From: ameiba@reed.edu (Keith Steiger)
Newsgroups: alt.music.rush
Subject: The FAQL from the Rush Fans Digest
Summary: read it, learn it, love it
Date: 15 Apr 92 06:01:32 GMT
Organization: Reed College, Portland OR

*********** The following questions are contained in this file: **************

What albums has the band released?

What are the catalog numbers for LP/Cassette?

When was <album> released?

Are any videotapes of the band available?

Are these tapes available on laserdisc?

What songs has the band made videos for?

How many copies did <album> sell?

Can anyone list everything else that the members of Rush have ever appeared on?

What was the first single released by the band?

I just bought the CD of <Exit...Stage Left | All The World's A Stage> and
it's missing a track! Is a complete version of this CD available?

Has <song> ever been performed live?

What is Battlescar/Max Webster, who plays on it, what is the label/catalogue
number for the Universal Juveniles CD? Where can I write to get it?

Have any books been written about the band?

I heard something about a Rush comic book. What comic book was it?

Somebody posted <item> in the Digest. I missed it - could somebody
please send me a copy? Does anybody have the lyrics to <song>?

What issue of the Digest is <item> in?

I've been seeing <acronym> used in the Digest. What does it mean?

I've heard about the "Rush Backstage Club." What is it, and how do I join?

What about "The Spirit of Rush"?

What is the marital status of the band members?

I've heard <rumor> about <band member>. Does anybody know anything about
the truth of it?

What are the birthdays of the band members?

What are the real names of the band members?

How is "Peart" pronounced?

I heard that Neil Peart has a PhD in <field of study>. Is this true?

Does anybody have an address I can use to write to the band?

Who says <phrase> in <song>?

What is a Lerxt?

Do the other band members have nicknames?

Where did the name "Rush" come from?

Whatever happened to John Rutsey?


Where did By-Tor's name come from?

In "By-Tor And The Snow Dog" By-Tor is the bad guy, but he's a hero in "The
Necromancer." What happened?

Where is Lakeside Park?

What is the significance of May 24?

Does anybody know the lyrics to "Didacts and Narpets"?

In the COS liner notes, a city is mentioned in small print after each
song. Why is this?

Where did the story of _2112_ come from?

Has anybody noticed that you can hear part of the 1812 Overture in _2112_?

I read that "Xanadu" was based on a famous poem. Does anybody have a copy?

Where does the name 'Rocinante' come from?

What do the French lyrics in "Circumstances" mean?

What does "La Villa Strangiato" mean?

Where do the different parts of "La Villa Strangiato" start/end?

Why was the headline on the newspaper on the cover of _Permanent Waves_
blocked out? (Note: The Anthem Canadian release does not have this problem.)

What is the "words of the profits" quote in "The Spirit Of Radio" about?

What is "Free Will" about?

In "Free Will" which lyrics are correct (the ones on the album sleeve or
the ones Geddy sings)?

Where is "Lotus-Land?"

I heard something about a song called "Sir Gawain and the Green Night."
Apparently it was supposed to be on _Permanent Waves_, but was dropped.
Is there a way to get a tape of it?

What building is on the cover of _Moving Pictures_?

What do the pictures on the MP cover mean?

What is "Tom Sawyer" about?

My _Moving Pictures_ CD is missing the first half second or so from
"Tom Sawyer". Can I get a new one?

Who is Pye Dubois?

What is a barchetta?

What does "YYZ" mean?

How does Neil play plywood?

Near the end of "The Camera Eye," there are some mumblings that I can't
quite make out. Does anybody know for sure what is being said?

What does Geddy say, just before "Jacob's Ladder", on ESL?

Who is T.C. Broonsie?

Who is the writer in "Losing It" about?

Who are Young & Crippen?

Who is Count Floyd?

Is that crackling noise about 10-20 seconds into "Distant Early Warning" on
the _Grace Under Pressure_ CD supposed to be there, or is my copy defective?

Who was Absalom?

Who is the boy in the "Distant Early Warning" video?

What is "Red Sector A" about?

What songs make up the "Fear" trilogy?

Has this trilogy ever been performed live?

Why do the songs appear in reverse order?

What is the significance of 1001001 in "The Body Electric?"

What is the Omega Concern?

What do the three spheres on the _Hold Your Fire_ cover represent?

How many Rush symbols are there in the _Hold Your Fire_ inside photo?

How did Pye Dubois come to be involved with "Force Ten"? What does
the title of that song mean?

What film are the clips in the "Lock And Key" video and the _A Show Of
Hands_ laserdisc, just before "Lock And Key," from?

What is Tai Shan about?

What is happening during the "censored" section of the Show Of Hands video?

In the _A Show Of Hands_ video, does Geddy really say "Catch a fish?"

In the _A Show Of Hands_ video, has anybody noticed that Alex's guitar
keeps changing?

Does anybody know what stuff Geddy has sitting on the keyboards in the
_A Show Of Hands_ video?

What is the round thing on Alex's guitar in the _A Show Of Hands_ video?

What are the hands in the "Presto" liner doing?

What is "Chain Lightning" about?

What is "The Pass" about?

What is "Scars" about?

What is the song, "Anagram (for Mongo)" about?

Has anybody noticed that Anagram (for Mongo) contains lots of anagrams?

What does (for Mongo) after "Anagram" on the "Presto" album mean?

What is "Red Tide" about?

Who does the RTB chat section?

Who is the boy in the RTB video?

Is there a "Gangster of Boats" trilogy?

Is there a reason for the arrangement of the numbers on the dice on the RTB
cover?

Has anybody noticed that the "Gangster of Boats" is mentioned in the HYF
liner notes?

Who is the "Gangster of Boats?"

What does the pattern of skulls and bones at the bottom of the inside
front cover of the RTB tourbook mean? Is there a pattern to it?

=========== Questions and answers follow: ==========

What albums has the band released?

   A more complete version of this discography is available for FTP at
   vacs.uwp.wisc.edu.  (131.210.1.1)
   {according to datta@vacs.uwp.wisc.edu, at least.  I haven't looked.}

   These catalog numbers are the ones I read from my CDs & videotapes.

   Mercury  822-541-2 (1974) [AAD] Rush
   Mercury  822-542-2 (1975) [AAD] Fly By Night
   Mercury  822-543-2 (1975) [AAD] Caress Of Steel
   Mercury  822-545-2 (1976) [AAD] 2112
   Mercury  822-552-2 (1976) [AAD] All The World's A Stage
   Mercury  822-546-2 (1977) [AAD] A Farewell To Kings
   Mercury  822-547-2 (1978) [AAD] Hemispheres
   Mercury  822-548-2 (1980) [AAD] Permanent Waves
   Mercury  800-048-2 (1981) [ADD] Moving Pictures
   Mercury  822-551-2 (1981) [AAD] Exit...Stage Left*
   Mercury  810-002-2 (1982) [ADD] Signals
   Mercury  818-476-2 (1984) [AAD] Grace Under Pressure
   Mercury  826-098-2 (1985) [DDD] Power Windows
   Mercury  832-464-2 (1987) [DDD] Hold Your Fire
   Mercury  836-346-2 (1989) [ADD] A Show Of Hands
   Atlantic 7 82040-2 (1989) [DDD] Presto
   Mercury 838 936-2 (1990) Chronicles
   Atlantic 7 82293-2 (1991) [DDD] Roll The Bones

   Additionally, several collections are available: {sorry - no catalog 
                                        numbers, as I don't have these.}

   Archives (includes _Rush_,_Fly By Night_, and _Caress Of Steel_)
   _RUSH_ Through Time
   _Everything Your Listeners Ever Wanted To Hear By Rush But You Were 
   Afraid To Play_ - this collection was targeted at radio stations.
   It was never officially released, and is extremely rare. It's a
   selection taken from FBN, CoS and 2112.

