Your favourite Rush albums?

Top 3

1. Moving Picture (best album ever created)
The diversity of styles from this album is amazing. Love everything about the album from beginning to end.
2. Permanent Waves
3. Signals

Saw them on the Signal Tour back in High School. I had 2nd row the first night and 5 row right of center second night. That was the best concert PERIOD! Seeing them in Florida made Countdown extra special live.

Fun Fact about the two night show in Florida I saw. Rush was suppose to perform 1 show, but because of the situation explained below, they added an additional night for Florida fans.

On November 28, 1981, fans waiting to attend a Rush concert began throwing rocks and bottles at Pembroke Pines police officers and Sportatorium guards when the gates did not open on time due to the late arrival of Rush’s drummer, Neil Peart. Neil had been sailing on his sailboat in the British Virgin Islands during a 10-day break and missed his original flight in due to weather and other unforeseen issues. Having to take a later flight that would’ve got him there in time, he sent a telegram to the venue explaining this. However, the telegram never made it, and workers for the band couldn’t verify that he was on the plane (or as Neil put it in his book, Roadshow: Landscape with Drums, "In those pre-Homeland Security days, the airline I was flying on wouldn’t release its passenger manifest."). When the doors were finally opened, gate crashers scaled the 11-foot (3.4 m) wall surrounding the facility and started running toward the gates. Police sprayed tear gas on the intruders, resulting in additional rock throwing and fighting. Twenty-two people including 11 police officers were injured and two fans were arrested.] As a result of this incident, a Sportatorium task force was created to handle the rowdyism and related problems.

That’s an interesting post about the November,1981 Florida concert. I don’t think it matters whether it’s Mick Jagger, Paul McCartney or Neil Peart. If you are putting on a concert (and getting paid), you need to be there. Late is bad, not showing up is unforgivable. No one could take his place. How many people were looking forward to the concert for weeks? Seems pretty arrogant to me. You can read about the chaos that resulted. I still like Rush, but Yikes!

tonykay,

Did you not read the circumstances causing Peart to be late?  Weather problems and unforseen issues that you aren't aware of, and the problem with the telegram.  That isn't 'arrogant," that's someone missing a show he wanted to play!

Rush is known for their dedication to fans - one of the hardest working bands of all time and that was an anomaly amongst a record showing great professionalism and dedication.

Given this context it's silly to declare the situation was due to "arrogance."

prof,

You're entitled to your opinion. You should probably ask the opinion of the fans who were waiting for the show. I don't think it matters whether Peart was on his sailboat or riding his motorcycle, he should be there for the soundcheck and everything after. It isn't silly to expect that, and loyal Rush fans deserve it. 

I said you are entitled to your opinion, now you know mine.

tonykay

You may as well have written "it doesn’t matter where Peart was, he should have been in control of the weather so he could arrive on the scheduled time."

Everyone "should be" at work on time all things being equal.

But not all things are equal.

You do understand that we live in a world where not everything is under our control, right?

Every airplane, boat, or even rocket launch "should" happen or arrive on time. But there’s this little thing called "The Weather" - among many other possible influences, that can make achieving good intentions impossible.

If you have somehow managed to predict every possible weather condition, and every other chain of causation such that you’ve never been delayed by anything in your life, time to write a book about it and become a millionaire. Until then, your critique of the Neil Peart situation seems rather petty.


You’ve also ignored that Peart managed to actually get another flight which would get him there on time, but since his telegram didn’t make it to the organizers they couldn’t know he’d be there on time, so they cancelled the show.

Upon encountering difficulties Peart DID everything he could to get to the show on time, but of course he was not in control of the weather, or of telegrams getting lost.

You may have the opinion that the show was cancelled due to Peart’s "arrogance" and indifference to the fans, but given the evidence of Rush’s track record as dedicated pros, and the details given of what happened, well, some opinions are sillier than others. :)