Isn't it lucky that Rush never made some kind of horrendous narrative video of side one of their album 2112? Think of it.
Oh my god it could have been great, though - Geddy Lee playing all the parts, just with his hair done differently: naive longhair Geddy discovering a guitar in a cave; uptight ponytailed reduplicated Geddy as the priests smacking down the youngster; Neil Peart smirking in the background. Misty shots of Alex Lifeson with his satin-pants camel toe whaling on that guitar could be little Geddy's dream of a more culturally democratic world.
This is where fanfic comes from, doesn't it? I guess minus the choking with laughter part.
No, really, we're lucky. These guys are musical geniuses, but their visual sense is atrocious. Look at the album covers. And the concerts - I never saw more smoke and purple lights until the Jesus and Mary Chain toured the U.S. And even Jesus and Mary Chain didn't wear satin pants.
My brother and I and a few of his friends were giant Rush fans in high school (and beyond). I saved my ice cream scooping money to buy the albums and concert tickets. My brother would put A Farewell to Kings (speaking of wince-worthy visuals, and smoke, and you know, damn it, I'd like to wear a satin kimono to work sometimes too) on the tape deck in his room, hit the repeat button, and fall asleep that way, pissing my father off gigantically. He did that with ELP too though... "Hoedown" is really nothing that young unconscious minds should be exposed to.
Yes, we loved our pretentious '70's arena rock. We were never quite as inspired as this guy though.
My first concert was Rush! I won two tickets and traded one to a friend for a quaalude and some wine. It was probably 1980 or so, and they did the whole 2112 thing. It was pretty great! I would totally have watched a long form video from 2112.
ReplyDeleteHowever, 2112 is also my best example of why you should have a breathalizer hooked up to iTunes that prevents you from buying if your alcohol level is too high ...
Rush, Cap Center, 1980. Moving Pictures tour? I had to work that night but my brother went.
ReplyDeleteAnd I totally bought 2112 off iTunes - my excuse being that we had it on vinyl, but never bought the CD. I am considering the purchase of Fly By Night and Farewell to Kings.
Geniuses. Can't deny.
Yeah, that was the show! It was a lot of fun, at least the bits I can remember ...
ReplyDeleteRe: iTunes, that is precisely the excuse I used, especially since I don't even have a working turntable and so many classic vinyl lps sit in the basement, unused, but not unloved.