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Subject: 11/03/93 - The National Midnight Star #806 *** Special Edition ***
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The National Midnight Star, Number 806
Wednesday, 3 November 1993
Today's Topics:
Administrivia
Article -- this is LONG
Cp Bio
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Date: Thu Nov 4 02:41:16 EST 1993
From: rush-mgr <The National Midnight Star Editor>
Subject: Administrivia
A couple of things. There will be 2 digests today (tonight), sorry for the
lateness, been extremely busy as of late. The first digest has two posts, an
article on Counterparts and a press release from the Counterparts press kit.
(also thanks to Chris Nelder from Microsoft, who sent in the same thing,
sorry I lost your post! argh!) If this is anything like the Roll The Bones
Press kit, which was the same text that Neil wrote in the RTB tourbook, so
chances are you might see it in the Counterparts Tourbook.
And now some latest news on the tour, and some notes on the band. I know you
guys are dying to hear what's going on! Here is what I found out (ENJOY!):
- The tour is CONFIRMED to start in Pensacola, this is a definite. As far as
the venue name, I'm still told it is Bayfront Arena, I will get a
confirmation on place, but the city is a definite.
- The process of confirming hall availabilities and negotiating towards
confirmed dateds has begun.
- The tour will head west across the southern US towards the West Coast.
- The opening act will be chosen by Geddy with lots of input from Alex and Neil.
- I'm still told King's X will be opening on a few shows
- Apparently SRO has official requests from 30 bands who would like to go out
with Rush on the first leg, the tapes of the bands are now being reviewed,
it's not expected to see any decision until late December.
- Tickets for the upcoming tour won't go on sale anywhere until January 1st at
the earliest.
- and finally, there are some posts about SIO being shown on Muchmusic, I'm
told the premiere will happen this Saturday on MTV during Headbanger's Ball
so tune your VCR's!!
That's all folks. I'll post more when available.
:rush-mgr
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Date: Wed, 03 Nov 93 17:35:11 CST
From: Tracey <TMCCART3@UA1VM.UA.EDU>
Subject: Article -- this is LONG
Hi, folks -- reprinted without permission for your fair use for edu-
cational, non-copyright-violating purposes... : )
--Tracey
Copyright 1993 BPI Communications, Inc.
BPI Entertainment News Wire
October 22, 1993, Friday
HEADLINE: Rushing back to the limelight with 'Counterparts'
BYLINE: By LARRY LeBLANC, Billboard
DATELINE: TORONTO
With a 19-year career spanning several major music
upheavals, Rush has remained regarded as a vital, relevant band.
The Toronto-based power trio is likely to find even more acclaim
with its 17th album, " Counterparts, " released Oct. 19 by Atlantic
Records and co-produced by band members guitarist Alex Lifeson,
drummer Neil Peart, and bassist/singer Geddy Lee with British
producer Peter Collins.
"The last record was phenomenal - this record is even better,"
says Jason Sniderman, vice president of Roblan Distributors Ltd.,
which operates Canada's leading retail outlet, the 100-store Sam
The Record Man chain.
Though Rush's star status in the States can't be denied, in
Canada, as Sniderman's comments attest, the band practically takes
on mythic proportions. "Tell me one band that Rush can be compared
to. Nobody. There's not another band in the world that plays like
this," Sniderman says. "It's not heavy metal, and they're not a
dinosaur band. It's progressive, but it's not progressive like
Marillion or Genesis. It's just hard-rockin' music."
Explaining the band's longevity in the rock world, its long-time
manager Ray Danniels says, "Rush is like three athletes. Every
season they've showed up to play. They've never retired and tried
to come back, or released a record and not toured. They haven't
released a record in the States that hasn't been (certified gold
or) platinum since 1976. They made their first record before they
were 20 years old, which puts them 10 years younger than half the
icon acts."
"We're not cynical or trying to design anything from a
marketing point of view," says Peart. "We truly are bringing that
naive teenager's response to the music. Do we like it? Let's do it.
That's what protects the freshness of our music."
While Rush's sales have been pretty consistent, Val Azzoli,
Atlantic Records executive vice president/general manager, says
that with such a strong album as " Counterparts, " coupled with the
momentum provided by the band's previous "Roll The Bones" album
in 1991, the timing for a Rush resurgence is perfect.
"The group lost some marketshare a few years back, but they
built it back in recent years," he says. "Their fans, who mostly
are male, have been tremendously loyal, and there's so many bands
around today that owe a musical debt to them."
While agreeing that Rush's audience is dominated by young males,
Danniels says the band also draws strong female numbers at concerts
in some U.S. markets. "When they hit the West, they have a much
higher percentage of women than in the Northeast," he says. "In
the Northeast a lot of guys seem to buy tickets as a social thing,
to go with their friends."
"Counterparts," mostly recorded at Le Studio in Morin Heights,
Quebec, last spring, features powerful, often intense, lyrics by
Peart and imaginatively diverse music by Lee and Lifeson. On
"Between Sun And Moon," former Max Webster lyricist Pye Dubois
collaborated on lyrics.
