Alex Lifeson is one of the many celebrity wine lovers to be profiled in Mark Oldman’s new book, OLDMAN’S BRAVE NEW WORLD OF WINE. In the book — a fun-filled and carefully-researched tour of the best, most affordable, and most adventurous wines from around the globe — Alex discusses his favorite wines, wine-based experiences, and a few tricks he’s picked up over the years.
Bandmate Geddy Lee and I went to California's Turkey Wine Cellars in late September of 1998 to spend a few days working the harvest. We pulled all of the leaves and spiders and all that stuff out of the bins, and so we were covered head-to-toe in grape juice. Later, Ged and I stopped at this restaurant for lunch. Our shirts and fingers were all purple-we were so proud! People were like, "Yeah, you guys are locals, aren't you? We'll get you some service right away, sir."
-Alex Lifeson
Alex's comments join those from dozens of other notable wine lovers, including actors Hilary Swank and Matthew McConaughey, novelist Jay McInerney, designer Zac Posen, and even Bill Nye, the “Science Guy.” OLDMAN’S BRAVE NEW WORLD OF WINE will be available at book retailers everywhere on September 6th, but is available now at Amazon.Com.
I'm back from a mini-vacation and am preparing to see Rush tomorrow (Friday) night at the PNC Arts Center in Holmdel, NJ. There's just one small problem with those plans. Okay, maybe one big problem: Hurricane Earl. The Category 4 Storm is headed right for the New Jersey coast and is expected to enter the area (you guessed it) Friday night. Perhaps we'll get our own custom Hurricane Rush Baseball caps from this event :) Regardless, I'm sure the show will go on -- but a hurricane as a back drop to a Rush concert will certainly be ... interesting. I'll have pictures and news from the show over the weekend.
In the mean time, here are some notable Rush stories from the past several days.
Alex Lifeson Interviews:
Alex has held several interviews of late, one on his recent birthday, to discuss the tour, the upcoming album, his guitar work and solos and more. The first lengthy interview appeared in MusicRadar and is called Alex Lifeson Interview: Rush Guitarist on Steampunk, Solos and Moving Pictures. This interview touched on a lot of subjects but one that caught my attention more than others was the possibility that Rush would re-record Caravan and BU2B once the band re-enters the studio:
Caravan and Brought Up To Believe are pretty rocking. Are they a pretty good indicator of what we can expect from Clockwork Angels?
"I don't know. I'm curious to see how it all develops. When we finish the tour, we'll review the songs we wrote. There's bound to be some changes and modifications. In fact, I think both Caravan and BU2B will be re-recorded."
Really? Why is that?
"Because they've grown. And, you know, why not? We'll see what happens and see if we can better them - although we are happy with them as they are now.
"The title track, Clockwork Angels, is becoming quite an epic, so we'll have to see where that goes. It's going to be a lot of fun getting back in the studio, especially at this point in the game, when we're playing at our peak."
There's also another short interview/article that appeared on the Gibson Guitar website called Alex Lifeson on Rush's New Cool which is somewhat derivative of the MusicRadar piece.
RUSHCON/FORCE/TEN Wrap Up:
The 10th Annual RushCon convention, which took place in both Las Vegas and Toronto, was another huge success. The conventions this year "had over 300+ attendees, over $7500.00 raised for 2 charities, 2 guest speakers, 1 guest performer, 1 surprise guest, countless beers consumed, 9 hours of Rush concerts, 2 cities, 1 movie theatre, 3 Meet and Greets given away, 23 door prizes, 83 trivia questions answered, 62 auction items bid upon, 83 RushCon shirts sold, 309 hugs given, 18 songs sung at late night parties, and countless memories etched into our happy little brains."
Check out the complete wrap-up write up which includes numerous pictures via this LINK.
Rush "ICONS" - Now Available:
Rush "ICONS", the latest compilation from Universal, is now available and can be purchased via this LINK. The "ICONS" series includes artists ranging from KISS to Diana Ross, and have the tag line "Great Artists, Great Songs, Great Value!", and include "12 hits for only $7.99". The "featured songs include their debut album's 'Working Man,' 2112's 'The Twilight Zone' and classic rock radio staple 'Limelight.'". Despite this being yet another compilation, the low price and non-standard track listing has actually generated some decent sales thus far. I'll have liner notes and images (if there are any) uploaded within the next week.
Neil Peart Featured In September's "Musician's Friend" :
The September Percussion Issue of the Musician's Friend catalog features Neil Peart on the cover and well as a foldout photo of Neil at his Time Machine Tour Kit. Click HERE for the online version of the catalog.
Dusting ‘Em Off: Rush :
Finally, check out an interesting retrospective view on Rush's debut album in an article called Dusting ‘Em Off: Rush – Rush.
That's all for now. Let the epic battle of Rush vs. Hurricane Earl begin! Wish Rush (and me) luck!
On this date in 1953, Rush Guitarist Alex Lifeson (born Aleksandar Zivojinovich) came into the world in Fernie, British Columbia. As Rush fans know, Lifeson founded the band in the summer of 1968 and was also responsible for bringing front-man Geddy Lee into the mix.
Though Alex is obviously best known for being the guitarist for Rush, he's also the part owner of the Toronto restaurant The Orbit Room, and is a licensed aircraft pilot, motorcycle rider, a gourmet cook and an artist.
Happy Birthday, Alex! Many happy returns!
||
August 25th 2010 New Alex Lifeson Interview Reveals More Details on 'Clockwork Angels'
The Allentown, PA newspaper The Morning Call has just posted a lengthy interview with Alex Lifeson titled Rush jumps into epic 'Time Machine'. With Rush about to play at the Allentown Fair at the end of the month, the article understandably focuses on the Time Machine Tour. However in addition to that information, Alex reveals some interesting tidbits about the forthcoming 'Clockwork Angels':
"We've got this great feeling of promise for this album and some of the material on it," Lifeson says. "I think it's all going to work out really great."
Lifeson says the band has six songs pretty much ready to go and three others almost done. The group plans to write at least a couple of additional songs after the tour. At this point, the CD is shaping up to be a musically varied work.
"There is the epic song, 'Clockwork Angels,' which is really taking shape. It's a multi-parted piece, very dynamic," Lifeson says. "Then there's some stuff that's very melodic and on the softer side, on acoustic, with a strong melody. So there's great diversity there. Honestly, I can't wait until we start really working on these songs. We've sort of got them to the stage where Geddy and I were happy with the arrangements and then Neil kind of comes in and starts working on his drum arrangements, and they go from there. So they're sort of in that pre-drum stage right now, and it's great to see them come to life."
Epic Song? I like the sound of that!
You can read the entire interview at this LINK. Thanks to Ed from RushIsABand for passing along the news story.
||
August 25th 2010 Rush Hand Out Commemorative Baseball Cap at Chicago Show
Update: Click HERE to read a news story on the custom Rush Hat.Rush played the Charter One Pavilion in Chicago on Monday night; a show that was originally rained out back in early July. This particular rained-out event drew a lot of attention due to the 'reaction' of one particular 'fan'. We'll leave it at that.
Regardless, in a very classy move, Rush handed out custom baseball caps embroidered with 'The Rain Date - Rush - Chicago 2010' to everyone in attendance. Click the thumbnail images to the right to view some high-resolution images of the cap.
So, the question now is -- who wants to sell one to me? :-)
Thanks to reader Ken Brennan for the news and RushIsABand for the images.
The final two Space Shuttle missions will be launching in November and January (2011) respectively. To commemorate the occasion, NASA is holding the 'Space Rock' contest:
The wakeup song has been a part of the space program since the days of the Apollo missions, and now NASA is giving you two chances to be a part of this history! We need your help selecting wakeup songs to be played during the final missions of the Space Shuttle Program!
Rush's Countdown from Signals is one of the choices for mission STS-133 which launches in November. You can cast your vote at this LINK.
Countdown was originally played as one of the Space Shuttle wake up calls during STS-109 back in March of 2002. That mission had the former Space Shuttle Columbia servicing the Hubble Space Telescope. STS-109 spent a total of 10 days, 22 hours and 10 minutes in space. It was Columbia's 27th flight and its first since 1999 after undergoing modifications.
STS-133 will be the 35th shuttle mission to the International Space Station. The Space Shuttle Discovery will deliver and install the Permanent Multipurpose Module, the Express Logistics Carrier 4 and provide critical spare components to the International Space Station. The Multipurpose Module will be a permanent fixture at the Station for supply storage.
Voting will be open from now through the mission launch date which is currently set for November 1st. As of this writing, Countdown along with the theme to Star Trek are in a close race. Cast your vote today.
The 2011 Rush Wall Calendar, which celebrates the 30th Anniversary of Rush's best selling album Moving Pictures is now available at Amazon.Com.
The Moving Pictures themed calendar marks the eighth Rush Wall calendar that's been released and follows last year's popular 2010 Permanent Waves Calendar.
You can check out all of the previous Rush Wall Calendars in the series by accessing the Image Database. We'll also have the 2011 Calendar online in the near future.
||
August 19th 2010 October Chile Date Confirmed / Early Ticket Sales Impressive
Rush officially annouced their plans to visit Chile in October for what is likely the final stop on the 2010 leg of the Time Machine Tour. The band will be playing at the Estadio Nacional (National Stadium) in Santiago, Chile on October 17th.
Tickets went on sale this past Sunday, August 15th via Ticketmaster Chile and, according to an article posted in a local newspaper called "Las Ultimas Noticias", over 15,000 tickets have been sold over the first three days. That's a pretty fair showing considering this is Rush's first ever stop to Chile.
Many thanks to reader Claudio J. Vargas of Concepción, CHILE for passing along the early ticket sales figures.
Back in 2008, VH-1 celebrated the Jewish holiday of Rosh Hashanah by airing 24 hours of Rush content including several Rush concerts, Rush specials and, of course, music videos. This year, "Rush Hashanah" returns on September 8th at 7pm. Here's some additional information from the press release:
When sundown hits, RUSH comes out to play this Rosh Hashanah. VH1 Classic celebrates the Jewish New Year with "RUSH Hashanah" starting at sundown on Wednesday, September 8 at 7 PM* for 24-hours straight. Tune in to the award-winning VH1 Rock Doc "RUSH: Beyond the Lighted Stage," for an up close and personal look at the Canadian musicians and jam to their "RUSH In Rio" concert. Take an in-depth look at Classic Albums "2112" and "Moving Pictures" premiering at 9:30 PM ET/PT and get even more RUSH when "That Metal Show" hosts Eddie, Don and Jim sit down with Geddy Lee and Alex Lifeson.
This marks the first official airing of the Classic Albums documentaries.
Rush continued their Time Machine tour on Saturday night with a stop at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, NV. Coinciding with the show was the 10th annual RushCon convention.
Below are a couple of favorable reviews of the concert:
In addition to the reviews, reader Scott Harrison snapped off 45 close-up pictures from the Vegas show. You can check them out HERE.
Rush will now play two shows at arguably one of the nicest outdoor venues in the U.S. -- The Red Rocks Amphitheater in Denver, Colorado. For all those attending the shows at Red Rocks, have a great time...
||
August 13th 2010 Rush 'Confirmed' to Visit Chile During the Time Machine Tour
There have been hints and rumors of Rush visiting Chile dating back to the Snakes & Arrows tour. Now, according to the Chilean newspaper El Mercurio (See article translation courtesy of Google HERE), Rush is expected to play the National Stadium in Santiago, Chile on October 17th as part of the South American leg of the Time Machine Tour.
According to the article, tickets will go on sale on Sunday, August 15th through Ticketmaster Chile.
At this time, there still hasn't been any confirmation from Rush.Com, though with ticket sales slated for Sunday, the announcement should arrive shortly.
||
August 13th, 2010 Rush 2112/Moving Pictures Classic Albums Documentary Now Available for Pre-Order
The long-awaited 2112 & Moving Pictures - Classic Albums are now available for pre-order from Amazon.Com.
For more information on the documentary, click HERE.
The acclaimed "Classic Albums" series is a definitive collection of the stories behind the albums that form the soundtrack to our lives. The latest addition to the series tells the story behind the making of two legendary albums from Rush. "2112" was the album that saw Rush break through to major chart success, going to No.1 in their native Canada and Top 75 in the USA where it would eventually be certified triple platinum. "Moving Pictures" opened them to a mass audience for the first time and remains the biggest selling album of their career. It also went to No.1 in Canada and went quadruple platinum there whilst hitting No.3 in both the UK and USA. Rush members Geddy Lee, Alex Lifeson and Neil Peart talk us through the making of the albums, together with original producer Terry Brown via interviews, demonstrations, archive videos and use of the original multi-track tapes.
Both the DVD and Blu-ray editions of "2112 & Moving Pictures - Classic Albums" will feature over 50 minutes of additional interviews, archive footage and new demonstrations not included in the broadcast version.