   _Rush - Profiled!_ - This CD was released to radio stations and
                        is rather rare.  It contains things like band
                        members saying "Hi, this is * of Rush, and
                        you're listening to radio magic."  (Paraphrased
                        from memory.)  It also contains quite a few tracks
                        of band members answering questions.  The questions
                        are printed in the liner notes, so a DJ can ask a
                        question and play the CD of the appropriate
                        person answering that question.  The questions
                        are mostly about _Presto_, since this CD was
                        released shortly after _Presto_.

  * The Anthem release of ESL, available in Canada is [ADD], but
    the US CD is [AAD].

What are the catalog numbers for LP/Cassette?

          LP             CD             Cassette       8-track
   R      SRM-1-1011     822 541-2 M-1  MCR-4-1-1011   MC-8-1-1011
   FBN    SRM-1-1023     822 542-2 M-1  MCR-4-1-1023   MC-8-1-1023
   COS    SRM-1-1046     822 543-2 M-1  MCR-4-1-1046   MC-8-1-1046
   2112   SRM-1-1079     822 545-2 M-1  MCR-4-1-1079   MC-8-1-1079
   ATWAS  SRM-2-7508     822 552-2 M-1  MCT-4-2-7508   MCT8-2-7508
   AFTK   SRM-1-1184     822 546-2 M-1  MCR-4-1-1184   MC-8-1-1184
   H      SRM-1-3743     822 547-2 M-1  MCR-4-1-3743   MC-8-1-3743
   PeW    SRM 1-4001     822 548-2 M-1  MCR4 1-4001    MC8 1-4001
   MP     SRM-1-4013     800 048-2      MCR41 4013
   ESL    SRM-2-7001     822 551-2 M-1  MCR-4-2-7001   MC-8-2-7001
   S      SRM-1-4063     810 002-2      MCR-4-1-4063   MC-8-1-4063
   GUP    818 476-1 M-1  818 476-2      818 476-4 M-1
   PoW    826 098-1 M-1  826 098-2 M-1  826 098-4 M-1
   HYF    832 464-1 Q-1  832 464-2 Q-1  ?
   ASOH   836 346-1      836 346-2      836 346-4
   P      82040-1        7 82040-2      7 82040-4
   
   Chr                   838 937-2      838 936-4
                         838 938-2
   RTB                   7 82293-2


When was <album> released?

   Rush - Aug 1974
   FBN - Feb 1975
   COS - Sept 1975
   2112 - April 1976
   ATWAS - Sept 1976
   AFTK - Sept 1977
   Archives - April 1978
   Hemi - Oct 1978
   PeW - Jan 1980
   MP - Feb 1981
   ESL - Nov 1981
   Signals - Sept 1982
   p/g - April 1984
   PoW - Oct 1985
   HYF - Sep 1987
   ASoH - January 1989
   Presto - November 1989
   Chronicles - Sep 1990
   Roll The Bones - September 1991

Are any videotapes of the band available?

   Polygram Music Video 60285 (1981) Exit...Stage Left
   includes: Limelight
             Tom Sawyer
             The Trees
             Instrumental
             Xanadu
             Red Barchetta
             Free Will
             Closer To The Heart
             YYZ (with voice over)
             By-Tor and the Snow Dog/In The End/In The Mood/2112 Finale

   PMV 60607 (1986) Grace Under Pressure Tour 
   includes: The Spirit Of Radio
             The Enemy Within
             The Weapon
             Witch Hunt
             New World Man
             Distant Early Warning
             Red Sector A
             Closer To The Heart
             YYZ/2112: Temples of Syrinx/Tom Sawyer
             Vital Signs/Finding My Way/In The Mood
             The Big Money {video}

   PMV 0741 760-3 (1989) A Show Of Hands 
   includes: The Big Money
             Marathon
             Turn The Page
             Prime Mover
             Manhattan Project
             Closer To The Heart
             Red Sector A
             Force Ten
             Lock And Key (laserdisc only)
             Mission
             Territories
             The Rhythm Method (drum solo)
             The Spirit Of Radio
             Tom Sawyer
             2112/La Villa Strangiato/In The Mood

   PMV 60466 (1985) Through The Camera Eye (video compilation)
   includes: Vital Signs
             Tom Sawyer [live, from Exit...Stage Left]
             Subdivisions
             Countdown
             Distant Early Warning
             Afterimage
             The Enemy Within
             The Body Electric

   PMV 082 765-3 (1990) Chronicles (video compilation)
   includes: Closer To The Heart [live]
             The Trees [live]
             Limelight [studio]
             Tom Sawyer [live, from ESL with some minor changes]
             Red Barchetta [live, from ESL]
             Subdivisions [from _Through The Camera Eye_]
             Distant Early Warning [from _Through The Camera Eye_]
             Red Sector A [live, from the p/g tour video]
             The Big Money [the shortened MTV version, not the complete one
                            from the p/g tour video]
             Mystic Rhythms
             Time Stand Still
             Lock And Key

Are these tapes available on laserdisc?

   I don't know about Chronicles, but the other 4 of them are.

What songs has the band made videos for?

   Anthem
   Fly By Night
   A Farewell To Kings
   Closer To The Heart %
   Xanadu
   Circumstances
   The Trees %
   La Villa Strangiato
   Tom Sawyer
   Tom Sawyer [live, from ESL] %#
   Red Barchetta [live, from ESL] %
   Limelight %
   Limelight [live, from ESL]
   Vital Signs #
   Subdivisions %#
   Countdown #
   Distant Early Warning %#
   Afterimage #
   The Enemy Within #
   The Body Electric #
   The Big Money %&
   Mystic Rhythms %
   Marathon [live, from ASoH]
   Time Stand Still %
   Lock And Key %
   Show Don't Tell
   The Pass
   Superconductor
   Roll The Bones

    % These videos appear on the _Chronicles_ videotape.
    # These videos appear on the _Through The Camera Eye_ videotape.
    & This video appears in it's complete form on the end of the
      _Grace Under Pressure Tour_ videotape.  The shortened MTV version
      appears on the _Chronicles_ videotape.

   Videos with the 'live' comment are concert videos; all others have
   studio soundtracks.  Some of these have minor edits to the soundtrack.

How many copies did <album> sell?

