The National Midnight Star #526

From root Wed Sep 30 20:14 1992 Received: by wake.ncsl.nist.gov (AIX 2.1 2/4.03) id AA02938; Wed, 30 Sep 92 20:14:53 Received: by syrinx.umd.edu (5.57/Ultrix2.4-C) id AA03523; Wed, 30 Sep 92 18:30:07 -0400 Date: Wed, 30 Sep 92 18:30:07 -0400 Message-Id: <9209302230.AA03523@syrinx.umd.edu> Errors-To: rush-request@syrinx.umd.edu Reply-To: rush@syrinx.umd.edu Sender: rush@syrinx.umd.edu Precedence: bulk From: rush@syrinx.umd.edu To: rush_mailing_list@syrinx.umd.edu Subject: 09/30/92 - The National Midnight Star #526 Status: R
** ____ __ ___ ____ ___ ___ ** ** / /_/ /_ /\ / /__/ / / / / /\ / /__/ / ** ** / / / /__ / \/ / / / / /__/ / \/ / / /___ ** ** ** ** __ ___ ____ ** ** /\ /\ / / \ /\ / / / _ /__/ / ** ** / \/ \ / /___/ / \/ / /___/ / / / ** ** ** ** ____ ____ ___ ___ ** ** /__ / /__/ /__/ ** ** ____/ / / / / \ ** List posting/followup: rush@syrinx.umd.edu Administrative matters: rush-request@syrinx.umd.edu or rush-mgr@syrinx.umd.edu (Administrative postings to the posting address will be ignored!) ---------------------------------------------------------------------- The National Midnight Star, Number 526 Wednesday, 30 September 1992 Today's Topics: Administrivia Rockin' and Votin' asbestos Ayn Rand & 2112 Epic-ness RE: RUSH tape tree Various & Sundry Kibbles Bits Didacts & Narpets ESL CD Red Barchetta More Tech Talk... Car Noise?? Twist of phrase Old And New Rush Disagreements Revisited That Noise in preluding Dreamline. . . Neromancer, Old ticket stub, Poetry, "New Rush" Dreamline intro Killing a few birds w/one post ;) Re: New sucks for a lot of reasons... Opening bands Re: 09/28/92 - The National Midnight Star #525 Computer names - follow up Misc. Comments and Responses B-Man Book - It's a Car damn it! A Farewell / A new beginning PowerWindows Packet ---------------------------------------------------------- Date: 30 Sep 92 From: rush-mgr Subject: Administrivia There was no digest for Tuesday, September 29. ---------------------------------------------------------- Date: Mon, 28 Sep 92 16:57:26 -0400 From: atd@po.CWRU.Edu (Aron T. Drake) Subject: Rockin' and Votin' Hello all...... Well I'd thought I'd write in on a subject not directly related to Rush, but it could be. So bare with me through this public service annoucement... Well November is getting closer and that means VOTING!!! Now I know not everyone on the list can vote (not being on the U.S., etc.), but it's important that if you can, DO IT! If your unhappy, vote to make a change. If your not unhappy, vote to not make a change. Either way it's important that you vote. Who knows, your vote may be the one that ends censorship forever!! So remeber to register...... And get out there and Rock and Roll the Vote!!! Thanks for tuning in. -Aron P.S. This anouncement was sponsered by ZBT. -- In time you'll come to understand this flat old earth is in your gentle hands. -T. Dolby ---------------------------------------------------------- Date: Mon, 28 Sep 92 13:26:27 PDT From: qsp!danb@uunet.UU.NET (Daniel Benbenisty) Subject: asbestos This flamefest has grown far too big for me to respond to everybody all day long (and still keep my job). This is especially true when I have to keep restating my position in the face of untrue accusations, or false paraphrasing of my views (e.g. "You're saying that I'm not a true Rush fan!", "You don't like anything after XXX!", "You're saying that Rush is too commercial!", "Your definition of this term is such-and-such!"). Also, some people on NMS seem almost fanatical (well, you _are_ fans, right?) towards respecting and liking any music Rush chooses to make (e.g. If you dislike Rush's newest stuff, then you haven't "grown" with the band.). This is only based on the _opinion_ that Rush hasn't changed for the worse. Sorry, my opinion is that they _have_ changed for the worse. I only started listening to Rush in '87, and I knew what I liked and didn't like based on a thorough listening of all of the material, so I haven't had a chance to "grow" or "not grow" with the band. That's OK with me - I have a _very_ wide listening spectrum from Baroque to Bartok to last month's new rock releases (including EARWURM!); I don't NEED to like all of Rush's stuff. Maybe I don't belong on NMS if I don't like Rush's latest stuff (although, for the record, I like Presto and RTB slightly better than the previous handful of albums), especially if the most vocal element of this group can't tolerate my views...? Sorry if I angered anyone. [ Dan - everyone should be welcomed on the NMS, no one should feel that he/she does NOT belong. We all realize that people like Rush for different reasons, but that's not to say they all can't share their opinion or belong on a Rush list. :rush-mgr] >>>===Pan-Handle-Dan===> danb@qsp.com Daniel Benbenisty Guitarist for EARWURM ---------------------------------------------------------- Date: Mon, 28 Sep 92 18:52:06 EDT From: Glen Reed <3TANVOZ@CMUVM.CSV.CMICH.EDU> Subject: Ayn Rand & 2112 Rushppl -- I'm not sure if I missed something at some point, or if I'm just imagining things, but didn't Neil Peart at some point say definitively that "2112" was NOT based on Ayn Rand's _Anthem_? I know that similarities between the two are constantly referred to, and I know that he has mentioned her works since then, but I was under the impression that "2112" (as hackneyed as it's plot is) was an original thought by Peart? Anyone know for sure? {signature deleted due to apathy} ---------------------------------------------------------- Date: Mon, 28 Sep 92 17:59:20 cdt From: "Unforgettable Fire (Gordon,James A)" <GORDON@AC.GRIN.EDU> Subject: Epic-ness As I have stated before, I do believe that Rush's new stuff is good (then, again, I think all their music is good), but I do wish that they would make another album with an epic song on it. One person said that they've outgrown that, but I think that they could manage another epic song, while simultaneously exploring new musical directions. Just a little suggestion. -Jim Gordon P.S.