Thanks to GeddyWanneBefor the news.
||
August 9th 2010 Rush Backstage Club Adds New Time Machine Merchandise
More new Time Machine merchandise is available for purchase at the Rush Backstage Club! Check out all the new items including, new shirts, the Alchemist Hoody, the Rush messenger bag and more. These items have previously only been available for purchase on the Time Machine Tour and are now available for purchase at www.rushbackstage.com.
||
August 7th 2010 Rush Adds Argentina Date To Time Machine Tour
Last month, we learned that Rush was going to extend the 2010 leg of the Time Machine tour by heading south to Brazil; visiting Sao Paulo on October 8th at Morumbi Stadium and Rio de Janeiro on October 10th at Praca da Apoteose. Rush.Com has also just confirmed that the band will make a visit to Buenos Aires, Argentina on October 15th, playing at the Desarrollo al Rio. This will mark the first time Rush has played in Argentina.
There is also an unconfirmed rumor that the band will close up the 2010 leg of the tour with a stop in Chile. More on that as it becomes available.
Thanks to long-time reader and contributor Claudio C-08 for the news. Also check out Claudio's fantastic split-screen rendition of 2112 Discovery / Presentation at YouTube.
Rush resumes their Time Machine Tour tonight in Salt Lake City, Utah after a two-week break. With that in mind, I thought it fitting to take our own Time Machine tour back in time to review another batch of old Rush articles and interviews in the fifth installment of the Rush: A Brief History of Time.We'll start off the fifth segment of this archive by transporting back to 1974 for a review of Rush's debut album. Titled 'Rush' Makes Name, this favorable review was published in the Las Cruces Sun Times back on December 20th, 1974.
---
Up next is a three-page article from Circus Magazine titled Rush Release: Canada's Power Trio Is Switched On Live. Published back in 1976, this article by Anastasia Pantsios focuses on Rush's up-to-them short history and their success as a traditional power trio:
Rush's ability to emulate the musical approach of the keyboard-dominated English cosmic groups without duplicating their sound is one of the advantages Rush finds in remaining a guitar/bass/drums trio, a format that has fallen out of favor in the 70s.
---
Moving overseas, this next one-page Dutch article is titled Slaap Je Niet, Dan Rush Je Toch! which roughly translates to 'You Do not Sleep, Then You Still Rush'. This article was published back on September 7th, 1977. Check out the interesting portrait of "De Crew" ...
---
Holding on to the 1977 era, we have two separate articles that came from the Winnipeg Free Press; both written by Jim Millican. Up first is the October 28th article Rush scores gold albums without Top 40 radio play which, as the title indicates, focuses on Rush's growing success through 'A Farewell to Kings' without the benefit of any significant air play. Next is the December 7th article titled Toronto's Rush top rock export which is somewhat of a quick review of Rush's history with some emphasis on A Farewell to Kings.
---
Up next is a great five-page spread that was published on January 23rd, 1978 in Macleans Magazine. Titled, oddly enough, To Hell With Bob Dylan: Meet Rush. They're in it for the money and written by Roy MacGregor, this is actually a very interesting read that focuses, in part, on Rush Manager Ray Danniels and his commitment, financial and otherwise, to the band.
Why they survived and became so successful has little to do with instantly-obvious talent and a lot to do with hard, hard work. "It's like when I phone up an electrician and he comes and gives me good service," says Neil Peart. "I'll call him back again and maybe recommend him to someone else." The road show is superb in visual terms and two hours in length, and their vast audience is ample evidence that there are many who love their music. Nobody can ignore them anymore.
---
Closing out 1978 is an article that was published in Sounds UK back on February 25th, 1978. Titled Black Holes: Close Encounters with Rush and written by Geoff Barton, this four-page article intertwines a discussion about space, the history of Rush and a deep look into Cygnus X-1: Book I.
---
Moving on to 1979, up first is a quick band-review simply titled Rush which was published, uncredited, in the HM Special Issue -- UK back in the Spring of '79.
---
Up next is a rare, early -- and favorable -- review of Hemispheres which appeared in none other than Rolling Stone Magazine. The article was published in the March 22nd, 1979 edition of the magazine and was written by Michael Bloom. I found this line particularly interesting:
"I affirm this band's ability to rock out, but I really want to give Rush a hard shove in the direction it's already heading."
---
Up next is a nice full-page German concert advertisement from May 3rd, 1979 which also includes a smaller inset ad on the European 'Rush Through Time' live album release.
Next comes a nice one page article from the May 12th, 1979 edition of Melody Maker (UK) magazine. Titled The Maple Leaf Stomp and written by Steve Gett, this article is a nice Rush and Max Webster concert review.
---
We'll head into the eighties with, appropriately enough, a review of Permanent Waves which, as we all know, was released on January 1st, 1980. The review, titled Logical Positivism for Astral Minds was written by John Gill and was published in the January 26th, 1980 edition of Sounds (UK) Magazine.
---
Up next is something really special. The June 1980 edition of Guitar Player Magazine included two in-depth articles on both Alex Lifeson and Geddy Lee. These were among the first really detailed articles on Geddy and Alex in a major publication. The first article, titled Alex Lifeson: Rush's Kinetic Lead Guitarist was written by Jim Schwartz and spans 14 pages. The second article is titled Geddy Lee: Hi-Tech Bassist and Synthesist with Rush was written by Tom Mulhern and spans 12 pages.
---
Many people are aware of the July 2008 article on Rush in Rolling Stone Magazine called Rush Never Sleeps however this wasn't the first time RS did a feature on the band. The May 28th, 1981 edition of the magazine included an article called Rush: Power From the People which was written by David Fricke. The piece was sub-titled Ignored by critics and radio this hard-rock trio went straight to the fans which accurately captures the tone of the article:
"We know we're doing well when we can sit back and say, 'That's a good record; the audience applauds for it, they like it,'" concludes Lee as he heads for the arena's dressing room. "To make records people enjoy and that we enjoy playing - that's our measure of success."
---
Up next is a huge 48-page multi-article/interview collection that appeared in Sounds Magazine back in 1983. Written largely by Steve Gett, this offering includes numerous color and black-and-white images of the band. Click HERE to view it however be warned: The PDF file is about 30MB in size.
---
This next article offers up a nice view into the song writing process that Geddy and Alex employ. Titled Rush: The Saga Continues and sub-titled Alex Lifeson and Geddy Lee Divulge Some of Their Trade Secrets, this four-page piece written by John Swenson was originally published in the May 1984 edition of Guitar World Magazine.
Using keyboards in their arranging makes the guitar parts better, believes Lifeson: "When you play keyboard progressions on guitar. you end up playing chords on combinations you never really think to play."
---
Holding on to 1984, this next piece titled Rush Release was published in May in the UK Magazine Melody Maker. Written by Derek Oliver, this well-written and favorable piece looks at the success of the band leading into their classic Grace Under Pressure album.
---
In July of 1987, Guitar Player Magazine published a special Canadian edition called the Canadian Guitar Summit which included a secondary piece called Beyond Borders. This 17 page article, by Jim Ferguson, focuses on Canadian Guitar greats Alex Lifeson, Rik Emmett (Triumph) Liona Boyd and Ed Bickert. Definitely an interesting read!
---
Our final entry for the 80's is an impressive 12 page entry in Metal Magazine simply called Rush: History, Portraits, Discography by Goetz Kuehnemund. It gives a nice retrospective review of Rush's career through the Hold Your Fire period. This offering comes with numerous color photos of the band, many not seen before anywhere else.
---
As we enter the 90's, we return back to Macleans Magazine where, back on September 30th, 1991, an article titled Rush - Rock 'n' Roll Royalty was penned by Nicholas Jennings. The link brings you directly to Mr. Jenning's website where he has reproduced the original article.
---
Up next is a piece from a 1992 copy of Spin Magazine called Confessions of a Rush Fan by Bob Mack. The title says it all for this short 2-page piece.
---
Around the time when Alex Lifeson released his solo effort Victor, he was interviewed for a feature in the February 1996 edition of Guitar Shop magazine. The piece, titled Solo Signals and written by Mike Mettler, dives into the creative process that led to Alex's solo effort. Also check out the side article called Power Windows: Alex Lifeson's Hot Wheels which talks about his customized Black Mercedes 380SEC.
---
A few months later in 1996, another interview/Q&A session with Alex appeared in the September 1996 edition of Guitar One Magazine. This entry, titled Alex Lifeson: The Making of a Guitar Legend was written by Wolf Marshall and spans ten pages in all.
---
Our final entry this time around for the 1990's also features Alex Lifeson in a Guitar Shop Magazine article. Titled The Different Stages of Rush: Guitarist Alex Lifeson Reveals the Secrets Behind a 25-Year Legacy and written by Jeffrey L. Perlah, this six-page article is another in-depth Q&A session with the Rush guitarist which took place shortly after the band released their fourth live offering Different Stages.
---
We'll enter the 21st century with a very in-depth look at the creative process behind the formation of Rush's 2002 offering Vapor Trails. The article, simple titled Alex Lifeson on the Making of Vapor Trails originally appeared in the May 7th, 2002 edition JAM! Showbiz Magazine (Online).
---
And finally, closing out this fifth installment of Rush: A Brief History of Time is another Alex Lifeson-centric article. This one, titled Iron Man follows Alex while he works on his second-favorite past-time: Golf. This article was published in the December 2009 edition of Guitar Aficionado Magazine and was written by Gary Graff with photos by K.C. Armstrong.
Once again, tremendous thanks go out to Heiko Klages, RushFanForever and Eric from Power Windows for their contributions to this segment.
||
August 4th 2010 Neil Peart's News, Weather, and Sports Update
Neil Peart has posted an update to the News, Weather, and Sports section of his website. The entry, titled 'THEME AND VARIATIONS', focuses mainly on his motorcycle travels and a book/project he's been thinking about:
Since at least 2004, during the Thirtieth Anniversary tour I wrote about in Roadshow, I have been talking about a theme for a book, and even chipping away at it (mostly in my head, but partly in these stories). I referred to that imaginary book as Roadcraft: How to Work the World, and the aim was to assemble a set of rules for travelers that deliberately paralleled rules about living, working, making music-metaphors, like.
However, the more I continued to think about that goal, the more I realized it was not a book you could just sit down and write-it would have to accumulate, like experience, a journey, a life, and (indulge me here), a drum solo. In the flow of rhythm, dominant patterns arise and gather gravity over time, and suggest parallels that can be further developed and expressed-variations on a theme.
It has become obvious to me that my ambitions for Roadcraft represent the project of a lifetime, really, to be gathered and shared along the way. And in any case, those observations would certainly demand more than one book-more than one lifetime. But, what the hey-I figure I'll just start trying to nail down any principles I can, for as long as I can, then pass the project down to the next generation of travelers . . .
||
August 3rd, 2010 Theatrical and Home Release of "Suck" Coming in September
The Canadian-made star-studded 'Vampire Rock&Roll Comedy' Suck, which features a cameo by Alex Lifeson as a Canadian border officer, is finally headed to the big screen in the U.S. on September 2nd. The limited theatrical release will be followed by the release of the film on DVD and Blu-Ray on September 28th.
The film originally premiered at the 2009 Toronto International Film Festival. More information on the theatrical release can be viewed HERE.
You can pre-order your copy of the film via Amazon.Com.
Geddy Lee (born Gary Lee Weinrib) turns 57 today. Happy Birthday, Geddy -- and many happy returns! "Gary" was born in the small Toronto village of Willowdale. As many fans know, his given first name "Gary" transformed into "Geddy" during his high school days thanks to his mother's heavily-accented pronunciation of his name.
July 29th is also an important date in Rush history as it marks the date, back in 1974, when Neil Peart joined the group.
Rush closed out the first leg of their 2010 Time Machine Tour on Saturday with a sold-out performance at the Nikon Theater at Jones Beach on Long Island, NY. I was in attendance and snapped off a few pictures during the show. The crowd - and the band - were electric that night and though there were a few technical difficulties with the main screen from time to time, no one seemed to notice or care. The band are now enjoying a well-deserved two week break and will resume the tour in Salt Lake City on August 5th. In the mean time, here are some recent news stories...
Donna Halper UsedBinRadio Interview Now Online:
Donna Halper's interview on UsedBinRadio last week can now be listened to online via this LINK. Donna's segment on the podcast begins at the 47 minute, 10 second mark and continues for about 50 minutes. Thanks to RushFanForever (who called into the show) for the link.
NeilPeart.Net Re-skinned:
Neil Peart's official website has been reskinned in the 'Time Machine' theme. We're also expecting a new "News, Weather, and Sports" update from Neil within the next couple of weeks.