   >From Billboard's Book of Gold and Platinum Records (1990):
   
   Release Date  Cert.  Date of Cert.  Chart Peak  Title
   
   3/76          G      11/16/77       61          2112
                 P      2/25/81
   
   10/76         G      11/16/77       40          All The World's A Stage
                 P      3/4/81
   
   8/77          G      11/16/77       33          A Farewell To Kings
   
   10/78         G      12/14/78       47          Hemispheres
   
   1/80          G      3/17/80        4           Permanent Waves
                 P      11/9/87
   
   1/81          G      4/13/81        3           Moving Pictures
                 P      4/27/81
                 2P     10/12/84
   
   10/81         G      1/5/82         10          Exit...Stage Left
                 P      11/9/87
   
   9/82          G      11/10/82       10          Signals
                 P      11/10/82
   
   4/84          G      6/26/84        10          Grace Under Pressure
                 P      6/26/84
   
   10/85         G      12/18/85       10          Power Windows
                 P      1/27/86
   
   9/87          G      11/9/87        13          Hold Your Fire
   
   1/89          G      3/9/89         21          A Show Of Hands
   
   >From Billboard's Book of Top 40 Albums (1991):
   
   Date      Peak  Weeks  Cert.  Title
   
   11/20/76  40    2      P      All The World's A Stage
   10/8/77   33    5      G      A Farewell To Kings
   2/9/80    4     15     P      Permanent Waves
   3/7/81    3     29     2P     Moving Pictures
   11/14/81  10    14     P      Exit...Stage Left
   10/2/82   10    11     P      Signals
   5/5/84    10    12     P      Grace Under Pressure
   11/2/85   10    14     P      Power Windows
   10/3/87   13    14     G      Hold Your Fire
   2/4/89    21    5      G      A Show Of Hands
   12/9/89   16    11     G      Presto
   
Can anyone list everything else that the members of Rush have ever appeared on?

   This is not a complete list.  Please send me your additions!

   "Universal Juveniles" by Max Webster (Rush in "Battlescar")
   1980 (ANR-1-1027 Anthem)
   
   <Lifeson-produced for "Wireless" around 1981.  Can anyone I.D.?>
   
   "Great White North" by Bob and Doug McKenzie (Geddy singing "Take Off")
   1981 (ANR-1-1036 Anthem)
   
   "Vignettes" by Marie Lynn Hammond (Lee on 2 tracks)
   1983 (BTR 1002 Black Tie Records)
   
   "Boys Brigade" by Boys Brigade (Lee produced)
   1983 (ST 12278 Capitol)
   
   "We Are the World" by USA for Africa with Lee in Northern Lights singing
   "Tears are Not Enough"
   1985 (40043 Columbia)
   
   "Alien Shores" by Platinum Blonde (Alex on 2 tracks)
   1985 (PCC-80105 Columbia)
   
   "Champion" by Jeff Berlin (Peart on 2 tracks)
   1985 (Passport Jazz PJ 88004 A)
   
   "Beyond Borders" by Canadian Guitar Summit (with Alex)
   July 1987 Guitar Player Magazine (flexidisc)
   
   "Pieces of Eight" (Peart percussion compilation)
   May 1987 Modern Drummer Magazine (flexidisc)
   
   "Serious Business" by Greenway (Alex doing solo in "In the Danger Zone")
   1988 (81827-1 Atlantic)
   
   "Clean Slate" by Clean Slate  (Alex produced)
   1988 (ANM-1 5002 Anthem) (5 song EP)
   
   "Dream on the Horizon: A Tribute to the Olympic Spirit" by The Big Picture
   1988 (WSC-331 Chartwell Records)  (Alex on 2 tracks)
   
   "Smoke on the Water" (Mega-Rock Re-Mix)/Paranoid, by Rock Aid Armenia and
   Black Sabbath, (Alex on guitar)
   1989 UK ARMENT 001, ARMENTR 002, ARMENT 002
   
   "Lost Brotherhood" by Larry Gowan (Alex on all tracks)
   1990 (80160 Anthem)

   CASSETTES:
   
   "Star Jam Series: Neil Peart Style"
   
   "Starlicks Guitar Lesson: Alex Lifeson Style"

   In the January 1986 issue of _Modern Drummer_ magazine, while discussing
    his appearance on the Jeff Berlin album, Neil says that he "...did a
    similar thing with a musician named Ken Ramm in Toronto.  That record
    was released in Canada."

   VIDEO:

   "1991 Buddy Rich Memorial Scholarship Concert"  (Neil on a few songs)
   DCI Music Video

What was the first single released by the band?

   The A side was a cover of a Buddy Holly song called "Not Fade Away."
   The B side was a Lee/Rutsey song called "You Can't Fight It."
   These songs are not on any Rush albums.

I just bought the CD of <Exit...Stage Left | All The World's A Stage> and
it's missing a track!  Is a complete version of this CD available?

   No.  But if you absolutely have to have everything on CD, the 2 missing
   tracks are on _Chronicles_.

Has <song> ever been performed live?

   The 1st anniversary issue of TNMS contains song lists for each tour
   Rush has done up to _Presto_.  This is issue 99, available for ftp at
   syrinx.umd.edu.

What is Battlescar/Max Webster, who plays on it, what is the label/catalogue 
number for the Universal Juveniles CD?  Where can I write to get it?

   Max Webster is a Canadian band that used to open for Rush.  Battlescar
   is a song from their _Universal Juveniles_ CD that was done as a duet
   of the 2 bands.  

    Max Webster - Universal Juveniles  1980
                  Mercury SRM-1-3855 [6337 144]
                  Distributed by Polygram Distribution, Inc.
                    Polygram
                    810 Seventh Avenue
                    New York, NY 10019

                  Write:  Anthem Records
                          Oak Manor  P.O. 1000
                          Oak Ridges, Ontario
                          Canada  L0G 1P0

   One more note:  "Battlescar" has a subscript:  "recorded live July 28th,
   1980 Phase One Studios -Toronto-".

Have any books been written about the band?

   Rush - Visions: The Official Biography (c) 1988
   By Bill Banasiewicz (The B-Man)
   ISBN: 0-7119-1162-2    94 pages
   From: Omnibus Press
   Distributor: Music Sales Corporation
                24 East 22nd Street
                New York, NY 10010
   
   Success Under Pressure (c) 1984
   By Steve Gett
   ISBN: 0-89524-230-3    48 pages
   From: Cherry Lane Books
         110 Midland Avenue
         Port Chester, NY 10573
   
   Rush  (c)1982
   By Brian Harrigan
   ISBN: 0-86001-934-9    80 pages
        The Putnam Publishing Group
        200 Madison Avenue
        New York, NY 10016

   People have sent me the names of sheet music books about Rush, but
   I'm not going to include those because there are too many of them
   and this file is getting far too large.  Besides, they really aren't
   about the band.

I heard something about a Rush comic book.  What comic book was it?

   That was Defenders #45. It was dedicated to Geddy, Alex, and Neil of
   Rush on the first page. The story has an anti-collectivist theme to it.
   Since it was printed Mar 77 it makes sense that it would draw from
   2112 (however vaguely).

   The villian (Red Rajah) says, at one point, "Truth is false and logic
   lost, seek the Rajah at all cost".

Somebody posted <item> in the Digest.  I missed it - could somebody
please send me a copy?  Does anybody have the lyrics to <song>?

   An archive server is running at server@ingr.com.

   The address of this archive file server is:
   
      UUCP'ish:  ...!uunet!ingr!server
      ARPA'ish:  server@ingr.com
   
   This archive file server currently supports the following commands:
   
      GET     - request a specific file listed in the index
      SEND    - (same as GET)
      HELP    - request the help file (this file)
      INDEX   - request list of requestable files
      MESSAGE - this is a message to server keeper (do not process)
      NOTE    - (same as MESSAGE)
   
   Commands and file names are not case sensitive.  The body of the
   email is _ignored_ unless the command is MESSAGE (or NOTE), then
   it is passed on to the keeper of the server, currently me.
   