As with the band's previous two albums, prior to recording, Rush
worked initially at the Chalet Studio in Claremont, 40 miles
outside Toronto. Working Mondays to Fridays, the band tested out
musical ideas at an unhurried pace in an idyllic country
environment before commuting home on the weekends.
"It's a careful combination of having a home life as a very
concentrated body of work gets done,' says Peart. "We'd have five
days of complete isolation, focusing on the job without dealing
with traffic or other normal life things. Going home for the
weekend kept everything amazingly fresh. We'd come back with a
fresh perspective on the work we were doing."
Peart says the band has benefited greatly from setting aside
specific time periods for songwriting. "Ten years ago, we could
finally say, 'OK, we're going to take some time to write this
record before we make it.' We were then on a circuit of being on
the road, then right to the studio to try to come up with songs,
and then record them. Finally, we realized it'd be more productive
to set aside a period of time and do it as a separate job.
"Since that time, the only rule is that there are no rules,"
he says. "It's the same guys and the same working patterns might
become comfortable, but that's not to say they won't be overturned
the next time. Nothing is allowed to become a formula."
Next month, Rush starts rehearsals for a North American tour
that begins Jan. 22 in Pensacola, Fla.
So far no dates have been slated for Europe, where Rush has sold
well over the years. "We'd be much stronger if we got there more
often,"admits Danniels. "We're trying to address that but we have
a big show and a big responsibilities, and it pays for itself by
cranking out those 70 or 80 North American dates. If we don't go
(to Europe) this time, we'll go for the next album."
---------------------------------------------------------
Date: Wed, 3 Nov 1993 19:40:29 -0500 (EST)
From: PARMERTERB@hartwick.edu
Subject: Cp Bio
Hello! The station I am Program Director at just received a very generous
package from Sony Music in Canada including two Anthem cd's, two posters and
a bio w/8x10. Hopefully I have not missed this bio transcribed somewhere
else in TNMS so will go ahead and transcribe! All typos are not my fault
but the computers!
cover: lp cover
page 1: has track listing and release date with mall picture of cows/lock/barrel
page2-4: bio
5-6 center section: the inside of cd cover with all the counterparts
7: pictures of the three of them from the sleeve. Ged at drums, Neil
with the crossbow, and yes, Alex playing accordian!!!!!
8: the box with "time & tide cut & dried...." from sleeve and little pic
of the see no hear no speak no evil monkey/primate (primate me)
9: album cover discography-including Chronicles (something that they
didn't on the RTB tourbook)
10: compartment for a gorgeous black&white 8x10! Ged on left with arms
crossed, then Neil in bandana and horizontal striped shirt,then Alex
looking partially drugged in a dark suit. The lowercase logo is at the
bottom with Anthem on one side and SROmanagement on the other!
"Counterparts- reflections in a wilderness of mirrors"
by Neil Peart
"In 1994 Rush will celebrate twenty years together (our rhinestone anniversary,
I believe it's called). But really, can you imagine-the same three guys staying
together through a score of years, and finding an audience to keep buying all
that racket? I'm not sure which is more amazing, but either way it must be some
kind of record, and either way, we're happy. That's the secret, if there is
one.
'Wilderness of mirrors' is a phrase from T.S.Eliot's 'Gerontion,' and was also
applied by former CIA counterintelligence chief James Jesus Angleton to
describe the world of espionage-hence the twist on 'Double Agent,' reflecting
the clandestine workings of dreams and the subconcious. Disinformation or
intelligence? Let the mirror decide.
Reflections in a wilderness of mirrors; a kind of theme. Not reflections in the
conventional sense of looking back-certainly one can also reflect upon the
present and future-but more in holding a mirror up to our hidden selves, to
human nature and its doings in the world, and to the tradgedies and inspirations
of everyday life. Heavy stuff, I suppose, but that doesn't mean we can't have
fun with it! That's the secret, if there is one.
We had outlines a few goals before we began working on this record, but only
in the most casual way; conversations in the tuning room, the tour bus, or some
hotel bar. Generally, we would continue to aim for a balance between spontan-
eity and refinement (natural complements and not adversaries, as some would
have it), and perhaps work on a more organic approach to the songs-guitar,
bass, drums. Our true counterparts.
Other than these vague notions, we began with the usual "clean sheet of paper,"
the mindset that we try to bring to every new project. So now we began to
ransack the world for producers and engineers to help shape whatever music
might emerge when we began writing. We checked out the field of young talent,
new people who were doing interesting work, but it soon became apparent that we
had nothing to learn from a producer or engineer who had made fewer records than
we had. Youthful enthusiasm is all very well, but we needed enthusiasm with
some experience!
