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Rush has been raiding the vaults quite a bit recently as live sets and documentaries have been appearing with regularity much to the pleasure of their large fan base. The latest addition to the Rush catalogue is a DVD titled Rush: 2112 – Moving Pictures.
Alex Lifeson, Geddy Lee, and Neil Pert have been cranking out albums and touring to sell out shows for close to forty years. Two of their most popular, important, and enduring albums were 2112 which was issued in 1974 and Moving Pictures issued during 1981. The history of both of these seminal albums is now being presented and explored in this new release.
The choice of these two albums was a wise one. 2112 contains the mythical seven part, twenty minute suite which presents a science fiction story of the future. It is considered one of Rush’s defining performances. Moving Pictures traveled in a different direction and is their most commercial release reaching number three on The United States album charts. While Rush will never be considered a singles band both “Tom Sawyer” and “Limelight” charted at numbers 44 and 55 respectively.
I am always impressed with the eloquence of the three band members and particularly Neil Peart who is always thoughtful, eloquent, and interesting. Unlike many rock musicians he is able to explain in an understandable way the whys and hows of Rush’s music. He and the other band members plus an assortment of friends and most importantly producer and engineer of both releases Terry Brown are able to convey the feelings and inspiration behind the albums formation.
Fans should realize this is first and foremost a documentary. Concert material is present but is interspersed between the interviews and comments. Most of the live material has been previously released and I think I recognized some of it from their Concert In Rio.
The best part of this release remains the stories and reminisces both in the regular program and the bonus section. Neil Peart’s story of how he replaced original drummer John Rutsey is excellent. “Alex on Geddy & Neil,” “Neil on Geddy & Alex” and “Geddy on Neil & Alex” are all interesting and well done.
This DVD is primarily for people who have an interest and working knowledge of the band. If you are not familiar with Rush you will quickly become lost. If you do have interest then Rush: 2112 – Moving Pictures should contain some new treasures for any fan of the group.