- To whoever said that they would like to hear less of the term 'boyz' as applied to Rush, I completely agree. It is a little old by now. ---------------------------------------------------------- From: leeg@microsoft.COM (Lee Gates) Subject: RE: RUSH tape tree Date: Mon, 28 Sep 92 16:19:15 PDT I've had several questions as to how and what a tape tree is. Typically, a tree is setup as follows: Someone gets a recording (cd/live/whatever), this is the "seed". They give this to one person, the root, who makes five copies and mails them out to people. Those people, the branches, in turn make five copies and send them out. The final people who get copies sent to them, the leaves, do not have to make copies. What it costs? Typically, you will send the person ahead of you a check to cover the cost of a new tape and the shipping charges (a little over a dollar if shipped book rate). Usually mailing the tapes is the lag in the tree, those persons with DAT decks are the first level branches for quality reasons, and analog->analog persons are down-tape branches. Those unable to make copies are leaves. If all goes well, I'll probably be sending out the first tape in 2-3 weeks. I will be taking ALL FURTHER DISCUSSIONS of this offline to EMAIL only. If you have any specific queries, feel free to send me email and we'll discuss this further. [ Please note the author's request for further info on a tape tree discussion to be taken over PRIVATE email. : rush-mgr] lee ---------------------------------------------------------- Date: 28 Sep 1992 19:42:59 -0400 (EDT) From: ASILVERM@umiami.IR.Miami.EDU Subject: Various & Sundry Kibbles Bits Didacts & Narpets Hey Folks! To the person who asked if Rob Halford was dead: NO! But, he had to leave the group because some kind of contractual thing said that if he was in a new band he couldn't return to Priest. I believe his new group is called Flame. If anyone knows anything contrary to what I've said, please E-Mail me. If there are any NMS'ers in the Miami area, please E-Mail me! One small correction: Someone said that Lerxt went from Gibsons to Strats to Strats to PRS. I think he meant to say: Gibsons to Strats to Signatures, then when Signature went out of business he switched to Paul Reed Smith. By the way, I had an opportunity to play a PRS for about an hour in a store this summer, and I must say that it blows the patootie out of every other axe I've ever touched. While I'm on the subject of guitars, is there anyone else who plays a Peavey guitar? I have an '88 Generation series II which I am rather pleased with. E-mail me(again!) if you play Peavey. May the sands of time never get in your eyes. . . Aaron Silverman ASILVERM@UMIAMI ---------------------------------------------------------- Date: Mon, 28 Sep 92 20:12:46 EDT From: USERHLZ3@um.cc.umich.edu Subject: ESL CD Hi Everyone! Is it just me, or does track 12 of Exit..Stage Left have a "click" about three and a half minutes into La Villa Strangiato? Did I just get a bad disc, or is everyone's copy that way? Rolaant ---------------------------------------------------------- From: mnibbe88@Calvin.EDU (Mark Nibbelink) Subject: Red Barchetta Date: Mon, 28 Sep 92 20:38:47 EDT Whassup? I was listening to Neil Peart on "Rockline" a few months ago, and some- body asked about the article 'A Nice Morning Drive' by Richard S. Foster, which is listed in the Moving Pictures sleeve as being the inspiration for the song "Red Barchetta". I was wondering where I could find that article- if I remember right, it was in one of the major automotive magazines such as Road and Track or Car and Driver. I'd really like to see that, and if anybody could help me and my roommates out, we'd be really grateful! [ It's on anonymous ftp at syrinx, in the special directory. It's called "nice.morning.drive" : rush-mgr ] Another question I have is, where can I get a Rush poster? I've been looking at every record store that I've ever been to, and none of them have any. Any address where I can send a S.A.S.E. or other suggestions would be greatly appreciated! -Mark Nibbelink mnibbe88@calvin.edu ---------------------------------------------------------- Date: Tue, 29 Sep 92 02:39:45 -0500 From: white@mhd1.moorhead.msus.edu (white aaron) Subject: More Tech Talk... Well, some people have been talking about Mr. Lifeson's guitar sound. You may remember I talked about Ged's synth/bass setup last week so for anyone intrested I will give you a quick rundown of his current guitar rig. Alex uses Paul Reed Smith guitars with Evans active single coil pickups. He uses Gallien-Krueger 2000GPL pre-amps (is trying out the new GK100MPL) and Crown Macro-Tech power amps. On stage he has 4-2x12 GK cabinets loaded with Celestions. He runs the entire rig in stereo. For effects, he uses multiple TC Electronic 2290 delays, and a TC 1210 Expander for chorusing, Digitech IPS-33B for harmony effects, and lastly an old Roland Dimension D for additional chorusing effects. All routing and effects change are done with a custom Bob Bradshaw switching network. The live PA sound comes from GK 2x12" cabs in isolated boxes backstage miked with Sennheiser 421's mixed with the line outs from his onstage rack gear. The iso boxes clean up the live sound reducing unwanted drum, bass, and monitor drift. The PA board essentially gets a LINE left/right and a MIC left/right signals (4 channels) and it all gets mixed together. Alex uses many acoustic guitars for his sound in the studio but live he tends to use an Ovation Adamas mounted on a stand he designed that allows him to play acoustic while having an electric strapped on. That by the way is what the Omega Concern is. 