Rush "ICONS" - Now Available for Pre-Order:
Coming August 31st, Rush "ICONS", the latest compilation from Universal, is now available for pre-order via this LINK. The "ICONS" series includes artists ranging from KISS to Diana Ross, and have the tag line "Great Artists, Great Songs, Great Value!", and include "12 hits for only $7.99". The "featured songs include their debut album's 'Working Man,' 2112's 'The Twilight Zone' and classic rock radio staple 'Limelight.'". Thanks to Eric from Power Windows for the news.
Time Machine Concert Photos for Sale:
John Arrowsmith, Rush's official tour photographer, is now making many of his photographs available for sale. High quality prints of the photos that John has been regularly posting at Rush.Com are now available for purchase via this link. The photos are available in a variety of sizes and finishes starting at $40.
There's some exciting news for Guitar Hero (and Rush) fans. The band's iconic concept album 2112 is coming to the new Guitar Hero: Warriors of Rock:
It's official: Guitar Hero: Warriors of Rock has the most epically prog-rock sequence of any music video game yet. Rush have teamed with Activision for the fall release, which features a story-based Quest Mode that includes with hero wannabes playing the entirety of "2112," a seven-part suite from the Canadian band's 1976 album of the same name. The story of the game's final segment roughly follows Rush's opus, and will be narrated by lead singer Geddy Lee and guitarist Alex Lifeson. "In our story, the caves of 2112 are where our hero finds the lost guitar," says Lee. "This rediscovery of music is much like the Guitar Hero warriors' journey to find the Demi-God of Rock's Legendary guitar, which has been trapped in a cavern." Watch exclusive footage from the game here.
Peart, Lee and Lifeson join Kiss' Gene Simmons as Guitar Hero: Warriors of Rock narrators. Simmons' contribution begins with an introduction asking players to "Come with me, and enter a world populated of Demi-Gods and Beasts. Transform from an everyday person and become the savior of rock & roll."
For more on the release, including some video footage of the game and an interview with Geddy Lee and Alex Lifeson about the project, click HERE.
Thanks to readers Lee Simister, RushFanForever and Richard Rhodes for sending along the news.
||
July 20th, 2010 Neil Peart "Time Machine" Drum Sticks Now Available
Michael from NeilPeartDrumsticks.Com just let me know that the official Neil Peart "Time Machine Tour" drum sticks from Pro-Mark are now available:
The new Time Machine retail model of Pro-Mark drumsticks are now hitting store shelves. Check with your favorite store today!
While there you will also find the details about getting the new exclusive Neil Peart Signature Series mobile application for your Smartphone.
If you receive a pair of Neil's personal sticks from a concert ... remember to send in your photo with the sticks and sign, or no sign and the story, to be posted in the 2010 BUBBA's STICK CLUB on the Fan Gallery page. Already have a couple new members!
Additional information on the unique drum stick app as well as online ordering information for the drum sticks themselves will be posted once available.
Thanks to Michael for sharing the news.
||
July 20th, 2010 Pro Golfer Rocco Mediate To Wear Rush Hat at the Canadian Open
Professional Golfer Rocco Mediate, who has multiple PGA Tour wins, recently indicated that we would adorn a Rush hat while playing at the 101st edition of the RBC Canadian Open later this week. From the article Feschuk: Canadian Open Challengers Ready to Rock:
If all the world’s pro athletes were forced to make an in-their-prime career change, it wouldn’t take a pollster to project the majority vote.
They’d mostly morph into rock stars, or rap stars. And you could count Rocco Mediate, the PGA Tour pro, among the first in line to make the switch.
At least this is what Mediate was saying on Monday between practice putts at St. George’s Golf and Country Club in Etobicoke, where the RBC Canadian Open will commence its 101st edition on Thursday. Mediate, who famously tangled with Tiger Woods in an 18-hole playoff at the 2008 U.S. Open, is a big music fan. He is also a close friend of Alex Lifeson, the Toronto-bred guitarist for the rock band Rush.
And Mediate admires the acclaimed trio so much that this week he’ll be a rare sight among PGA types. Not currently under contract to sport the obligatory logo of a sponsor on his cap, he’ll pull on headwear bearing the logo of Lifeson’s band.
"I absolutely would trade my job for Alex’s. Tomorrow," said Mediate, 47. "He still loves what he does . . . and he’s a psycho golfer. Psycho. He plays literally every day . . . He’s probably about an eight handicap now, which isn’t bad."
||
July 19th, 2010 DarkStar Video Game Update -- Rush Music Pulled
The long-running interactive video game project known as DarkStar, which was to feature a complete soundtrack of more than 20 songs by Rush, has now announced that, due to broken negotiations with Universal and Atlantic, the video game will no longer include any songs by Rush:
"'The band gave us a green light years ago, but tough negotiations with Universal more recently have gone nowhere - and at the end of the day, they own the RUSH masters. They simply want too much money, more than was ever talked about during this process.' commented Studio owner J. Allen Williams. 'At this point we've made the difficult decision to pull the music and produce an original score for Darkstar so we can release, and that is now in process. We wish it could have gone better for both RUSH and our project, but that's Hollywood for you. Clearance rights were our last worry as we were told repeatedly over the years that the band was behind us. Anthem encouraged us to talk about it in interviews, which we did.' said Williams. 'We are disappointed, of course, as I'm sure there will be fans who have been writing us for so long waiting to see their favorite band in Darkstar.
I have a true love for RUSH and a vision that could have glorified them to a new generation of listeners. It sucks, it's sad, but that's the final word.' Darkstar began production in mid-2000, featuring the original cast of the television series Mystery Science Theater 3000, Clive Robertson (Sunset Beach), and was veteran actor Peter Graves final performance. Darkstar is back on schedule for release now that these issues are resolved, a date to be announced late summer once new music is in place."
It's a shame that after more than six years of waiting for this game that it will no longer be tied to Rush, but hopefully the original music the creators come up with will compliment the game nonetheless. Time will tell.
Update: Images from the Time Machine Tour Book are now online. Enjoy!
In one week, Rush will be heading to Jones Beach on Long Island, New York where yours truly will be in attendance; my first show on the 2010 Time Machine Tour (and hopefully not the last), while tonight marks the final show the band will play in the native Canada on this leg of the tour. Aside from the ongoing tour, here are some notable news stories that have recently surfaced.
Donna Halper to Appear on UsedBinRadio:
Donna Halper, the Cleveland DJ who helped to bring Rush to the U.S. masses back in 1974, will appear on UsedBinRadio this Tuesday.
"This week, we’re pleased to welcome our featured guest, DONNA HALPER, into the bin. Media consultant, musical historian, author, teacher and former music director for WMMS Cleveland, Donna was a pivotal on-air figure for rock radio. As many Used Bin listeners will undoubtedly be aware, Donna was the first to play RUSH on the air in 1974, ultimately landing them their first recording contract, and the rest, as they say is history. We’ll discuss her 36 year long association with our favorite Canadian trio, her induction speech at their recent Hollywood Walk of Fame ceremony and the illustrious career of a true media legend
Thanks to Eric from Power Windows and RushFanForever for the news.
Neil Peart Discusses Sabian Steampunk Cymbals:
Click HERE for a great article on the making of the Sabian Cymbals with the Steampunk influence that adorns Neil's Time Machine Tour Kit.
Sitting in Neil Peart’s kitchen, over a Scotch, he shared with me his elaborate concept for Rush’s new album Clockwork Angels. There was so much to the story, and the concept was so visual. He explained the steampunk style to me, citing examples from H.G. Wells and Jules Verne’s tales, including bizarre mechanical inventions powered by steam, elaborate clockworks, and alchemy, in an alternate timeline — “the future as it ought to have been.” Neil could see that he was over my head, as usual, so he said think of the movies The Time Machine and The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen. That’s steampunk!
The results from the Drum Magazine Drummies Awards are in and, once again, Neil Peart was voted in as the Drummer of the Year - 2010. Runner ups in the category included Travis Barker, Jimmy Sullivan, Mike Portnoy and Aaron Gillespie.
Neil was also the runner up in the category of Best Live Drummber (won by Aaron Gillespie) and Progressive Rock Drummer (won by Mike Portnoy).
Rush Featured in July Prog Magazine:
The July edition of the British Classic Rock Presents "Prog" Magazine has Rush featured on the cover and includes a six-page article on the band including interviews with Alex Lifeson and Geddy Lee, as well as 'Rush: Beyond the Lighted Stage; documentary filmmakers Sam Dunn and Scot McFayden. To purchase a copy of the magazine, click HERE.
Finally, I'm about half way through scanning the Time Machine Tour Book. I should have all the images online within the next few days. Enjoy-
For the first time ever Rush has helped develop a fun and useful application for the hard-core Rush fans. Get exclusive up to the minute news, music, and more in the palm of your hands.
See brand new content and be a part of all things Geddy, Alex & Neil as they embark on the Time Machine Tour. Follow this application. We will continuously be featuring updates and improvements.
-Directions, ticket info, and a full tour itinerary
-Find the nearest places to dine, stay, points of interest, and transportation near each venue.
-Rush News: Up to the minute information on all Rush activities
-Rush Radio: More than 30 of your favorite Rush songs embedded in
the application. Over $40 worth of music included as well as interesting facts on every song compiled by the band. Pick a song, and let it play while you explore the other functions on the Rush application.
-30 Wallpapers: for the first time available, beautiful and formatted for the iPhone and the iPod touch, include original album artwork and behind the scenes, new & vintage photos that can be emailed or saved as your wallpaper.
-Interactive game with Geddy, Alex and Neil: includes rare audio clips. It's a feature in this application that will be sure to shake you up.
The APP is currently only compatible with an Apple iPhone and iPod Touch and requires iOS 4.0 or later. There is currently no information on whether or not the APP will make its way on to the Android market.
A dedicated website for the Rush App has been set up at www.rushapps.com.
The App, which is priced at $2.99 (US) is available worldwide via the Apple iTunes Store.
||
July 15th, 2010 Neil Peart's "Chromey" Drum Kit Appearing at Two Niagara Events
According to a recent news article posted at The Standard (of St. Catharines), Neil Peart's Classic Slingerland Drum Kit (aka the 'Chromey') will be on display for the public to see.
The next month is going to be full of momentous events for mega-Rush fan Chris Irwin.
For starters, he's getting married to Dr. Petra Cantrup, on Aug. 14, followed by a honeymoon in Turks & Caicos.
On Tuesday, Irwin attended a Rush concert at the Air Canada Centre. And this weekend, he's attending RushCon, the largest annual North American gathering of fans of the legendary Canadian rock band.
But one of the most exciting things will happen when the couple hosts their stag and doe on July 23 at the Welland Lion's Club. The Chromey, the 1974 chrome Slingerland drum kit that was once owned and played by Rush drummer and former Port Dalhousie resident Neil Peart, will make an appearance that night.
The same drum kit will be available for the public to view at Lakeside Park in Port Dalhousie on July 22, from 1-11 p.m., as well as July 24, from noon to 10 p.m. Fans can come to the park that was immortalized in a Rush song of the same name and have their photos taken and even play the drums to raise money for the Friends of the Carousel.
"It's a bit surreal. It's a really cool thing," Irwin said, of having the kit at his stag and doe. "It's an iconic drum kit that (Peart) played from 1974-77. It's what the song Lakeside Park was recorded on, as well as (the album) 2112."
Rush have now completed the first three of five Canadian dates during the Time Machine Tour and by all accounts, the concert goers have not been disappointed. The band will play Quebec City on the 15th and their second Toronto show on the 17th before heading down the U.S. Eastern seaboard through Connecticut, Pennsylvania and finally New York. The July 24th show at Jones Beach in Long Island (the first show I'll be attending) will mark the end of the first section of this leg of the tour. Rush will then take a near-2 week break before resuming the tour on August 5th in Salt Lake City, UT.
The postponed July 7th show in Chicago has been formally rescheduled for August 23rd. According to Rush.Com:
The rained out Wednesday, July 7 performance at Charter One Pavilion has been rescheduled to MONDAY, AUGUST 23. All tickets for the previously scheduled performance will be reactivated and honored at the rescheduled date. If fans feel that the barcodes may be illegible, they should ensure they bring picture ID and the credit card which was used to purchase the tickets. Refunds - if required at point of purchase through August 22nd. Questions can be directed to TicketMaster customer service at 800-653-8000
Also, thank you to all the folks who wrote in telling me about the 'other' unfortunate situation linked with the postponed Chicago show. However I've decided not to give that story any additional press.
Below are a few reviews of the recent Rush concerts, including a very interesting retrospective look at one persons "relationship" with Rush.
The transcription of the Rush Time Machine 2010 Tour Book is now online along with some of the internal images. Who knew Alex would look so, er, ah, 'interesting' in drag!
