Rush does not stand for Rest Under Satan's Hand. This silly rumour started when the cover to 2112 had a flaming pentagram on it and later Archives which had a man facing an upright pentagram. I mean, Rush used to perform in church basements before they broke out ...
Neil Peart (pronounced peeurt, not pert) does not have throat cancer, god bless him, and does not have a Ph.D. in philosophy. He's a real smart cracker, however, and is responsible for the cerebral lyrics that makes all Rush fans feel all smart and proud of themselves for enjoying the music. (Hey, I do ...).
Geddy Lee does not think about baseball during sex to prolong his performance, but he is a big Mets fan.
As a self-professed Rush groupie since 1987, I reccommend the band to anyone who likes classic and progressive rock. The musicianship is excellent, the songs are deep and interesting, and the band has a sense of humour (e.g. 50 ft inflatable bunnies in the Presto and Roll the Bones Tours that bounce during Tom Sawyer).
a street name for the drug amyl nitrate. some people call them "poppers" because of the old-style glass vial that one would "pop" underneath their nose.
rush is classified as an inhalant and is commonly associated with the gay community, as it gained it's notoriety for relaxing the anal muscles while not adversely affecting an erection. generally, it produces a feeling of blood "rushing" to the brain along with mild euphoria.
amyl nitrate can be used to treat angina pectoris. "..and one for the doctor..."
Rushes are important components of wetlands, filtering water flowing by them, stabilizing slopes, and providing habitat and food for wildlife. They are found throughout the Northern Hemisphere temperate and boreal regions - in fact, one species, Juncus balticus, is circumpolar, meaning it is found in all continents bordering the arctic.
A progressive rock band formed in Toronto, Ontario in 1968, by guitarist Alex Lifeson, vocalist/bassist Geddy Lee, and drummer John Rutsey (who was replaced by Neil Peart in 1974). They've been heavily influenced by Ayn Rand featuring many Rand-inspired themes, and dedicating their album 2112 to "the genius of Ayn Rand". Rush has released twenty-three consecutive gold and platinum records, the third longest string behind The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, and tied with KISS. They received The Order Of Canada in 1997.
If you've never heard anything by Rush before, start by listening to 2112 and Cygnus X-1 Book II. Tom Sawyer and Closer to the Heart are closer to the mainstream and thus popular but for the same reason they won't give you a good idea of what makes Rush unique.
The data from this writeup was pulled from a variety of sources, including my incomplete Rush CD collection, CDNOW, the now-defunct National Midnight Star website, and my brain. The classification into eras is my own. Any corrections, please /msg me.
The Early Years
A single, released in 1973. The A-side had You Can't Fight It, the B-side had a cover of Not Fade Away. The music is credited to Lee and Rutsey. Information via a /msg from Grzcyrgba.
Rush, released July 1974. This was the single pre-Neil Peart album, with John Rutsey as drummer.
Fly By Night, released July 1975.
The Epics
Caress of Steel, released September 1975.
2112, released April, 1976.
All The World's A Stage, released September 29, 1976. (Live Album, Recorded live at Massey Hall, Toronto -- June 11th, 12th, and 13th)
A Farewell To Kings, released September, 1977.
Hemispheres, released October 29, 1978.
Reduced Progressive, Increased Rock
Permanent Waves, released January 1, 1980
Moving Pictures, released February 28, 1981.
Signals, released September 25, 1982.
The Time of the Synthesizer
Grace Under Pressure, released April 12, 1984.
Power Windows, released October 26, 1985.
Hold Your Fire, released September 8, 1987.
A Show of Hands, released January 9, 1989. (Live Album)
A Return To Hard Rock
Presto, released November 18, 1989.
Chronicles, released October 3, 1990. (Live/Prerecorded Collection)
Roll The Bones, released September 3, 1991.
Counterparts, released October 19, 1993.
Test For Echo, released September 10, 1996.
Different Stages, released 1998. The Japanese Release adds Force Ten to the tracklist. (Live Album)
Vapor Trails, released May 14, 2002.