'Omega' stands designed by Alex Lifeson are available through some limited music supply dealers. Someone mentioned they thought Alex may someday return to the Gibson and Marshall days. Don't hold your breath, Alex gets more technical all the time. It may sound cleaner but Alex seems to love his current setup and is always adding new 'toys'. Also between his modified Fender Strat days and his PRS days he used 'Signature' guitars, a now dead Canadian guitar company. PRS with Evans pickups was the next best thing. Also, one should realize in the studio Alex uses lots of guitars. Sometimes bringing 15+ different guitars into the studio. He often overlays three almost identical guitar lines in a song to get the sound he wants and natural chorusing. Power Windows was almost entirely recorded using an old standard Fender Telecaster, hardly ever used live by him. Anyway, I hope someone finds this intresting. I did this in a hurry so if something doesn't make sense or you have conflicting info please drop me a note. As I said before I love the tech stuff. /\aron L. White white@mhd1.moorhead.msus.edu ---------------------------------------------------------- Date: Tue, 29 Sep 92 01:27:15 -0700 From: mikes@ucscb.UCSC.EDU (Rocinante) Subject: Car Noise?? Just a thought with regards to the 'car noise'in Dreamline. . It doesn't sound like a car to me... What I rememeber from traveling when I was a Kid...not THAT long ago.. it sounds like an 18 wheeler driving on by... It makes some sense I suppose seein' as you have the vision of thumbing a ride around the freeway and all.... Mike Ps. Eric Kay Send me mail please.. I lost your address in a mbox death :-/ ---------------------------------------------------------- From: rpan@microsoft.com Date: Tue, 29 Sep 92 01:55:38 PDT Subject: Twist of phrase I don't know how many times, if any, if it's ever been posted, so here goes... ;) Ever notice how Neil will on occasion use a common phrase or saying and change it in such a way that it still sounds sort of the same, yet mean something completely different? Here are the ones I can think of offhand: For the words of For the words of the prophets ------> the profits (The Spirit Of Radio) are written.... are written... The truth is often Truth is often better left unsaid ------> bitter, left unsaid (Red Lenses) An ounce of prevention ------> An ounce of perception Is worth a pound of cure A pound of obscure (Vital Signs) Walking on easy street ------> Walking uneasy streets(Between The Wheels) (Well, *I* thought it was kinda cool!) Anybody think of others? b ---------------------------------------------------------- Date: Tue, 29 Sep 92 10:19:11 EDT From: kkhalich@vtssi.vt.edu (Keivan Khalichi) Subject: Old And New Rush Disagreements Revisited Hello fellow Rush fans (old and new): I'm sorry that I ever contributed to this line of division between us all. Yet we all have our oppinions, and that's what it really is, a bunch of oppinions. We can't cry over spilled water. Rush has done what they have done and we can't do anything about that. What I suggest is that for you individuals that play in a band to become as talented as humanly possible and perform your own favorite Rush songs (of course with permission) for those of us that like the "old Rush." And to the "new" Rush lovers (hate to label everyone like this, pretty stereotypical of me) to go on to Rush concerts and listen to their newer material. Neil Peart is the kind of person that hates to live the past. I on the other hand think of the past as a tool to gain experience all the time. It is alright for me to live the past and I have benefited from doing so But *he* doesn't think so. That's just the way he is. Tell you what; I'm making an attempt to learn a musical instrument (the guitar) just so that one day I can perform By-Tor & The Snow dog, fully, to an audience that would appreciate it. Or perform 2112 in its entirety, or Hemispheres, etc. It won't be easy, but it's something that I really want to hear. If no one else will do it, then maybe I should do something about it. I have not heard of many bands that play strictly Rush, but I'm willing to bet that none would do any of those songs. I know of only one band that made an attempt to do the usual two sections of 2112. And they weren't that bad. The point is that, we "old Rush" fans have no choice but to conform with the norm. I'm sure this is not what most of you were thinking, but if you think about it, you are in a way wondering why Rush won't go back and do some of their older songs. No matter how much Neil Peart talks about individualism, he is still contradicting himself in the end. Rush performs Tom Sawyer (which I don't think is that great of a song, very over-rated) and Close to the Heart, because the "majority" of fans like them. Don't forget that the NMS is a microcasm representation of the world. I also benefit from the transition of Rush's style of music. Since I am in different moods most of the time, I either listen to the old songs to get very philosophical and/or to get as one would say "pumped up" and listen to i.e. Fly By Night or CoS. Other times I'm in the mood to listen to Hold Your Fire or Roll the bone. This way I'll never need to listen to any other bands. :) Enough said. >From the land of the Over World, Keivan Khalichi. