UPDATE - 10/16@3:20PM: As several of you have pointed out ... I posted the video for Distant Early Warning which is obviously on Grace Under Pressure and NOT Power Windows! Sorry - it's been a long week ... :) I switched it to The Big Money which is what I had meant to do before zoning out. Feel free to make fun of me for this. ;)
Rush announced earlier today that FANTOONS will be releasing a new officially-licensed Rush book titled Neil Peart: The Illustrated Quotes. The 108-page, hardcover book is slated for release on January 12, 2021, just over a year after Neil Peart's untimely passing. From the Rush newsletter announcing the release:
... Neil Peart: The Illustrated Quotes pairs elegant illustrations with some of Neil's greatest remarks to bring the poignant words of one of the world's greatest drummers to life. The book release was approved by Neil and in the works for prior to his untimely passing earlier this year. ... Pairing striking black-and-white illustrations from the acclaimed artists at FANTOONS with some of the drummer's greatest quotes, Neil Peart: The Illustrated Quotes keeps the beautiful words and musings of Neil Peart alive. Neil Peart: The Illustrated Quotes is the first and only Neil Peart quotes collection authorized by Neil himself. Not only does the book provide Rush fans-both old and new-the opportunity to dive into Neil's inspiring messages whenever they need a pick-me-up, it also serves as a love letter to Peart and his beautifully-crafted words that have inspired and influenced millions around the world.
The book is now available for pre-order via Amazon at this location.
Music writer Martin Popoff's Limelight: Rush in the '80s - the second book in his 3-part Rush Across the Decades series - officially released this past Tuesday. The first book in the series was Anthem: Rush in the '70s, which released back in May, and the third book will be titled Driven: Rush in the '90s and "In the End", which should be released sometime next year. You can order your copy of Limelight: Rush in the '80s via Amazon and other online retailers. The author is also accepting orders for signed editions of the book via this link. The imitation-leather bound book comes in at 375 pages and includes two full-color photo inserts, with 16 pages of the band on tour and in the studio. Rodrigo Altaf wrote a detailed review of the book for Sonic Perspectives, saying the following:
... One of the keys to the success in making this book an interesting read is the interviews conducted with key personnel. The statements of Howard Ungerleider, the responsible for lights and the visual elements of the Rush's live performances, are prominently featured again, detailing the evolution of the live projections as technology took a massive leap forward, and how the sonic aspect was augmented on stage by the films accompanying each song. Also of note is the extensive dialogues with Peter Collins, who produced the most synth-laden albums of the band's career, and Rupert Hine, who rescued them from the infatuation with keyboards and helped Alex Lifeson get his guitar onto the forefront of the band's mix. ...
Toronto Life magazine recently checked in with several notable Torontonians to find out what they are watching, reading and listening to this October. One of the Torontonians they spoke to was Rush's Geddy Lee, who recommended British comedian Michael Spicer's The Room Next Door webisodes:
"Michael Spicer is an incredibly funny man. His short webisodes are called The Room Next Door and the conceit of the show is that Spicer is feeding smart words into the earpieces of the world's dumbest politicians (you know who you are), which they consistently choose to ignore as they proceed with their own asinine remarks. Why Mr. Spicer doesn't have his own mainstream TV show is hard to fathom, although James Corden wisely features his segments on The Late Late Show."
Alex Lifeson's Boss CE-1 Chorus Ensemble is one of the many guitar effects pedals featured in a massive new illustrated book titled Stompbox: 100 Pedals of the World's Greatest Guitarists, a 500+ page coffee table book displaying the effects pedals of some of the world's greatest guitarists. The book is the creation of photographer Eilon Paz, who captures each of the pedals in hi-res detail, with editing by Guitar World alums Dan Epstein and James Rotondi, as described in this Guitar World article (thanks RushFanForever).
Ultimate Classic Rock posted another excerpt from their recent interview with longtime Rush art director Hugh Syme this past week, where he discusses the A Farewell to Kings album artwork and how he originally had more grandiose plans for the cover, but Rush's management forced him to scale things back.
... "[I'd seen] Lindisfarne, which is the monastery on Holy Island," he says. ... I would have loved to feature Lindisfarne - and I used it in my original sketches. But as soon as I showed that to the band's management, it was like, 'Yeah, dream on.' It was not a time for excess." Instead, Syme drew on his immediate surroundings and came up with a new plan. The vivid final cover features a puppet-looking king slumped on a throne in front of a demolished building, contrasted with the Toronto skyline in the background. "I found a building that was in a state of ruin in Buffalo [N.Y.]," Syme says. "I lived in the Niagara region and went into the U.S. a lot. I saw this beautiful, dilapidated building and thought, 'Well, we'll have access to that.' We crossed the border with Josh Onderison, the guitar player from my band, the Ian Thomas Band, which was on the same label as Rush and Max Webster. Our guitarist was of a skeletal stature - perfect for the puppet." He retouched some elements of the character - including his mouth, jaw and eyes - in post-production, adding the sky, smokestack and strings. "I created a prosthetic structure so his knee, showing through the tear in his tights, appeared mechanical, like a marionette's," he says. ...
Earlier this month, UCR posted a portion of the interview where Syme discusses the Caress of Steel album artwork and why he wasn't completely satisfied with it.
Foo Fighters frontman Dave Grohl has teamed up with indie rockers The Bird and the Bee for a cover of the Christmas classic Little Drummer Boy for their upcoming holiday album Put Up The Lights. You can listen to the track in this Louder article which also mentions Alex Lifeson's 1997 cover of the song for the Christmas compilation album Merry Axemas (listen to Lifeson's version here).
Legendary BTO and Guess Who founding member Randy Bachman has a YouTube channel with his son Tal Bachman called - appropriately - Bachman and Bachman. On one of their recent episodes they chat a good bit about Rush, prompted by a question from one of their fans. You can watch the episode in question at this location with the Rush bit coming in at about the 50:28 mark (thanks RushFanForever.
Rush's Power Windows celebrated the 35th anniversary of its October 14, 1985 release this past Wednesday. Here's The Big Money:
That's all for this week. Have a great weekend everyone!!
