Rush played the first show on the western leg of the Snakes &Arrows tour 2 nights ago, returning to their homeland to play the Pengrowth Saddledome in Calgary. Tonight they'll play the White River Amphitheatre in Auburn, WA and then work their way down the US West Coast. The first leg of the tour sold very well. 4 shows made the top 35 concert gross revenue list in the 7/21 issue of Billboard magazine. Here they are courtesy Scott_PA:

21. $860,671 Rush - Nikon Jones Beach Theater, Wantagh, NY, July 2, attendance 12,300, capacity 13,851

24. $689,995 Rush - Tweeter Center, Mansfield, MA, June 27, attendance 12,358, capacity 14,245

25. $662,267 Rush - Tweeter Center Waterfront, Camden, NJ, July 6, attendance 12,180, capacity 24,956

27. $628,792 Rush - PNC Bank Arts Center, Holmdel, NJ, July 8, attendance 12,014, capacity 16,996

The Bristow show also made the previous issue's list coming it at #27. Music industry guru Bob Lefsetz had something to say about how well Rush's tour is doing in comparison to their album sales; Snakes & Arrows finally fell out of the top 100 Billboard album list this week, coming in at #131 (from #58 last week). Here's what Lefsetz said in his Lefsetz Letter blog:

They’ve only sold 213,620 copies of their new album, "Snakes & Arrows", but their fans still want to see them live.

If they didn’t have a record deal, I'd tell them to go all Prince on us [ed note: this is in reference to Prince simply giving away his latest work with the purchase of a concert ticket - essentially sticking it to the label]. Rather than report anemic SoundScan figures, why not just give the album away to the diehard fans, who are paying to see them, who want to see them, oftentimes at high prices.

Otherwise, they’ll never be able to play the new material in concert, everybody will go to the bathroom. They’ll just be able to play the hits.

It’s about getting your music HEARD! It’s not about how many CDs you sell. By focusing on selling product, acts are actually hurting themselves. Don’t tell their record labels, but the performers have got to know this. Every act that the big label built…unless the big label can provide incredible visibility, should put out its album itself. It’ll make all the money. And, as we move to Web distribution, people can find the tracks on iTunes from indies as easily as those from majors. And most of these acts ARE NOT GOING TO GET ON THE RADIO ANYWAY!

Personally I think the new songs have been going over pretty well with fans, but he does make a good point. He may be onto something. Thanks to Albert and KevinBe for the tip. The results of last week's poll/survey are in. I'd asked folks what shows they attended on the first leg of the tour. You can check out the results here. For this week's poll I'm asking you how many Rush concert shirts you currently own - even if they don't fit anymore ;). Let us know here.

Reader Gerrit Gillespie sent me some vintage photographs he'd taken of Rush banners from a 1980 show in Chicago.

Surprise, surprise - but Rush is mentioned in a recent interview with Dream Theater drummer Mike Portnoy conducted by Michael Senft of The Arizona Republic. It's difficult to find a Dream Theater interview where Rush isn't mentioned. Here's the exchange:

... Q: Prog-metal fans are getting an extra special treat the week you are in town. You play on Wednesday, and Rush is in town on Friday.

A: Wow. (Rush's drummer) Neil (Peart) is the drummer who introduced me to progressive drumming. Before Neil it was Keith Moon, John Bonham and Ringo Starr - they got me interested in music, but once I discovered Rush in 1981, Neil became the number one influence. I was a young teenager and I'd never heard a drummer do odd time signatures, have a massive kit, playing extended drum solos.

Since then Dream Theater's path has followed Rush's development. We're kind of the torch bearers for that kind of music to a new generation. The appeal Rush had to me as a kid seems to be the same appeal that my music has to our fans.

The tradition continues - there will always be an audience for that kind of intense musicianship and I'm proud to be carrying it on.

John over at Cygnus-X1.net has completed scanning all the Snakes & Arrows tourbook images. You can check them out at this link. Thanks John!

The RushCon organizers wanted me to remind you that the convention is just 2 months away! It will occur in Toronto over the weekend that Rush is in town so it should be a blast. You can pre-register at this link. And here's this important announcement/request regarding the RushCon Charity Auction:

Call for Charity Auction Donations

If you have some extra RUSHy memorabilia laying around (don't we all?), how about donating it to the RushCon Charity Auction! We have raised nearly $40,000 over the past six years for the Daily Bread Food Bank of Toronto and UNICEF for Tsunami Relief. Let's show true RUSH Fan spirit by raising even more money for those in need!

We really want to promote the auction items online this year, and generate some real excitement, so don't wait! Send your info today!

E-mail your auction item(s) description and photos (640 x 480 pixel size, 72 dpi resolution) to Holly at auction@rushcon.org . Be sure to let her know if you are bringing the item with you to RushCon or will be shipping it to one of our organizers before the convention. We are here to help!

I went to RushCon last year and will also be attending this year. It really is a great time and should be especially fun this year since Rush will be in town.

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