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ R U S H B y - T o r A n d T h e S n o w D o g ______________________________________________________________________________ E-Mail: kkhalich@vtssi.vt.edu ---------------------------------------------------------- Date: Tuesday, 29 September 1992, 11:42:05 EDT From: Charles J McDonald <chuck@geosci.lan.mcgill.ca> Subject: That Noise in preluding Dreamline. . . I thought it was the ocean, too They've used the the ocean and the symbol of water as a recurring theme in many RUSH songs to represent dynamic change. RUSH lyrics changing over the years: Well they are growing older, themselves. Of course their music is going to reflect these different stages of life. (I'm 25 and have grown up with RUSH, that's why their music is always so pertinent to what's going on in my life!) -*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*- : Charles J McDonald : Department of Earth and Planatary Sciences : McGill University : 3450 Rue de University (514) 398-6767 : Montreal, Que H3A 2A7 fax (514) 398-4680 -*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*- ---------------------------------------------------------- Date: Tue, 29 Sep 92 10:18:10 -0600 From: demeyer@cadehp0.eng.utah.edu (Dan Meyer) Subject: Neromancer, Old ticket stub, Poetry, "New Rush" Everyone seems to always announce that they are posting for the first time, so I will too: I am posting for the first time. With that aside, I have a question for anyone who knows what goes into recording. In the Necromancer there is kind of a "pre-echo". (Starting at about the 4:22 mark). Anyway, you hear an echo of the hi-hit prior to the actual playing of it. I'm wondering if that is intentional (unlikely), or is that one of the many wonders of analog recording? And, why didn't they clean it up when they mastered the CD? (It is easiest to notice this when you have the volume nice and loud.) Secondly, my brother is a Dead-head. They have apparently have a digest of their own (Dead Flames, I think). Anyway, he sent me the following post from that, which I think is pretty interesting: (BTW-I don't think this date is on the all-time tour list, so it might be something worth checking into if your in to that kind of thing.) >From: Scott Hammer <SCOTH@wmvm1.cc.wm.edu> >Subject: Re: 3.50, 4.50, 5.50 >Date: Fri, 7 Aug 1992 15:36:32 GMT > >To continue the thread about how low ticket prices used to be, I was >going through a Box-o-Junk (tm) during my vacation, and came across the >following ticket stub: > > Men's Gym - SUNY-Binghamton > Presented by the Student Center Board > Friday, December 9, 1973 > 7:30 PM > The Sons of Champlin > Papa John Creach with Zulu > also Rush > General Public - $1.50 Students with ID - $1.00 > >I thought this was interesting, partially because of the price, but also >because Rush, at this point in their career, was opening for two bands who, >lets face it, were not exactly setting the world on fire. >Actually, before I found this stub, I didn't even realize I'd ever seen Rush. >(I had taken a rather large dose of a particular mind-altering substance some >hours before this concert, so my memory of it is rather hazy.) >Say, does anyone know what ever happened to the Sons of Champlin? They were >pretty good -- very acoustic-Dead-like. > >-Scott "The Breadth and Depth of Conciousness" Hammer > College of William and Mary The poetry packet that has been discussed recently was called "Rush to Creativity". It was around Spring, 1986, I think. Dat's all I know about it. Finally, I think post-PeW RUSH is still RUSH, and all the aspects of the music we loved in the older stuff are still there, albiet in a different format. As Neil said in the recent ABC In Concert: "I think in some ways we've been able to remain normal enough, and mature, as I said, openly and in public, that a lot of our audience has, too. So as our concerns have changed and grown, our taste and styles of music have changed and been influenced by other people's music, and so on, the same thing has happened with these people. So, we remain relevant to their lives as a soundtrack of their lives, and they can listen to RTB with as much pleasure as they listened to MP 12 years ago, you know?" I couldn't have said it better myself. I would go as far as to say that someone who doesn't like new Rush is not a "true" Rush fan. They are obviously missing a huge part of what Rush is about, otherwise they would be able to appreciate "new Rush". That's all for now. Long live RUSH. Dan Meyer ---------------------------------------------------------- Date: Tue, 29 Sep 92 15:31:42 EDT From: "Mercury" <clxdo4c@BUACCA.BU.EDU> Subject: Dreamline intro I always thought that the sound at the top of Dreamline was a wave crashing on a shore. Mercury