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Subject: 07/15/91 - The National Midnight Star #287
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The National Midnight Star, Number 287
Monday, 15 July 1991
Today's Topics:
Administrivia
THe difference between 13/8 and 4/4
Rushing new albums
Hey, Sean! You butthead!
Time signatures.... ANSWER!!!
lyrical importance
the energy you trade
heh.
you know you're a rush fan when...
BMG catalog...
Re: Rush Philosopherisiizinginging
'they would likely have gladly exchanged them...'
The meaning of "PART IV" in trilogy
to towns.s.g@p9955.wlu.edu (apologies for posting to the list)
some old stuff, good stuff, and some pretty good stuff....-RP,'75
over analysing lyrics
Dune, time signatures, instrumentals, etc.
Neil Peart Interview
Rush on TV!
New list proposal
Addendum to new list proposal
presto in BMG
Internet Relay Chat
Dem' three balls...
----------------------------------------------------------
From: Editor, The National Midnight Star <rush-mgr@syrinx.umd.edu>
Subject: Administrivia
Last Friday (7/15), Syrinx went suddenly mental and freaked out. In
less technical terms, it kept initiating the sendmail daemon, and really
bogged down the opsys in it's confusion. I was trying to get through
the admin mail and the list mail, but finally gave up and just put out
the list. Some of your mail to the administrative site will have a
lag time of 1-4 days; sorry folks.
Secondly, due to *severe* constraints on my time at work, I won't be
able to put the time into the NMS that I'd like to. I spent an hour
today just reading admin mail, and that's too much. I'll do what I
can, but responses from "rush-request" will probably have increased
turn-around time, and the NMS may not go out every day. I'm working
on getting a decent workstation at home; if I can do that, then I'll
be able to do some stuff in the evening.
Lastly, I noticed an alarming trend of discussing bootlegs in the
recent digests. Now, talking about them is ok, but the NMS is NOT
a forum for trading illegal (in some eyes) boots. Far be it from me
to turn facist on a topic like this, but I can't let tape lists or
lengthy solicitations for tapes be posted. For the most part, I'll
just remove the posts (and inform you). I don't need any extra heat
brought down on the NMS, if you know what I mean. Please know that I
don't blame/accuse/deride those of you/us that deal with them; I'd just
like to keep it more low-profile, and OUT of the NMS. This isn't me
alone, other people with large collections have asked the same. (No,
even torture won't get me to reveal who!)
Lastly, since I'm on a down note, I WILL NOT TOLERATE people posting
stupid, mindless flames to the NMS. This applies to those who are
"flipping one last finger" as they unsubscribe, or whoever. I will
remove them, and I will ignore all "remove/unsubscribe me" messages
posted to this digest. The proper addresses are at the end of EVERY
issue. If you're not bright enough to figure that out, that's your
problem.
Sorry folks, hate to be a bummer ... It's been a loooong Monday. And
I have to consider moving the digest to another physical machine. I'll
keep the address, but the hardware may go to another staff member. We'll
see just how compatable DEC Ultrix and NeXT Unix are, I guess....
*sigh*
rush-mgr
Hope the new album hurries up!
----------------------------------------------------------
Date: Fri, 12 Jul 91 17:13:22 -0600
From: habbinga@tramp.Colorado.EDU (erik habbinga)
Subject: THe difference between 13/8 and 4/4
Okay, here is a quick example between 4/4 and 13/8 time, using Rush music as
an example. First, the verbal description. 4/4 time, also known as common
time, is used about 95% of the time in rock music. Songs like New World Man
and Scars are in 4/4 time, and all of the dance music you hear are in 4/4
as well. 4/4 means that the quarter note (1/4) gets the beat, and there
are four of them per measure. 13/8 time is less common (by far) than 4/4,
and will usually not be found in dance music, cause people would probably
trip over themselves trying to move smoothly in 13! :) 13/8 means that
the eighth note (1/8) gets the beat, and there are thirteen of them in a
measure. Pull out your copy of Jacob's Ladder, and listen to the music after
the "Light streams down in bright unbroken beams" lyric. Alex plays a phrase
with six notes followed by a phrase of seven notes. (This is at 4:53 on the
PeW CD). This could be either written as a measure of 6/8 followed by a
measure of 7/8, or to save ink, 13/8. Try not to listen to Neil at the
beginning, as he will probably throw off your timing, but later he calms down
and plays with the guitar and bass, and the 13/8 is easy to count. Also,
if you have "Empire", by Queensryche, the song "Best I Can" ends in 13/8, or
alternating measures of 7/8 and 6/8, starting at 4:59 on the CD. That's all
I can think of in 13/8 off the top of my head. If you are interested in
other odd time signatures, listen to "Losing It", off of Signals, which
starts out in 5/8, switches to 4/4,and back to 5/8 very smoothly. Also,
the solo section, at 2:48 on the CD, is in 11/8, or alternating measures of
6/8 and 5/8, with Neil playing open hi-hats and ride cymbal on the offbeats.
