FEATURED CD: Rush-Exit...Stage Left

[GuitarGeek]

Nice album. Anyone know where one can find Exit...Stage Right? Which show is it?

[ScottAM]

My favorite Rush album, indeed with definitive versions of La Villa, The Trees/Xanadu, et al...

I still love playing "Broon's Bane" on the guitar. Anyone know any history about that song? Was it just written as a live piece?

[Digital_Man]

I had this one on vinyl a long time ago. Too be honest with you I don't remember much about it other than a guitar piece called "Broon's Bane" which was not on any studio albums. I believe it preceded "the Trees" on here but I could be wrong.

Anyway, the criticism I usually hear about this album is that the live tracks don't stray very far away from the originals. This may be true. Like I said I don't remember it that well but remember enjoying it at the time.

[Vic2012]

I only bought it because I felt I needed a live Rush album, and I found a used copy for a few bucks. In ten, or more years since I've had it I think I've played it 3-4 times. It's sterile, and the songs sound too much like the studio recordings. I'd rather just hear the studio albums.

[JIF]

I had this one on vinyl a long time ago. Too be honest with you I don't remember much about it other than a guitar piece called "Broon's Bane" which was not on any studio albums. I believe it preceded "the Trees" on here but I could be wrong.

No, you're right. Broon's Bane and the beginning of The Tress were both played by Alex on the classical guitar. Btw, thanks for the shout out in the opening post, Cozy. Also, why do people have a problem with the songs on this live album being too close to the studio versions? Isn't it the same situation with Yessongs and Genesis Live.

[Scott Bails]

Also, why do people have a problem with the songs on this live album being too close to the studio versions? Isn't it the same situation with Yessongs

Not at all. Much more energy on Yessongs, IMO, and they change some things up on some songs, esp. "Yours Is No Disgrace."

[Phlakaton]

No, you're right. Broon's Bane and the beginning of The Tress were both played by Alex on the classical guitar. Btw, thanks for the shout out in the opening post, Cozy. Also, why do people have a problem with the songs on this live album being too close to the studio versions? Isn't it the same situation with Yessongs and Genesis Live.

If you think about Rush when it comes to live playing --- they really dont deviate much ever. The Weapon had some open space live - but I dont really recall many other cases of them doing that. The "energy" part of it can be made as a talking point for sure. I've heard some shows with some slight tempo changes that made it awesome.

[Sputnik]

why do people have a problem with the songs on this live album being too close to the studio versions? Isn't it the same situation with Yessongs and Genesis Live.

Genesis Live to an extent, but Yessongs far less so, both in terms of energy level of the performances and quite substantial variations Yes brings to songs like Perpetual Change, YiND, the end of Starship Trooper, etc.; plus all the solo spots. FWIW, I've never been a huge fan of Genesis Live, I'm not sure I even own it just now, also preferring the studio versions. Though in the case of this album, I think the "energy" is different fro the studio versions, so I can see some preferring that or finding value in having it.

In the case of ESL, most people (as this thread attests) who aren't big fans cite muddy production and a sapping of the live vibe by the fading of songs. On top of these issues, the versions of the songs here aren't perceived to vary much from the studio albums, so it becomes another contributing factor. Rush was much more about duplicating their studio performances live than many bands, and ESL is reflective of this. This being the case, though, some would rather just listen to the studio tracks, especially if the sound and other factors aren't that great.

Bill

[Garden Dreamer]

I was a huge Rush fan at this time but I NEVER BOUGHT THIS... on album or later on CD. I can't explain why. I bought ATWAS and later live albums. I guess perhaps because I bought the ESL video on VHS tape at the time, and was so google-eyed at seeing them perform this stuff that I didn't need the album.

[Yves]

Nice album. Anyone know where one can find Exit...Stage Right? Which show is it?

Not sure if that was the show at the army base or the one where they opened for the puppet show.

[ronmac]

If I'm not mistaken, wasn't this and AtWaS solely produced by Terry Brown, as opposed to the studio albums being produced by Rush and Terry Brown.

Apparently, Brown couldn't hear the shitty of the sound of both live releases like the rest of us.

Another fan of the boots, with "Black Forest," from the "Hemispheres" tour, blowing away all of them, IMO.