clxdo4c@buacca ---------------------------------------------------------- Date: Mon, 28 Sep 92 23:57:36 EDT From: <SMTP@UBVM.cc.buffalo.edu> Subject: Killing a few birds w/one post ;) Hey all :) First off, I am *female*, and wouldn't be caught *dead* in a black tube top ;). On top of that, I was the one who dragged my b/f to the concert. Anyway, did anyone out there see the opening night show in Hamilton, Ont? People were inquiring about opening bands, and at the Hamilton show a local Hamilton group Andy Curran and SOHO 69 opened. They weren't *great* but I have seen worse. Also, in TNMS #522 rpan@microsoft.com writes "...out of some radio station in Toronto..." (re: RTB premire). The radio station was Q107 Toronto, via the Rock Radio Network. Kerstin ---------------------------------------------------------- Date: Tue, 29 Sep 92 13:01:05 PST From: Todd Zorick <zorickto@sandnet.UCSD.EDU> Subject: Re: New sucks for a lot of reasons... I have to post this to express my disgust with the subscribers defending new Rush material, that is post PeW. Every argument seems to be that we should just like it because it is Rush and it is different than the old stuff. This is true, but I don't like it because it isn't progressive rock, and I liked early Rush because it was progressive rock. The pro-new arguments run from the inane (They changed the sound of their instruments, so they're better) to the banal (old Rush listeners are drug addicts). Well, the simple fact is that the newer music is not progressive, as it is understood by anybody. It is more contrived to convey the lyrics than to showcase the music (and I agree that maybe they should release now instead of albums $15.95 recordings of Neil Peart's poetry read by Geddy Lee). I am not saying this is inherently bad, but it was not this quality of Rush that made me like them in the first place. (By the way- I don't own any bell-bottom jeans, flannel shirts, or Dodge Econoline vans.) It is funny that noone defending the new Rush material even bothers to defend the music, -so in this sense, they admit defeat, and retrench to personal attacks on the fashion sense, lifestyle, and character of us Old Rush-ophiles. Finally, I can't just leave the people who adore the new stuff alone, and continue to support the band, because the fact that Rush has for the last ten years produced album after album of un-progressive rock has hurt my good feelings for the bands' earlier work. My fond memories of 2112 are dashed by radio sightings of "Presto" ("How can they do this...") It all makes me believe that Geddy, Neil, and Alex were replaced by soundalike media clones sometime in 1982... Todd Zorick UCSD SOM ---------------------------------------------------------- Date: 29 Sep 1992 12:37:39 U From: "Eric Johnson" <Eric_Johnson@tempeqm2.sps.mot.com> Subject: Opening bands I'm surprised that I haven't seen anyone else mention Marillion. I saw them open for Rush in '86, on the Power Windows tour in Detroit. Even though they are (were?) considered to be "progressive", they were pretty much ignored and even booed. I remember Fish getting pissed off because people were throwing coins onto the stage. I also remember that Fastway opened for Rush on the p/g tour in Toledo. I think they went over about as well as Mr. Big, polite applause and they didn't get booed. I was disappointed to see Mr. Big two tours in a row, I would have rather seen Primus again, even though I thought they were extremely bizarre the first time I saw them (opening for Living Colour). Eric Johnson Motorola Inc. SPS, Tempe, AZ RZAL90@email.sps.mot.com ---------------------------------------------------------- Date: Tue, 29 Sep 92 17:53:37 EDT From: Raistlin <PL911141%PACEVM.bitnet@CUNYVM.CUNY.EDU> Subject: Re: 09/28/92 - The National Midnight Star #525 oh, in regards to the prisoner series that was mentioned in NMS # 525 that quote from the series.....: " (2) we want information..... information.. information!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (6) who are you??? (2) i am number two, (6) who's in charge here??? (2) number one... ...... you are number six, (6) i am not a number!!!..... i am a free man!.. (2) (deamonic laugh)..." they were the opening intro lines for iropn maiden's song entitled (how peculiarly.....)..." the prisoner " which appeared on side two of their number of the beast albulm...... i believe track 3...... i used to be a maiden fan... so i spotted the quote and recognized it immed iately... that series...... has influieced many musicians and writers.... more than most people know............. while it is correct to say that the show was ahead of it's time... being released in the 60's.... it is also true to say that it contained material and information that i believe would be considered ahead of it's time even if it were to be released originaly today!!!!.... i'd love to see the series again >.... but i know of nowhere in the states where it is being aired.... " a sad but wiser man......"