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Subject: 01/01/93 - The National Midnight Star #588
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The National Midnight Star, Number 588
Friday, 1 January 1993
Today's Topics:
Administrivia
Rush As a Unit
Hugh Syme
By-Tor and the Snowdog ...
Rush Boots.
voice in the wilderness
Grand Designs
MP Ultradisc & Other Errors
NMS T-Shirts
"signoff" letter
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Date: Fri, 01 Jan 93
From: rush-mgr
Subject: Administrivia
Sorry there haven't been any digests lately, but with everyone gone we
just didn't have enough posts! Anyways, happy new year to all!
- rush-mgr
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Date: Thu, 24 Dec 92 20:26:30 EST
From: Alex Slotkin <alxs_ltd@uhura.cc.rochester.edu>
Subject: Rush As a Unit
(NOTE: My brother sent this in, NOT me. No flames or responses to my account,
please. Thank-you.)
I am beginning to wonder whether Rush is considered by the listening public as
an individual group of musicians, or a working unit. All of this talk about
"whether Neil Peart is better than Dave Weckl" or "whether Malmsteen's new
record matches up to Alex Lifeson's playing on The Pass" is
absoulutely ridiculous. While Rush contains two highly talented musicians,
Neil and Geddy, the group sound and compositional approach is what makes Rush
truly great. I know people will jump all over me for saying this, but Lifeson
is not nearly as good an overall musician as the rhythm section is. This, I
think accounts for the fact that the most interesting facets of Rush's
music lies in the rhythmic elements. Take, for example, YYZ. The entire basis
of this piece is the odd time meter., and interesting bass-drum approach. I do
think however, to get back to my main point, that Lifeson's hugely chordal,
atmospheric guitar approach is entirely appropriate to the group's sound.
It also augments the rather stark, grand lyrics of Neil Peart. Maybe the word
to describe this combination of lyrics and guitar would be "existential"
(existential, dig?) .
While I think Rush is a great band, blind worship gets you no where. The main
purpose of music and music listening is to get you thinking, and to understand
the limitations of a group is to understand the music of that group.
Matt Slotkin
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Date: Fri, 25 Dec 1992 01:42:21 CST
Subject: Hugh Syme
From: pbryant@hawk.cs.ukans.edu!
I hope this isn't old news, but I just got Megadeth's _Countdown to Extinction_
and the "Art Direction & Design" is credited to none other than Hugh Syme.
Maybe Hugh has found his niche working with skulls and bones!
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Date: 27 Dec 1992 04:19:42 -0800 (PST)
From: raa@wndrsvr.la.ca.us (Raa Zepol)
Subject: By-Tor and the Snowdog ...
This is My favorite Rush Song ... but for the life of Mee ... I cant
figure out ALL the lyrics ... I managed to get most of them ... but not
all ... Does any of you have them?
Snowdog! Was Victorious!
_ Management may or may not have a different view of the above comments.
__ Wonder Server; Just Waffling around... Call 1-310-370-3069
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Date: Mon, 28 Dec 92 09:08:55 EST
From: medina@Alliant.COM (P. Gregory Medina)
Subject: Rush Boots.
Hi, I recently came across a CD titled "Run From The Fans". Can anyone
out there tell me anything about this CD? Is the quality any good? Is it worth
getting? This was from the Roll The Bones Tour. I was searching for another
CD I've seen mentioned here called "Over The Europe". Can anyone compare
these two.
Thanks in advance. You can email me at (medina@alliant.com) or post
here, I'm sure there are others that are interested.
Greg.
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From: ki!kinet3!ddl@uunet.UU.NET (Derek Lichter)
Subject: voice in the wilderness
Date: Tue, 29 Dec 92 15:34:40 EST
It's lonely out here in the .com domain while the .edu folk are on break,
so I might as well ramble.