As I've done with all the previous tour books, I'm currently in the process of scanning all of the images and should have them online within the next week or so. The tour book itself is a real gem; one every Rush fan should have in his or her collection. If you can't wait for the tour to arrive in your neck of the woods, you can order the tour book at the Rush Backstage Club.
Thanks to Eric from Power Windows for providing the transcription!
||
July 8th, 2010 It's Official - Rush To Visit Brazil in October
Rush.Com has now officially announced that the band will, indeed, stop in Brazil for two shows in October. From Rush.Com:
The RUSH Time Machine Tour will hit Sao Paulo on October 8th at Morumbi Stadium and Rio de Janeiro on October 10th at Praca da Apoteose. Information about the ticket on-sales will be released shortly!
We'll have complete ticket purchasing details once they are made available.
||
July 7th, 2010 Second Chicago Show Postponed Due to Weather
The second of two Rush concerts in Chicago at the Charter One Pavilion has been postponed due to 'Heavy Rain'. According to some tweets from Chicago's 97.9 The Loop, Geddy called in after the cancellation to explain that the band's electronics were shorting out due to the rain. The concert is expected to be rescheduled in early September, however stay tuned for an official announcement from the band.
All tickets from the second show will be honored at the rescheduled date. Thanks to reader RushFanForever for the news.
Rush has now completed the first three stops on their Time Machine Tour; opening in Albuquerque, NM last Tuesday before making stops in Kansas City, MO and the Milwaukee Summerfest yesterday. The band will now take a day off before performing two shows in Chicago at the Charter One Pavilion.
Official pictures from the first three shows have been posted at Rush.Com while several reviews have recently been published:
Also, for those of you who don't mind some spoilers, you can now check out the Tandem Digital's rear screen videos from the tour (two in all) via this LINK.
For those of you in the United States, have a happy and safe Independence Day!
||
June 30th, 2010 Rush: Beyond the Lighted Stage DVD/Blu-Ray Released / News on "Classic Albums" - 2112/Moving Pictures
The award-winning documentary Rush: Beyond the Lighted Stage is now available on both DVD and Blu-Ray. Complete with over an hour of bonus footage and also available in a limited-edition steel box package, you can own your own copy of this great documentary via the links below:
The acclaimed "Classic Albums" series is a definitive collection of the stories behind the albums that form the soundtrack to our lives. The latest addition to the series tells the story behind the making of two legendary albums from Rush. "2112" was the album that saw Rush break through to major chart success, going to No.1 in their native Canada and Top 75 in the USA where it would eventually be certified triple platinum. "Moving Pictures" opened them to a mass audience for the first time and remains the biggest selling album of their career. It also went to No.1 in Canada and went quadruple platinum there whilst hitting No.3 in both the UK and USA. Rush members Geddy Lee, Alex Lifeson and Neil Peart talk us through the making of the albums, together with original producer Terry Brown via interviews, demonstrations, archive videos and use of the original multi-track tapes.
Both the DVD and Blu-ray editions of "2112 & Moving Pictures - Classic Albums" will feature over 50 minutes of additional interviews, archive footage and new demonstrations not included in the broadcast version.
Pre-ordering information still isn't available for this item yet, but we'll post links once they become available.
||
June 29th, 2010 Rush Time Machine Tour Launches Tonight in New Mexico
Update - 06.30.2010 05:15PM EST: I'm not sure how I missed this, but click HERE for a high-resolution image of Neil's kit which is presumably from the Time Machine Tour Book (which I will be scanning/transcribing and uploading to the site soon...)Update - 06.30.2010 10:15AM EST: There are now a bunch of official photos from the Albuquerque show posted at Rush.Com. And if you really want to see some spoilers, there are plenty of bootleg videos now online at YouTube.Update - 06.30.2010 12:40AM EST: And there you have it. The first show from the 2010 Leg of the Time Machine Tour is in the books. By all accounts, it looks like it was a great start to the tour. The complete set list with video - and other - highlights from the show can be found HERE. Have a great night, all!Update - 06.30.2010 12:26AM EST: The second set is now over. Awaiting the encore...Update - 06.30.2010 12:04AM EST: We're now on to Neil's Drum Solo. There was a definite video theme during 'Moving Pictures'. More info HERE. Update - 06.29.2010 11:37PM EST: Forgive the spoiler, but they're now playing The Camera Eye!!!Update - 06.29.2010 11:27PM EST: The opening video sequence is now available at YouTube.Update - 06.29.2010 11:20PM EST: Intermission has ended. On to Set Two! More info HERE.Update - 06.29.2010 11:07PM EST: This has to be a first. Rush.Com has just posted the entire set list which follows the rehearsal set list, with some order changes as notated HERE. Neil's drum solo has a name as well. I will continue to 'confirm' the set list throughout the remainder of tonight's concert and also add any / all video segment descriptions as well.Update - 06.29.2010 11:00PM EST: Another nice photo feed located HERE courtesy of RUSHnATL.Update - 06.29.2010 10:45PM EST: We've hit the intermission...more to come!Update - 06.29.2010 10:30PM EST: It's hard to believe, but we're fast approaching the end of the first set. So far, aside from an order change, the set list has continued to reflect the rehearsal set list. More info, if you dare, available HERE. Update - 06.29.2010 10:15PM EST: Comments are taking up to 10 minutes to get posted tonight -- apologies for the delay. Post your comments -- they will appear. Update - 06.29.2010 10:07PM EST: Four songs in. So far holding to the rehearsal set list, as expected. See the Set Lists page for all the details!Update - 06.29.2010 9:42PM EST: The concert has begun with an opening video sequence and the first songs of the night. See the Set Lists page for more!Update - 06.29.2010 9:10PM EST: We are now minutes away from the start of the concert and spoilers are already coming in. Click HERE for a series of photos uploaded to Rush.Com by John Arrowsmith. Included are rehearsal shots of the guys with some of their equipment.
You can also check out some live Flickr Feeds courtesy of Todd Vernon who is on hand at the show.
The official set list, along with other specifics about the show (videos, etc.) will be posted on the Set Lists page throughout the night.
It was April 8th when Rush officially announced their 2010 Time Machine Tour to the excitement of fans the world over. And now, the tour is set to begin tonight in Albuquerque, New Mexico.
For those of you who don't mind a few spoilers, this is for you. If you'd like to see a picture of the stage set up, click HERE.
Interested in the rest of the set list beyond Moving Pictures? Click HERE for a preliminary view of it. Thanks to RushIsABand for the sneak peaks!
Regarding the set list, I will be revising/updating it throughout the Albuquerque show (hopefully).
If you happen to be going to tonight's show and are able to send in updates, please contact me.
The Summer of Rush has begun!
||
June 28th, 2010 New Time Machine Merchandise at Backstage Club Hints at South American Leg
The Rush Backstage Club now has numerous Time Machine specific items for sale including several official tour t-shirts as well as the tour book. What's interesting about one of the t-shirts, the 'Rush Moving Pictures All Over Print Tee' is that the back of the shirt lists the Time Machine Tour as covering the 'USA / CANADA / S.A.'.
This would seem to hint that Rush will, indeed, be heading down to South America for the 2010 leg of the tour. While this is still completely unofficial, there have actually been several news stories from Latin and South American papers indicating that Rush are, indeed, headed south. The last (and only time) Rush headed south of the border was during the Vapor Trails tour where they played in front of their largest crowds ever. Hopefully, the band will formally confirm the South American tour dates soon.
In the mean time, make sure you check out the Rush Backstage Club for some unique Time Machine merchandise.
||
June 26th, 2010 Rush: Beyond the Lighted Stage Television Debut Tonight
For those of you who missed the theatrical debut earlier this month, you can now catch the critically acclaimed and award-winning documentary Rush: Beyond the Lighted Stage on television tonight. It's scheduled to air at 9:00pm EST on VH-1, VH-1 Classics and Palladia (check your local listings for more details).
Unfortunately, our original report that indicated that the Moving Pictures/2112 Classic Albums specials were slated to premiere just before the documentary is no longer accurate. There has been a schedule change as according to VH1's channel guide, Ghostbusters is scheduled to air in that timeslot. There is no additional information on if/when the Classic Albums specials will be aired at this time.
And don't forget, you can still pre-order your DVD or Blu-Ray copy of the documentary via the following links:
I hope everyone takes a moment to share their thoughts on the documentary in the comments section below. Enjoy the show, everyone!
||
June 26th, 2010 Geddy Lee Options Dave Bidini's Baseballissimo
Given Geddy Lee's passion for baseball, it was no surprise when we learned that, earlier this week, Lee had purchased the film rights to Dave Bidini’s Baseballissimo, a look at the game of baseball as it’s played in Italy’s farm leagues.
In the spring of 2002, Dave Bidini set off for Nettuno, Italy, with his wife, Janet, and their two small children, in search of his favourite summer game, baseball. Nettuno was his destination because this town, south of Rome, has been the baseball capital of Italy since 1944, when the game was introduced by the American GIs who liberated the region. Bidini wanted to spend time in a town where everyone is as nuts about the game as he is, and in Nettuno, they love the game so much that they hand out baseball gloves and bats to children taking their first communion.
For six months Bidini followed the fortunes of the Serie B Peones, Nettunese to the core. At the same time he was also learning about his own heritage, having spent his youth vigorously ignoring his Italianness. The result of his summer in Italy is vintage Bidini: a funny, perceptive, and engrossing book that takes readers far beyond the professional sport to the game that people around the world love to play.
If you're interested in reading the book, you can pick up a copy at Amazon.Com.
||
June 25th, 2010 Rush Receive Their Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame
Update: June 26th: Below are links to some additional photos and videos of the ceremony. Plenty more are also available at YouTube.
Click HERE for a six minute video of the a portion of the ceremony with intro by Billy Corgan.
Click HERE for photos of the ceremony courtesy of The Canadian Music Scene.
Click HERE for the official Rush page at the Hollywood Chamber website.
Click HERE for a large slideshow gallery of official press photos.
Below is Donna Halper's speech:
I was raised to believe that values like ethics and loyalty matter, and the story of my friendship with RUSH involves both. In 1974, when I was the music director at WMMS in Cleveland, a Canadian record promoter named Bob Roper sent me an album that would go on to change my life. It was a band called Rush, and even though his label had refused to sign them, he wanted me to give them a listen. I did, and as most Rush fans know, I was impressed. WMMS began playing "Working Man" along with several other songs from the album, and soon, other stations were playing Rush too. By the summer of 1974, they had a U.S. recording contract.
I liked the members of Rush from the beginning. I found them very sincere and down-to-earth. Of course they wanted to become famous-- what rock band didn't? But they were not just in it for the money. They took pride in their music. In those days, I was sort of a Big Sister to them, but as time passed, they became the confident, professional and very successful band we all know, and they didn't need a Big Sister. They could have forgotten me at that point, since my contributions to their career were no longer necessary.
But as I said, this is about ethics and loyalty. For the past 37 years, we have kept in touch. I've defended them when critics were dismissive. And in return, they have never forgotten that I was there for them in the formative years of their career. And now, I have the privilege to see their work as musicians rewarded with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
I stand here today speaking not just for myself but for millions of fans, all of whom want me to say "thank you." There's the guy in Japan who learned English so he could better appreciate the lyrics of Rush songs-- I've heard similar stories from fans in Chile, Brazil, Finland, Israel, Mexico and elsewhere. There are entire Rush families -- baby boomers who introduced their kids to Rush and now they all attend concerts together. Rush fans are liberals, conservatives, people of faith, secular humanists... but their loyalty to Rush is something they all share.
For nearly four decades, the members of Rush have remained true to themselves and true to their music. They have never allowed success to spoil them. They have never lost their integrity. And in a world where it often seems the good guys never win, Rush are living proof that sometimes, good people DO finish first.
The official Hollywood Walk of Fame ceremony for Rush happened earlier today in front of the Musician's Institute at 6752 Hollywood Boulevard in Los Angeles. Reports indicate that Neil Peart was not on hand as, according to a comment made during Geddy's acceptance speech, he was "on his motorcycle to their first show".
As expected, Billy Corgan and Donna Halper were both on hand. The media were present with about eight video cameras pointed directly at the stage. The entire ceremoney lasted about 35 minutes with Rush music playing on some loud speakers prior to the proceedings.
Here are some images from the ceremony, courtesy of The Hollywood Reporter Twitpic Feed. Click on any of the thumbnails below for a larger image.
There was also a nice article published on the St. Louis Today website about Kevin and Keith Purdy who were instrumental in getting the band their star on the Walk of Fame. Check it out HERE.
Congratulations once again, Rush!
||
June 24th, 2010 In Conversation With Rush...Now Online
As we reported earlier this week, FMQB Productions and the Legends of Classic Rock will be airing an hour-long radio special titled In Conversation with Rush which will have Q107 Toronto's Jeff Woods interviewing Geddy Lee and Alex Lifeson.