....... jim foster..... *(roccinante)* ---------------------------------------------------------- Date: Tue, 29 Sep 92 21:38:23 EDT From: Tim Alberta <alberta@sarsun.larc.nasa.gov> Subject: Computer names - follow up I would like to thank everybody who sent me mail with suggestions for the name of my new computer. (For anyone who's interested it's a Sun Sparc2, soon to become a Sparc10, running Solaris, or SunOS 4.1.2, or whatever.) The suggestions I got were great. Among the RUSH oriented ones: "evelate", from Vital Signs, "By-Tor", "rocinante" (from Cygnus X-1), "absalom", from Distant Early Warning, "lerxst", "superconductor", "la villa strangiato". I think I have decided on "snowdog", for a couple of reasons. It's short, easy for people to remember, even those who don't follow RUSH. Also, the work I do is in the field of Atmospheric Sciences, which snow is a part of. Of course, this is subject to change, so if anyone out there can think of another one, let me know. By the way, as long as everyone is doing it, my first Rush show was shortly after All the World's a Stage but before the release of A Farewell to Kings, although they did play some songs from that, if I remember. I guess that makes me an old fart. Thanks again Gregg, Aaron, Chris, Paul, Kristin, Rodney, Dave, et al. Tim Alberta (alberta@sarsun.larc.nasa.gov, for now) ---------------------------------------------------------- Date: Wed, 30 Sep 92 02:59:44 -0500 From: lonadar@judy.indstate.edu (Lonadar the Wanderer) Subject: Misc. Comments and Responses Big backlog of mail, so here are some responses covering probably the past week of issues. Nothing already answered, to my knowledge: Seidenberg@Mary.Fordham.Edu said: >In fact, I also noticed a sleevless muscle t-shirt which had the RTB boy and >dice on the front and the spinning wheel (from the video) on the back. I saw a shirt at the concert I went too that had a bunch of dice, and RUSH spelled out in 'raised' dice. (Artistically dipicted as if jutting out from the wall of dice) It was a cool effect, and I doubt this person could have done this himself. I really wanted to get one! Does anyone know of a catalog or something of Rush merchandise that can be obtained? That SHOULD have ALL the T-Shirts, etc. that people seem to want. Cam Abrams quoted E. Krauss as saying that he thought Caress of Steel was Rush's "weakest album". I agree, "man, WHAT is with you???" I got CoS just recently, and already it has become my third-favorite album, behind 2112 (#1) and Roll the Bones (#2). CoS holds two of my favorite Rush songs from before, and finally hearing The Necromancer, I can see why everyone likes it. It is cool! Way cool! The only problem I have is that it starts out so SOFT I have to tun the volume up to the point where the background hiss becomes part of the song! And then it get loud kinda suddenly... Nonetheless, Necromancer is probably my #4 favorite Rush song, behind The Trees (#1), 2112 (#2), Roll the Bones (#3). Marc Jordan thought he'd be cute and ask: >How's about a thread along the lines "I first heard Rush..."? Good idea, actually. A god friend of mine inadvertantly got me into Rush. He is a big Rush fan, and spoke of them off and on. I had heard several of their songs on the radio, but didn't pay much attention to them. After talking with him, I listened to them, and found out I liked them, but I am not one to buy a record for one or two songs, and I didn't know Rush enough to buy any of their stuff. Then luck hit one day and the local radio station had a call-in contest to win Chronicles. I won! (Beating out a REAL Rush fan (friend) by one-call!) I picked up my prize, and listened and listened and listened and listened... I found that I liked the older material better, with one or two exceptions, and when my friend mentioned 2112 as a good starting point, I knew I had to get it. My collection is no where near large, containing Rush, CoS, ATWaS, Hemispheres, PW, Signals, Presto and RtB (Got Presto and ATWaS cheap because of overstock!), as well as Chronicles. My fav's are listed above. Rush came close by one stop on it's our, but I found out that tickets were GONE within 45 minutes of them going on sale, and I drug my feet back home in misery, but then I found out that they were coming BACK doing outdoor tours, and three days later, my friend and I had two tickets in the back far left corner of the ampitheter. Hey, it was Rush, what does it matter where we sat, we were THERE! The concert was excellent. Roll the Bones, Superconductor, the medley at the end...excellent. Geddy came on near the beginning and announced they had about 2 hours of music lined up, and my friend was like "****ing A!". He had been to the concert at Alpine Valley as well, and was quick to point out that the laser show we were missing wasn't anything special, and also to point out changes in the schedule. He was kinda suprised to hear Xanadu. This was the first time I had ever heard the song. Next to me was a new Rush fan, newer than me. She had won tickets on the radio to the concert and her entire Rush experience was a hastidly listened-to half side of Presto. She really enjoyed herself, though, and I threw her occasional bits of Rush trivia. (Thanks to Dan Delany and the FAQL!) Oh well, enough of this. Next... John Lobaugh(?) mentioned a bit of trivia concerning the National Midnight Star as a parody of the National Enquirer. Wierd-Al Yankovic also did a song parodying the National Enquirer, called the Midnight Star. It is on the Wierd-Al in 3-D album, for those who want to look it up. However, I think the] publication in the song was the "Daily Midnight Star". I don't remember. Chris Mermagen brought up a rumor about Chronicles II. Huh? What is this? If true, a blatent ploy to get more money, but maybe I can win another contest. Robert Gottlieb asked: >If you had one 90min [tape] to record as much Rush as you could on, what would >you put? I made a dub tape or two recently, with some Rush. One whole side consisted of: 1. A Pink Floyd Song [Several Species...Pict] 2. 