Chapter 6
The next chapter in the band's history would require other changes for Rush. Because the close proximity of friends and family had got in the way during the remixing of 'All The World's A Stage', the band decided that their next record would be made far away from the distractions of home life. Alex, Geddy and Neil would record the album in England, the home of art rock and the scene of Neil's first try at making it in the music business. Ray and Vic figured that as long as the group were overseas, they might as well schedule a two-week European tour. Dates were set in Great Britain, Sweden, Holland and West Germany.
In most of those countries Rush albums were being sold as imports. While punk rock rushed over the old world, Alex, Geddy and Neil would be trying to break a sound that the pundits said was dead. But there were several factors playing in their favour. Just because The Sex Pistols and The Damned were rocketing up the charts did not mean that there was not an audience for hard and progressive rock. The band also had a feisty champion in Geoff Barton of Sounds Magazine, later to become editor of Kerrang!. Barton heard an import copy of 'AII The World's A Stage' and was blown away. He raved about the record, calling Rush the best undiscovered band in Britain. This stirred interest in the group and by the time they hit England, they found themselves something of a cult phenomenon.
The band opened in Sheffield on June 1, and Alex, Geddy and Neil were surprised to find they had sold out the gig. All other dates on the jaunt were also SRO.
With the brief series of European dates more successful than the group expected, it was time to head into the studio. The band were originally going to record in London, but they ended up laying down most of the tracks at Rockfield Studios in South Wales.
Since Canada and the United States had very similar cultures, travelling in the US did not seem that different to the band and crew. But the European tour brought most of the entourage in contact with foreign cultures for the very first time. They quickly grew homesick and the band would always remember this when comparing their marathon swings across the US with tours by English acts.
Liam talked about how it felt to be away from home. 'The tour seemed very long, and then we went right into the wilds of Wales, into the studio for a fairly long album. After you're away from home for so long, you have a craving to get back. The studio was extremely isolated. There was a town a few miles down the road, but it was a very small, very old place. We were definitely out in the wilds. It was a very rustic setting. On the other hand it was a nice experience going into a different studio, but it wasn't the lap of luxury by any stretch of the imagination."
One familiar face was perfectly comfortable with the setting. Terry was back in his native land producing his favourite band.
When the trio entered Rockfield studios much of the album was already written. It even had a working title, 'Closer To The Heart'. During the course of the sessions, 'A Farewell To Kings', 'Madrigal', and 'Cinderella Man' were written in their entirety.
Work was also completed on 'Cygnus X-1'. To get the unique sound they wanted for the futuristic space epic, 'We allocated a day for creating some special environments," according to Terry, "which you can't just pull out of a hat. So we messed around and had Alex hook up his guitar through various pedals and we hooked up a bunch of digital units in the control room. We just developed ideas with tape loops, a whole bunch of different sounds."
Reading as always was having a profound effect on Neil's writing. He had been inspired to write 'Cygnus X-1' by an article on black holes in Time magazine. The genesis of another song came for the first time from an outsider. A friend of Neil's, Peter Talbot, gave the band the title 'Closer To The Heart' and the first verse 'And the men who hold high places, must be the ones who start to mould a new reality, closer to the heart.'
After spending three weeks at Rockfield, Terry and the band went to Advision Studios in London for two weeks of mixing. Again, the band had made a leap forward.
The album opens on a meditative note as Alex plays a short classical guitar introduction. Birds at Rockfield can be heard whistling in the background as Neil joins in with chimes, triangle and other percussion. Geddy also plays a meditative synthesizer pattern. The band then pause for a moment before the traditional power attack. As Geddy wonders what future generations will think of us, the band plays with anger.
The subject turns to the problems of today. Then comes an instrumental break that shows the band as hard-hitting as ever, but a little leaner and with a more focused idea of where they are going. It is the same trio as before, yet different. The metallic rock of the earlier albums remains, but the arrangements and the sound are fuller. Geddy puts in a great performance. He seems to be angry that the 'hypocrites are slandering the sacred halls of truth.'
The remainder of side one finds the band in search of 'Xanadu'. The desperate quest is successful in ways beyond the narrator's imagination and, to his horror, he finds what he is looking for. Instrumentally there is the same stretching that appears on 'A Farewell To Kings'. They have absorbed the progressive rock influences they sought, but even more than on '2112' they have created their own sound and identity as a band. It is passionate, yet with a strong intelligence. The words convey the theme in a clear manner and the music supports the lyrics, and both work off each other. The louder, more aggressive passages are not just there so the group can rock out, they serve the story. The same is true of the quieter parts. If in the past they sometimes seemed merely a place to show that Rush were not just a heavy metal band, now they also serve the ideas the trio were trying to convey.