I hope this helps!
Erik
----------------------------------------------------------
Date: Fri, 12 Jul 91 21:21 EDT
From: MCS <MCS@carleton.ca>
Subject: Rushing new albums
Pardon the pun.. (yuk)..
Anyway, someone mentioned the fact that through some mysterious
and unexplained phenomenon, older songs and videos of artists seem
to always start being played just a month or so prior to the release
of new, err, "product" by the artist.
There is a term to describe this phenomenon, it's called
"Memo-itis". Record company representatives (read: weasels)
spend thousands of dollars issuing memos to radio and vid stations
etc.. announcing the new album and make pseudo-subtle hints towards
encouraging said media outlet to put the group back in the public eye.
God, you wouldn't believe how much Triumph started to get played around
here before Rik Emmett's Solo re-grease.
Sometimes there'll even be incentives, I have a good friend who is
a radio programmer who received an *awesome* simple minds leather
jacket a few weeks prior to the their new album. It's all part of
the sick game that is record promotion, sigh...........
HEY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I'm looking for people who actually *OWN* an original copy of the
1986 Guitar Player magazine with Geddy Lee on the cover. There's
a soundsheet by a jazz guitarist named "Kazumi Watanabe" in it (yeah,
I know, Kazumi WHO!?) and I'd like to get a hold of it (not the maga-
zine, just the soundsheet). Since there rarely seems to be much cross-
over between Rush and Kazumi Watanabe fans (ha!), I was wondering if
some kind Rush fan would be interested in mailing said soundsheet to
li'l ole me?
I'd *really* appreciate it. Please reply to me at:
<><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><>
| Neil Prasad | Carleton U. | Recycle paper, |
| Mass Communication | MCS@CARLETON.CA | not music!! |
<><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><>
----------------------------------------------------------
From: mjordan@ccwf.cc.utexas.edu (Marc Jordan)
Subject: Hey, Sean! You butthead!
Date: Sat, 13 Jul 91 0:31:11 CDT
I AM jealous!! And I DO have a copy of "Pieces of Eight", but you can't have
it! Nyah, nyah, nyah, nyah! (We planned on seeing Yes in Houston in August,
but they apparently cancelled or something, and we can't go.)
Later, Marc.
----------------------------------------------------------
Subject: Time signatures.... ANSWER!!!
From: wilkinso@darkside.com (Sean Flanegan)
Date: Fri, 12 Jul 91 21:21:33 PDT
I hope that I don't confuse you!!!
4/4 means four Quarter notes to a measure.
1/4 + 4 = 4/4
8/4 Means eight Quarter notes to a measure
1/4 + 8 = 8/4
Rush play the time signature of 7/4 very often.
Which is ........... seven Quarter notes to a measure.
This is most easily seen in the intro. guitar riff to " Superconducter"
As soon a s thea guitar kicks in Count 1...2....3....4...5....6....7 and
then back to 1...2...3...4...5...6...7... Make sure that you count on the
beat so that you don't get confused.
Time sig. can also be in 8/8 or 8 eighth notes to a measure. This
would be twice as fast as 4/4
Hope I Helped!!!
Close to the Edge.... Round by
the corner, seasons will pass you buy, I get up, I get down."
Y E S----------
----------------------------------------------------------
Subject: lyrical importance
From: wilkinso@darkside.com (Sean Flanegan)
Date: Fri, 12 Jul 91 21:07:45 PDT
In TNMS 132, some argued that the idea of analysing Neil's lyrics would
in some way take away from the music itself.... You are all intitled to
your own opinion.... but the complex and thoughtful lyrics are things that
led me to love Rush. these are my reasons
1> Being a drummer myself, I know how hard it is to give musical
ideas to other musicians in a band setting. A drummer doesn't usually write
a song( give ideas for a melody) Drums usually keep the beat and that is
all. We all know that Neil is ***THE*** drummer, but it can be frustrating
when your ideas are not fully expressed. Neil writes the lyrics... this is
his contribution. This impressed me. Especially the way that his
lyrics were intelligent. Who Knows..... Maybe if John Rutsey still played
the drums for Rush they would still be saying "Take yourself a friend"!!!
2>I don't see what is wrong with the idea of analysing the lyrics.
Just like it is done with books and poetry, I think that it is fine to do
to music. When the new Album comes out one of the things I will be thinking
is.................... What is Neil thinking of now?!?!!?
P.s. No matter what your opinion, it cannot be doubted that Rush are
EXTREMELY talented individuals.