2112 (in its entirety) 3. The Twilight Zone 4. Hemispheres and the other side hadL 1. Tom Sawyer 2, The Trees 3. Roll the Bones 4-9. Styx songs. Another tape which I am still making has on one side: 1-2. Pink Floyd (Diamond 1-5, WYWH) 3. The Necromancer 4. La Villa Strangiato 5. Where's My Thing 6-7. Styx. Also, a local radio station had listeners send in their favorite 5 songs for about two months and then compiled the top 500 songs of all time. Here are the places Rush songs took: #25. Tom Sawyer #185. Spirit of Radio #310. Closer to the Heart #374. Working Man #411. Roll the Bones Hotel California pulled the #1 slot. And last on my list o' late questions is yet another request for information about the NMS T-Shirts. I asked for one, but lost contact before getting any information on obtaining one of the shirts. Can I still get one somehow? That's all I have for now. So get out there and rock, and roll the bones! Lonadar the Wanderer lonadar@judy.indstate.edu ---------------------------------------------------------- Subject: B-Man Book - It's a Car damn it! From: vinnie@west.darkside.com (Vindicator) Date: Wed, 30 Sep 92 10:45:57 PDT Yes, about a year ago right before the album was to be released I corresponded with the B-Man and he stated then that he was working on a new book. I will write to him again and see if there has been any progress, I will also dig up the old letter to see if he gave any specifics. Listen, I don't know what you have been smokin' but it's a car at the beginning of Dreamline. Think of the song, the imagry, the "highway", Las Vegas, the title itself. "Only at home when were on the run" Put on some headphones and listen to the gravel crunch under speeding tires. Not trying to flame here, but when people have an incredible knack at mininterpreting the obvious it starts to make me question my own sanity. Dan- ---------------------------------------------------------- Date: Wed, 30 Sep 92 19:16 GMT From: MaskullSoft <maskull@cix.compulink.co.uk> Subject: A Farewell / A new beginning I'm new to the NMS and this is my first posting, so please bear with me. It seems that alt.music.rush doesn't reach uknet, or my part if it, at least. Aaanyway... Maybe it's a coincidence but I was intoduced to Rush just after MP was released, by a close friend who died Feb 17 this year. Because of this I missed the tour a month or two latter - it was too painful. The last time I saw him, he was just beginning to like RTB, and we discussed going to the concert (in April? I can't recall). As neither I nor his sister, who usually went to concerts with him (and also likes Rush!), felt like seeing Rush so soon, we didn't go. Reading the consert reports here has made me feel good tho. Strangely, I can still listen to Rush, but not Yes (another fav group of his that *I* introduced *him* to - not an easy thing to do, but after a year or two he gave in and listened to them). That's not why I'm telling you this, I'd tell you this anyway. Rush was his favourite group, even tho he felt they're output was falling in quality in the last few years. It now seems to me like they were following his health, but that's just a matter of opinion. My own feelings are that They're as good as ever, but they've evolved their sound, both musically and production-wise. It took a long time for anything to grow on Geoff, and he could very stubborn at times. Every new group he heard was compared to one he knew already, and usually found lacking. A new album would be compared with an old favourite. It was the same with concerts. He'd first seen Rush while at college, but that was in the early 80s, and Rush didn't return to the UK until 6 years later. I was with him when they did. While it was hard to tell if he liked anything, it was a good sign that all he said about the concert was that the sound wasn't as good as the last time! Praised by faint damnation or what! While it debatable whether Geoff was the greatest Rush fan or not (at least amoung those fans that I know personally), if nothing else, he was their greatest critic. This was a high compliment from him, as any group unworthy of his attention was simply ignored. He knew his time was short, and spent it in the best way he knew, so natch he listened to Rush! I once annoyed him by getting more answers to a Rush crossword puzzles than he could. I guess he listen more to the music than the lyrics, which is a shame, as their so good. Still, with his 'golden ears' he could point out some of Neil's drumming that I would've missed. Of the three members, I think Neil was his favourite, tho he's often point out Ged's better bass licks. On his hi-fi, you could hear *everything*, and feel it too. Not the thumping bass that most people get when they turn the tone controls up, but the solid clean punch that a pair of 50 watt bassbins can deliver, thru a floor that loves bass. Once a bus when passed his house while playing some Rush, and I wondered what tweak he'd done now, to make that rumble stand out. Than I realised that it couldn't be on the CD! I looked out the window and understood. Still, with Geoff, you never knew what to expect next. 