[Paulrus]

On top of these issues, the versions of the songs here aren't perceived to vary much from the studio albums, so it becomes another contributing factor. Rush was much more about duplicating their studio performances live than many bands, and ESL is reflective of this. This being the case, though, some would rather just listen to the studio tracks, especially if the sound and other factors aren't that great.

I get the criticism that Rush don't offer much on stage that differs from their studio recordings (more so these days), but I think there's enough sprinkled throughout ESL to knock that one down. It pops up in the old songs like "Beneath Between Behind" where they add the synths (Taurus pedals I assume) to beef up the harmonies. The way the crowd sings along to "Closer to the Heart" is pretty special. Then there's Geddy's little vocal impovs toward the end of "La Villa", plus hearing the opening solo on electric rather than acoustic... Anyways, I always felt these recordings had a little extra spice that elevated them above their studio counterparts. Not on the same scale as Yes with Yessongs, I agree. But still enough to make it well worth owning.

[GuitarGeek]

I get the criticism that Rush don't offer much on stage that differs from their studio recordings (more so these days), but I think there's enough sprinkled throughout ESL to knock that one down. It pops up in the old songs like "Beneath Between Behind" where they add the synths (Taurus pedals I assume) to beef up the harmonies. The way the crowd sings along to "Closer to the Heart" is pretty special. Then there's Geddy's little vocal impovs toward the end of "La Villa", plus hearing the opening solo on electric rather than acoustic... Anyways, I always felt these recordings had a little extra spice that elevated them above their studio counterparts. Not on the same scale as Yes with Yessongs, I agree. But still enough to make it well worth owning.

Geddy also sort of plays around with the synth parts in Jacob's Ladder and the second part of La Villa Strangiato. He doesn't go on any big extended improvisation or anything like that, but he sort of plays a couple interesting variations that I like.

[Sputnik]

I get the criticism that Rush don't offer much on stage that differs from their studio recordings (more so these days), but I think there's enough sprinkled throughout ESL to knock that one down. It pops up in the old songs like "Beneath Between Behind" where they add the synths (Taurus pedals I assume) to beef up the harmonies. The way the crowd sings along to "Closer to the Heart" is pretty special. Then there's Geddy's little vocal impovs toward the end of "La Villa", plus hearing the opening solo on electric rather than acoustic... Anyways, I always felt these recordings had a little extra spice that elevated them above their studio counterparts. Not on the same scale as Yes with Yessongs, I agree. But still enough to make it well worth owning.

I hear you. I wasn't defending the position as much as I was just trying to explain it. Undoubtedly there are differences with the live versions. I guess it's just a question of threshold, and clearly to some the differences just aren't substantial enough, particularly when other aspects are not "up to par."

But like I said earlier, I should probably check this out again. I have the DVD but haven't heard the album in decades. Maybe I'll feel differently now.

Bill

[Progatron]

Yessongs sounding like the studio versions??! LOL!!!!!

[profusion]

The murky sound always killed ESL for me, and I think it's one reason why the energy of the playing doesn't come through, which is the main reason to get a Rush live album. ATWAS didn't deviate that much from the studio versions, either, but the energy comes through.

[JIF]

Yessongs sounding like the studio versions??! LOL!!!!!

Hey, Give me a break!! It's been a long time since I've heard it.

[Nearfest2]

The only negatives for me with respect to this great live album are that the album is not mixed as a seamless performance (i.e. fade-outs between tracks) and that the crowd is mixed a bit too low. Song selection is too subjective, so I'm not going there.

This album was my gateway drug into their back catalog.

[Garden Dreamer]

Here's a pertinent excerpt from a new Rolling Stone interview with Geddy, concerning live albums:

Did you go back into the studio and overdub anything?
No, there's no overdubs. We have a couple of nights to choose from, so I think the mixers picked and chose the best moments from those two nights. So whatever wasn't 100 percent, we were able to use the other one.

That's great. I hate when bands go back into the studio and clean up live albums. You lose the feeling of a real show.
We've done that in the past for certain songs where we've had train wrecks. We have so many live albums, first of all, that we've had just about every live album experience. The first one was totally raw and totally live and it really bugged us for years that we didn't fix anything. And then with the second one, we fixed way too many things and it sounds a bit sterile in retrospect. And then you learn what to mess with and what not to mess with. You want to present the best possible show for people, but you don't want to get so nit-picky about it that you lose what's interesting about a live performance.

Interview here: http://www.rollingstone.com/music/ne...-road-20130923