   To make something available on the archive server, send it with
   the MESSAGE command so the server keeper can respond appropriately.
   
   The server is limited to sending one megabyte of text a day.  If
   your request is processed after this limit is exceeded, you will
   be notified that your request failed.  You will also be notified
   if your request contains an invalid command, unknown file name,
   or other problem.
   
   Use the MESSAGE command for questions.  Do not contact anyone at site
   INGR.  This might cause problems and will put the existence of the
   server at risk.


   Additionally, an FTP site has been established.  There are several
   read-only directories containing informational files, plus a directory
   for uploading files into.

    The address to ftp to is:

    syrinx.umd.edu

       or

    128.8.2.114

   for those of you who don't have name resolution.  Once here, you will be
   prompted for a name (userid) and password.  Use "anonymous" for the userid
   and your userid for the password.

    Once you're logged in, 'cd' into the "rush" subdirectory.  Once there,
   you can list the files in the directory.  There is actually only one file
   (README) currently, the others being subdirectories.

    The directories available now are:

    "digest" - Contains back issues of the current incarnation of the
                digest from issue # 1 to the current issue;

    "lyrics" - Contains the lyrics for all the albums up through _Roll The
               Bones_.

    "names"  - Contains a recent (thought not always the latest-and-greatest)
               version of the subscription list; and

    "images" - Contains GIF and Rast format pictures of album covers and
               photos of the band members.

    "sounds" - A directory containing sound files in NeXT .snd or Sun .au
               format.

    "MacSounds" - A directory containing Macintosh-format sounds.

    "c64-sounds" - A directory containing Commodore-64-format sounds.

    "tab" - A directory containing guitar and bass tabs for various songs.

    "incoming" - A directory that's world-writable for uploading files to
                 Syrinx to be moved (by the digest manager) to one of the
                 other directories.  (If you upload something, PLEASE send
                 mail to the Syrinx administrative address to let the list
                 manager know!)

    "special" - Contains the longer items - interviews, articles, tour 
                lists, etc.  Any item warranting it's own file but doesn't
                fall into any of the other categories.

   Any files in the subdirectories with a suffix of ".Z" are compressed; 
   you'll have to uncompress them on your end.  There is a Unix Shell Archive
   (shar) format file in the main directory named "compress.shar" which
   contains the source for the compress/uncompress commands.

   If you wish to submit something for a special edition posting, send it to
   the 'rush-request' address; if it's of general interest, it'll be a 
   special edition, and then placed in the "special" dir.  The same effect
   is created by uploading something to the "incoming" directory and sending
   mail to the 'rush-request' address and informing the rush-mgr it's there.

   Remember, if you don't have ftp capabilities at your site, there is still
   the mail server at "server@ingr.com".

What issue of the Digest is <item> in?

   This list isn't complete, and it probably contains errors.  Let me
   know, so I can fix them!

      Item                                                 Issue
      ----                                                 -----
   Neil's reaction to the Digest                              5
   Analysis of "The Pass"                                    21
   Neil's editorial on Satanism                              22
   Explanation of the map in "Signals"                       26
   A Nice Morning Drive                                      34
   Grace Under Pressure tour book                            42
   2112 tour book                                            47
   Permanent Waves tour book                                 48
   1978 Article/Story on Rush                                59
   Alex interview: Music Express #132, 1989                  62
   "Kubla Khan"                                              64
   Modern Drummer interview with Neil (Dec 89)               68
   HYF tour book                                             69
   Rockline interview 4/30/90                                72
   Peart Q & A                                               74
   Definition of "peart"                                     80
   Chronicles essay                                          81
   "Kubla Khan"                                              88
   Rush special from "The Source"                            91
   _Success Under Pressure_ (Part 1 of 4)                    93
   _Success Under Pressure_ (Part 2 of 4)                    94
   _Success Under Pressure_ (Part 3 of 4)                    96
   Anniversary issue (Part 1 of 2)                           98
   Anniversary issue (Part 2 of 2)                           99
   _Success Under Pressure_ (Part 4 of 4)                   101
   Interview with Alex 11/20/90                             107
   Updated Rush tour dates listing                          108
   "In The Studio" interviews/MP era                        110
   _Rolling Stone_ interviews: 5/15,80,6/26/80,5/28/81      114
   Guitar World, March 1990                                 118
   1978 _Sounds_ article                                    121
   Rolling Stone album reviews
    (Hemispheres,PeW,ESL,Signals,p/g,PoW,ASoH,Presto)       123
   Dec 18, 1983 _Sounds_ article                            125
   "The Source" interview: 2/27/83                          131
   Modern Drummer interview with Neil (April 84)            134
   Moving Pictures tour book                                136
   Neil Peart drumset giveaway from _Modern Drummer_ 3/87   142
   Neil Peart: "The Quest For New Drums" (5/87 MD)          145
   Neil Peart: drumset giveaway results (10/87 MD)          145
   Neil Peart: "Getting The Drum Part" (8/88 MD)            145
   Neil Peart: "A Real Job" (2/87 MD)                       151
   Interview: SOUNDS, April 5, 1980                         206
   Rush discography                                         209
   Discussion of scissors/paper/stone symbols               212
   Geddy Lee interview: _Keyboard_ magazine, Sept '84       217
   Geddy Lee interview: _Keyboard_ magazine, March 89       220
   Alex Lifeson interview: _Guitar for the Practicing
                             Musician_: July '84            220
   Neil Peart interview: _Metal Hammer_, April 25 1988      227
   _Presto_ tour press release                              229
   _Only Music_ article                                     229
   Presto concert review: _Kerrang_ #282: March 24,1990     234,262
   Picture Disc interview with Alex: HYF era                238
   PoW tourbook transcription                               250
   Hemispheres tourbook transcription                       257
   Signals tourbook transcription                           260
   Geddy Lee interview: _Bass Player_ mag - Nov/Dec 1988    264
   _Creem_ interview with Neil                              274
   Alex interview: 4/86 _Guitar Player_                     277
   Geddy Lee interview: 4/86 _Guitar Player_                285
   Neil Peart interview: 1/27/88 Houston Post               287
   Rush crossword puzzle                                    292
   Neil Peart interview: April '86 _Canadian Composer_      294
   March 1990 _Guitar World_ article                        297
   _Signals_ tourbook crossword puzzle                      302
   Neil Peart interview: Jan '86 _Modern Drummer_           305
   Neil Peart release: Roll The Bones                       311
   Neil Peart interview: _Guitar_: Oct '86                  312
   Geddy Lee interview: Aug 19, 1991: Frank Lancaster       320
   Neil interview:Oct '86 Guitar for Practicing Musician    325
   Geddy interview: In The Listening Room - from GFPM 6/87  325
   Neil/Alex interview: Feb 1990 Music Express              342
   TNMS 2nd anniversary issue                               378
   "Row the boats" article by Neil Peart                    390
   10/91 "Canadian Musician" interview: Geddy, Neil         392
   Nov 1 1991 Chicago Tribune article                       406
   Gold Rush: Canadian Composer article                     408
   Aug 19 1991 Geddy Lee interview                          408
   Neil Peart Rochester Times Union article: 10/24/91       408

I've been seeing <acronym> used in the Digest.  What does it mean?