However for those of you who do not want to wait, you can now listen to the full interview, available in four-parts, right here at Cygnus-X1.Net. See below for the cue sheet and links to each segment.
Segment #1 – Length 17:41 (41.5MB)
Songs: "Caravan" "Closer To The Heart"
Click HERE to listen.
Segment #2 – Length 16:27 (38.6MB)
Songs: "Tom Sawyer" "Limelight"
Click HERE to listen.
Segment #3 – Length: 6:05 (14.3MB)
Songs: "YYZ"
Click HERE to listen.
Segment #4 – Length: 7:57 (18.6MB)
Songs: "The Spirit Of Radio"
Click HERE to listen.
Each segment is rather larger in size so it goes without saying (but I'll say it anyway) that a high-speed connection is recommended.
Many thanks to JPO for pointing me to the interview. Enjoy.
||
June 24th, 2010 Billy Corgan to Speak at the Rush Hollywood Walk of Fame Ceremony
The official Hollywood Walk of Fame ceremony for Rush is scheduled to take place tomorrow in front of the Musician's Institute at 6752 Hollywood Boulevard, Los Angeles, CA at 11:30 AM. According to a posting from Rush's official Facebook Page Billy Corgan, the vocalist and lead guitarist/songwriter for The Smashing Pumpkins will be speaking at the ceremony.
Billy Corgan, vocalist, lead guitarist and songwriter for The Smashing Pumpkins, will pay tribute to the band as they accept their Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Billy joins Donna Halper, former radio personality at WMMS Cleveland where Rush received their first radio airplay with Working Man participate as well.
The ceremony will take place in front of the Musician's Institute at 6752 Hollywood Boulevard at 11:30 AM in Los Angeles this Friday, June 25th.
Mann Chinese 6 in Hollywood is going to have special screenings of 'Rush: Beyond The Lighted Stage' at their theatre this Friday in honor of Rush getting their Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame just blocks away. They're giving special screenings at 2pm, 5pm and 8pm in their biggest auditorium.
In other 'Facebook' related news, Sabian Cymbals posted a sneak-peak view of the cymbals Neil Peart will be using on the Time Machine Tour. You can check out the image via this link.
Thanks to Eric from Power Windows for the Sabian Facebook link.
||
June 24th, 2010 Caravan / BU2B CD Single and Other New Items From the Backstage Club
The official Rush merchandise shop, the Rush Backstage Club is now taking pre-orders for the CD version of the Caravan / BU2B single. Priced at $4.99, the CD is expected to ship within the next week. In addition to the CD, the Backstage Club has some other new merchandise including several new shirt designs like a Fly By Night Indigo Owl T-Shirt, a Counterparts Eden T-Shirt and a Test for Echo Inukshuk T-Shirt.
As a special promotion, if you spend $40 or more (before taxes), you'll receive a free copy of the Caravan / BU2B CD single.
You can check out all of their products at their website.
||
June 23rd, 2010 Alex Lifeson Interview with Billboard Magazine
We are now less than one week away from the launch of Rush's 2010 Time Machine Tour, which opens in Albuqueque, New Mexico on June 29th. Amidst the band's rehearsals, Alex Lifeson took time to speak to Billboard Magazine for an interview piece called Rush 'Moving' On Tour, Recording New 'Clockwork'.
"We've never afforded ourselves the luxury of coming off tour and then going straight into the studio when you're in top playing form," guitarist Alex Lifeson tells Billboard.com. "We usually finish a tour and then we take some time off and we slowly get back into writing and then into the studio, recording. This time we'll go straight back into the studio and continue recording and writing while we're still in top form from the road."
Greetings everyone. Apologies for the lack of updates over the past week. I was away on vacation in a remote area of the country where I had zero connectivity to the outside world -- an interesting time to be sure. But now I'm back so let's take a look at some of the most recent news in the world of Rush.
In Conversation With Rush:
During the weekend of June 25th - 27th, FMQB Productions and the Legends of Classic Rock will be airing an hour-long radio special titled In Conversation with Rush which will have Q107 Toronto's Jeff Woods interviewing Geddy Lee and Alex Lifeson.
"In Conversation with Rush is a one-hour radio special featuring Geddy Lee and Alex Lifeson with Jeff Woods as they revisit the classic album, Moving Pictures, go behind the scenes of Rush: Beyond the Lighted Stage, and talk about their forthcoming 2011 album, Clockwork Angels. The show will also feature the new song, "Caravan" and selections from Moving Pictures.
In Conversation with Rush is available to air from June 25-27, as well as in conjunction with the Time Machine Tour dates."
Moving Pictures/2112 Classic Albums To Premiere on June 26th:
As we've mentioned since April, Eagle Visions will be releasing the Classic Albums DVD/Blu Ray/Deluxe Edition of Rush's legendary "Moving Pictures" and "2112" albums on September 28th.
According to the Dish Network's program guide, a Rush 2112/Moving Pictures Classic Albums special will air on VH1 Classic on Saturday, June 26th at 8PM before the television premiere of the Rush documentary Rush: Beyond the Lighted Stage. And speaking of the documentary...
Rush: Beyond the Lighted Stage Movie Posters:
You can now own your own full-size (or smaller size) movie poster from the Rush documentary. Sold at www.moviepostershop.com, the posters come in 2 sizes; 27" x 40" for $24.99 and 11" x 17" for $14.99.
I'll end this segment with some teaser photos from the Time Machine Tour production rehearsal, courtesy of John from Arrowsmith Images. Enjoy-
||
June 12th, 2010 Rush Limited Edition Statues
KnuckleBonz, an online company that creates realistic high-end sculptures of various rock musicians and album art, and who also recently offered up a popular limited edition RUSH Starman statue has developed statues for each member of RUSH.
All figures in the Rock Iconz™ series are limited editions and the Rush figures are very exclusive with only 3000 pieces of each statue slated for production. These are officially licensed collectibles from Rush. Click on each product image to PRE-ORDER and reserve each of the RUSH Limited Edition Collectibles.
The Rush statues are created using a team of highly skilled artists to sculpt a remarkable likeness. Each limited edition figure will be cast in a poly-resin and hand-paint in fine detail. Each sculpture in the Rock Iconz series is hand-numbered and displayed on an attractive wooden base.
For more information on each statue and for pre-ordering details, please click HERE.
||
June 10th, 2010 Rush: Beyond the Lighted Stage In Theaters Today
It's been a long wait, but that wait is finally over. The critically acclaimed and award-winning documentary Rush: Beyond the Lighted Stage finally makes its theatrical debut tonight. For the most part, this is a one-night only showing of the film, however there will be multiple showings in several cities due to early sell-outs.
You can see all of the North American cities showing the film at the documentary's official theatrical website - www.rushbeyondthelightedstagemovie.com.
There will be doubtless numerous reviews of the documentary hitting this internet over the weekend, but this early one really struck a chord with me. Titled Getting Closer to the Heart, by Katherine Monk and published in The Vancouver Sun, you get the real sense that the reviewer, Ms. Monk, came away from the screening with a real appreciation of the band:
The filmmakers also seem to assume that Rush's music has wide appeal and should have hit a much bigger audience given the weight of talent, and their clear musical legacy.
It's certainly fair comment, but it's a tough sell because the truth is Rush compositions are sophisticated and layered and do not pimp the same four-four time and major chords that tend to define pop tracks. It's not generic mush.
Of course, this integrity is entirely admirable and gives the band an edge of genius, but it also clearly explains why they had such a hard time finding the success they eventually claimed.
The Rush story isn't as much of a mystery as much as it is a manifesto on the power of following your own path.
I hope everyone takes a moment to share their own thoughts on the documentary in the comments section below. And for those of you in the New Jersey area, I'll be attending the 7:00pm showing at the Clearview Mansfield Cinema 15 in Hackettstown, NJ. I hope to see some of you there.
And don't forget, for those of you not taking in the theatrical release of the documentary, it will make its television debut on VH-1 on June 26th followed by a release on DVD/Blu-Ray on June 29th.
||
June 7th, 2010 Geddy Lee and Alex Lifeson Hit the Interview Trail
Update: Toronto's Globe and Mail is asking for fan photos dealing with memories of Rush with the simple statement "Calling all Rush fans: Send us your photos. We'll publish a selection online." Click HERE for more information.
With the theatrical release of their documentary, Rush: Beyond the Lighted Stage later this week, Geddy and Alex have been busy making the rounds on the interview circuit. Last week, the Globe and Mail posted a lengthy Q&A session with Geddy and Alex in an article titled Awkward Headbangers Beware: It's Finally Cool to Like Rush :
Rush’s fandom is fiercely loyal; they’ve had the band’s back for decades, and they aren’t about to relax now that it’s cool to dig Grace Under Pressure or Vapor Trails. “When you get crap thrown at you with regularity, like we have for most of our career, our fans feel like they’ve been done a great disservice,” surmises Lee, no outsider in an arena full of Rushians. “They feel obligated to raise the flag – the Rush flag.”
There are supplementary articles that accompany the main one available on the right side of the page.
Geddy and Alex also appeared on CTV Canada AM earlier this week. The video interview is available via this LINK.
Thanks to readers RushFanForever and ArsenalFC for the links.
||
June 4th, 2010 Blackbird, Orange Amps, Donna Halper and T-Shirts
It's obviously been an exciting week in the world of Rush. The release of their two new singles Caravan and BU2B earlier this week has everyone talking. Over the last couple of days, there have been a few more notable news stories and blog posts related to the band that are all interesting in their own right.
First up is a blog update by Richard Chycki, the masterful sound engineer behind Rush's Snakes & Arrows as well as the upcoming Clockwork Angels. In his post, Richard discusses the recording and equipment set up for the recording of Caravan and BU2B at Blackbird studios:
...while I don’t have any Rush member shots handy, I do have a few photos of the guitar and drum setups from the recordings. Blackbird is one of the best equipped studios there is. We had a pretty maxxed drum mic and guitar amp setup. I have Neil’s kit loaded with tube mics – Tube 67s on all toms and ELAM 251’s for overheads and surround rooms, plus a pair of M50’s way up in the air.
Earlier this week, Geddy was interviewed on the topic of Rush merchandising. The Q&A Session was actually a pretty interesting read and indicated just how serious the band takes the entire merchandising effort behind a tour:
I’m just finishing a merchandising meeting. We try to make sure that the things that we’re selling are of high quality and that the prices are reasonable. Today we were presented with tons of T-shirt designs, and we have to make sure that we all like them and that don’t just represent past concepts of tours. There will always be one or two Starman t-shirts available, but the focus is on the current work – there’s all this new artwork that we’re excited about. The time machine [from the band’s upcoming tour] gives us a new idea to explore visually, and we have fun with that, and that’s what’s kept us current, I think: focusing on what we’re doing now.
And speaking of Geddy Lee, we just learned that he has endorsed Orange Amps and will be using them on the Time Machine tour this summer. Geddy will be using 2 x Orange AD200 bass heads together with 2 x OBC410 4x10"Bass Cabinets on the tour.
Finally, here is an interesting Q&A Session with Donna Halper regarding her involvement with the Rush: Beyond the Lighted Stage documentary.
Q. Please tell me about your role in the film and the screening.
A. I’m very honored to do it… I have a long history with the band. Sometimes, I’m amazed that we are still friends. I’m in the music industry for many years, and I’ve done a lot of favors for a lot of bands – I was a music director, so my job was to get them airplay, and I did that for hundreds of bands – but this is the only occasion where the band continues to acknowledge me.
In my early days working with the band, I was like a big sister to them. But now, they have gold and platinum albums, and they are millionaires – and yet that link is still there.
Many thanks to reader RushFanForever for passing along all of the news stories...
||
June 1st, 2010 Caravan and BU2B - First Rush Singles from 'Clockwork Angels' Now Available
Update: Lyrics, Liner Notes and Images from the PDF Booklet are now online. Click HERE to view.
The wait is over. The first two Rush singles from their upcoming album 'Clockwork Angels' are now available as a digital download from Amazon.Com as well as iTunes.
At Amazon.Com, you can purchase both singles separately for $0.99 or combined for $2.29 which comes packaged with a PDF booklet. Below are the links to each version:
The big news is that, contrary to speculation, the single 'BU2B' is not an instrumental.
I strongly urge everyone to support the band, purchase the singles and avoid grabbing an illegal copy (which are already, unfortunately, making their way around the internet).
Images and the official lyrics from the digital booklet will be posted online later today.
Post your comments here about the first new Rush material is three years.
These are exciting times for Rush fans the world over as we are now just days away from the premiere of two new Rush singles; Caravan and BU2B [Yes, it's BU2B, not BU2 regardless of what Rush.Com has listed] :) Following the release of the singles comes the world-wide theatrical debut of Rush: Beyond the Lighted Stage on June 10th. Then, of course, the tour begins at the end of the month. Exciting times, indeed.
