jff

No, I was the drummer. For a drummer, Zap is the easiest to play out of those tunes. I was probably the weak link in the band, but I was pretty good at the time. The guitarist was an amazing player. He's even better now. I still get to jam with him a few times a year, although we haven't attempted any of those songs. Next time we'll have to dust those off.

Awesome. I saw Eric Johnson in a small theater. He's something else. My first band did covers of Rush and Eric Johnson tunes. We did Johnson's "Zap" and "Cliffs of Dover", and Rush's "La Villa Strangiato" (pretty decent versions considering we were teenagers). We tried loads of other Rush songs, but we never had finished versions of any, probably because we didn't have a singer.

Cool list! I'd add: Eddie Cochran: C'mon Everybody, Somethin' Else, Twenty Flight Rock Gene Vincent: Be Bop A Lula Richie Valens: Ooh, My Head (then when your kid gets into Zeppelin they'll know where Boogie With Stu comes from.) Everly Brothers: Wake Up Little Suzie

No, I didn't know about that. Thanks for the tip. I'll have to check that out. Alex has several funny moments in their Rio dvd, too.

Yeah, I've even heard Ozzy has a hidden singer for the high notes. Not sure if that's true. I also heard that the reason Ozzy is always soaking wet is to conceal the fact that he regularly wets his pants onstage. Not sure if that's true, either.

Yeah, I know the hidden keyboard player part was a joke. One could argue that they do use tapes, because they do, it's just that Peart is the one pushing play, so to speak, so that makes it ok. When I first get into Rush I assumed they were a five or six piece band. It wasn't until a few months later when I saw 2112 at the mall record store and there were only three people in the band photo. That was pretty confusing to me.

Yeah, either Presto or Roll the Bones tour. Probably Presto. I was far enough back that I didn't see the drill get stuck, but I did see him leave the stage, followed immediately by a bass solo. That seemed entirely normal. It wasn't until some time later, when a friend who had really good seats told me about the drill incident, and it wasn't until fairly recently that I confirmed it on the internet.

Alex and Geddy use the taurus pedals. Neil triggers some sounds with an electronic drum pad. Between those things they manage to have it all covered. Here's Alex Lifeson's pedal setup (Taurus pedals on the right):

I only saw them once when they had an opener. It was Mr. Big, and it was the now legendary show where their guitarist, Paul Gilbert got his hair caught in a power drill he was using for rapid fire guitar pyrotechnics ( ) and had to leave the stage. http://www.truthinshredding.com/2009/08/paul-gilbert-drills-can-be-dangerous.html

I got my prize pack in the mail last week! The Singers shirt is kind of bizarre, in a good way, and the tote bag is going to be super handy. I already had all the cds, so I'll have to figure out what would be the best thing to do with my duplicate copies.

Pre-Exit Stage Left is my favorite Rush era, but there are a few albums that came after that that I really enjoy. Signals and Grace Under Pressure, mainly. It's a very different sound than their previous work. They've cited the Police and Talking Heads as huge influences on their work from that era. Once they minimized their use of keyboards they turned into a hard rock band, almost to the point of being metal. To my ears, their music, and especially the lyrics, come across as overly serious now. A lot of the fun is gone from their music, and aside from a song here and there I haven't

Hmm, I was under the impression there was one song they've never played live. I'm probably misinformed about that.

I like it a lot, too. Aside frmo the debut album, I think all their albums up to Grace Under Pressure are very good. My favorites are A Farewell to Kings and Hemispheres.

You should go. It'll definitely be a great concert. I might go, even though I wish it was indoors. It's not until September, so it should be getting dark earlier.

Carress of Steel, though it is widely considered their worst album, contains some of the greatest and most unique moments in thier entire catalog. This Moving Pictures thing is kind of a weak promo gimmick since they've played pretty much the whole album every night since it came out. There's one song on it they've never played in concert.

How is driving yourself into a homicidal rage going to contribute to world peace?

Stray Cats - Look at that Cadillac War - Low Rider

I've seen them four times. First time was in '90. They always do a great show, but I don't like that they've been playing outdoor amphitheaters on recent summer tours. Their show is better indoors, as they use lots of lasers, videos, etc. It doesn't even get dark outside until their show is half way over, so those things look kind of weak when they play outdoors.

Christopher Cross

It's interesting that you just compared singing and indian food. Last week, you tried to tell me I was wrong to compare music and film. Back to thread: UNCLE TUPELO. I don't think I'll ever like Fararr's voice.