Limelight (ranked #9)
An awesome song. Rocking, uplifting and melancholic, all at the same time, Alex's progression in the chorus is phenomenal, and the solo is a thing of beauty. I'll reserve some comments on my own experience with the "radio staples" when, um, a certain other one (or two?) is revealed. For now, I'll just say no matter how much this gets played, it's a pleasure every time, and it's absolutely a top 10 Rush song for me.
Natural Science (ranked #1)
My number one!!! Such a masterpiece, incapsulating so many things that make Rush, "Rush". I remember the first time listening to Permanent Waves - again, not knowing a single note. As I get to Natural Science, I think - well, this is a pretty great album so far...let's hope the closer lives up to the high standards they set. Talk about smashing expectations! The "Wheel within wheels" part...then THAT riff...it just sounds so "modern" (in the best possible way)...an inspiration for so many metal bands. Then the progression with the synths, Geddy's fantastic bass work and Neil doing his (wonderful) thing. Then the Permanent Waves section and the brilliant ending...what can I say? To be honest, when I look at my top 5, it's almost silly to try and rank the songs but, yes, I'm ok with this taking the top spot...