----------------------------------------------------------
Date: Sat, 13 Jul 91 11:40:26 EDT
From: jaeger@buphy.bu.edu (Gregg Jaeger)
Subject: the energy you trade
Hi Everyone,
In addition to the blasphemy of disagreeing with Ayn Rand's
hierarchical conception of philosophy, I have been accused of
`putting words in Neil's mouth.' I think a reality check is in order:
I said _I'd bet_ Neil would agree that public education is a good
thing. I _didn't_ say Neil _said_ or _didn't say_ anything. The
reason I'd _bet_ that Neil would agree that accessible education
is important is that he was part of a literacy program
which involved creating handouts to be distributed to public
schools (obviously Neil should be excommunicated! : ) ). As to
the dependency of ethics on metaphysics in Objectivism,
this is Ayn's own metaphilosophical inclination, and does not in
any way prevent Objectivist ethical _theses_ themselves from
being retained when Objectivist _metaphysical_ theses are put
in question. This fact follows directly from the basic rules
of logical inference: <p implies q> (i.e. <Objectivist metaphysical
theses imply Objectivist ethical theses>, each set of theses
being one conjunction) together with <not-p> (i.e. the denial of
<Objectivist metaphysical theses>) does _not_ imply <not-q>
(i.e. the denial of <Objectivist ethical theses>), sorry.
(If it did then from the facts <being a man implies being mortal>
and <Lassie is not a man> one could prove that Lassie is immortal;
But Lassie is dead! Just like Elvis! ;) ). However, <not-p> _does_
imply <not-(p and q)>! So if hard-line Objectivists wish to subscribe
to the doctrine that to accept Rand's ethical position they must also
accept her metaphysical position, that is their own choice and
liability. By not accepting this metaphilosophical doctrine I risk
only the scorn of fundamentalists. There is nothing absurd in
accepting her ethics without accepting her metaphysics (as I've
shown above). I hope that this doesn't cause any Objectivist
fundamentalists to self-destruct! ;)
Really, I gave my private e-mail address in the text of my original
mailing so that those who wished to discuss Objectivism with someone
who wasn't in _total_ agreement could do so _privately_. Nicely :) ,
I have had the opportunity as a result to talk in private with some
open-minded individuals who enjoy talking to one with whom they
disagree philosophically! Thus I don't regret expressing my opinion
in response to the honest question asked by Jon, namely: what is
your philosophy - are you Objectivist or what? But in the future,
Objectivists who happen to be self-righteousness (or anyone with
honest inquiries), please send email to jaeger@buphy.bu.edu!
Let's not waste anymore bandwidth on this can o' worms.
Gregg
p.s. While I enjoy discussing `the philosophy of Rush' and _love_
discussing Rush lyrics, I think Wes' call for more musical discussion
is a good one -- musicians send us your insights!
ORQ: `Let's talk about this sensibly...'
----------------------------------------------------------
Date: Sat, 13 Jul 1991 12:41:35 EDT
From: Mark "Crimson" Friedman <friedman@cis.ohio-state.edu>
Subject: heh.
In last ish, DougO queries:
] Can someone explain to musically illiterate me what the difference
] between 4/4 time and, say, 13/8 is?
Oh, about three eighth notes...
Heh,
- Crimson
+----====>>>))) Mark Friedman is friedman@cis.ohio-state.edu (((<<<====----+
| "There is nothing former | (Disclaimer : the opposite of Datclaimer) |
| about King Crimson." | "I used to have a photgraphic memory |
| - Robert Fripp, 5/11/90 | but it was never developed..." |
> -.---.----..-.---.----..-.---.----..-.---.----..-.---.----..-.---.----.. <
----------------------------------------------------------
Date: Sat, 13 Jul 91 12:54:00 edt
From: "Dylan Kaufman" <morgan@chaos.cs.brandeis.edu>
Subject: you know you're a rush fan when...
even though you have all their albums (except archives... anyone seen
it lately?), you ask someone to email you the information they get on
BMG RUSH catalog numbers...
-<>Dylan<>- MA EMT-M, CA EMT-1A, BEMCo 107
Dylan Kaufman Major in Computer Science
morgan@chaos.cs.brandeis.edu Brandeis University, Waltham, MA
------<< Support your local Emergency Medical Services >>-------
"Don't ask me, I'm just improvising" -RUSH
----------------------------------------------------------
Date: Sat, 13 Jul 91 13:06:57 edt
From: "Dylan Kaufman" <morgan@chaos.cs.brandeis.edu>
Subject: BMG catalog...
The presto number is 164202...
I think that you (HAG2@vms.cis.pitt.edu) were reading from a 1/2 price
catalog when you made the list, because the normal price for
Chronicles is more than 15.98... I bought that one on one of the half
price sheets and it was 15.98 then....