So, as those of us in the United States prepare for a holiday weekend, here are a few notable items and news stories from the world of Rush...
Classic Albums DVD Release Set for September 28th:
Back in April, we let you know about the upcoming release of Moving Pictures and 2112 on the DVD/Blu-Ray format. According to Eagle Vision, the release date has now been confirmed as September 28th:
Eagle Vision has confirmed a September 28th release date for the Classic Albums DVD/Blu Ray/Deluxe Edition release of Rush's legendary "Moving Pictures" and "2112" albums. The video goes into the studio with singer/bassist Geddy Lee, guitarist Alex Lifeson and drummer Neil Peart, along with producers for interviews and rare performances of material that shaped the band's career such as "Tom Sawyer", "YYZ", "Limelight" and "2112".
What the Hell Happened to Rush Ticket Prices?:
Here's an interesting, humorous and on-point article on the state of Rush concert ticket prices, written by Max Mobley. I think we can all appreciate and relate to this issue.
You have to understand, being a Rush fan in college and high school meant never getting laid, wearing a mullet, reflecting sunlight off your skin at the beach, and, oh yeah, being a musician. In exchange for this exile, I got to see my band for the price on the ticket and not the price of a three bedroom home in Stockton, California
Rush Song-Title Wallpaper:
Reader TonyP let me know about a unique Rush-inspired wallpaper that he created. The image incorporates the titles of numerous Rush albums and song titles. It's been my desktop background image every since Tony sent it my way. Check out the full-size image via this link. Thanks for sharing, Tony!
Clockwork Angel Coincidence?:
Here's an interesting little find that was pointed out to me by long-time reader Tom Jackson. It would appear that the title Clockwork Angel (non-plural) has been used before. It's also interesting how similar the background graphical theme of this page is to some of the imagery we've seen from the upcoming tour and singles. I'm just saying... :)
Enjoy your weekend, all --
||
May 25th, 2010 New Rush Album Title Revealed - 'Clockwork Angels'
The 20th studio album from Rush will be called Clockwork Angels. The news comes from a recent article published at Marketwire.com.
Anthem/Atlantic recording group Rush has announced the upcoming release of their eagerly anticipated new single. "Caravan" -- which will be featured on the legendary band's forthcoming album, "CLOCKWORK ANGELS" -- will be available at all DSPs on June 1st and serviced to radio simultaneously.
"Caravan" will be bundled with an additional new album track, entitled "BU2B." Both tracks were recorded earlier this year in Nashville with Grammy Award-winning producer Nick Raskulinecz (Foo Fighters, The Deftones), who previously collaborated with Rush on 2007's critically acclaimed "SNAKES & ARROWS." Rush will return to the studio to resume recording after the completion of the upcoming "Time Machine Tour," with plans to release their 20th studio album, "CLOCKWORK ANGELS," in 2011.
Let the album-title debate begin! :)
||
May 25th, 2010 Hard Rock Cafe Denver's "Beyond The Lighted Stage" Movie Party
Join Hard Rock Cafe Denver for an amazing night celebrating the music and history of RUSH! On June 9th, Hard Rock Cafe Denver will be hosting a RUSH movie party to benefit Safe House Denver. Enjoy a specialty menu for $21.12, enter to win amazing Rush prizes including the new documentary DVD Rush-Beyond the Lighted Stage and bid on limited edition, one of a kind pieces of actual Rush memorabilia donated from the band including:
A pair of drum sticks used by Neil Peart
A limited edition Rush lithograph signed by the band
Rush-Beyond the Lighted stage movie posters
And much, much more!
All proceeds from the silent auction will benefit Safe House Denver (http://www.safehouse-denver.org/). As an added bonus, we will be showing exclusive footage from the new film! Drum City Guitar Land and Colorado Music Buzz Magazine will be on hand with giveaways as well. Be here to celebrate Rush's legendary career and support Safe House Denver! For more information, visit the Hard Rock Denver website, or call 303-266-0856.
||
May 25th, 2010 Geddy Lee and Alex Lifeson Appear on CBC's "The Hour"
The May 24th edition of CBC's The Hour with George Stroumboulopoulos featured another interview with both Geddy Lee and Alex Lifeson, who are not strangers to the show. The conversation this time around largely focused on the upcoming documentary premiere with Alex making his usual humorous comments.
Expect the episode to be available online within the next day or so via 'The Hour's' official website.
And while you're there, enter to win a signed copy of Moving Pictures -- open to Canadian residents only unfortunately.
Thanks to reader ArsenalFC for the heads-up!Update: The episode segment with Geddy and Alex is now available at YouTube.
||
May 23rd 2010 Neil Peart's News, Weather, and Sports Update
Neil Peart has posted an update to the News, Weather, and Sports section of his website. This is a great entry, titled 'Time Machines', where Neil looks back to 1970 when he was playing with the band J. R. Flood in St. Catharines, Ontario, as represented in the two images included here. Neil reflects on the impact of old photographs and their ability to transport us to another time and place:
An old photograph is a powerful time machine. Personally, I haven't kept any scrapbooks or albums for a long time, but lately a lot of my "pre-modern"-even ancient-history has been emerging from heaven-knows-where, sent to me in e-mails and envelopes from various sources.
Now I wonder with some trepidation, "What will they find a photograph of next?" It seems every possible file of ancient yearbook photos has been finely combed, and many dusty boxes of black-and-white prints by amateur photographers have been found in basements and attics.
Back in the late sixties and early seventies, hardly anyone I knew had a decent camera, and considering the cost of film and developing, the few that existed were more sparingly used. Nowadays every handheld device can take a picture.
(That was one of my suggestions for the title of our tour this summer: "RUSH: Handheld Devices." But eventually, for all good reasons, "Time Machine" won out.)
Continuing with the 'Time Machine' theme of his entry, Neil discusses his relationship with a 1964 Aston Martin DB5. We all know that the inspiration for the lyrics behind Red Barchetta came from Richard S. Foster short-story A Nice Morning Drive, but you also get a real sense that Neil's time with his DB5 led to the meaning - the feeling - behind the classic Rush tune.
For some, the fantasy might be that if you can afford to buy a beautiful old car, then you could just drive around in it, looking surpassingly cool.
Oh no. Nothing is that easy. An old car-especially an old English car-will test you.
You have to man up to that challenge, and become engaged with the machine. I suffered through many "adventures" with that DB5 (recalling the female rally driver's comment, after her car skidded off of a snowy road and rolled onto its roof: "Adventures suck when you're having them"). Breakdowns, overheating, having to refuel without turning off the engine (it wouldn't start when hot), flatbed recoveries, and roadside repairs with Swiss Army knife and emery board were part of that adventure.
Neil then discusses his work for the upcoming tour and new album and how a "spectacular new drumset" is currently under construction. Finally, Neil reveals perhaps his true inspiration - and drive - for getting 'back to work' -- his daughter Olivia.
Truly, another great read by the Professor. Check it out for yourself via this link.
Thanks to reader Charles from Tulsa, OK for the heads-up on the news posting.
||
May 21st, 2010 RushCon 10: 10th Annual Rush Fan Convention Officially Announced
RushCon/Force/10, a weekend long convention for Rush fans, will celebrate their 10 year anniversary by holding two conventions in both Toronto and Las Vegas.
Both Conventions have been timed to coincide with Rush's "Time Machine" tour dates in each city. Toronto's Convention will take place July 16-18, 2010 at the Courtyard by Marriott in Downtown Toronto, Ontario. Las Vegas' "Mini-RushCon" will be held August 14, 2010 at Hooters Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada.
RushCon / Force / 10RushCon offers fans the unique opportunity to involve themselves in all aspects of Rush's music and decades-long career. Events will include games, contests, trivia, vendors with rare and collectible merchandise, guest speakers, charity "Rush memorabilia" auction, exclusive tour of Anthem Records (Toronto only), group trips to shows and more.
Special guests include an exclusive performance by singer-songwriter JACOB MOON, a revealing and insightful presentation by long-time Rush crew member, TONY "JACK SECRET" GERANIOS and a panel discussion by media-historian and discoverer of Rush DONNA HALPER.
Ticket packages, day passes and their prices are outlined at the official RushCon website at www.rushcon.org. Attendees are encouraged to join the mailing list and/or check back periodically for details and updates regarding all convention events.
||
May 19th, 2010 New Rush Singles Available on June 1st
The first two Rush singles from their upcoming album will be released as a digital download from Amazon.Com on June 1st. We've known for a while that the first single will be called Caravan. And now, based on the Amazon listing, it seems as if the second single is called BU2B.
I smell an instrumental :)
The singles can be purchased separately, but if purchase them together, you'll also receive a PDF booklet.
You can add each single to your wishlist via the links below.
Thanks to readers RushFanForever and Caleb Medd for passing along the news.
||
May 18th, 2010 Rush: Beyond the Lighted Stage Bonus DVD Information Revealed
Last month, it was hinted that the pending DVD/Blu-Ray release of the Rush Documentary 'Beyond the Lighted Stage would also include a bonus disc with additional footage that didn't make the final documentary. We now have official information on the content of the bonus DVD which includes over 3 hours of additional footage and content. The bonus DVD includes the following exclusive material:
1. Being Bullied and The Search for The First Gig
2. Reflections on the album Hemispheres
3. Presto and Roll The Bones Rap
4. The RUSH Fashion
5. Hobbies on the Road
6. RUSH Trekkies
7. Pre Gig Warm-Up
8. "Best I Can" - (never-before-seen footage w/ original drummer, John Rutsey from 1974)
9. "Working Man" - (never-before-seen footage w/ original drummer, John Rutsey from 1974)
10. "La Villa Strangiato" - Live at Pinkpop Festival in Holland from 1979 (first time this epic song was captured on video)
11. "Between The Sun and Moon" - Hartford, CT (from the band's first show back after hiatus in 2002)
12. Dinner with RUSH at a Hunting Lodge
13. "Far Cry" live - from the 'Snakes & Arrows' DVD
14. "Entre Nous" live - from the 'Snakes & Arrows' DVD
15. "Bravado" - rare live version -- previously only available on the 'R30' Blu-ray version
16. "YYZ" - rare live version -- previously only available on the 'R30' Blu-ray version
In addition to the release of the bonus content, a video interview with Geddy and Alex was posted at CNN. Nothing really new revealed, but interesting nonetheless.
The DVD/Blu-Ray release is still scheduled for June 29th. Pre-order your copy via the following links:
Thanks to reader RushFanForever for the video clip and RushIsABand for the bonus DVD info.
||
May 12th, 2010 Rush: Beyond the Lighted Stage Updates
Attendees of the Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival, which ran from April 29 to May 9 in Toronto, Ontario, have selected the "Rush: Beyond the Lighted Stage" as one of the Top 10 audience favorites as determined by audience vote. This follows the documentary taking home the Heineken Audience Award at the Tribeca Film Festival earlier in April.
In addition to the latest recognition the documentary is receiving, many more cities have been added to the theatrical release of the documentary on June 10th. For a complete list of cities where the documentary is being shown, please visit the official website for the theater releases at www.rushbeyondthelightedstagemovie.com.
I'll be attending the documentary premiere at the Clearview Mansfield Cinema 15 in Hackettstown, NJ so if you're attending as well, drop me a line!
And don't forget that the DVD/Blu-Ray release is still scheduled for June 29th. Pre-order your copy via the following links:
||
May 7th, 2010 The Gibson Interview: Alex Lifeson (Part 2)
The second part of the Alex Lifeson interview with Gibson guitars is now online. In it, Alex discusses more about his choice of guitars over the years, the progression of the band and some of his thoughts on the making of Moving Pictures.
In addition to the past, Alex had this to say about the new material Rush has been working on:
So to bring it back to the new material you're working on, is this more guitar-oriented stuff? What kind of feel does it have?
Oh yeah, it's in-your-face guitar stuff. It's awesome, great. In fact, I'm really pleased with the way it's turned out. Everybody's playing really well. There's great energy and there's great rhythmic funk-ability going on there and some really cool stuff and I am really, really pleased with it.
Are you ready to get it out on the road and test it with the fans?
Well yeah, sure. I mean, we're probably halfway through the project for these two songs. We'll probably start mixing, in fact, later tonight, and spend the rest of the week just doing that. But it's great. I really like it.
Part One of the two part interview can be read via this LINK. Part Two of the interview can be read via this LINK.
||
May 4th, 2010 Snakes & Arrows Live Concert Movie Goes 2x Platinum
For video sales, Gold certification indicates the sale of 50,000 units while Platinum indicates the sale of 100,000 units. Album sales receive Gold / Platinum certifications at 500,000 / 1,000,000 sales respectively.
Of Rush's studio albums, only Vapor Trails and Snakes & Arrows have failed to reach the 'Gold' certification threshold...yet.
