All Rush tunes ranked

[yesstiles]

The title track to "Hemispheres" ranked 37th?

[GuitarGeek]

I always thought they cribbed that riff from Soft Machine 2.

Well, as I mentioned in another thread, I'm apparently not as on the ball as some people are around here about catching this stuff, but probably a decade or so ago, someone pointed out that the riff in question is Blue Rondo A'la Turk, off Brubeck's Time Out album. ELP and The Nice fans know this track as simply Rondo (they took it and shoehorned it into 4/4).

It's been so long since I listened to the second Soft Machine album (another one of those "too eccentric for it's own good" records, as I remember), I don't remember it being there. It's quite likely they appropriated it from Brubeck as well.

[boilk]

These are some of the crazy placements at the low end:

178. "Double Agent," Counterparts (1993)
A rare miserable Rush song. Even though there's some cool dissonant guitar fills, the spoken-word element is embarrassing and the call-and-response ("Wound up and tight" "Soooooo tight!") is like something out of a Saturday Night Live parody. Cringe.

174. "High Water," Hold Your Fire (1987)
An aimless track from one of Rush's most all-over-the-place albums. It just sounds like notes for notes' sake. And lots of them.

172. "Presto," Presto (1989)
There are chord similarities to the far superior "The Pass" off the very same album. For that we issue demerits. Being forgettable is one thing, but being lazy is unusual for Rush.

166. "Lock and Key," Hold Your Fire (1987)
Ooof. The opening sounds like the DVD menu of a Uwe Boll film. The rest is another synth-heavy pop track from Rush's very hit-or-miss album that just bugs me. There is, I admit, a strong solo in here. Even bad Rush is good, we must remember!

157. "Available Light," Presto (1989)
A forgettable late '80s Rush track that almost puts you to sleep before it gets a little oomph from a weird recurring use of falsetto -- weird even by Geddy Lee standards.

146. "Out of the Cradle," Vapor Trails (2002)
A not-very-inspiring song that has some interesting things going on vocally, but are better presented in this album's "Peaceable Kingdom" and "One Little Victory." This is the last track on Vapor Trails and when you make it this far chronologically you are usually pretty exhausted.

Nothing crazy about any of those to me, but then again I jumped on board the Rush train with 2112, and Moving Pictures was them selling out, for me and my Rush friends, at the time, lol. The only really crazy ones for me, are Hemispheres at #37 and Xanadu at #20. Waaayyyy too low.

neil

[Trane]

Xanadu at #20? it should be #1!

Along with Villa Strangiato, this was my thought exactly
didn't analyse the whole thing, but I briefly saw Bangkok around spot 105 (I think) ... and one expects credibility?
By curiosity, at what ranking is his lowest track from Moving Pictures - he's got 4 out the first ten spots for that album??

[Progatron]

By curiosity, at what ranking is his lowest track from Moving Pictures - he's got 4 out the first ten spots for that album??

Witch Hunt, at #75.

[hFx]

Surely a great feat to rank 180 songs! Or maybe not!. Reading the list, he must be a total moron! I mean... I don't agree with him on a single point... in fact I live in a world with 7.7 billion morons that will not agree with MY ranking!

Then, there are over 3.6 million ways to rank just the 10 drum solos! (10! In a mathematical language). For 180 songs there are 2×10^329 different lists, compared the 10^87 or so atoms in the observeable universe...

...so give the guy a break

[Plasmatopia]

It's almost like everyone has their own opinion about this stuff!

I would never have the patience to rate this many tunes and it's a pretty futile exercise. I mean, I'm not sure how I'd be able to say Red Barchetta is better than Freewill or vice versa (to give one example). I'd have to rate several songs as being tied for each of the first 10 positions or something.

But yeah, none of the drum solos would have made my list at all and certainly nothing from Feedback.

[BravadoNJ]

there are fans and there are list makers.
list makers are only out to get attention.
controversial lists get more hits then genuine lists.
society have become slaves of social media.
i would make my own list, but i have a life.

[boilk]

there are fans and there are list makers.
list makers are only out to get attention.
controversial lists get more hits then genuine lists.
society have become slaves of social media.
i would make my own list, but i have a life.

Some might argue any list is controversial.

neil

[ThomasKDye]

I would never have the patience to rate this many tunes and it's a pretty futile exercise.

Lists are a game, and a fairly fun game if you're into it. Just like you can play a game and get a different result depending on the day, so you can list what songs you like best and have a different result depending on your mood.

[Mister Triscuits]

I got three songs into that list before I already vehemently disagreed.

Two. Fuck that guy.

[aith01]

It's been so long since I listened to the second Soft Machine album (another one of those "too eccentric for it's own good" records, as I remember), I don't remember it being there. It's quite likely they appropriated it from Brubeck as well.

Might want to listen to it again.

[Jerjo]

I will have to review all of the Rush catalog now. I won't come to any conclusions but that's not the point.

[yamishogun]

But yeah, none of the drum solos would have made my list at all and certainly nothing from Feedback.

Once again, he put in a top 10 solo list that didn't affect the song ranking.

[Paulrus]

It's been so long since I listened to the second Soft Machine album (another one of those "too eccentric for it's own good" records, as I remember), I don't remember it being there. It's quite likely they appropriated it from Brubeck as well.

I'm just messin' with ya. While there's a possibility the guys in Rush had heard Soft Machine Vol. 2 back in the day, it's more likely they knew about the Dave Brubeck source via Neil Peart. Or who knows -- they could have come up with it completely independently. Stranger things have happened.

[dgtlman]

Oh, so I get it. The author is a big fan of drum solos. These lists blow monkey balls!

[Bartellb]

Regardless of any cribbing Natural Science is in my top five Rush tunes. And Analog Kid ranked 94? That is in my top 15 easily.

[dgtlman]

Regardless of any cribbing Natural Science is in my top five Rush tunes. And Analog Kid ranked 94? That is in my top 15 easily.

Exactly!!!! And Turn The Page at 130 something? Ppppfffftttttttt!!!!

[Plasmatopia]

Lists are a game, and a fairly fun game if you're into it. Just like you can play a game and get a different result depending on the day, so you can list what songs you like best and have a different result depending on your mood.

Absolutely. If that's what someone likes to do I am not going to tell them how to spend their time. I'm not into games much either. I waste my time with other optional pursuits.

Once again, he put in a top 10 solo list that didn't affect the song ranking.

Yup. I noticed that right away. I was expressing my opinion that the drum solos don't warrant being on any (positive) list.

[JKL2000]

I'm working on a new list:

Top 50 Ways To Prove You Have No Life:

1) Rank all Rush songs


That's as far as I've gotten so far.

[mozo-pg]

I'm working on a new list:

Top 50 Ways To Prove You Have No Life:

1) Rank all Rush songs


That's as far as I've gotten so far.

Or, post incessantly on PE. I'm guilty too.

[MudShark22]

LOL

[JKL2000]

Or, post incessantly on PE. I'm guilty too.

Whoa, I should let you overtake me!

[viukkis]

So this guy ranked all Rush songs but didn't agree with me about the quality of every single one? How dare he insult my taste like that!

[Plasmatopia]

So this guy ranked all Rush songs but didn't agree with me about the quality of every single one? How dare he insult my taste like that!

Yeah, unbelievably nervy.