-<>Dylan<>- MA EMT-M, CA EMT-1A, BEMCo 107
Dylan Kaufman Major in Computer Science
morgan@chaos.cs.brandeis.edu Brandeis University, Waltham, MA
------<< Support your local Emergency Medical Services >>-------
And on the seventh day, even He rested. We don't. -Emerg. Med. Svcs.
----------------------------------------------------------
Date: Sat, 13 Jul 91 13:38:36 -0400 (EDT)
From: "Jon C. Slenk" <js9b+@andrew.cmu.edu>
Subject: Re: Rush Philosopherisiizinginging
(Since I started this thread...)
I was first hooked on the music, too. Then I read the lyrics. THAT was
when I REALLY started to like Rush. Can you honestly say that there are
not other bands that have as much, if not more, instrumental talent than
Rush? What makes them such a special band for me is that they work on both
their music and their lyrics - they specifically designed things that way,
with Neil on the words and Geddy and Alex doing the music. If a group has
good music but goes against everything I believe philosophically I find it
much more difficult to enjoy them. Don't you?
Something that I am curious about is why their videos are so bad! I
know that they don't have control over their videos (someone once
mentioned that Neil was really hard to make videos with because the
"director" would say something like, "Okay, now you walk through this mist
playing the air drums and singing..." and Neil would just walk away.) but
I don't understand WHY they don't have control. Rush strikes me as a very
holistic group and I would think they would want control (well, at least a
veto!) over the albumn art and the videos... If you don't understand what
I mean, watch Chronicles. The concert footage is just fine but things like
"Time Stand Still" are simply PAINFUL to watch.
Sincerely,
-Jon / js9b+@andrew.cmu.edu
----------------------------------------------------------
Date: Sat, 13 Jul 91 14:28:18 EDT
From: pmw3y@acacia.cs.Virginia.EDU
Subject: 'they would likely have gladly exchanged them...'
So I'm cruising out in the car today, headed for Taco Bell, and
listening to my ASOH video soundtrack, Mission in particular...
"If their lives were exotic and strange
they would likely have gladly exchanged them
for something a little more plain
maybe something a little more sane"
And it struck me as odd - for certain, in history there have
been plenty of notable individuals who didn't ask for their
notoriety, didn't want it, and took every opportunity to escape
from it. However, there have also been plenty of people who
seem to have "known" their place in history, enjoyed their
eventful lives, and repeatedly maintained that they wouldn't
have it any other way.
My thoughts on that passage are twofold:
1) It certainly works better with the theme of the song, as it
implies an inner drive or obsession that the individual just can't
suppress.
2) It also says something about Neil's vision of a "creator"
(for lack of a better word) - IMHO, someone who is driven
to take what they see in their dreams and thoughts and make them
into reality.
Anyway, I just thought I'd throw that out for y'all to consider.
Now back to my chicken soft taco.
ORQ: "Ladies and Gentlemen, the Professor on the drum kit."
----------
Patrick Widener Internet: pmw3y@virginia.edu
Department of Computer Science patrick@dirac.physics.jmu.edu
University of Virginia ICBM_Net: 38.02 N, 78.30 W
"the death star has cleared the planet."
----------------------------------------------------------
Date: Sat, 13 Jul 91 17:33:11 EDT
From: faulkner@acsu.buffalo.edu (shane p faulkner)
Subject: The meaning of "PART IV" in trilogy
You guys are missing the point!!! This is obviously Mr. Lifeson , always
the comedian, making a little joke. Of course there are only 3 parts in
a trilogy, but this will be part 4, a joke.... get it.... ????
And they say Rush has no humour.
///////////////////////// The Gangster of Boats /////////////////////////
/////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
/ Shane P. Faulkner | A to B - Different degrees... /
/ University At Buffalo | - Rush /
/ V127L2QZ@UBVMS.BITNET | /
/ faulkner@acsu.buffalo.edu | Rush - Marillion - Kim Mitchell /
/////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
----------------------------------------------------------
Date: Sat, 13 Jul 91 18:14:22 edt
From: "Dylan Kaufman" <morgan@chaos.cs.brandeis.edu>
Subject: to towns.s.g@p9955.wlu.edu (apologies for posting to the list)
Your mail box seems to be full... please let me know when it isn't...
-<>Dylan<>- MA EMT-M, CA EMT-1A, BEMCo 107
Dylan Kaufman Major in Computer Science
morgan@chaos.cs.brandeis.edu Brandeis University, Waltham, MA
------<< Support your local Emergency Medical Services >>-------
"Imagine a time when it all began, in the dying days of a war" - RUSH
----------------------------------------------------------
Subject: some old stuff, good stuff, and some pretty good stuff....-RP,'75
From: easy@darkside.com (Phil D. Croix)
Date: Sat, 13 Jul 91 20:05:21 PDT
Hey Bubba it's a quarter to eight(actually, it really is) I feel I'm in the
mood to post.