I've found that the best album for typing to is the aptly named Power
Windows. Also great for biking to, although it gets dangerous around
intense fills and riffs. :-)
Best album for driving (also for playing at parties): Moving Pictures
Best for pontificating: Presto
Best for cheering up: Grace Under Pressure
Best for screaming: Farewell to Kings
Best for listening to in the dark: Hemispheres
Best for nostalgia: Fly by Night
Best for forgetting why I listen to this band: Rush
Best for role-playing: Caress of Steel
insert lots of IMHOs above.
>.. can't believe I actually posted this... :-)
--
+======================================================================+
| Email : ddl@ki.com Derek Lichter |
| CompuServe: >INTERNET:uunet.UU.NET!ki!ddl ki Research, Inc. |
| UUCP : ...!uunet!ki!ddl 6760 Alexander Bell |
| Voice : 410-290-0355 x226 Suite 250 |
| FAX : 410-290-0397 Columbia, MD 21046 |
+============== my navel is an interdimensional portal ================+
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Date: Wed, 30 Dec 92 07:11 GMT
From: Cyber Surfer <cyber_surfer@cix.compulink.co.uk>
Subject: Grand Designs
This doesn't appear to be in the FAQ, and if it has been mentioned
recently, I must have missed it. However, one of the books I got
for Xmas was Genius, by James Gleick. This is a biography of the
late physicist Richard Feynman. It has some light to shed on
a song or two from PoW.
There are a number of passages that reminded me of Grand Designs,
so I checked the lyrics to be sure, and then checked the FAQ
(nothing!) for a reference to Feynman.
Pages 67-70 cover his attitude to philosophy, and ends with:
So much stuff in there, so much nonsense. Better I should use
my modern mind.
Also, on page 83 there is a bit about the graduate admissions
commitee at Princton where:
the phrase "diamond in the rough" kept materializing out of
the wash of conversation.
These lines are echoed in the lyrics for GD, and obviously focus
on the themes that interest Neil Peart, esp on PoW where genius
and the uses to which it can be put have a place.
I'm sure that I'll find more correspsondences as I read further,
such as Feynman's part in the Manhattan Project (the next song),
but I wanted to say my bit now. This book is a great read, and
I recommend it to anyone with an interest in this physicist and
scientists (and science) in general.
I won't be too suprised if Mr Peart has a copy by now. :-)
Martin Rodgers (with a new id BTW)
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Date: Wed, 30 Dec 92 01:22:26 HST
From: puanani@wana.pbrc.Hawaii.Edu (Puanani Akaka)
Subject: MP Ultradisc & Other Errors
Jello --
Hope everyone had a good Christmas!! :-)
I'm not sure if this has been mentioned or not, so forgive me if
this has. I just got the MP Ultradisc (not for Christmas, alas!)
and noticed a couple of errors on it.
On an editorial note, I actually find it rather amusing that
MP has been plagued with errors ever since it came out on CD.
On the 1st printing from W. Germany, the first 2 sec. of Tom
Sawyer are missing and Neil, suddenly, is booted out of the band.
This, we all know. Now, with the Ultradisc, the previous errors have
been corrected -- the missing seconds have been put back, and Neil
is now reinstated in the band as evidenced by the now-present
picture. HOWEVER, another set of mistakes rear their comic heads --
1) 'Red barchetta' is now 'Red barchette'
2) Alex suddenly loses his ability to play with
a metronome in the beginning of 'Limelight'
Does anyone else have these errors on their discs? For those who don't
have MP on Ultradisc 'Red barchetta' is misspelled on the *CD itself*,
etched in gold for all of us to bow our heads in shame to our posterity.
In the second case, the first six notes of 'Limelight' are played
slightly faster than usual. On my CD player, with the original CD,
the timer gets to "1 second" on the 5th note Alex plays. On the
Ultradisc, the timer reaches "1" on Alex's *6th* note. And it's
really obvious that it's being played faster than the rest of the song
(which, incidentally, is fine). But, is everyone else's CD's like
this, too, or is it only confined to one shipment? :-)
Again, forgive me if this has been discussed before -- I think our
shipments came in about 2 weeks after the rest of you guys.