Rush in Rio, released October 21, 2003. (Live Album)
Rush is one of the most eclectic and, true to their genre, progressive bands of all time. While every band has their contingent of loyal fans who will claim that their band is the best, most will acknowledge that the Beatles or the Rolling Stones were probably really the best band of all time. There is, however, an unusually large number of people who honestly believe that Rush is the greatest band in music history. It could be that this is because of their undeniable musical talent, or their penchant for original songs, both musically and lyrically, or perhaps due to their longevity or their fantastic live performances... or it could be all of these.
Rush was founded in 1969 by Geddy Lee (vocals, bass and keyboard), Alex Lifeson (guitars) and John Rutsey (drums) as a cover band, drawing from British Blues greats Cream and the Yardbirds as well as the roots of metal in the form of The Who and Led Zeppelin. They began experimenting with their own sound and gradually became one of the premier rock groups of the Toronto scene with a reputation for excellent live shows. The Toronto scene, however, is every bit as insignificant as it sounds. Very few rock bands that stayed in Canada remained successful up to that point. Joni Mitchell, Neil Young and Robbie Robertson all had to venture into the U.S. to reach true stardom.
Released on the independent Moon Records label, Rush's eponymous debut album was an accurate representation of the band's rocking live sound. Tracks like Finding My Way and Working Man both exemplify the band's early dynamic which earned them the reputation of being Canada's first serious metal band. To this day, Working Man is the only song I have heard that genuinely sound like Jimmy Page and isn't. Impressive as this is, the band still had not quite developed its own unique sound, though Geddy Lee's spirited and, above all, high-pitched lyrics made them, at the very least, distinct.
Thanks to the largely word-of-mouth success of this album, the band began playing gigs across the border with ZZ Top and was soon signed to a major recording label, Mercury Records. Original drummer John Rutsey's health began to falter and he was forced to bow out of the band and was replaced by the talented Neil Peart. Peart brought to the band both his considerable drumming skills and his talents as a song-writer and quickly became the band's creative leader. Their next release continued in the band's heavy metal vein, but with a more art rock flair, contributed by Peart, in the style of Pink Floyd and King Crimson. Their subsequent album, Caress of Steel, began to further demonstrate the band's progressive tendencies, as their songs assumed more complex structures and drew more and more on literary and science fiction-inspired themes.
The band's first major breakthrough came with their 1976 release, 2112. This album told the tale of a futuristic world where a hero leads a musical coup d'etat. 2112 was inspired and shaped by Ayn Rand's principles of free will and the power of the individual. It cemented the band's position as one of the leaders of progressive rock and became a classic of the genre. The band followed with their two most commercially successful records yet, A Farewell To Kings and Hemispheres, both of which tended more towards shorter, more radio-friendly songs, like Closer to the Heart, rather than 2112's epic 20 minute style. The band's success led them to be awarded the official titles of Ambassadors of Music by the Canadian government.
2112, A Farewell To Kings and Hemispheres became the centerpieces of the band's increasingly dramatic live performances. Their common themes of post-apocalyptic worlds allowed the band to link them closely together and develop a complicated and very visually impressive concert motif, featuring elaborate visuals, lasers and extended sets of narrative music. All this and Lifeson's powerful, virtuosic guitar sound, Lee's complex, layered bass and Peart's extraordinary drumming made Rush one of the most exciting live bands around.
Despite all this success, Rush decided it was time to change the band's sound. They felt they had exhausted the creative potential of the concept album and turned to more FM-oriented pop rock, with Lee's impressive synthesizer work taking center stage. In this format, they released Permanent Waves in 1980 and Moving Pictures in 1981, which produced some of the bands most memorable hits: Spirit of the Radio, Tom Sawyer and Limelight. After this, though the band still regularly played to arena venues packed to the gills with die-hard fans, the band's albums became steadily less original and the band's new material was not quite so thrilling.
