It’s my uncle Darrell’s fault. He doesn’t even know it. He was living in my grandparent’s attic, and I was visiting. He had a record collection. It was St. Paul, the winter had frozen the whole world. I was ten years old.
He wasn’t home. Nobody was home. I was staying with my grandparents and they were all out doing something – I honestly don’t remember. But, I was there, watching Star Trek, waiting for Doctor Who to come on. It was an episode I’d seen before, and not a particularly good one, so I went upstairs into the attic and poked around.
At the foot of his bed was his record collection. I took a look through it quickly, pausing on the Molly Hatchet albums (they had Frank Frazetta covers) and the Meat Loaf album (with that really cool motorcycle busting out of the earth and the guy screaming for the sky). One album I hadn’t seen before. It had a big red star on it and the letters 2112. I opened the gatefold, took a peek inside.
And it was a story. A huge story that spanned the entire album. A sci-fi story. I had to hear this. So, I carefully slid the album out of the cover, put it on the turntable and took a listen.
The cacophony of sound that met me hit me on my ass. There was so much going on. I’d seen bands play before (one of my other uncles was in a band) and these guys were playing so fast, so well, so intricately. The lyrics caught my breath and didn’t let go. I was hooked. Right then and there.
I’ve been a Rush fan since 1979. I’ve seen them on every tour since 1984. And I just bought the RUSH IN RIO CD.
Rush fans, far and near, hear me now. Even those who doubt the veracity of the Power of Rush, you must hear me, as well.
This is, without a doubt, the best album of their career. Live or studio.
As Neil Peart writes in the liner notes, they expected the typical audience. Twelve to thirteen thousand. Maybe fourteen tops.
What they got was sixty thousand people banging down the door, ready to party. The crowd sings along with every song. They chant during the instrumentals. They know every note, every beat, every chord. This is sixty thousand people who have waited a long time to see their favorite band… and they are having the time of their lives. And, of course, the audience brings out the band, and the band reaches out to the audience, and the audience embraces them and the whole thing is magic. Magic.
Yes, the band cannot keep up with their younger selves on the older songs, but it doesn’t matter. None of it matters. This is a band having fun with their fans and the fans sending all their love and energy at the band.
Imagine, for a moment, sixty thousand people in one place, with only one goal in mind. Imagine that for a moment. Standing in that crowd of several thousand people, with hearts and minds and feet and voices all set in a single direction.
That is the magic of this CD. A moment of pure human power. The power of love. A band who loves to play, fans who love the music, and people who let go of their lives and just live.
Rush was the first band I ever really listened to, the first band that taught me music could be more than just “Yeah yeah yeah.” Sure, they’ve got epic sci-fi ballads, and sure, they can load their songs with awkward lyrical phrasing, but if anything else, RUSH IN RIO shows a mature trio of musicians who are surrounded with fans who love them and their music. And the boys just shrug, smile, and have fun.
www.rushinrio.com
www.rush.com