Best Rush Album

[vantagepointrocks]

Fan of all eras of Rush, and I like at least something on every album they’ve done. But my favourite period is the 80s keyboard dominated one from Signals to Hold Your Fire. From that, Power Windows is my favourite.

[Muzz]

I like most of their albums (tho I too tailed off in the 90s) and it's not an album per se, but the Rush In Rio DVD has an awful lot to like in one place, not least the energy of that mental crowd...and I could watch Neil Peart at his kit alllll day...

[Rich]

On ‎10‎/‎08‎/‎2019 at 20:20, ezbass said:

I love all of their 80s output and even the early 90s (yes, I’m the one person who likes Presto and Roll the Bones).

 

15 hours ago, TrevorR said:

Make that two of us!

Three!  

[Bassassin]

53 minutes ago, spongebob said:

I'm not sure which career point is lower.....'Dog Years', or 'I Think I'm Going Bald'!

Again - easy, by the time they did Dog Years, they really should have known better!

Besides, Going Bald is genuinely, and I think intentionally funny, as well as being a semi-serious observation of a generation abandoning its youthful dreams & selling out. I can just about forgive it being a half-arsed re-tread of In The Mood, and therefore a 3rd-hand Led Zep ripoff!

[wateroftyne]

You can’t single out Dog Years on an album that has Virtuality on it...

[wateroftyne]

10 minutes ago, hiram.k.hackenbacker said:

As TFE is getting a bashing, I'm giving it another spin. Opening track is fine....

Counterparts was the biggest ‘revisit revelation’ for me. The production is fantastic.

[cetera]

A Farewell To Kings

[bazzbass]

I still remember when my bandmate first played Moving Pictures to me. Especially YYZ. 

"That's it!" I excitedly said

"what?" asked my mate

"The basslines I hear in my head that I wanna play but have no idea how"

Only took me another 30 years to figure them out lol rotfl sigh.....

[Stub Mandrel]

If it's favourite, not best, then Rush. It brings a bigger smile to my face than any of the 'sophisticated' albums. 🙂

If it has to be best, 2112. Every year it was a knock-down, drag-out fight between 2112, Freebird and Stairway to Heaven in the Friday Rock Show poll.

[Guest]

Driven is a great track but the album as whole suffers a bit from feeling like it’s  trying to copy grunge a bit. It hasn’t aged that well compared to other albums.

i must go find the remixed Vapor Trails as the original mix was poor and ugly on the ear. It’s definitely their strongest album of the more modern era - I tried really hard with the last couple but just don’t like them. For me as a band they sounded at this best with keyboards, as the texture with just guitars (especially since AL went back to Gibson’s) was just too thick and hard on the ear. I can only imagine what Signals would sound like without the flat production, cardboard drums and thin guitars!

[wateroftyne]

Just now, FDC484950 said:

I can only imagine what Signals would sound like without the flat production, cardboard drums and thin guitars!

Ha ha.. I love the production on Signals. I think the kit sounds great.

[Guest]

1 minute ago, wateroftyne said:

Ha ha.. I love the production on Signals. I think the kit sounds great.

I kind of know what you mean - but I can see why AL wasn’t happy with the guitar sound and the amount of keyboards. Production-wise, if you compare it to Grace Under Pressure to me it’s like night and day - so much more dynamics, tonal range and despite both albums being excellent, Signals always seems to feel a bit flat and lifeless.

[Bassassin]

2 minutes ago, wateroftyne said:

Ha ha.. I love the production on Signals. I think the kit sounds great.

I think that one might depend on the medium - I remember when Grace Under Pressure was released, being unsurprised that they'd moved on from Terry Brown's production, as Signals had sounded so grey and flat compared to MP.

Competely revised that opinion a couple of decades later when I picked up the Signals remaster, which sounds lovely - arguably clearer and sparklier than the MP remaster. Gave the album a new lease of life for me.

[wateroftyne]

1 minute ago, Bassassin said:

I think that one might depend on the medium - I remember when Grace Under Pressure was released, being unsurprised that they'd moved on from Terry Brown's production, as Signals had sounded so grey and flat compared to MP.

Competely revised that opinion a couple of decades later when I picked up the Signals remaster, which sounds lovely - arguably clearer and sparklier than the MP remaster. Gave the album a new lease of life for me.

I think you might be right. The drum intro to Digital Man is anything but lifeless.

I agree the guitar is a bit watery.

[spectoremg]

I like the early stuff and All The World... and Exit... are great representations of that stuff. My favourite would be Signals even with the mushy sound, IMO anything after that was $h1te, not helped by the weedy Wal/Steinburger tone. 

Edited August 13, 2019 by spectoremg

[dmccombe7]

6 hours ago, spectoremg said:

I like the early stuff and All The World... and Exit... are great representations of that stuff. My favourite would be Signals even with the mushy sound, IMO anything after that was $h1te, not helped by the weedy Wal/Steinburger tone. 

Forgot about All The World's a Stage. Yep that was a fantastic live album.

Dave

[toneknob]

The Best of Rush

 

[wateroftyne]

1 minute ago, toneknob said:

The Best of Rush

True. Also, does anyone think Alex's side-project Victor is frankly the band Rush could have been?

[kevin_lindsay]

This thread has made me look out this 3 CD album for another listen. 

 

[wateroftyne]

1 minute ago, kevin_lindsay said:

This thread has made me look out this 3 CD album for another listen. 

 

The cover of this one is extremely poignant, I reckon.

It also demonstrated how the art of recording / mixing live performances has changed over the years... not always for the better.

[jazzmanb]

They just have brilliant moments down the years ,I've overplayed Moving pictures.Signals is an underrated album 

[Cosmo Valdemar]

Best? Probably a toss up between Permanent Waves and Moving Pictures. It's a tricky one as has been mentioned before as they evolved so much throughout their career.

Personal favourite? Probably Signals. Easily my favourite GL bass tone (well the Rickenbacker songs anyway).

[GarethFlatlands]

Currently Grace Under Pressure.

Everything from 2112 to GUP is fantastic, although I'm not as familiar with their later stuff so I'm sure I'm missing out on a lot of good stuff. I'll give Counterparts a spin soon as it's had a few mentions.

[bigjohn]

Rush was the first Rush album I heard. I still have a soft spot for it. Especially Working Man.

My favourite album is either Moving Pictures or Signals. Signals is the Rush CD I have in the car at the mo. I find the synths too harsh on Grace Under Pressure. I do like the live albums and have probably listened to Exit Stage Left more than I have any other album of theirs. Show of Hands is ace too and reminds me so much of being a 15/16 year old. So much of it needs remastering. 

I too like Presto. It's the only Rush album I've bought on release. 

Much to my regret, I've never seen them live. 

 

Edited August 13, 2019 by bigjohn

[Oopsdabassist]

On 11/08/2019 at 21:59, TrevorR said:

It’s also worth finding the remixed versions on Retrospective III - Different from the remastered album and infinitely better than both that and the original. The opening riffing one OLV where Alex seems to be channelling Richard Dale is nothing short of stunning.

Check it out...

 

just listened to this and my remix version back to back, on reflection I think I prefer the 2013 remix as being more 'immediate' it just sounds a bit livelier to me.

Not much mention of Snakes and Arrows I've noticed, I think Far Cry is a cracking opening number!