it's not as cohesive as 2112. 

Just listened to the album tonight, and I may have understated how good La Villa is in my last post.

I agree about 2112.
With Cygnus and Hemispheres, there is little in common between the two songs other than the little hint Kev mentions. The lyrics aren't connected really either. I get what he's trying to say but there's nothing subtle about it.

[KevShmev]

 

[TAC]

Hemishperes is a GREAT album. Easily my second favorite Rush album after Moving Pictures. I draw what is basically at the heart of Dream Theater back to Hemisheres. When I first got into Dream Theater back in '92, my sentiment was that they were playing the music that Rush SHOULD be playing, if they continued along the path that Hemispheres set.

[Orbert]

As far as I know, Rush has never played "2112" in its original arrangement.

Jumping ahead 20 years from where we are, they did revive it in '97 for the Different Stages tour.

True, but the '97 version was in a lower key, as I stated later in the very next sentence.  Removing sections and lowering the key both constitute changes to the original arrangement.

[mikemangioy]

As much as I love and praise A Farewell to Kings, I like Hemispheres a lot less. It has it's great moments, like La Villa Strangiato for instance, but the rest of the album is just ok for me.

[jammindude]

Rush - La Villa Strangiato. (Hemispheres) 1978.: https://youtu.be/rz1dk8eS_Jo

Where did this come from and why have I never seen it?   It's proshot...looks like a music video, but obviously recorded live. 

[KevShmev]

I've seen that before, but seeing it again, especially Neil's mustache , reminds me that I didn't think to post the pic of the picture on the back cover of 2112:



This thread would never be complete without that picture.

 

[Mladen]

What a fantastic record!

The title track is brilliant start to finish. In terms of perfection, it's not far behind 2112 and it's certainly one of my favorite Rush songs. There isn't a single section I don't enjoy as much as the rest. La Villa is a tremendous instrumental that, unlike the title track which is great all the way through, starts off good and just keeps getting better and better towards the end. The shorter songs are pretty cool as well and provide a nice breather between the two prog epics.

If I had to choose between this record and 2112, I think I'd go with this one.

[King Postwhore]

As far as I know, Rush has never played "2112" in its original arrangement.

Jumping ahead 20 years from where we are, they did revive it in '97 for the Different Stages tour.

True, but the '97 version was in a lower key, as I stated later in the very next sentence.  Removing sections and lowering the key both constitute changes to the original arrangement.

I'll take that then never seeing it and BTW, I was at the recording of 2112 on the Different Stages tour in the 6th row.  What a show that was.

[mikemangioy]

After re-listening to the record another couple of times, I feel like it's growing on me. Still, I don't find the title-track all that great. But Circumstances is 

[jammindude]

As far as I know, Rush has never played "2112" in its original arrangement.

Jumping ahead 20 years from where we are, they did revive it in '97 for the Different Stages tour.

PER...FEC....TION I SAY!!!   I WILL HEAR NONE OF YOUR INSOLENCE!!!!

   

 

 

What's really funny is that this is *exactly* how I feel when people are so dismissive of the title track.   It's almost sacrilege to give the song anything but the complete adoration it so richly deserves.     

[KevShmev]

You do realize that most of us here really like/love it, right?  Just because we don't wanna cook it dinner and "take care" of it later doesn't mean we are dismissive of it.

[jingle.boy]

You do realize that most of us here really like/love it, right?  Just because we don't wanna cook it dinner and "take care" of it later doesn't mean we are dismissive of it.

Word, although I would at least take it to Five Guys, and cuddle.

[Lowdz]

You do realize that most of us here really like/love it, right?  Just because we don't wanna cook it dinner and "take care" of it later doesn't mean we are dismissive of it.

I'm pretty dismissive of it 
And it can buy it's own dinner.

[KevShmev]

You do realize that most of us here really like/love it, right?  Just because we don't wanna cook it dinner and "take care" of it later doesn't mean we are dismissive of it.

Word, although I would at least take it to Five Guys, and cuddle.

 

 

And it can buy it's own dinner.

With jammindude around, it'll never have to.

[ytserush]

As I've said before, I am not much into reviewing live albums, but I don't want to leave them out, since I know some like to talk about them, so I'll just say that All the World's a Stage is a fine first live album, featuring a beastly live rendition of "By-Tor and the Snow Dog."  It also began the trend of them releasing a live album every four albums, which would be the case until the 21st century.

With all of the bootlegs available from this period, there still isn't one that can hold a candle to this recording. It's lightening in a bottle.  It's also a recording that has elements in it that Rush has never surpassed since.

My favorites from this album have always been In The End, Lakeside Park and Something For Nothing.


Oddly enough Neil didn't think it the live album was going to be any good after that show was finished.

"All this angst was coming out of me during the course of the [final] night and I was annoyed and I figured the album was ruined because of all of this. And then we listened back to those tapes and those were the ones that had all of the energy and it's true that anger can sometimes bring out the passion in the music." --Neil  ( Jim Ladd Innerview)

[ytserush]

The three shortest songs on here are a lot stronger than the shorter tunes on Side B of 2112, especially the classic rock radio hit, "Closer To The Heart", which has seen its fair share of transformations on stage over the decades. The initial-tour-only-played track "Cinderella Man" is another story by Neil, based on literature, and it works pretty well, although I'll never understand why it was an encore on the AFTK Tour. And "Madrigal" was an  interesting piece by Geddy that was soothing enough. Some might call it filler, but it's Rush exploring what they can do with all their new-found equipment.


-Marc.

Don't want to be that guy but you mixed up who wrote what for Cinderella Man and Madrigal. Geddy wrote Cinderella Man while Neil penned Madrigal.

Solid album. Sometimes I listen to the studio album, but most of the time I'll just break out a live show. Certainly the way this album sounds has never been duplicated.  Very open and warm. They took the time to do it right. Unfortunately though it's a sound very steeped in the '70s and not timeless like say... Television's Marquee Moon.

Interesting  that the working title of the album had been Closer To The Heart. Don't know exactly when it was changed but early press called the new album Closer To The Heart. This version of Closer To The Heart has become my least favorite ever over the years.

Some of you probably know this  about the album cover already, but.....

"The sky and the foreground are not in the same place. The buildings and the sky are from Toronto and the foreground was a demolished warehouse in Buffalo. I would have loved a cathedral in the same condition, or something more worthy of the pathos you were intended to feel for and old building being in that state. We began a series of puns with that album, in that the King is a puppet King.  -- Hugh Syme  (Creem)

[DerekTheater]

This is one of the best albums ever made.