Tag Archives: Anthem Records

Album Reviews, Classic Rock, Genre, Hard Rock, Progressive Rock

Rush – Grace Under Pressure Tour (Album Review)

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Rush – Grace Under Pressure Tour (Anthem – 2006)

I’ve been listening to Rush quite a bit recently and you can’t have a Rush kick without taking in a live album or two. It’s been a while since I’ve listened to the excellent Grace Under Pressure Tour, recorded in 1984 but released as a bonus CD with their 2006 DVD set Replay x 3. The album they were touring, Grace Under Pressure, is right up there as one of my favourite Rush studio albums so it’s great to have some live tracks from the era. The guitar solo in Red Sector A is breathtaking and the lively, pumping take on the The Enemy Within is far superior to the studio version.  The recording is taken from one of the DVDs from the box set and isn’t a whole show unfortunately, but it’s still a great listen with some excellent performances. And, given the band’s fashion crimes of the era, the audio-only option is very welcome.

Replica tour book from the Replay X 3 box set
Classic Rock, Genre, Hard Rock, Progressive Rock, Song Reviews

Rush – Marathon (Song Review)

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“In the long run”

It wouldn’t score a podium place in my list of favourite Rush songs but Marathon is definitely a standout from the band’s 80s era. Taken from 1985’s Power Windows, this is Rush at the peak of their pop-prog powers with funky basslines, enormodome guitar chords and a rousing chorus that builds to a climax of Olympian grandeur with the addition of a 25 piece choir. As always with Rush, this is high-performance stuff but Marathon is also uplifting and accessible. I never get tired of it.

Classic Rock, Genre, Heavy Metal, Progressive Rock, Song Reviews

Rush – Ghost Rider (Song Review)

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“Sunset on the road ahead”

Sad news today with the passing of Rush’s Neil Peart. On Facebook and Twitter I posted the track Afterimage as a tribute. It sprung to mind due to its themes of grief and loss… and because 80s Rush rules! But let’s have a song from another era here.

Ghost Rider is one of my favourite tunes of the band’s later work. Written as Rush were returning to action following Peart’s hiatus due to deaths in his family, it’s one of their most moving and emotive songs. The Canadians take to the open road with a breezy, motoring groove and a shifting landscape of layered guitars. Peart’s lyrics are searching and evocative and vocalist Geddy Lee responds with taste and feeling. But, as always, the engine driving the whole thing is Peart’s classy and dynamic drum performance. R.I.P Neil.

[Rush – Ghost Rider]