I thought I was the only one with the static near the end of Tom Sayer on
the ASOH video(Right before Exit the warrior). Suck. And did anyone notice
some kind of funky sounds on their copy of the Tom Sawyer on the Chronicles
video? Whats with That song and video ta)? Also, Three balls representing
the astronauts who where on the challenger? There were seven who died in
that accident. Also: not to make this sound like a want ad, but more like a
act of desperation, BOOTLEGS! I want 'em!!! Any info on how to trade will be
greatly appreciated. It seems that the St. Louis Boot is very popular,
Because that's always in the list of the very few(?) boots that are out
there(that we know of, at least).Even I have that boot, and beleive me, Just
to hear Natural Science live is reason to live. I also have contributed to
the catalog of boots by taping a show myself(Oakland, CA). I gave copies to
all of my friends, so who knows where it may end up from there. I am very
proud of how it turned out, it is EXCELLENT! And to all of you people who
think bootlegging is bad, and loses money for the artist: PHHHPPPPTTT!!!!
Lighten up! I already have every single album and video I could possibly
buy. I'm not going to buy every boot I can find and never buy an official
release. In fact, when Presto was released(November 17, '89, I remember that
day well!), I bought TWO copies! A tape for my car and a cd. My friend
bought two copies: One for himself, and one to put into a safety deposit box
, to give to his Grandchildren, so they can hear what REAL music used to be.
By the way, I think PRESTO Is an AWESOME album. Rush just keeps getting
better. So there. BYE.
Philled to the Croix-----
"We would have come sooner, but your husband wasn't dead then."
-Lt. Frank Drebin, Police sqaud-
-------**********Yay, Poison******Go Whitesnake******Yeah AC/DC**********
----------------------------------------------------------
Date: Sun, 14 Jul 91 02:22:26 -0500
From: franksr@zeus.mgmt.purdue.edu (innocent bystander)
Subject: over analysing lyrics
Someone brought up the thread of over analysing lyrics/listening just for the
music. I agree. For me, the first time I listen to a song gives me a mindset
that I almost always fall into whenever I hear it again. I had a literature
teacher in high school that I went round and round with about over analysing
poetry. It promted me to write a poem drawing an analogy between prose and
a fresh coat of paint. The main idea was that a fresh coat of paint had a
sharp pungent smell, and a glistening quality, and when you touched it, some
of it was picked up and sticks to your fingers. BUT, when you go back later,
the smell isn't as sharp, it doesn't glisten quite as much, and not nearly as
much is picked up by your fingers. I don't know if this applies, but I
generally get the biggest charge out of a song the first time I hear it. Oh
well, have a good one.
<><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><>
< Rich Franks franksr@midas.mgmt.purdue.edu >
< Krannert School of Management Computing Center, Purdue University >
<><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><>
----------------------------------------------------------
Date: Sun, 14 Jul 1991 13:00:54 CDT
From: SRF6200@SIGMA.TAMU.EDU (Hactar)
Subject: Dune, time signatures, instrumentals, etc.
Just some musings about the last NMS...
wilkinso@darkside.com (Sean Flanegan) writes:
> On earlier posts of TNMS, people were discussing the possibility of the
>band doing another concept song. Names like Robin Hood and Dune were
>brought up. I don't know about you, but I really don't think that would be
>a good idea. Especially Dune. If Neil was going to write a song based on
>anything it should be something with a little more artistic integrity. I
>mean REALLY!!
Well, Sean, I sorry you seem to think Dune and possibly its author Frank
Herbert have no artistic integrity. I would be curious to know _why_ you say
this, since Dune is a critically acclaimed novel. I do agree, however,
that I wouldn't want to see Rush doing another fantasy/sci fi concept
album, since they have outgrown that style years ago (as they will admit).
From: dougo@soda.berkeley.edu
>Can someone explain to musically illiterate me what the difference between
>4/4 time and, say, 13/8 is? I've heard it mentioned a lot that Rush plays
>in all sorts of odd time signatures, but I've never actually figured out
>what this means.
The 4/4 time signature means that there are four beats per time measure
(each time measure is between the solid vertical lines on the sheet music).
This is also refered to as "common time" since it is the most common time
measure (how original!) Likewise, 3/4 time has three beats per measure,
etc. etc. Now, a beat per time measure in common time is one quarter note
(the solid circle with one vertical line attached). Therefore, there are
four quarter notes in a time measure for common time, or eight eighth
notes, or 16 sixteenth notes, etc. For 3/4 time, there are 3 quarter notes
per time measure....whew! I'm out of breath. Likewise, for 5/4, 6/4, and
7/4 time (which Rush does upon occasion). Now, as for 13/8 time, I've
never actually played in this time signature before (in fact, I've never
heard of it either), but since I only play saxaphone, maybe I'm missing
something?