The band agreed to take a breather in 1994 and pursued other projects. Geddy Lee produced albums by Boys Brigade and SCTV's Great White North album with Rick Moranis and Dave Thomas. Alex Lifeson has performed with his own band, Victor, and has played at the Kumbaya Festival as well as guest starring on the albums of many other artists. Neil Peart has apparently biked around the world several times in the interim. Tragedy struck in '97 and '98 when Peart's daughter died in a car accident and his wife died of cancer the following year. The band has released Test For Echo in the mid-90s, but took another extended extended hiatus to allow them a time to heal. In 2002, they released Vapor Trails, their strongest album in many years and began an American tour complete with all the lasers and dramatic visuals their fans have come to expect and, of course, their timeless music.
During their long and prolific recording career, Rush has released 25 records, 23 of which have all gone gold consecutively. They were named Group of the Decade in Canada for the 1980s. They have been made Officers of the Order of Canada. They have received Grammy nominations for best rock instrumental twice, for YYZ and Where's My Thing, but perhaps most importantly, they have won the hearts and minds of many a devoted fan.
Discography
Rush Adaptor List1 Sorted by game
1This list ignores ports of games to other systems, such as Mega Man: The Wily Wars and Rockman Complete Works 2 Roman numerals indicate Mega Man games for the Game Boy.
Rush (?), n. [OE. rusche, rische, resche, AS. risce, akin to LG. rusk, risch, D. & G. rusch; all probably fr. L. ruscum butcher's broom; akin to Goth. raus reed, G. rohr.]
1. Bot.
A name given to many aquatic or marsh-growing endogenous plants with soft, slender stems, as the species of Juncus and Scirpus.
⇒ Some species are used in bottoming chairs and plaiting mats, and the pith is used in some places for wicks to lamps and rushlights.
2.
The merest trifle; a straw.
John Bull's friendship is not worth a rush. Arbuthnot.
Bog rush. See under Bog. -- Club rush, any rush of the genus Scirpus. -- Flowering rush. See under Flowering. -- Nut rush (a) Any plant of the genus Scleria, rushlike plants with hard nutlike fruits. (b) A name for several species of Cyperus having tuberous roots. -- Rush broom, an Australian leguminous plant (Viminaria denudata), having long, slender branches. Also, the Spanish broom. See under Candle. -- Rush grass, any grass of the genus Vilfa, grasses with wiry stems and one-flowered spikelets. -- Rush toad Zool., the natterjack. -- Scouring rush Bot. Same as Dutch rush, under Dutch. -- Spike rush, any rushlike plant of the genus Eleocharis, in which the flowers grow in dense spikes. -- Sweet rush, a sweet-scented grass of Arabia, etc. (Andropogon schenanthus), used in Oriental medical practice. -- Wood rush, any plant of the genus Luzula, which differs in some technical characters from Juncus.
© Webster 1913.
Rush (?), v. i. [imp. & p. p. Rushed (); p. pr. & vb. n. Rushing.] [OE. ruschen; cf. AS. hryscan to make a noise, D. ruischen to rustle, G. rauschen, MHG. rschen ro rush, to rustle, LG. rusken, OSw. ruska, Icel. & Sw. ruska to shake, Dan. ruske to shake, and E. rouse.]
1.
To move forward with impetuosity, violence, and tumultuous rapidity or haste; as, armies rush to battle; waters rush down a precipice.
Like to an entered tide, they all rush by. Shak.
To enter into something with undue haste and eagerness, or without due deliberation and preparation; as, to rush business or speculation.
They . . . never think it to be a part of religion to rush into the office of princes and ministers. Sprat.
Rush, v. t.
To push or urge forward with impetuosity or violence; to hurry forward.
To recite (a lesson) or pass (an examination) without an error.
Rush, n.
A moving forward with rapidity and force or eagerness; a violent motion or course; as, a rush of troops; a rush of winds; a rush of water.
A gentleman of his train spurred up his horse, and, with a violent rush, severed him from the duke. Sir H. Wotton.
Great activity with pressure; as, a rush of business.
3.
A perfect recitation.
4. Football (a)
A rusher; as, the center rush, whose place is in the center of the rush line; the end rush.
The act of running with the ball.
Bunt rush Football, a combined rush by main strength. -- Rush line Football, the line composed of rushers.
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