Classic Rock Bottom

So I DVD'd the VH1 edited edition of their new documentary, and I have to say I enjoyed watching it very much.  I will claim a heavy bias as Rush can’t do anything wrong in my eyes...

 

The show opened with Geddy and Alex in Jr High.  They even spoke to their parents and showed clips of Alex arguing with his parent about dropping out of Grade 12.  Kind of cool to see these guys as normal kids fussing with their parents.  They did a great job highlighting John Rutsey, I didn’t realize he was as integral to the band as he was.  They also explained his departure as being health related.  This on the cusp of their first tour.  Rutsey was apparently diabetic and enjoying the rock the roll lifestyle a lot. They really felt he would not survive the tour so they auditioned drummers and that’s how Peart got the job.  Geddy poked fun of Neil being the "New Guy" a couple times throughout the documentary.

 

The list of peers paying homage to the band was pretty cool to.  Great comments about their dedication, songwriting, lyrics, and some really cool stories about all of their different periods of style.  Two come to mind right away...  1)  2112 came about because the band was not willing to compromise what they were about, at that time the record execs were not happy with Caress of Steel and were telling the band to change directions.  2112, was not a change, but a bold statement to the execs that they would not.  The success of 2112 afforded the band the luxury of never having to answer to the execs again.  That’s a pretty powerful album...  and 2)  around the same time the band was looking to change their stage image and went through a period of "robe wearing".  While on tour in support of UFO, Rush would take the stage only to find fuzzy slippers tacked to the floor beneath their microphones.  Apparently, UFO thought the slippers went better with the robes...  All sorts of great anecdotes for you....

 

They spent a great deal of time talking about the different periods of Rush.  Stuff like why Permanent Waves was so different, why the keyboards, how did they get back to guitar oriented rock.  I will let you watch those parts, they were the most interesting for me...

 

They missed talking about Presto and Roll the Bones, only a very small mention of Presto.  I am not sure if this was edited out, which I think is the case, or if they intentionally went from Hold Your Fire to Counterparts for some other reason.  Will have to get the DVD and see...

 

They did talk about Neil's struggles with the public and the trials of his life when he through the losses of his daughter and then his wife.  It was good to see him talk about it and for the fans to get a chance to understand him better...

 

All in all, the band is a solid unified front, a stronghold of friendships and a musical bond that I think makes them a one of a kind that we will never get to experience again..  I’ve left so much out, but I think it would spoil a lot of great content.  I hope you are able to watch it...

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I didn't get to watch the whole thing, but I did see some of it and I thought it was very good. I recorded it on the DVR and plan on watching the whole thing soon.
Fantastic doc. I was going to watch maybe 30 min of it and they watch the rest on Sunday, but got sucked in. I also noticed that Presto, Roll the Bones and Presto were basically left out and, even though I've never been able to get into any of those albums, a mention would have been nice (if they mentioned Presto, I missed it.)

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