You can view a complete list of all of Rush's Gold and Platinum certifications via this LINK.
||
May 4th, 2010 Rush: Beyond the Lighted Stage Theater Release Dates
Mark your calendars, everyone. The US and Canadian theatrical release of Rush: Beyond the Lighted Stage is coming on June 10th. The film is being distributed in the US by D&E Entertainment who have released a list of 33 US cities where the documentary will be shown with the promise of "more to come". Here's the current list:
Apple Valley, CA
Baton Rouge, LA
Birmingham, AL
Boston, MA
Chattanooga, TN
Cleveland, OH
Columbus, OH
Dallas, TX
Dayton, OH
Detroit, MI
Evansville, IN
Hartford, CT
Houston, TX
Indianapolis, IN
Kansas City, MO
Kalamazoo, MI
Little Rock, AR
Los Angeles, CA
Louisville, KY
Las Vegas, NV
Minneapolis, MN
New Haven, CT
Oklahoma City, OK
Omaha, NE
Pensacola, FL
Philadelphia, PAv
Phoenix, AZ
Pittsburgh, PA
San Diego, CA
Toledo, OH
Tulsa, OK
Tuscon, AZ
Virginia Beach, VA
Tribeca Film Festival attendees have selected the rockumentary "Rush: Beyond the Lighted Stage" for the fest's 2010 Heineken Audience Award.
Scot McFadyen and Sam Dunn's Canadian feature received the $25,000 award Saturday night at the TFF Wrap Party in Chelsea's Altman Building. The film chronicles the 42-year history of the band, whose status as a heavy metal act has provoked online debate for several years. Interviews with fans such as Gene Simmons, Billy Corgan and Jack Black are featured alongside profiles of Rush bandmates Geddy Lee, Alex Lifeson and Neil Peart.
Click HERE to see the other documentaries from the film festival that were also in the running.
Congratulations to Scot McFadyen, Sam Dunn and, of course, Rush for winning this award.
Part one of a two-part interview between Alex Lifeson and Gibson Guitars was just posted at the official Gibson website.
It would be so easy for a guitar player to disappear in a trio like Rush. Fronting the band is the man-siren shriek and thundering bass of Geddy Lee. Propelling things from behind is, quite possibly, the greatest rock drummer of all time, Neil Peart. So, a mere mortal might just be inclined shrivel up and play barre chords. But Alex Lifeson has always been up to the challenge. From the crashing riffs of "Working Man" and "Passage to Bangkok" to the searing leads of "Limelight" and "The Main Monkey Business," he has always represented the cutting edge of rock guitar. Alex recently visited the Gibson Custom Factory and sat down with Gibson.com
While there isn't anything terribly new in this interview (at least the first half of it), Alex does elaborate on why the band is recording in, of all places, Nashville TN:
I don't generally think of you guys as a Nashville band. What brings you to Nashville for recording?
We are using Blackbird Studios - great studio. Really, really good studio. Our producer, Nick Raskulinecz, lives here. He moved here from Los Angeles last year and, unfortunately, in Toronto there are no good drum rooms. Most of the great studios that used to be there are gone. There are a couple still left, but it was a question of where we would record drums more than anything else. We thought about doing it in L.A. Neil lives there. It would be nice for him to be home while we were working, but those studios weren't available either and Blackbird was, and Nick had had some experience there and used it quite a bit, actually. And it's a great place.
You can read the entire interview via this LINK. The conclusion of the interview should be posted next week.
||
April 30th, 2010 Rush: Beyond the Lighted Stage DVD / Blu-Ray Pre-Order Now Available
The new documentary Rush: Beyond the Lighted Stage can now be pre-ordered from Amazon.com in both DVD and Blu-Ray formats.
Both versions, along with a digital download version, will be released on June 29th.
All versions are still expected to include a bonus disk containing over one hour of additional features which didn't make the final cut.
||
April 30th, 2010 "Time Stand Still - The Collection" Now Available
There is certainly no shortage of Rush "Greatest Hits" compilations albums, though all of them dealt with a specific segment of Rush album history. Now, a new European import which includes tracks from Rush's earliest offerings up through 1987's Hold Your Fire is available.
Titled Time Stand Still - The Collection, this 13-track collection presents a nice sampling from nearly all of Rush's first twelve studio albums (also known as the 'Mercury Years'). Here's the track list:
1. The Spirit Of Radio
2. Tom Sawyer
3. Freewill
4. Fly By Night
5. The Big Money
6. Time Stand Still
7. Limelight
8. Finding My Way
9. By-Tor And The Snow Dog
10. A Passage To Bangkok
11. Distant Early Warning
12. The Trees
13. Closer To The Heart
To order the CD via Amazon.Com, please click HERE.
||
April 29th, 2010 Rush Hollywood Walk of Fame Ceremony Set for June 25th
It was back in June of 2008 when we first mentioned that Rush was going to receive their own star on the famous Hollywood Walk of Fame. We've now learned that the actual ceremony will take place on June 25th as confirmed by a news clip from the Artisan News Service on the Rush documentary (Click HERE to watch the news clip.)
Mention of the Walk of Fame Ceremony occurs at the 3:15 mark.
The original project to get Rush this honor was coordinated by Donna Halper as well as Rush fans Keith and Kevin Purdy who reached out to fans across the world for support.
||
April 28th, 2010 Rush To Release First New Single Within a Month - Olympics Mystery Solved
Both Geddy Lee and Alex Lifeson have been on the interview trail of late and, as such, we're beginning to get more information on the thought process behind the upcoming tour as well as the new material. In this Geddy interview with Spike of 94 WYSP in Philadelphia, Geddy indicated the following about the new material:
... It's hard, it's fresh. They're pretty hard hitting. They're pretty musically ambitious. One of the songs is longer... kind of a cross between Far Cry and Monkey Business. Another one is just the shorter kind of super energy song. ...
In addition to discussing the new material, the documentary and the tour, Geddy also (finally) reveals why Rush was not part of the recent Winter Olympic Games.
...Well we had an opportunity to play but there were all kinds of crazy rules going on about lip-synching and all stuff like that and that's just not our bag, man...
Now I'm glad they didn't play the Olympics because the notion of Rush lip-synching just doesn't sit well with me.
Alex Lifeson also had an interview with New York City's Q104.3 where he stated this about the new songs:
...we'll release one to radio in about a month and then the two of them will be released around the same time at the beginning of the tour...
Information on how the singles will be released hasn't been shared yet, though certainly we can expect digital downloads to be at least one of the formats utilized.
Thanks to Ed from RushIsABand for the interview links.
Update April 27th: A 9-minute long red-carpet video featuring interviews with fans and celebrities alike is now online at YouTube.
The world premiere of the Rush documentary 'Rush: Beyond the Lighted Stage' at this weekend's Tribeca Film Festival in New York City had both Geddy Lee and Alex Lifeson on hand along with filmmakers Scot McFadyen & Sam Dunn. Numerous pictures from the event can be viewed via this LINK.
In addition to the premiere, a new dedicated website for the documentary has been established at www.rushbeyondthelightedstage.com which includes news on the documentary, the official trailer, images and more.
Additionally, the official website indicates that the theatrical release is scheduled for June 10th with showings in select theaters. The DVD/Blu-Ray/digital download release is still scheduled for June 29th with unconfirmed (Thanks Power Windows) news that the DVD release will include 'a bonus disk containing over one hour of additional features which didn't make the final cut!'.
We'll have more news -- and reviews -- as they become available.
Last night's episode of the FOX Sci-Fi/Paranormal series 'Fringe' opened with 'Tom Sawyer' playing prominently in the background. The episode, titled 'The Man From The Other Side' started with a shot of an abandoned warehouse where a young couple in a parked car are getting high while 'Tom Sawyer' blares from the car radio.
The complete episode is already online and can be viewed via this LINK.
||
April 22nd, 2010 Rush: Beyond the Lighted Stage Review Thread
Update: April 23rd: The official trailer for the documentary is now online HERE. Enjoy.
As most of you know by now, the 'Rush: Beyond the Lighted Stage' documentary is set to debut at the Tribeca Film Festival in New York City this Saturday, April 24th followed by a premiere at the Toronto's Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival on April 29th and 30th. The documentary will also be shown in theaters this summer and will make its television premiere on VH-1 on June 26th.
With all the premieres and upcoming showings, I wanted to create a 'Reviews' thread here which will link to any published reviews. Please feel free to add links to additional reviews (or add your own personal review) in the comments section of this thread.
So, with that said, here are the first reviews I've come across:
"But dammit, if liking Rush is wrong, I don't wanna be right. Going into the film knowing nothing about the band beyond that one scene in I Love You Man, I didn't come out instantly dying to track down their filmography and memorize Neil Peart's drum solos, but I was utterly charmed all the same."
"I always found guitarist Lifeson's sound to be singularly colorful, connoting oranges and yellows instead of the monochrome of bands like Iron Maiden or the aptly-named Black Sabbath."
"But in the way of many Canadians, the bandmates - Geddy Lee, Alex Lifeson and Neil Peart - come across as such nice, unaffected rock stars. And the on-camera tributes from the likes of Billy Corgan and Kirk Hammett are so heartfelt that the cynical viewer begins to soften and appreciate if not Rush's music, than at least the fervor they stoke among fans ..."
"During the course of its four-decade run, the Canadian band RUSH has been immensely popular and tricky to categorize, notwithstanding Jack Black's on-camera assertion that it's a band "with a deep reservoir of rocket sauce." ...
"Rush is a unique story," says McFadyen. "It's our first real human and emotional story. It's the first time we've been able to capture in depth the personalities and motivations and struggles a band has gone through to do what they do and I think we captured their humour and some of their toughest moments. And for us that's a pretty big step forward."
Rush doesn't need a new fan, but vice versa; in our current pop culture climate where being a nerd is now cool, Rush helped pioneer literary references and sprawling fantasy concepts so bands like Coheed and Cambria could produce a comic book based on their entire song catalog.
"We came to the realization that globally, Rush is kind of recognized as Canada's rock ambassadors from fans of all ages, I think it made me realize this band has a much bigger impact around the world than a lot of Canadians certainly appreciate, so it seemed like a story that needed to be told."
Entering Rushdom -- By Guy Dixon, April 28th, 2010. Memorable Quote:
"Everyone assumes that Rush, because their music is so serious, must be really serious guys. But if they took themselves really seriously, they would not be nearly as interesting."
"But they weren't chasing or trying to sound like something the record company was telling them to sound like," added Dunn, "they weren't trying to pump out hits, they were creating music that they wanted to."
"I think they didn't connect with critics because they were perceived as being pretentious," says Dunn, "Because of fantastical lyrics, really long songs, complex time signatures. But I like that quote in the film from Neil: 'We weren't being pretentious! We weren't pretending anything. This is what we're into!'"
"That dynamic permeates the story of the band, illuminating the inner workings of the deep personal bond that's kept the men together for so long. Its depiction transforms Rush: Beyond the Lighted Stage from an on the level telling of the Rush story to a testament to the right ways to stay humble in the face of enormous fame, to exude the sort of authenticity that attracts legions of followers, no matter how high your voice, how unhip your dress and how much you sing about temples rising from federation cities."
I'll add more reviews to this thread as I come across them.
Enjoy.
||
April 22nd, 2010 Alex Lifeson Discusses Documentary and Upcoming Tour
A new interview with Alex Lifeson was just posted at Time Out New York.
Receiving its world premiere at the festival, Sam Dunn and Scot McFadyen's profile goes deep into the boyhoods of the prog-rock trio's famously headstrong members. Along the way, it shows the band doubling down against its management's wishes-and coming up with the classic LP 2112. Lifeson, 56, called TONY from Nashville, where Rush is partly recording its 19th studio album.
Along with some questions geared towards the documentary and some early footage of Alex when he was a teenager, there was a discussion about the upcoming tour where Alex revealed the following:
You're about to go on the road playing the entirety of 1981's Moving Pictures, including the 11-minute-long "The Camera Eye." How do you keep it fresh?
"Tom Sawyer" could have been written eight months ago, with the kind of response it still gets. We're bringing a bunch of other old stuff back, "Jacob's Ladder," too. We're rearranging it slightly, as with "The Camera Eye," changing a couple of things, having another crack at it. It's going to be a lot of fun for us.
Thanks to Eric from Power Windows for the news.
||
April 21st, 2010 Geddy Lee Interview in Rolling Stone Magazine - First Single Named
Rolling Stone magazine just published an article/interview with Geddy Lee titled Rush's Return to the Limelight in which Geddy discusses the upcoming tour, recording 'Moving Pictures' and a bit about the new album.
This summer, Rush will be hitting the U.S. and Canadian concert trail on their Time Machine Tour, which will see the trio perform their 1981 classic Moving Pictures in its entirety. They'll also be road-testing new material they're working up for their 19th studio effort. Frontman Geddy Lee tells Rolling Stone the fresh tracks are "upbeat, hard rocking songs" with a Rush trademark: "typically absurdist arrangements."
