Ditto. Something that comes up often, but probably cannot be repeated enough, is that Rush has always been truly progressive in the sense that their music has constantly evolved over time. They keep trying new things, their sound keeps changing, their very approach to songwriting and recording has even had a few experiments along the way.
Therefore there is no single Rush album to start with, and the idea that someone would ask for five albums to check out is encouraging. It definitely makes sense to sample each of the different eras, multiple times if necessary. (In other words, if you can't find something by Rush that you like, you're not trying hard enough!)