The second side also begins on a quiet note. 'Closer To The Heart' appears to be a manifesto of how the group would like things to be. Often accused of a coldly intellectual approach, they urge compassion and understanding. It remains a favourite with female Rush fans and would open quite a few radio station doors. Next comes 'Cinderella Man', a fable with lyrics from Geddy, and a beautiful melodic chorus. The band is able to soften its approach here without losing any of its intensity.
On any previous Rush album the next song would be a kick-out-the jams rocker, but with 'Madrigal' the band spins another enchanting melody and does an all out love song. The tune opens with two bittersweet lines from Neil, 'When the dragons grow too mighty, to slay with pen or sword.' Geddy's voice convincingly carries a tone of weariness that the whole band must have felt. They had had very little time off since the summer and they were far away from home. Neil's pen is way north-west of Pegasus on the album closer 'Cygnus X-1 Book One'. It builds on the developments of 'Caress Of Steel' and '2112'. But the group is better able to carry out its ambitions. As a reminder of the past a heavily synthesized voice sets up the saga that is to follow.
We learn of a black hole and its dangers and mysteries. The sharpest playing of the record follows as the menace is conveyed through a staccato instrumental passage. The percussion work seems enough to frighten off all but the most hardy character. But the traveller heads onwards in his ship, the 'Rocinante' towards the heart of the dead star. But what awaits him is not known, but it is clearly worth the risk. The ship enters the black hole 'spinning, whirling still descending like a spiral sea unending. 'A brief phrase 'to be continued' closes out the lyrics, and leaves listeners wondering if they will ever hear the fate of the 'Rocinante'. Incidentally, 'Rocinante' is the name of Steinbeck's motor home in his book 'Travels With Charlie'. It was also the name of Don Quixote's horse.
After completing 'Kings' the group moved to Canada to work on their first video. Alex, Geddy and Neil were filmed playing in a mock concert at Toronto's Seneca College. 'A Farewell To Kings', 'Xanadu' and 'Closer To The Heart' were shot. Pictures of rural English castles decorated the acoustic opening to the title song.
The buildings in the background on the cover to 'A Farewell To Kings' are in Toronto. For years Rush fans have tried to figure out where in the City the picture was taken from. The foreground of the cover is a separate photograph shot at a demolished warehouse in Buffalo, New York. That picture was matted with a photo of the Toronto skyline. One of those most perplexed about the cover is none other than Rush's road manager Howard Ungerleider who lives in one of those buildings.
The band had been working for almost 10 solid months. They would now have one month off before it was time to start gearing up for what would become known as 'The Drive 'Til You Die Tour'.
For even with the time off, the group and the crew were still not totally recovered from the marathon tour they had so recently completed. But with radio still a problem and a reputation as a live band to live up to, they would have to hit the road again in September when the new album was released. Rush played just about every town in which they could get a date. A few weeks might see them play 15 or more dates in six or seven cities all across America. And this was not even including Canada or the now obligatory European tour, and there was now the possibility of going to other parts of the world. Both Geddy and Alex were later to say that all the tours from '2112' through to 'Hemispheres' seemed like one unending string of dates.
But life as a road band was continuing to increase the band's prospects. When 'A Farewell To Kings' came out in September in Great Britain, the United States and Canada, it was the first time a Rush album had been released simultaneously in all three countries.
The strongest sign that Rush had finally arrived came two months later. On the US leg of the tour, the group found itself headlining in most cities, although they still played a few shows as special guests. In November three Rush records were certified gold in the United States on the same day. 'A Farewell To Kings' led the list, followed by 'All The World's A Stage' and '2112'. While sales of 50,000 records would garner a Canadian Gold album (because Canada has a much smaller population), sales of half a million copies of a recording are needed to receive the American version of the award. After playing across the continent for four years the band's commitment and integrity had paid off.
It was at the end of that month that they returned to Philadelphia where I got a chance to see what was now my favourite band for the second time.
Rush made their second appearance at the Tower Theatre on November 26. Like their first show it was sold out. As the crowd lined up outside the venue, the mood was electric, and it was clear that Rush would be playing a bigger hall on their next tour, and this was the last chance to see them in a more intimate setting.
