This might be a bit VT-sided as I absolutely LOVE the album, and it was new when I became a Rush fan, so I spun my original copy in my car and portable CD player a LOT that it is one of my few CDs in my collection that is really worn down and scratched from just over-use and travel.
One Little Victory vs Far Cry - OLV just ROCKS my socks off, it was a triumphant return to heavy and powerful Rush.
Ceiling Unlimited vs Armor and Sword - A&S takes the edge here, one of my favorite tracks off of S&A, even though CU is good.
Ghost Rider vs Workin' Them Angels - GR is very emotionally powerful for me, especially as I read through Neil's book of the same title around a time when I was going through some personal/emotional problems myself.
Peaceable Kingdom vs The Larger Bowl - Draw; I like both, but I can't really pick one over the other. I like PK a lot but TLB has a unique lyrical structure.
The Stars Look Down vs Spindrift - Another draw; again, I like bits of both so I can't really pick one.
How It Is vs The Main Monkey Business - The return of the instrumental! I learned this on drums in less than a week after the album's release and it's remained one of my favorite tracks off S&A ever since.
Vapor Trail vs The Way the Wind Blows - VT's quasi-title track has been on my "I hope they'll play it live someday" wish-list since the R30 tour, it just has some shining moments in it that I like more than TWTWB.
Secret Touch vs Hope - Kind of unfair, and while Alex's first solo studio track is pretty good, it doesn't stand up against one of the catchiest Rush songs on VT.
Earthshine vs Faithless - Earthshine's heavy guitars and tricky meter changes are Rush in a nutshell, and I love this song for it and more.
Sweet Miracle vs Bravest Face - The VT single that never got played live, and I always wish it had. It's short and...sweet.
Nocturne vs Good News First - Nocturne is another sleeper-hit on VT. Then again, the back-half of S&A isn't nearly as good as the front half, and it shows as 3 of the last 4 tracks have yet to be played live.
Freeze vs Malignant Narcissism - As good as MalNar is, Freeze is one of the proggiest tunes on VT, and an all-time favorite of latter-day Rush. REALLY hope they play it some day...
Out of the Cradle vs We Hold On - Cradle is just a better closer, although I like the sentiment in WHO, Cradle is just as powerful of a closer as OLV is an opener.
VT - 10
S&A - 2
Draw - 1
Well, like I said, this would end up kind of lopsided in favor of VT, but what can I say? I love the album a lot. It was tough to think that Rush would release an album as good as it when S&A was about to come, and while I enjoy S&A, if I had to choose one of the two to live with for the rest of my life, it would be VT (albeit the Remix that came out in recent years, the original is a BIT over-cooked for my ears anymore, and the Remix just brings out some great stuff that is missed on the original).
-Marc.
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