   FBN           Fly By Night
   COS           Caress Of Steel
   ATWAS         All The World's A Stage
   AFTK          A Farewell To Kings
   PeW           Permanent Waves {PLEASE! NOT just PW!}
   MP            Moving Pictures
   ESL           Exit... Stage Left
   GUP           Grace Under Pressure
   p/g           Grace Under Pressure
   PoW           Power Windows {PLEASE! NOT just PW!}
   HYF           Hold Your Fire
   ASoH          A Show Of Hands
   TTCE          Through The Camera Eye {rare, but it shows up}
   RTB           Roll The Bones

   IMHO          In My Humble/Honest Opinion
   WRT           With Respect To
   ORQ           Obligatory Rush Quote

   AHO:    Anyone Heard Of...
   ALTP:   Avoid It Like The Plague
   BBB:    Blah, Blah, Blah
   BFD:    Big F*ckin Deal
   BMA:    Blew Me Away
   BTW:    By The Way
   CIU:    Crank It Up!
   DAU:    Donning Asbestos Underwear
   EMOMC:  Even More Obligatory Musical Content
   FIOTNC:  Frisbee It Off The Nearest Cliff
   GAALMAYS:  Go Away And Leave Me Alone You Slimeball
   GMAW:   Gave Me A Woody
   GSM:    Good Sex Music
   ICF:    I Can't Find...
   IGAGBAYCDTI:  It's Got A Good Beat And You Can Dance To It
   IHRI:   I Highly Recommend It
   IMHO:   In My Humble Opinion
   IMHTTO: In My Holier Than Thou Opinion
   IMO:    In My Opinion
   ISTBO:  It Sucked The Big One
   LTIS:   Listen To It Stoned
   MMG:    Makes Me Gag
   MMW:    Made Me Wet  (female version of GMAW)
   MOMC:   More Obligatory Musical Content
   NAFW:   Not Another Flame War!!
   NFP:    No Flames Please
   NIDPA:  No! I Don't Play Accordion
   NKOTB:  No Kissing Or Tongue Badminton
   OMC:    Obligatory Musical Content
   ONNATT: Oh, No! Not Another Top Ten
   PMO:    Piss Me Off
   POS:    Piece Of Sh*t
   RCS:    Real Cool Shit
   SJA:    woj  ;-)
   TAV:    Take A Valium
   TBE:    Their Best Ever
   TOS:    Totally Orgasmic Shit
   WOM:    Waste Of Money
   WFM:    Works For Me

I've heard about the "Rush Backstage Club."  What is it, and how do I join?
   
   It's an outfit that sells Rush souvenirs (t-shirts, posters, etc) and
   occasionally releases a newsletter.  (I'm not a member, so I don't
   really know.  Could a member send me some details?)  To join the
   backstage club, just send $12.95 ($10 to join plus $2.95 shipping and
   handling) to:
   
   Rush Backstage Club
   951 Toni Ave.
   Las Vegas, NV 89119

   Membership obligation is to purchase 1 item of merchandise each year to
   stay on the mailing list.  Also, they will answer any inquiries if you
   include a self addressed stamped envelope.  For those international
   people, pay in U.S. money (NO CASH!!!) and include postage coupons with
   information requests.

What about "The Spirit of Rush"?

   Published 4 times a year. Subscription for the next 4 issues:
    U.K.: #6.80, Europe: #10.00, Australia/N.Z.: #12.00
    U.S.A/Canada: $20.00
    (# = Pounds Sterling. All prices include postage.)
   
   Back issues:
    U.K.: #1.50 each, Europe: #2.00, Australia/N.Z.: #3.00
    U.S.A./Canada: $4.00  (all prices include postage)
   
   Address for back issues, and U.K./Europe/Australia/N.Z. subscriptions:
    23, Garden Close,
    Chinbrook Road,
    Grove Park,
    London, SE12 9TG
    England
   
   Address for U.S.A/Canada subscriptions:
    Ray Wawrzyniak
    110 Red Oak Drive
    Williamsville, NY  14221
    U.S.A.
   
   U.K. readers should pay by crossed cheque or postal order, NOT CASH.
   Overseas readers should pay by bank draft or International Money Order,
   in STERLING ONLY please.  If these are unavailable, cash sterling or cash
   dollars only.  Personal cheques in foreign currency cannot be accepted.
   Cheques/postal orders/I.M.O/B.D. payable to 'The Spirit Of Rush'
   
   U.S.A. readers should pay by personal cheque payable to Ray Wawryzniak.

What is the marital status of the band members?

   In _Visions_, there is a group picture of all 3 band members and
   their wives.

I've heard <rumor> about <band member>.  Does anybody know anything about
the truth of it?

   These rumors have been popping up for quite some time now.  Here
   are some of the ones that have been shown to be wrong over the
   years by the activities of the band:

    - Alex is dying of cancer
    - Neil is dying of cancer
    - Geddy is dying of cancer
    - Geddy has throat cancer; he's not dying, but can never sing again
    - Geddy is going blind from stage lights.
    - Neil is gay.

   {Send me more!  - Dan}

What are the birthdays of the band members?

   Geddy Lee          July 29,1953 {according to _Visions_}
   Neil Peart         September 12, 1952
   Alex Lifeson       August 27, 1953

What are the real names of the band members?

   Geddy Lee          Gary Lee Weinrib
                     { The book "Heart of Gold", a history of Canadian rock,
                       provides this as Geddy Lee's real name.
                       In 1971, Gary Lee Weinrib, Alex Zivojinovich, and
                       John Rutsey all joined CAPAC, the Canadian
                       writers/publishers/composers guild. }
   Neil Peart         Neil Peart
   Alex Lifeson       Alex Zivojinovic

How is "Peart" pronounced?

   It rhymes with "near", according to Neil on the "Rush - Profiled!" CD,
   so I assume that's the correct pronunciation.  That also agrees with
   the way Geddy pronounced "Peart" when introducing Neil's solo during
   RTB shows.

I heard that Neil Peart has a PhD in <field of study>.  Is this true?

   In _Visions_, Neil is quoted (on page 65) as saying that he is
   a high school dropout.  I don't see how he would have had time to
   go to school and get a degree, what with being in Rush and all.

Does anybody have an address I can use to write to the band?

   This address was posted to the Digest, but I can't vouch for the
   correctness of it.

                RUSH
                41 Britan St. (#200)
                Toronto, ON
                M5C 1R7, CANADA

   The Backstage Club will probably forward mail as well.

   _Modern Drummer_ magazine will forward mail to Neil. (or other drummers,
   for that matter!)

                Modern Drummer
                870 Pompton Avenue
                Cedar Grove, NJ 07009

Who says <phrase> in <song>?