From: DSchmidt.311@postman.gsfc.nasa.gov!
>Where's My Thing? Part IV. The gangsters of boats trilogy.
>
>[deleted]
>
> Maybe it's just the fourth instrumental:
> I) 2112 Oveture
> II) La Villa
> III) YYZ
> IV) Where's my thing?
Well, what about the 2112 Grand Finale? Can this be considered an
instrumental? (There are no lyrics, just speaking parts at the end).
Steve Fennell (Texas A&M University)
----------------------------------------------------------
Date: Sun, 14 Jul 1991 13:02:52 CDT
From: SRF6200@SIGMA.TAMU.EDU (Hactar)
Subject: Neil Peart Interview
{ I left this in here, because it's not too long. In general, I'd prefer
those with interview, etc. transcripts to send them to the administrative
address. That way they'll get into a special edition, and have more of
a chance to get into the 'rush/special' directory at the ftp site.
:rush-mgr ]
Here's an old interview I dredged up from the Houston Post that I thought
you all might be interested in. It was written by Bob Claypool based on a
phone interview with Neil Peart. The publication date was 1/27/88.
*****
(reprinted without permission from the Houston Post)
Remember the old cliche about "The more things change, the more they
stay the same?"
Consider this - a decade ago, I was talking to Geddy Lee, the bassist
of Rush, about the media status of other bands.
At that time, Elvis Costello and various graduates of the New Wave were
making all the noise in the rock press. Big labels had signed them up,
their pictures were on the cover of every rock rag in the world and
interviews with them ran on forever.
As usual, no one cared about the hard rock trio, Rush, right? Funny
thing, though, anybody who had access to sales charts would find something
very peculiar - namely, that the entire _combined_ "new music" brigade
wasn't moving "product" the way this Canadian threesome was.
Rock critics hated Rush, sincerely hated them, and yet... Rush filled
indoor arenas and they sold records in huge quantities.
Now, in 1988, I'm on the phone to another member of the band, drummer
Neil Peart, and - deja vu - we wind up laughing about the status of the
band that still gets no media respect.
On the strength of their latest album, _Hold Your Fire_, Rush - Lee,
Peart, and guitarist Alex Lifeson - is once again zooming across America,
banging heads with maximum volume, big power chords, and their ongoing
penchant for spinning strange, science-fiction-like rock 'n' roll tales
(They perform Friday night in The Summit [Houston, TX]).
Music magazines are not amused, but, says Peart, that's not even a
problem anymore.
"There have always been these factions in rock 'n' roll that absolutely
hated us - we're used to that," he said. "But we've always been happy with
the way we achieved success. It _didn't_ come from a lot good press and
exposure, or because we were critics' darlings. It was a result of the
real thing - because we got out there and slogged around the U.S. We were
a hardworking touring group and we stayed on the road as much as we could.
We choose that avenue - we believed that it was the natural order of
things, and it worked for us."
Ironically enough, the big controversy about Rush now comes not from
outside - from those who simply hate hard-rock groups to begin with - but
from within the ranks of the faithful.
"Yes, we have all sorts of factions within our own fans now," Peart
said. "I suppose that's natural after 15 years, but we have a lot of
people who prefer our material from the late '70s - the long instrumental
passages, and all - who don't care for the new music all that much. On the
other hand, we have a lot of fans for whom the band didn't exist before
1980 - they're totally into the new songs."
The solution?
"Well, we try to mix it up some, go back and do some things that will
appeal to the old fans. But it's sort of strange to play a song and see
part of the audience jumping up and down and the other part standing there
sort of bewildered."
A friend of mine, who's a long-time Rush fan, is one of those people
who's not too crazy about _Hold Your Fire_ or any of the other recent
albums. For him, the band has gotten too "craftsy" about their songs. He
misses the super-long, overwrought jams and says the new Rush is "too
synthesized".
"Well, we've progressed, we've tried to keep up with the technology
that's involved in the record-making process today," Peart said. "You
simply have to do that. When we got Peter Collins (as coproducer), he
expanded our sound in a lot of areas. We were used to doing it ourselves,
really, and we had to set aside a lot of our preconceptions, but I think it
worked out really well.
"The new album was recorded and mixed digitally, except for the drums
and bass, which were analog," Peart continued. "I feel more comfortable,
and prefer the sound, doing it that way."
We go on to talk about another characteristic of the band, one that's
seldom, if ever, discussed - their sense of humor. Now, no one is implying
that Rush is wildly funny, but, on the other hand, they are not the
gloomy-gus, dreary, ultra-sober head-bangers they're frequently perceived
to be. Even in the days when solos stretched on interminably, and the
sci-fi scenarios got even more bizarre, there was a certain sense of fun to
it all.