Enter-or reenter-Peter Collins, the diminutive, bearded, cigar-smoking English-
man (and true gentleman) who also worked with us as co-producer on Power Windows
and Hold Your Fire. Once again, Peter was the ideal 'objective ear' for us,
another counterpart. Dedicated to the song above everything, he weighs a
performance or a part only in regard to the feeling it conveys, its contribution
to the whole edifice (like an architect, he has an 'edifice complex'). Peter
holds himself aloof from the technique and technology, the craftwork-'quality
control,' as he terms it-and rightly considers these things to be the domain of
the musicians and the engineer. The rest of us can hudle around the mixing
console and fuss over the fine details of musicianship and sound, while his job
is to keep the project moving, and to ensure that craft is not allowed to
interfere with art-the song. That's his secret, if he has one.
We did discover some new engineers, and Kevin 'Caveman' Shirley was our choice
for the actual recording. His previous work seemed to capture the instrumenents
in a raw, direct fashion, powerful and exciting and as faithful as possible to
what drums and guitars really sound like. Our Caveman was somewhat of a purist,
using few effects and a minumum of processing. For example, if I asked him to
alter the sound of my hi-hat, say for more brightness or more body, instead of
simply twidling a knob on the desk he would come out and move the microphone.
As the Caveman's counterpart, we brought in Michael Letho for the final mixing.
Michael's previous work displayed a refined, architectural style of layering
and building a song (another 'edifice complex'), and we hoped this would
complement the Caveman's style, and our own, combining rawness and refinement-
spit and polish, you might say-gaining both and sacrificing neither. As Peter
Collins remarked at the end: 'Isn't it nice when a plan actually works!'
* * *
The Concise Oxford defins 'counterpart ' both as 'duplicate' and as 'opposite,'
in the sense of 'forming a natural complement to another.' That's what I
thought was so interesting about the word: considered in this way, contraries
are reflections of each other, opposite numbers, and not necessarily contradic-
tions, enemies, The Other. Polarities are not to be resisted, but reconciled.
Reaching for the alien shore.
Dualities like gender or race are not opposite but true counterparts, the same
and yet different, and not to be seen as some existential competition-we could
do without that. Better yet: we could get along without that.
In this light, a listener should not mistake the irony of 'Stick It Out,' with
its plea for both fortitude and forbearance. Or 'Animate,' which is not about
two individuals, but about one man addressing his anima-his feminine side, as
defined by Carl Jung. Within that while also learning to 'gently dominate' the
animus-the male thing-and the other hormone driven 'A-words' like aggression and
ambition. We dominate by not submitting, whether to brute instinct, violent
tage, or ruthless greed.
For the rest of it, we can all dominate or submit as the occasion warrants, try
to reconcile the duplicates and opposites, and dream of racing through life at
the speed of love (186,000 miles per second, if you believe in love at first
sight). Everyone wants the ideal of 'forming a natural complement to another.'
A counterpart. Friendship, love, and partners in life and work are the rewards
for bridging that gap between 'duplicate' and 'opposite.'
Counterparts. Words and music. Guitar, bass, drums. Writing, rehearsing,
and recording. Flying and driving and working and laughing. Alex's flashes of
dazzling spontaneity, twisted humor, and emotional fire, Geddy's melodic
instinct, wry wit, and meticulous passion, my own obsessive drive and rhythmic
bombast. true synergy, I guess: the whole greater that the parts-which are,
after all, just humble old us.
The course of true synergy may not always run smooth, like any 'real world'
relationship, but even occasional friction, if handled with respect and
dignity, can be a grindstone and create its own sparks-no pearl grows without
a grain of irritation at its heart. (The trick is to grow a pearl and not an
ulcer.) And really, who wants to be around people who agree with you all the
time? Differing opinions are part of the chemistry-for example, I still get
excited at seeing how much my lyrics are improved by input from the other two-
but together we also have to face the maddening complexity of the forces around
us: the mechanics of running a large organization, the hassles of business, the
erosion of privacy, the absense from home, and sometimes the soul-destroying
ennui of too long a tour. ('The only thing worse than touring is not touring,'
that's my motto.)
So we do what must be done, and try to balance it out with the challanges and
satisfactions of our private lives. Our job is to pour outas much as we can
into the melting pot of Rush, tributaries flowing to the larger river, sparks
added to the fire, reflections carried to the mirror. That's how we can best
pursue happiness.
And that is the secret, what all is said and done, 'The pursuit of happiness'
may, be the finest phrase in history, and some people seem to forget that
happiness is what we're supposed to be chasing here. Not the short-lived
pleasures, not commodities, not good hair or perfect cheekbones, but simply
enjoying the mountain while we're climbing it. The upward paths may be hardest,
but they have the best views.
And to our way of thinking, we can continue to move upward-we just have to hold
off the rust of laziness, the mold of the marketplace, and the patina of
cynicism. Pursuing such a complicated and elusive state is easier said than
sone, of course, but while we're chasing it we sometimes learn one thing-that
it is a chase, and we may as well cut to it.
That's the secret, if there is one."
Well, folks, there it is! My fingers are really tired and I apologize for all
of the mistakes, but he writes pretty intricatly at times!!!
"all those precious wasted years..."
alexmeistervonBastille (brad parmerter)
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Copyright (C) 1993 by The Rush Fans Mailing List
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End of The National Midnight Star Number 806
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