Jeannie and I saw the epic Canadian power trio Rush at Jones Beach Amphitheater last weekend. Rush is one of my all-time favorite bands and just about tied with the Grateful Dead for having seen them the most times. But last time I saw them was in 2004 or so, and before that it was many years. Rush are enjoying something of a revival these days, consolidating their legacy as it were, and touring in support of a (really good) documentary DVD about their career rather than an actual album.
Jones Beach is a really cool place to see a show. It’s situated right on the shore in a state park, with the stage out over the water. It was another super hot day, but as we crossed the bridge onto the island, the evening breeze was coming off the ocean and cooled everything down nicely. As the band started to play the moon rose over the stage. Very dramatic. After the concert Jeannie and I took a nice walk around the beach.
The show itself was great. Rush still have the chops and the energy to really deliver. Geddy Lee can hit those high notes, although didn’t do it as much. He sang a lot of parts lower and saved his voice for where it really mattered. They played two sets which spanned most of their career and included a bunch of newer stuff, and man they have a lot of records. I didn’t really know all of the tunes from the 90’s and 00’s. They played a bunch of brand-new songs from their forthcoming record, which sounded awesome. In particular “Caravan” had a lot of complex unison parts that evoked some of their earlier work. I think they tried to hit pretty much every record, but they skipped Fly By Night, Caress of Steel and Grace Under Pressure. This last one is one of my favorites, so that was a bit of a disappointment. Still, they played a lot of great material. Spirit of Radio, Freewill, 2112. Closer to the Heart included an excellent acoustic solo guitar intro.
They opened the second set with the whole of Moving Pictures, introduced by a spoof video of making a music video of “Moving Pitchers”. They were clearly having fun with it. Camera Eye was a definite high point; I’ve never seen them do that song live before. Encores included La Villa Strangiato, but with the first section played in a hockey-organ style, followed by a reggae version of Working Man. The walk-out music was a polka version of Closer to the Heart that would have done Weird Al proud. (The intermission music was Yes from Time and a Word.)
Rush music is fun to play as well as listen to. Back in college I did bunch of their songs in a band, playing synthesizers, including Subdivisions and YYZ. More recently I learned Xanadu and Cygnus X-1 on the bass, and now I’m learning Closer to the Heart on guitar.