Rush was a Canadian rock band that primarily comprised Geddy Lee, Alex Lifeson (guitar) and Neil Peart. The band formed in Toronto in 1968 with Lifeson, drummer John Rutsey, and bass guitarist/vocalist Jeff Jones, whom Lee immediately replaced. After Lee joined, the band went through several line-ups before arriving at its classic power trio lineup with the addition of Peart in July 1974, who replaced Rutsey four months after the release of their self-titled debut album; this lineup remained intact for the remainder of the band's career.
2112 is the fourth studio album by Canadian rock band Rush, released in March 1976 by Anthem Records.
Hemispheres is the sixth studio album by Canadian rock band Rush, released in October 1978 by Anthem Records. After touring to support the band's previous release, A Farewell to Kings, during which the group gained popularity in the UK, Rush started work on their next album. As with the band's previous studio album, Hemispheres was recorded at Rockfield Studios in Monmouthshire and Trident Studios in London with longtime engineer and arranger, Terry Brown. Rush continued its progressive rock sound with the side-long "Cygnus X-1 Book II: Hemispheres" and the nine-minute instrumental "La Villa Strangiato", which was the band's first instrumental piece.
A Farewell to Kings is the fifth studio album by Canadian rock band Rush, released in September 1977 by Anthem Records. After touring their previous album 2112 (1976), which saw the group reach a new critical and commercial peak, they started work on a follow-up. They decided to record at Rockfield Studios in Wales, the first time Rush recorded an album outside of Toronto. The band expanded their sound with each member playing new instruments that they had not previously used, and recorded a mix of concise and long songs.
Fly by Night is the second studio album by the Canadian rock band Rush, released on February 14, 1975, by Mercury Records. It was the first Rush album to showcase elements of progressive rock for which the band has become known. It was also the first to feature lyricist and drummer Neil Peart, who replaced original drummer John Rutsey the previous summer just prior to the band's first North American tour. Peart took over as Rush's primary lyricist, and the abundance of fantastical and philosophical themes in his compositions contrasted greatly with the simpler hard rock of the band's debut album.
Caress of Steel is the third studio album by Canadian rock band Rush, released on September 24, 1975, by Mercury Records. It marked a development in the group's sound, moving from the blues-based hard rock style of their debut towards progressive rock. However, the shift proved to be a commercial and critical nadir for Rush as the album's darker sound and fantastical compositions initially failed to find an audience and confused some of the band's peers, while poor sales put the band in danger of being dropped by Mercury. Despite being more positively viewed by the band's fans in retrospect, Ultimate Classic Rock noted that the album is still considered "the black sheep of their catalog".
Vapor Trails is the seventeenth studio album by Canadian rock band Rush. It was released on May 14, 2002, on Anthem Records, and was their first studio release since Test for Echo (1996), the longest gap between two Rush albums. After the Test For Echo tour finished in July 1997, drummer and lyricist Neil Peart suffered the loss of his daughter and then his wife in separate tragedies. As a result, the group entered an extended hiatus during which it was not certain they would continue. They eventually reunited in January 2001 to rehearse material for a new album, recording for which lasted until December. For the first and only time since Caress of Steel (1975), the group did not use any keyboards or synthesizers in their music, incorporating many layers of guitar, bass and drums instead.
All the World's a Stage is a double live album by Canadian rock band Rush, released in 1976. The album was recorded at Massey Hall in Toronto on June 11, 12, and 13, 1976, during the band's breakthrough 2112 tour. The title of the album alludes to William Shakespeare's play As You Like It, and would again be referenced by Rush in the 1981 song "Limelight".
Moving Pictures is the eighth studio album by Canadian rock band Rush, released on February 12, 1981 by Anthem Records. After touring to support their previous album, Permanent Waves (1980), the band started to write and record new material in August 1980 with longtime co-producer Terry Brown. They continued to write songs with a more radio-friendly sound, featuring tighter and shorter song structures compared with their earlier albums.
Exit... Stage Left is the second live album by the Canadian rock band Rush, released as a double album in October 1981 by Anthem Records. After touring in support of their eighth studio album Moving Pictures (1981), the band gathered recordings made over the previous two years and constructed a live release from them with producer Terry Brown. The album features recordings from June 1980 on their Permanent Waves (1980) tour, and from March 1981 on their Moving Pictures tour.
Rush in Rio is a three-disc live album by Canadian band Rush, released on October 21, 2003. The album is also available as a two DVD set. With the exception of the last two tracks on the third disc, the album was recorded at Maracanã Stadium in Rio de Janeiro on the final night of the Vapor Trails Tour. The other two tracks were taken from previous shows on the same tour. "Between Sun & Moon" was recorded at the Cricket Wireless Pavilion, Phoenix, Arizona, on September 27, 2002, and "Vital Signs" was recorded at the Colisée Pepsi, Quebec City, Quebec, on October 19, 2002.
Hold Your Fire is the twelfth studio album by Canadian rock band Rush, released on September 8, 1987. It was recorded at The Manor Studio in Oxfordshire, Ridge Farm Studio in Surrey, Air Studios in Montserrat and McClear Place in Toronto. Hold Your Fire was the last Rush studio album released outside Canada by PolyGram/Mercury. 'Til Tuesday bassist and vocalist Aimee Mann contributed vocals to "Time Stand Still" and appeared in the Zbigniew Rybczyński-directed video.
Different Stages is a live album by Canadian rock band Rush, released in 1998. The bulk of the first and second discs were recorded at the World Music Theatre in Tinley Park, Illinois, during the 1997 Test for Echo tour. Five other songs from various stops along the tour were included and three songs from the 1994 Counterparts tour. The third disc is taken from a performance at the Hammersmith Odeon in London during the A Farewell to Kings tour in 1978.
R30: 30th Anniversary World Tour is a live DVD by the Canadian rock band Rush, released on November 22, 2005 in Canada and the US, and November 28, 2005 in Europe. The DVD documents the band's R30: 30th Anniversary Tour, and was recorded on September 24, 2004 at the Festhalle Frankfurt, Germany.
"2112" is a song by the Canadian rock band Rush. It was released as a 20-minute song on their 1976 album of the same name and is the longest single song by the band. The overture and the first section, "The Temples of Syrinx", were released as a single and have been featured in most of Rush's setlists since. Starting with the 1996-97 Test for Echo Tour, when any parts of the song were performed live, they were transposed down one full step, as heard on every live album and DVD from Different Stages forward, due to Lee's decreased vocal range. The song was adapted into a comic booklet, which used the lyrics of the song as lines for the characters and the narrations from the cover as intros.
"Xanadu" is a song by the Canadian progressive rock band Rush from their 1977 album A Farewell to Kings. It is approximately eleven minutes long, beginning with a five-minute-long instrumental section before transitioning to a narrative written by Neil Peart, which in turn was inspired by the Samuel Taylor Coleridge poem Kubla Khan.
Gold is a compilation album by Canadian rock band Rush, released on April 25, 2006.
"Lakeside Park" is a single from Rush's third album Caress of Steel. The music was written by Geddy Lee and Alex Lifeson, and the lyrics were written by Neil Peart.
"Bastille Day" is a song by the Canadian rock band Rush, and is the opening track from their third album, Caress of Steel. Like most Rush songs, the music was written by Geddy Lee and Alex Lifeson, and the lyrics by Neil Peart. The song uses the storming of the Bastille, which began the French Revolution, as an allegory for revolutionary fervor needed in the struggle against tyrannical government.