    Geddy says "One...Two...Buckle my shoe" in "In The End" on ATWAS.
    Neil does the narrative during "The Necromancer".
    I've never seen anything definitive saying who whispers in
      "The Twilight Zone."
    Neil does the "Attention all planets of the Solar Federation - We have
      assumed control" bit at the end of "2112".
    The deep voice at the beginning of "Cygnus X-1" is none other than
      Terry Brown.
    Neil says "Subdivisions" in the song of the same name,
      even though Alex is shown in the video and does it live.
    Alex says "That's nice" at the end of "Chain Lightning".
    We don't know who says "I will be the judge" and "Give the jury
      direction."  I did receive the following email on April 11, 1991
      on just this very subject:

    { Begin quoted text }
   >Good day. I am a Rush fan who has access to an Amiga and a good quality
   >digitizer.  I noticed that in the "Who says what" section of the FAQL you
   >wrote that you don't know who says "I will be the judge" and "Give the
   >jury direction."
   > 
   >Out of curiousity, I digitized that section of Show Don't Tell, and then
   >played it back at the 'proper' speed. Although the main vocal track
   >(Geddy's voice) was obviously too high, I could now hear the background
   >vocals that were intentionally slowed.
   > 
   >The task was fairly difficult because of two reasons:
   >1. The background vocals are very weakly mixed in comparison to the main
   >   vocals, which makes it hard to distinguish the voice.
   >2. The phrases are actually whispered, sampled, and then slowed down by
   >   some factor.
   > 
   >All above statements coming to a conclusion with my submission to the
   >FAQL issue: Neil whispers "I will be the judge" and "Give the jury
   >direction" during Show Don't Tell.
   > 
   >Yoav Gershon
   >ygershon@ucdavis.edu (or ygershon@deneb.ucdavis.edu)
   >UC Davis.
   { end quoted text }

   According to Neil on the Dec 2 1991 Rockline, Geddy does the RTB
   "chat" section.

What is a Lerxt?

   A Lerxt is an Alex Lifeson.

Do the other band members have nicknames?

   Ged and Neil also have nicknames, Dirk and Pratt. Hence "Lerxtwood Mall",
   "Old Dirk Road" and "Pratt & Co." on the map on the back cover of Signals.
      -- from ano@uk.ac.rdg.cs.csres

Where did the name "Rush" come from?

   Paraphrased Background: In August of 1968 the band's formal lineup
   was Alex on guitar, John Rutsey on drums, and Jeff Jones on bass and
   vocals. They got a job to play at the "Coff-In", a coffee house
   in the basement of an Anglican Church [Great name, eh?] for $25/night.
   
   "The band was excited, but they had a big problem. While
   they had been dreaming of playing, they had neglected to come up with
   a name for their group. So a few days before the gig they sat around in
   John's basement trying to come up with an appropriate monicker. They
   weren't having much luck when John's older brother Bill piped up,
   'Why don't you call the band Rush' and Rush it was."
                           -- from _Visions_

Whatever happened to John Rutsey?

   "John's still around.  I see John quite often.  He gave up playing
   shortly after he left the band and went into bodybuilding.  He
   competed on an amateur level for a while, doing that for a few years,
   and has sort of been in and out of that, but he still works out, and I
   work out with him a few times a week at a local gym - at a Gold's,
   here in Toronto." -- Alex Lifeson, in the 2/6/89 Rockline interview


=========== Questions and answers follow: ==========

Where did By-Tor's name come from?

   Rush's road manager, Howard, came up with the title at a party.  There
   were two dogs at the party, one was a german shepherd and the other
   was a tiny white nervous dog.  Howard used to call the shepherd 'By-Tor'
   because anyone that walked into the house was bitten.  The other dog was
   a snow-dog (white...).  So from that night on Howard called the pair of
   dogs "By-Tor and the Snow Dog." -- from scrs_ltd@uhura.cc.rochester.edu

In "By-Tor And The Snow Dog" By-Tor is the bad guy, but he's a hero in "The
Necromancer."  What happened?

   When asked about this on Rockline, Geddy said something along the lines
   of, "He saw the light."  Neil commented, "I guess he's like
   all of us - sometimes good, and sometimes he's bad!" in the Dec.
   1985 Backstage Club newsletter.

Where is Lakeside Park?

   The consensus of the mail I've received on the subject seems to
   be that the Lakeside Park Neil refers to is in St. Catherine's,
   on Lake Ontario.  I don't think any 2 people have yet agreed on
   how one actually gets to Lakeside Park, so I'll tell you to do what
   Bruce Holtgren <70724.1622@CompuServe.COM> did for directions,
   which is to call the St. Catherine's Chamber Of Commerce.
   (If somebody does that and types in the "official" directions,
   I'll add them to the FAQL, but I'm not going to put in directions
   from people who went there once years ago and think they remember.)

What is the significance of May 24?

   It's "Victoria Day", commemorating Queen Victoria's birthday.

Does anybody know the lyrics to "Didacts and Narpets"?

   Here's the best version I've seen:
   Deep Voice:  "Stay!"
   Geddy        "Go!"
   Deep         "Work!"
   Ged          "No!"
   Deep         "Think!"
   Ged          "Live!"
   Deep         "Earn!"
   Ged          "Give!"
   Deep/Ged     <Wait or Fight?>/<Right>
   Deep/Ged     <Laugh?>/<Right or Wait?>

                Listen!

In the COS liner notes, a city is mentioned in small print after each
song.  Why is this?

   "Ah yes.  This goes back to the "bad old days" when all we did was tour,
   and consequently had to do most of our song writing on the road, with
   acoustic guitars and notebooks in hotel rooms.  Not the best method of
   composition, you may imagine, but the only one available to us at the time.
   Those cities represent the places in which those songs were written."
       -- Neil Peart, in the Dec. 1985 Backstage Club newsletter

Where did the story of _2112_ come from?

   rkleiner@alfred.carleton.ca (Ron Kleiner) sent me this:
   According to Neil on the Dec 2 1991 Rockline, 2112 is NOT based on
   Rand's "Anthem" or any other of her works.  He said that he wrote the
   lyrics first, then afterwards discovered the similarities, so he
   decided to include the accreditation.

Has anybody noticed that you can hear part of the 1812 Overture in _2112_?

   Yes.

I read that "Xanadu" was based on a famous poem.  Does anybody have a copy?

   The poem is "Kubla Khan" by Samuel Taylor Coleridge.  Your local
   library probably has a copy.  It appeared in the Digest issue #88.

Where does the name 'Rocinante' come from?

   It was the name of Steinbeck's motor home in _Travels With Charlie_.
   It was also the name of Don Quixote's horse.

What do the French lyrics in "Circumstances" mean?

   "The more that things change, the more they stay the same."

What does "La Villa Strangiato" mean?

   'Weird City' is a rough translation of the title, according to _Visions_.

   Atthe Tossavainen <d37690r@kaira.hut.fi> has told me that
   "La villa, be it spanish or italian, doesn't mean a village or a
   city, but rather a HOUSE.   Strangiato is probably just pidgin spanish, a
   made-up word."

   The song itself is based on several of Alex's nightmares and some cartoon
   themes.  Much of this music can be heard on a CD called The Carl Stalling
   Project - "Music From Warner Bros. Cartoons 1936-1958".  Warner Bros -
   26027-2 (approximately 77 minutes on cd) These are the original soundtracks
   from Loony Tunes/Merrie Melodies, mostly in the 40s and 50s.
               -- thanks to jdinkins@polyslo.calpoly.edu for catalog info

   schaaphe@serc.nl (Frank Schaapherder) gave me this information:
     The first part of La Villa Strangiato, "Buenos Nochas, Mein Froinds"
     is based on the German song "Gute Nacht, Freunde", written by
     A. Yondrascheck.  I noted the resemblance between the two songs
     immediately when I first heard La Villa. The notes until the fast
     part are almost identical. Also note the similarities in the titles,
     they have the same meaning, and the reference to German in Rush's
     title (Mein Froinds).

Where do the different parts of "La Villa Strangiato" start/end?