But it got me thinking about all the "errors" Rush's albums have gone
through over the years. Stuff like:
1) The 'RUSH' on "Rush" wasn't supposed to be pink
2) The color on "Caress of Steel" was too dark
3) People think the star on 2112 is satanic
4) Neil's picture is missing from the MP CD
5) The 1st 2 sec. of 'Tom Sawyer' is missing on the MP CD
6) The 'unallowed' headline on the newspaper on PeW
7 & 8) The above-mentioned errors on the Ultradisc
Any more? Care to start a new thread?? (yeah, right...)
well this baby came out longer than expected...think I'll get going
while I'm getting nowhere...
puanani
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Subject: NMS T-Shirts
Date: Thu, 31 Dec 92 10:10:59 PST
From: Will Hartung - Master Rallyeist <villy@uunet.uu.net>
I wasn't really planning on doing this, figuring that the list would
be flooded with similiar statements, but I've changed my mind :-).
I GOT MINE!! I already praised Meg for putting this together and
creating a really nice piece of work. The colors work well, the logo
is cool, and I was really impressed.
So, For Those Of You Who Haven't..Get One! Meg says she's got a bunch
left.
Thanx for putting this together Meg!
Will
(me@zipbang.socal.com)
----------------------------------------------------------
Date: 31 Dec 1992 17:56:20 -0600 (CST)
From: CD-MD-RD! <TBEAUDOIN@VAX1.UMKC.EDU>
Subject: "signoff" letter
Dear fellow Rushians, i am forwarding to the NMS a copy of
a letter i wrote almost 4 years ago, when i (very foolishly) thought
that i would be signing off the networks because they take up so much
time! i thought you would all enjoy it .... you will see why...
>From: VAX1::TBEAUDOIN "E, A, D, G" 6-APR-1989 23:56:35.49
To: @MAIN:HONORS
Subj: The Alpha and the Omega
Good night, vaxers! I have indeed had my share of pokes in the ribs
and falling backwards in my chair, but I must needs exit stage left.
Hopefully I have carved out my little Vax niche that will be sufficient
enough to create a rush of air when I unseal a vacuum by logging off at the
end of this message. I must now fly by night away from here, and change
my life again. Ahhhh..but do not grieve. The power windows will be here long
after 2112, and we will all soon still be soaking up the cathode rays.
The Vax community has been like a caress of steel, suddenly helping
us to test our own boundaries in many paradoxical ways. How often will we
flip back through the Vax archives and see how much all the world's a stage?
Or most of this world, in many ways, at least. It has indeed been a rush
through time, and i could spend much more of it saying a farewell to kings
here. It's created an interesting look at the hemispheres in our lives,
something i will be soliciting many of you about soon in the future as I do
an independent study for psychology about this collection of moving pictures,
the Vax. We have really in some sense created already many permanent waves,
and people far beyond the narrow confines of this university have received our
signals. And how could we not resort to comedy- the last refuge for the
vaxaholics exhibiting grace under pressure. So I am saying that I am leaving
the Vax. But I tell you to hold your fire and keep the vax burning bright
and crackling in the mistiness of messages serious, messages useless, and
messages humorous, searching for a show of hands.
Will I ever be logging on again? Actually, I may have to before
the semester is out, if I end up needing to use some of the graphics packages
available here on the vax to wrap up a project I am working on. But maybe not.
It's goodbye from here. The truth of it is that if I ever do log on to do
use MAIL again, it will not be until the fall semester of '89, if ever. We'll
see how the game way goes. SO. Goodnight all, and I will see you definitely
in different circles !
And how could you NOT have noticed, and how could i NOT bow out,
without telling you that the titles of every Rush album are in this letter!
see you-
Thomas More Beaudoin
TBEAUDOIN@VAX1.UMKC.EDU
----------------------------------------------------------
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Copyright The Rush Fans Mailing List, 1992.
Editor, The National Midnight Star
(Rush Fans Mailing List)
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End of The National Midnight Star Number 588
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