Will you release some new songs to coincide with the tour?
I'd imagine - because we don't have time to do more than two at the moment - we'll probably release one as soon as it's ready, before the tour starts, and then probably release the second one as the tour starts. But our hope was to really get something down on tape, so we could play these songs live and road test them in a way. We're still kind of throwing titles back in forth, but one is called "Caravan."
Add 'Caravan' to the set list for the Time Machine Tour :-)
Eagle Vision has confirmed a September release date for the Classic Albums DVD/Blu Ray release of RUSH's legendary Moving Pictures and 2112 albums. The video goes into the studio with singer/bassist Geddy Lee, guitarist Alex Lifeson and drummer Neil Peart, along with producers for interviews and rare performances of material that shaped the band's career such as 'Tom Sawyer', 'YYZ', 'Limelight' and '2112'.
It's unclear when the video segments/interviews were shot (i.e. during the recording of these two albums (unlikely) or more recently, but I'm sure more details will begin to unfold over the summer.
||
April 20th, 2010 Rush: Beyond the Lighted Stage Coming to VH-1 on June 26th
According to a recent article regarding upcoming programming on VH-1, the new documentary on Rush, which premieres this weekend at the Tribeca Film Festival, will also have its world television premiere on VH-1 on Saturday, June 26th.
This world premiere gives a comprehensive exploration of the history of legendary Canadian power trio Rush - from their early days growing up in Toronto, through each of their landmark albums, to the present day. With a career spanning four decades, RUSH (Geddy Lee, Alex Lifeson, and Neal Peart) is one of the most successful bands in the history of popular music, but despite their remarkable career achievements, they have never been critics' darlings. Directors Scot McFadyen and Sam Dunn interview the band's admirers and contemporaries, including Gene Simmons, Billy Corgan, Sebastian Bach, Jack Black, and others and also deliver rare backstage and concert footage.
The documentary will also be in theaters this summer, though an exact release date has yet to be announced.
Due to popular demand, Rush has now added a second Chicago, IL and Denver, CO show to the 2010 Leg of the Time Machine Tour.
The second Chicago show will take place on July 7th (two days after the first show) and will also be held at the Charter One Pavilion. The second Denver show will take be held on August 18th (the first show taking place on the 16th). Both Denver shows will be held at the incredible Red Rocks Amphitheatre.
In addition to the two new shows, there are many more dates which now have ticket pre-sale and sale information. For complete details, please visit the official Rush.Com website.
||
April 18th, 2010 Snakes & Arrows Live DVD Loses Out on Juno Award
Rush's Snakes & Arrows Live failed to bring home the Juno award for best music DVD of 2009 last night, losing out to 'Iron Maiden Flight 666,' the documentary made by Canadian heavy metal filmmakers Sam Dunn and Scott McFadyen. Of course, Dunn and McFadyen are also the filmmakers behind the upcoming Rush Documentary 'Beyond the Lighted Stage' which premieres this weekend at the NY Tribeca Film Festival.
Sam Dunn, coincidentally, wore a 'Caress of Steel' t-shirt (See image) at the Juno awards because, according to this article, he assumed Rush was going to take home the prize.
"I wore my Rush 'Caress of Steel' shirt because I thought Rush were going to win," Dunn said backstage after their win...
Thanks to RushFanForever for passing along the news and picture of Dunn in the COS t-shirt.
It's been an exciting week in the world of Rush as tickets began going on sale for the upcoming 2010 Time Machine Tour which launches in just under 75 days in beautiful Albuquerque, New Mexico. Speculation on the set list, beyond the inclusion of Moving Pictures in its entirety, has been running wild -- but hey, that's what we do. We're Rush fans :) In addition to the tour dates and ticket presales, here are some other notable stories...
Rush: Beyond the Lighted Stage Movie Info & Poster:
Rush.Com has some new information on the upcoming documentary on the band. In addition to unveiling the official Movie Poster, the site had this to say as well: "The trailer, other premieres, theatre runs, and more details coming soon!". The official premiere is still scheduled to take place next week on April 24th at the Tribeca Film Festival in New York.
CD Single To Be Released:
News that a "Limited Edition Rush CD Single" which "includes two new songs off the upcoming album" that's included with the Premium Fan Ticket Package has had the Rush community buzzing. Though it's currently unknown whether the CD single will be available for purchase separately (or via digital download), some inside 'sources' are suggesting that the CD single may actually be available, in limited quantities, at each of the concert shows. We'll have more information as it becomes available.
Rush Congratulates South Park on 200th Episode:
All three members of Rush recently recorded a congratulatory singing message to the producers of 'South Park' on recognition of their 200th episode. You can see the short video segment via this LINK. Thanks to Eric from Power Windows for the news.
Cygnus-X1.Net Rush Lyric Randomizer 2.0:
In celebration of the upcoming Time Machine Tour, I've decided to completely overhaul one of the oldest features of Cygnus-X1.Net; the Rush Lyric Randomizer. Changes include incorporating the graphical theme of the Time Machine Tour, including texturized album cover images, and also allowing you to click the lyric banner to read the entire lyrics from the particular song. The original Lyric Randomizer included just under 150 random lyric segments while the new one has nearly 500! This is a feature I've been meaning to change for several years now, so I'm happy to finally have a proper reason to update it. Now, on to other new features! :)
That's all for now, everyone. Enjoy the weekend...
Update (04/13): Visit the official Rush Music Today website for fan pre-sale information on a number of dates which begins today. You do NOT need any special credit card or other membership to participate in this pre-sale. Also, we've learned that the VIP package listed below will also include a Limited Edition Rush CD Single (includes two new songs off the upcoming album) but be prepared to fork over about $300 per ticket for that package.
Pre-sale dates for the upcoming tour are upon us with many beginning tomorrow (April 13th). For complete details on all pre-sale dates, please check out the official Rush page at Live Nation website.
In addition to the pre-sale information, we've learned that there will be a special Rush VIP Ticket package which is expected to include the following:
* One premium, reserved ticket located within the first 15 rows of the stage
* Specially Designed Rush Concert Shirt
* Collectible Tour Poster (limited edition, numbered)
* Official Rush Tour Program
* Copy of the new Rush DVD, "Beyond the Light of the Stage"
* Copy of the Rush CD, "Working Men"
* Set of official Rush guitar picks
It initially appears that the Rush VIP pre-sale is open to everyone and also begins, in some locations, tomorrow.
Best of luck to everyone in getting their tickets!
||
April 12th, 2010 Rush: Beyond the Lighted Stage Preview Clips
Two preview clips of the upcoming documentary on Rush, which is set to premiere on April 24th at the Tribeca Film Festival, have just been posted online.
The film will also appear at Toronto's Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival, with showings Thursday, April 29th at 9:30PM at the Winter Garden Theatre and Friday, April 30th at 4:00PM at the Isabel Bader Theatre. Additionally, we've learned that the DVD is completed and "should be released" June 29th.
Another Rush Tribute album is set to be released this May 18th, 2010 from Magna Carta Records. New World Man: a (Rush) tribute is actually a compilation from two earlier Rush tribute albums; Working Man from 1996 and Subdivisions from 2005. It also includes the Alex Skolnick Trio's jazz interpretation of "Tom Sawyer" which was previously released on Last Day In Paradise.
Featuring performances by:Chris Pennie (Dillinger Escape Plan, Coheed and Cambria); Juan Alderete (Mars Volta); Shane Gibson (Korn); Dave Martone; John Petrucci (Dream Theater), Billy Sheehan, Alex Skolnick (Testament), Andreas Kisser (Sepultura), Sebastian Bach (Skid Row), Eric Martin, Vinnie Moore, Kip Winger, Mike Mangini, Mike Portnoy This album compiles some old favorite's from Magna Carta's "Working Man" and "Subdivisions" tribute albums; Alex Skolnick trio's interpretation of "Tom Sawyer"; along with some newly recorded tracks.
You can pre-order the album on Amazon.Com via this LINK.
Update: A Rush News Letter / press release has just been issued which contains a Tour Itinerary document (PDF) as well as more information on the tour.
(Toronto - Thursday, April 8th 2010) - Rush - Geddy Lee, Alex Lifeson, and Neil Peart - is without question one of the most inventive and compelling groups in rock history, equally famed for both its virtuoso musicianship and provocative songwriting.
Announced today, The Time Machine Tour is an evening with Rush, where they will perform their classics, give a taste of the future - and for the first time ever - feature the Moving Pictures album live in its entirety.
The band is currently working on their 20th studio album with producer Nick Raskulinecz (co-producer from 2007's Snakes & Arrows) and in addition to their classics plan to showcase a few new tunes live this summer.
"We were off for a year and a half, and now it's just pouring. Everything is totally crazy and there's not a minute left in the day. We've got these half-dozen songs, and we'll probably go in the studio and work on a couple of them and see how it goes, perhaps release something - and I say perhaps - and then we plan on being on the road," says guitarist, Alex Lifeson.
This summer's Live Nation promoted tour will visit approximately 40 cities throughout North America beginning June 29th in Albuquerque, NM and finishing October 2nd in West Palm Beach, FL with stops along the way in Boston, Chicago, Denver, Dallas, Holmdel, Houston, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Philadelphia, San Francisco, Toronto, Washington, and more along the way (complete tour itinerary follows).
Rush has sold more than 40 million records worldwide and garnered untold legions of devoted and admiring fans. According to the RIAA, Rush's sales statistics place RUSH third after The Beatles and The Rolling Stones for the most consecutive gold or platinum studio albums by a rock band.
Released in 1981, Moving Pictures was their most successful album, certified 4x Platinum and features some of Rush's most well known songs and perennial radio favourites Tom Sawyer, Limelight and the Grammy-nominated instrumental YYZ.
Update: I've now added the Tour Dates to the Tour Information section of the site. I'll be adding the Set List and Tour Book information as it comes available.
---
The rumors have been put to rest. Earlier this morning, Rush formally annouced their plans for a Summer 2010 Tour, dubbed the 'Rush Time Machine Tour 2010'. The tour will emcompass 37 dates and will open on June 29th in Albuquerque, New Mexico at The Pavilion in the Hard Rock Casino. The band will then make their way around the country, ending the 2010 leg of the tour in sunny West Palm Beach, Florida at the Cruzan Amphitheatre.
In addition to the tour dates, Rush also announced that they will be playing, for the first time ever, Moving Pictures in its entirety. Finally, many of us will get to here The Camera Eye Live!
Tickets for many dates will go on sale on or about April 16th. You can check out all the sale dates at the official Rush.Com website.
The tour dates will also be added to the Tour Information section of this site later today.
We'll have more information on ticket sale dates and potential hints at the set list as they become available.
Let the 2010 Summer of Rush begin!
||
April 7th, 2010 Rush To Perform at PNC Arts Center (NJ) and Jones Beach (NY)
Though no official tour dates have been annouced by the band (yet), an article that was just published at NJ.Com indicates that Rush will be performing at the PNC Arts Center in New Jersey (my backyard) on September 3rd. They'll also be coming around to the New York City area on July 24th, making a stop at Jones Beach in Wantagh, New York.
Interestingly enough, the article named the upcoming tour as the 'Time Machine Tour' which may play well into the possibility of a B-Sides setlist.
Expect more news tomorrow as the Countdown draws to a close.
The band's official website, Rush.Com has started a countdown which apparently ends sometime Thursday (April 8th) morning. The countdown does not seem to be properly synchornized for those outside of the Eastern Time Zone, so the actual end-time is still somewhat up in the air.
I'm speculating that the countdown announcement will include information on the Rush 2010 Tour with potentially some information on the new material that the band has been working on.
I guess we'll all find out in, oh, about 45 hours or so :)
The Rush Tribute @ Cygnus-X1 is maintained by John Patuto.
All Rush-related content with the exception of the "Reviews" and "Rush Links" section of this site are (c) 1997-2010 Anthem Entertainment.
"Cygnus-X1.Net" and the "Tribute to Rush" is in no way associated with nor endorsed by Rush and/or Atlantic Records and/or Mercury Records and/or Anthem Entertainment; their parents or their affiliates. "Rush" et al and any/all related names, marks and/or insignias
are trademarks of Atlantic and/or Mercury Records. No infringement on the rights of these entities is intended.
This page has been viewed 443204 times since October 17th, 2005
Up next is a three-page article from Circus Magazine titled 
Up next is a great five-page spread that was published on January 23rd, 1978 in Macleans Magazine. Titled, oddly enough, 
Up next is a huge 48-page multi-article/interview collection that appeared in Sounds Magazine back in 1983. Written largely by Steve Gett, this offering includes numerous color and black-and-white images of the band. Click 