'Losing It' and 'Marathon' were the only songs he admitted were his favourite. Somehow, these seem appropiate considering his muscle wasting disease. The last two lines of 'Losing It' mean something particular to me. My fav has to be 'I Think I'm Going Bald', as my hair is going grey. (Still, a small white patch of hair is a distinctive mark. (-: ) Some songs from RTB refuse to leave my head, like Bravado. 'We will pay the price, but we will not count the cost' sounds like my phone bill... He also introduced my to Primus, early this year. Hearing 'Tommy The Cat' in Bill & Ted's Bogus Journey was a joy. The beginning of 'John the Fisherman' nearly fooled me into thinking I was playing the wrong CD, the first time I played it. This was on 'Suck On This', a live CD. If you like Rush, listen to these guys. In case you haven't already, there's three of 'em, and the singer plays bass (or the bass player sings, depending on your POV). It reminds me of FM (Ben Mink's group). Is this a coicidence, or are Rush spawning 3-piece groups? :-) Although we both got into Rush when MP was released, it wasn't the LP that got us hooked. Geoff heard and recorded Xanadu from the radio and, a few days later I heard Freewill, also on the radio. This is a group that only gets airplay in the UK when a new album is released, and then only once! So the timing was pure coincidence. Still, Geoff suggested that I get MP. After that, a friend lent us his scratchy second-hand LP collection of the pre-MP stuff. Although we just taped the lot, I bought a few of them on vinyl. When they appeared on CD there was no excuse for not buying them, and this year Geoff finally bought the first album, which has the drummer he hated! Well, I guess he decided it was worth it after all. Over the years, we'd listen to the limited rock programs that our UK radio stations provide, in the hope of hearing and hearinf of the new releases. I was with Geoff when Territories was played. The 'better beer' line got an immediate smile from him - a rare event even for Rush. I'm listening to Uriah Heep's 'The Magician's Birthday' as I write this. A classic album, a classic song. It's up there with 'By-Tor and the Snow Dog' and 'The Necromancer' as an fantasy inspired song. It's 10 mins long BTW (the song I mean (-: ). The main action is given in a manic guitar solo and wild drumming. It was even better live. This was from 1972. Interesting, huh? Re: The Prisoner. This series is being repeated here in the UK. I first saw it a few years ago, with the odd single episode a few months back. Now I'm watching all 17 of them, I'll give my opinion after the last episode is shown. Doug White's summary is pretty fair. When I first saw it, the final episode was followed by an discussion program which ISTR was either 1/2 an hour, or a full hour, plus details of the series and how/why it was made. As to why it's a cult, isn't everything obscure and a little weird? I hope this postung hasn't been boring. If you've read this far, you'll have found some if it a little different from the others. I don't think that makes it any less boring, but certainly long! If you'd like to email me, my CIX address is prefered, as I read this daily, and it's way cheaper! Thanks. Martin Rodgers, Chief Scientist and Programmer @ Nerdware Professionals INTERNET: maskull@cix.compulink.co.uk && 100021.3675@compuserve.com 'If God had meant Man to live in England, He'd have given him gills.' - The Burkiss Way to Dynamic Living ---------------------------------------------------------- From: terrywo@microsoft.com Subject: PowerWindows Packet Date: Wed, 30 Sep 92 10:16 PDT |>In NMS #524, mattb <mbarnett@cclink.fhcrc.org> writes: |> |> A few years ago on MTV I saw that a Rush poetry packet |> of some type was distributed to a load of high school |> classes. If I remember correctly, it included lyrics from |> Power Windows (some if not all the songs). It was supposed |> to be a new approach to get kids interested in poetry. |> Does anybody know the actual contents of this packet? | | I remember hearing this on MTV too. I asked about this here quite | awhile back, and several others remembered it too. But no one has | ever come forth and said that they actually saw the material, or | better still had a copy. I'm beginning to think that either this | was some marketing idea that never actually took place, or that it | was a totally bogus story put out by MTV. Maybe it was their idea | of a joke. Certainly, many NMS subscribers must have been in high | school at that time. How about it, people, can anyone confirm the | existence of this material? Does anyone have the original MTV item | on tape? | | John I can confirm it because I just happened to run across my old copy about a month ago. It was distributed by PolyGram records with the intent of stimulating student interest in poetry and teaching high school students how metaphors, similies, and personifications are used by taking songs from Power Windows and analyzing their usage. I remember hearing about it in '86 and wrote PolyGram. They didn't have any originals left but did send me a photocopy (not a very good photocopy unfortunately). I can imagine a few of you would like a copy of this, so if you'll send a self-addressed stamped envelope to me, I'll be sure you get a copy. (It is only 6 pages worth so a single stamp (U.S. $0.29) should do.) -terry internet: terrywo@microsoft.com USMail: Terry Worley 8915 - 172nd Avenue NE Redmond, WA 98052-3211 ----------------------------------------------------------
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