Tom Petty And The Heartbreakers played for 30 uninspiring minutes. When they left the stage, the crowd began screaming 'Rush, Rush, Rush!" But Tom and the boys came back for an encore. It was hard to hear their heartless rendition of 'Breakdown' over the cries for Alex, Geddy and Neil. There was a brief intermission, then the show began.
The whole stage turned black for a moment. Then Terry Brown's strange voice intoned, "In the constellation of Cygnus there lurks a mysterious, invisible force. The black hole of Cygnus X-1." After the Rocinante's final flash of glory, Geddy's Rick travels onward towards the six stars of the Northern Cross. He is joined by Neil, and eventually Alex as live Rush increases the drama of the studio version tenfold.
Other favourites were performed with that unique Rush mix of grace and abandon, '2112', 'Cinderella Man', 'A Farewell To Kings', 'By-Tor And The Snowdog', and 'Lakeside Park'.
When I heard 'A Farewell To Kings' I knew the band were shooting for new musical territory and, seeing them live, I became fully convinced they had commanded this newly charted course.
It was also interesting to see how the new musical direction had influenced their stage set-up. Neil was sporting his new jet black Slingerlands complete with the star in a circle logo on his bass drums. He had even more percussion instruments than ever before. Alex was in a transitional period with his amps. He had Hi-Watt heads, and Marshall cabinets. Geddy had a combination double neck guitar-bass, the first one ever produced by Rickenbacker who made it specially for Geddy. In addition, he used a Mini-Moog during a few of the songs and was also playing bass pedals.
The trio later said that even though they were able to play the new material live, they learned a valuable lesson from the Kings tour. With all the added equipment, they had made things very difficult for themselves by not figuring out how to play all of the new songs on stage before the tour rehearsals. Geddy found he would be playing an irregular rhythm with his feet, and playing the melody with his hands and singing on top of that. With the increased musical complexity, the band's stage manner was a little toned down. Since they were so busy playing, they were not able to run around as much as they had in the past. Some of that excitement was now expressed in purely musical terms.
The actual stage production had also grown. The PA speakers literally reached to the ceiling of the hall. Aircraft landing lights lit up the venue during key songs. It was the most gear I had ever seen stuffed into the 3,000 seat theatre.
My phone calls to local radio stations increased after the performance. I also found that more and more people had actually heard of the band. My missionary efforts increased.
On Christmas Day I received an unexpected present. A friend called to tell me that Rush were on television. I ran to the set and turned it on cranking up the volume. For some reason Don Kirschner's rock concert was on at 2pm in the afternoon. I saw the band rip through the three Farewell To Kings' videos. It was my favourite present that year.
After a short holiday break the band were on the road again in North America. and in February they embarked on their second British tour on which all 16 dates were sold out. Rush found that just like in the East Coast region of the United States their audience was growing, but these foreign gigs were not without controversy when NME writer, Miles, launched a personal attack against Neil Peart and the band. The article all but branded Rush a band of Nazi fascists. Geddy witnessed the conversation between Neil and Miles and couldn't believe how the interview was taken completely out of context.
It was a very painful couple of weeks for Geddy. His parents had survived a Nazi concentration camp during the war, and his father actually died from its effects after moving to Canada to start a new life for his family.
Things quieted down a bit as the band left Europe, but it was time for more shows in the United States. They continued playing, sometimes up to 13 days in a row in 13 different cities. Their popularity also spurred Mercury to make an unusual marketing move. Rush's appeal came not from a radical change in direction, but a natural progression. Mercury also saw a growth in the sales of their earlier albums. With a new record not due out until autumn, the company decided to take advantage of the growing interest in the band by releasing their first three albums as a specially priced three album set. It was dubbed 'Archives' and helped give some of the group's later fans a sense of the trio's recording history. Neil was particularly pleased because the package contained the third album. 'There is some great music in 'Caress Of Steel', he said at the time, 'and with 'Archives' more people will get a chance to hear that music."
Rush continued their gruelling series of gigs into June when they closed out the 'Drive 'Til You Die' tour with a few more Canadian shows. They had played in front of more than one million people. Alex, Geddy and Neil had also received their second Juno award, this time for best group of the year. At this point they had six gold and three platinum records in their homeland.
But a prolonged rest was not on the cards for the three very exhausted musicians. First there was the little matter of a new album to record. And the growing amounts of headline dates left them with less of a chance to write on the road. For the first time they would do almost all of the writing in the studio. Once again, Terry would co-produce. A return trip to Rockfield was set up.