"I can't understand that either - I don't know why some people can't
see it," Peart said. "We start nearly every show by coming onto the Three
Stooges song, and we close it by playing Robert Goulet or some
country-western song! It never fails to amaze me that some people just
don't get the hint. We're _not_ taking it all that seriously! We want to
have fun! That's a lot of the inspiration for what we do, simple as that.
"You know, like any band that's been around this long, we have our
lunatic fringe of fans," Peart said. "We have some who are really _out_
there. And they will come up to us and talk about these really weird
interpretations of certain songs, and they'll ask us these huge, cosmic
questions about why we wrote what we did. They're usually either very
disappointed, or they just don't believe us, when we give them an answer.
They don't want to hear, 'Well, uh, no. Actually, we did it that way just
because we were having fun!'
"Sorry," he laughed, "but I'm afraid that's the truth of it."
*****
Steve Fennell (srf6200@zeus.tamu.edu)
You know you're a Rush fan when...
You spend a hour recopying the above interview from the microfiche
BY HAND because you don't have any change to make copies.
----------------------------------------------------------
Subject: Rush on TV!
Date: Sun, 14 Jul 91 15:33:22 EDT
From: mjkobb@media-lab.media.mit.edu
Greetings,
I happened to have the TV on Saturday night/Sunday morning when a show
called "Global Jam" came on (NBC, I think). They had clips of Tina Turner,
Richard Marx, Stevie Ray Vaughn(sp?), and.... RUSH!
They showed two songs from the ASOH video -- Spirit of Radio, and Tom
Sawyer. The intro was sort of amusing, actually, since it was read straight
from the jacket of the video.
Nice to see the boyz on the air!
Seeya,
--Mike
----------------------------------------------------------
Date: Sun, 14 Jul 91 15:37:21 edt
From: "Dylan Kaufman" <morgan@chaos.cs.brandeis.edu>
Subject: New list proposal
The other day I posted a message about how I would be willing to make
copies of bootlegs as long as it didn't cost me anything, and that I
imagined that other people would feel the same way.
Well, I was thinking that it might be nice to have a LIST of all the
people who own bootlegs, what they have, and where they are. That
way, people could look at the list, find what they want and decide
to whom they should write about getting it.
For instance, if I were in Boston (where Brandeis is, which I'm not at
the moment), I could look at this list, see that Moving Pictures tour
boots are owned by person x@ucsd, person y@berkeley, and person
z@bostonu and send mail to z so that I could actually go get them and
not have to deal with shipping...
What I am basically saying is this:
If you own any bootlegs and are willing to copy them for people
provided that they either give you tapes and envelopes with return
postage or that they will pay you (either in advance or after) for the
tapes and the postage, then please send me a list of WHAT you have
(including notes on quality and song lists if you like), and WHERE you
are (general area is sufficient, you can be specific if you like).
I will compile this into a list, and make it available via ftp from
syrinx (by the grace of MGR, of course), email (from me), and on the
list periodically (also by the grace of G.. I mean MGR ;> )
[ At the risk of being a hard-ass, I can't make this available via
ftp on Syrinx. As it's technically an illegal venture, I can't
officially lend the machine to that purpose. Feel free to manage
the tree yourself, though - I *do* encourage free speech. :rush-mgr ]
Thanks to all who participate...
-<>Dylan<>- MA EMT-M, CA EMT-1A, BEMCo 107
Dylan Kaufman Major in Computer Science
morgan@chaos.cs.brandeis.edu Brandeis University, Waltham, MA
------<< Support your local Emergency Medical Services >>-------
"I've got something to say! It is better to burn out than
to fade away!" - Kurgan
----------------------------------------------------------
Date: Sun, 14 Jul 91 19:44:07 edt
From: "Dylan Kaufman" <morgan@chaos.cs.brandeis.edu>
Subject: Addendum to new list proposal
A couple more thoughts for people who are interested:
A) please send me the generation of the boot you have... i.e. if it's
the tape that was at the concert or an lp or cd, then it's first
generation... if not...
B) please also send me the songs that are on it, what kind of tape
it's on (if it is), and how long it is.
C) be sure to send me a valid address so that we can get in touch with
you without writing to here... in other words, don't make me rely on
your return address, those are not always good...
D) I'm going to call it the Available Bootlegs List (ABL)...
-<>Dylan<>- MA EMT-M, CA EMT-1A, BEMCo 107
Dylan Kaufman Major in Computer Science
morgan@chaos.cs.brandeis.edu Brandeis University, Waltham, MA
------<< Support your local Emergency Medical Services >>-------
And on the seventh day, even He rested. We don't. -Emerg. Med. Svcs.