   This chart was made up by Brad Armstrong <71161.1313@CompuServe.COM>.
   Thanks, Brad!

    La Villa Strangiato (An exercise in Self-Indulgence)

                                              Studio    Live
    I.    Buenos Nochas, Mein Froinds!        0.00      0.16
    II.   To sleep, perchance to dream...     0.27      0.49
    III.  Strangiato theme                    2.00      2.18
    IV.   A Lerxst in Wonderland              3.16      3.36
    V.    Monsters!                           5.43      6.09
    VI.   The Ghost of the Aragon             6.09      6.30
    VII.  Danforth and Pape                   6.45      7.07
    VIII. The Waltz of the Shreves            7.26      7.48
    IX.   Never turn your back on a Monster!  7.52      8.14
    X.    Monsters! (Reprise)                 8.03      8.24
    XI.   Strangiato theme (Reprise)          8.17      8.40
    XII.  A Farewell to Things                9.21      9.14

Why was the headline on the newspaper on the cover of _Permanent Waves_
blocked out?  (Note: The Anthem Canadian release does not have this problem.)

   "There are always the inevitable last minute crises, such as the Chicago
   Daily Tribune being still so embarrassed about their 'Dewey defeats Truman'
   error of more than thirty years ago, that they actually refused to let us
   use it on the cover!"  -- Neil Peart, in the _Permanent Waves_ tourbook

   To clarify this:  When Truman ran against Dewey for President, Truman
   lost in most of the states with early returns.  So, it looked like
   Dewey was going to win.  The Tribune released an early morning paper
   the next day with a 'Dewey defeats Truman' headline.

What is the "words of the profits" quote in "The Spirit Of Radio" about?

   It's referring to "Sounds of Silence."  Here are the lyrics:

   Sounds of Silence:
   "And the sign said the words of the prophets are written on the
    subway walls,
    And tenament halls
    And whispered in the wells of silence"

   Spirit of Radio:
   "For the words of the profits were written on the
    studio wall,
    Concert hall,
    And echoes with the sound of salesmen..."

What is "Free Will" about?

   "The song is about freedom of choice and free will, and you
   believing in what you decide you believe in." -- Geddy Lee, in the
                                              12/4/89 Rockline interview

In "Free Will" which lyrics are correct (the ones on the album sleeve or
the ones Geddy sings)?

   "That's a funny question.  I've had a few lately from people who are so
   sure that what they hear is correct, that they disbelieve what I've put
   in the lyric sheets!  Imagine!  People have quoted me whole verses of
   what they hear, as opposed to what's printed, sure that they are right
   and the cover (me) is wrong.  Scarry stuff, these ego-centric individuals.
   I assure you, other than perhaps dropping an "and" or a "but", we take
   great care to make the lyric sheets accurate."
      -- Neil Peart, in the Dec. 1985 Backstage Club newsletter

Where is "Lotus-Land?"

   "Lotus-land as it appears in 'Free Will' is simply a metaphor for an
   idealized background, a 'land of milk and honey'.  It is sometimes
   also used as a pejorative name for Los Angeles, though that was not
   in my mind when I wrote it." -- Neil Peart

I heard something about a song called "Sir Gawain and the Green Night."
Apparently it was supposed to be on _Permanent Waves_, but was dropped.
Is there a way to get a tape of it?

   According to _Visions_, it was dropped before it was ever set to music
   and was never recorded.

What building is on the cover of _Moving Pictures_?

   According to rkleiner@alfred.carleton.ca (Ron Kleiner):
   The building on the cover of Moving Pictures is the current seat of
   the Government of Ontario, at Queen's Park.

What do the pictures on the MP cover mean?

   "When Hugh Syme was developing the multitude of puns for the cover,
   he wanted the guys "moving pictures" to have some "moving pictures"
   to be moving past the people who were "moved" by the "picture" - get
   it? So he asked us to think of some ideas for these pictures.  The
   "man descending to hell" is actually a woman - Joan of Arc - being
   burned at the stake (as per "Witch Hunt") and the card-playing dogs
   are there because it was a funny, silly idea - one of the most
   cliche'd pictures we could think of - a different kind of
   'moving picture'."  -- Neil Peart, in the Dec 1985 Backstage Club
                                newsletter

What is "Tom Sawyer" about?

   "I've been avoiding most of the question that ask for explanations for
   different songs, as really the song is meant to do the explaining for
   me!  But since you ask so nicely... "Tom Sawyer" was a collaboration
   between myself and Pye Dubois, an excellent lyricist who wrote the
   lyrics for Max Webster.  His original lyrics were kind of a portrait
   of a modern day rebel, a free-spirited individualist striding through
   the world wide-eyed and purposeful.  I added the themes of reconciling
   the boy and man in myself, and the difference between what people are
   and what others perceive them to be - namely me I guess."
                 -- Neil Peart, in the Dec 1985 Backstage Club newsletter

My _Moving Pictures_ CD is missing the first half second or so from
"Tom Sawyer".  Can I get a new one?

   Yes.  Here's the address for PolyGram QA :

          Cecilia E. Schultz
          Customer Service / Warranty Department
          PolyGram Group Distribution, Inc.
          6220 Churchman Bypass
          Indianapolis, IN 46203

          Phone:  (800) 428-4437
          FAX:  (317) 788-1803

Who is Pye Dubois?

   Pye Dubois was the lyricist for Max Webster.  "Tom Sawyer" began life
   as a Max Webster song called "Louis The Warrior," but Pye gave the
   lyrics to Neil after "Battlescar" was recorded.  Pye also helped
   Neil write "Force Ten."

What is a barchetta?

   The barchetta is a type of Ferrari race car - read on for "details
   till you puke."

   NOTE:  This section of the FAQL will not be changed until somebody
          volunteers to keep a Rush trivia file for all of the obscure
          little trivia things like this.  Mail asking me to remove
          this section will be ignored.  If you have time to send me
          email complaining about this section of the FAQL, you probably
          have enough free time to be the keeper of an Obscure Rush
          Trivia file, which is needed.  Things like the "Has anybody
          noticed that YYZ is Morse Code" question would probably be
          more appropriate for a general trivia file than for the FAQL,
          which I originally intended to not be a trivia file.

   Barchetta is Italian for little boat.

   The history of the Ferrari barchetta:
   (note the lower case b, it designates a body style like coupe, spyder,
   cabriolet or berlinetta, not an actual model name)

   Ferrari 166MM -

   V-12, 1995cc, 60x58.8mm, 140 bhp @ 6600 rpm, CR 10:1, single ohc per bank,
   Weber carbs, 5-speed gearbox integral with engine, double wishbone front
   suspension, rigid axle rear suspension.

   First shown at the Turin Salon in November of 1948. It's simple but
   effective barchetta styling became greatly admired and many times
   copied. The MM designation was added to the 166 model number to
   designate the 1948 victory of a 166 in the Mille Miglia. A total of
   46 166MMs were built in Series I & II between 1948 and 1953. 25 of the
   series I cars (1948-1951) carried the barchetta designation, none of
   the Series II cars were barchettas.

   Ferrari 195 Sport -

   V-12, 2431cc, 65x58.8mm, 180 bhp @ 7000 rpm, CR 7.5:1, rest same as above

   This car had essentially the same engine as the 166MM bored out to 65mm.
   The body was very similar to the 275S discussed below. As a hybrid
   prototype, it is not known exactly how many of these cars were made.
   Probably at least one barchetta (certainly no more than three) were
   made in 1950. The one known barchetta finished second in the 1950
   Mille Miglia.