----------------------------------------------------------
Subject: presto in BMG
From: wilkinso@darkside.com (Sean Flanegan)
Date: Sun, 14 Jul 91 17:18:18 PDT
I do not believe that Presto is in the BMG catalog, but I an definately
sure that it is in the CBS disc club catalog. Probably due to the change in
record labels. I however do not recommend you do any business with the CBS
club. They tried to rip me off. Sending me CDs that I didnt want even
after I sent thet return slip back in time.
UNRELATED QUESTION: Does anyone know why Tormato and Yesshows<<bye
YES of course>>is only available as an import CD. At least that is the way
it is here in the San Francisco bay area
also about why Rush changed record labels. It is true about M-P's
contract being fulfilled. Neil added in his latest Modern Drummer interview
that it wasnt a situation of the band asking if they could sell more of
( THEY being Atlantic Records) Rush's albums. It was a situation where
Atlantic offering to sell more
You Know you are a Rush Fan when.....
While you are in the movie theatre watching Robin Hood with youre Brother
( rush fan ) and two Friends ( not Rush Fans), When lady marion stamps a
letter with a wax Red Star.. You and youre brother exchange excited glances.
P.S. I have heard from a reliable source and do believe
myself that the mumbling in the later sections of The Camera Eye is as
follows................................
" BEleCh!!..."
" That's Gross Alex."
^
Alex Lifeson of course
-sean
----------------------------------------------------------
Date: Mon, 15 Jul 91 05:04:45 edt
From: "Dylan Kaufman" <morgan@chaos.cs.brandeis.edu>
Subject: Internet Relay Chat
For those of you who have access to irc and are inclined, I thought it
would be nice to have a channel devoted to RUSH... I'm calling it the
+RUSH! channel... I will inhabit it whenever I am around, and if you
feel like joining me, I'll be happy to see you...
(if you don't know what irc is, mail me or jlang and we'll let you in
on the big secret ;> )
(which isn't that big...)
-<>Dylan<>- MA EMT-M, CA EMT-1A, BEMCo 107
Dylan Kaufman Major in Computer Science
morgan@chaos.cs.brandeis.edu Brandeis University, Waltham, MA
------<< Support your local Emergency Medical Services >>-------
"I've got something to say! It is better to burn out than
to fade away!" - Kurgan
----------------------------------------------------------
From: rlr@bbt.com (Ron Rader)
Subject: Dem' three balls...
Date: Mon, 15 Jul 91 8:49:38 EDT
Todd Fantz <fantz@athena.cs.uga.edu> hypothesizes:
> (5) As far as the symbolism of the "three gilded balls" in The
> Fountainhead. It seems obvious to me that the phrase means that man at
> the present time will basically sell his soul to the highest bidder.
> [...] Dr. John Ridpath ... says that he
> knows of no other significance to the three balls.
I don't know whether or not this has any significance to HYF, but a sign
composed of three metal balls (arranged in a roughly triangular pattern) is
the traditional emblem of the pawn shop. Apparently pawn shops are shrouded
in antiquity, but have abandoned this traditional symbol in recent years, so
this symbol is somewhat unrecognized today.
The 'sell (or pawn) your soul to the highest bidder' proposal has some
merit.
--
ron rader, jr rlr@bbt.com OR ...!mcnc!bbt!rlr = Opinions are my own and do
| | i gotta six-pack & nothing to do... = not necessarily reflect those
| | i gotta six-pack & i don't need you = of BroadBand Tech. (SO THERE!)
*** Punk ain't no religious cult, punk means thinking for yourself - DKs ***
----------------------------------------------------------
To submit material to The National Midnight Star, send mail to:
rush@syrinx.umd.edu
For administrative matters (additions, deletions, changes, and
questions), send mail to:
rush-request@syrinx.umd.edu or
rush-mgr@syrinx.umd.edu
There is now anonymous ftp access available on Syrinx. The network
address to ftp to is:
syrinx.umd.edu or 128.8.2.114
When you've connected, userid is "anonymous", password is <your userid>.
Once you've successfully logged on, change directory (cd) to 'rush'.
There is also a mail server available (for those unable or unwilling to
ftp). For more info, send email with the subject line of HELP to:
server@ingr.com
These requests are processed nightly. Use a subject line of MESSAGE to
send a note to the server keeper or to deposit a file into the archive.
The contents of The National Midnight Star are solely the opinions and
comments of the individual authors, and do not necessarily reflect the
opinions of the authors' management, or the mailing list management.
Copyright The Rush Fans Mailing List, 1991.
Editor, The National Midnight Star
(Rush Fans Mailing List)
********************************************
End of The National Midnight Star Number 287
********************************************