   Ferrari 275S -

   V-12, 3322cc, 72x68mm, 270 bhp @ 7200 rpm, CR 8:1, rest same as above

   A prototype of the type 340 America series of cars, only two were made
   in 1950.  Both cars, in barchetta configuration, entered the Mille
   Miglia in April but retired the race with clutch problems.

   Ferrari 340 America -

   V-12, 4101 cc, 70X68mm (?), 220 bhp @ 6000 rpm, CR 8:1, rest same as above

   This car was a downsized formula 1 racer with a smaller displacement than
   it's 4.5 liter F1 counterpart. These cars evolved into the 342 America as
   the GT version and the 340MM as the sport. Of the 25 340s produced in
   1951, 7 were touring barchettas.

   Ferrari 225S -

   V-12, 2715 cc, 70X58.8mm, 210 bhp @ 7200 rpm, CR 8.5:1, rest same as above

   Considered as the final link to the extremely successful 3-liter 250
   series of cars, 20 225Ss were built in 1952, but only 1 in the barchetta
   configuration.

   Since only 35-37 barchettas were built between 1948 and 1953 under various
   model numbers it's not surprising that few people were even aware
   they existed.

   Source: "The Complete Ferrari" by Godfrey Eaton 1986 by Cadogan Books Ltd.

   { Interestingly, 2 Italians that I know have independently told me
    that it's actually pronounced 'barketta'. }

What does "YYZ" mean?

   YYZ is the transmitter code for Toronto's Lester B. Pearson 
   International Airport.  Every airport is assigned a unique 3 letter
   code, and that code is always being transmitted so that pilots can
   tell, roughly, where they are and verify that their navigational
   radios are tuned properly.  These codes are also written on your
   luggage tags when you fly.  The intro to the song is Morse code for "YYZ".

How does Neil play plywood?

   "Well you wear gloves so as not to get splinters, you take a piece of
   1/4" plywood, and smack it down HARD on the top of a wooden stool.
   Very demanding, technically - took years of practice." -Neil Peart

Near the end of "The Camera Eye," there are some mumblings that I can't
quite make out.  Does anybody know for sure what is being said?

   No.  {The first time I posted this FAQL, I received no fewer than 8
         emails from people who claimed to know exactly what is being
         said there.  Unfortunately, none of them agreed with each other,
         which tells me that at least 7 of them were wrong, so I'm only
         going to change this answer if somebody can come up with proof
         that they are right, such as an interview or magazine article.}

What does Geddy say, just before "Jacob's Ladder", on ESL?

   "We'd like to do an old song for you right now... This was done a long
   time ago by the [possibly "that"] old T.C. Broonsie.. This is called
   'Jacob's Ladder'." -- thanks to Michael Sensor <JPJ103@psuvm.psu.edu>

Who is T.C. Broonsie?

   Terry Brown.

Who is the writer in "Losing It" about?

   Neil discusses this song in _Modern Drummer_ magazine, in the April 1984
   issue.  The writer represents Ernest Hemingway.  The dancer "...drew
   a bit from that film with Shirley MacLaine called _The Turning
   Point_..."

Who are Young & Crippen?

   They were the astronauts on the first Shuttle flight.

Who is Count Floyd?

   He was a character on the Canadian TV show SCTV.  {similar to "WKRP
   in Cincinatti", but a TV station.}  The Count Floyd character had a
   show that featured really bad movies.  {movies so bad that even
   Elvira wouldn't show them.}

Is that crackling noise about 10-20 seconds into "Distant Early Warning" on
the _Grace Under Pressure_ CD supposed to be there, or is my copy defective?

   It's supposed to be there.  There is a rumbling at that point on the
   _A Show Of Hands_ CD and on the _Grace Under Pressure Tour_ video,
   but people without subwoofers may be unable to detect it.

Who was Absalom?

   He was King David's favorite son, who rebelled against his father,
   and was killed by Joab, according to my trusty Websters.

   To quote Neil:
   "Before I ever knew who or what Absalom was, I always loved the sound
   of it.  I had thought perhaps it was an ancient prayer or something.
   There is a book by William Faulkner called _Absalom, Absalom_, which,
   again, I loved the sound of.  I wanted to put it in the song, as a play
   on words with "absolute" and "obsolete", but I thought I'd better find
   out for sure what it meant.  So I called my wife and asked her to look
   it up in the encyclopedia.  When I learned the real story, and its
   Biblical roots, I decided that it was still appropriate, as it was the
   ultimate expression of compassion, which is what the song was really
   about.  "Absalom, Absalom.  My son, my son.  Would God I had died for
   thee." (Now don't anyone go reading any religion into that!)"

Who is the boy in the "Distant Early Warning" video?

   He is Geddy's son, Julian.

What is "Red Sector A" about?

   Red Sector A is the area the band watched a shuttle launch from.

   On the other hand, the song...

   The inspiration for Red Sector A was indeed the Holocaust.  Neil even
   read many books on the subject, and was really moved by the fact that
   some of the survivors of the concentration camps actually DID think
   that they (and their liberators) were the last people alive on earth.
   ("That's intense..."  -Neil)

   But Neil specifically does not make any *direct* reference to the
   Holocaust, just several indirect ones.  The motivation for this was to
   make the song have "a more timeless quality".  Neil points out that
   all throughout history, countries, races, and people have been guilty
   of persecution, and America is no exception.

What songs make up the "Fear" trilogy?

   The "Fear" trilogy consists of:
      Part 1: The Enemy Within (Grace Under Pressure)
      Part 2: The Weapon (Signals)
      Part 3: Witch Hunt (Moving Pictures)

Has this trilogy ever been performed live?

   Yes.  It's on the _Grace Under Pressure Tour_ video.

Why do the songs appear in reverse order?

   "It's really kind of strange how it turned out, and it's not meant to be
   as mysterious and clever as it looks.  It was more accidental.  At the
   time of _Moving Pictures_, I had actually sketched out each of the three
   songs in my notebook and talked to the other guys about them and what I
   was going to go for, but the easiest one for me to clarify in my mind
   and in words was 'Witch Hunt,' because it was the simplest concept to
   deal with, and then 'The Weapon' came next because my thinking led up to
   that point, but in fact a couple snatches of lyrics and even both of the
   verses for 'The Enemy Within' were written as long ago as that, and all
   of the titles and everything were fixed on, and what I wanted to write
   about, but 'The Enemy Within' was the most difficult one to deal with,
   so it ended up being the last one done, so they happened to go in the
   order 3-2-1." -- Neil Peart, in an interview on KGB 101 FM, San
                                Diego: 10/2/84

What is the significance of 1001001 in "The Body Electric?"

   In the video, the protagonist is a prisoner attempting to escape
   from some sort of prison.  The number on his uniform is 1001001.
   Many people have converted this number into decimal and noticed
   that ASCII 73 is a capital I and read significance into that,
   but I've never seen anything "official" on the subject.  My
   _opinion_ is that 1001001 was used because it fits and sounds neat.

   1001001 is also not a valid choice for a California license plate,
   but UNIT ONE is. (It's taken now.)

What is the Omega Concern?

   As Alex realized that he had to play acoustic guitar for some Rush tunes
   and then quickly switch to his electric (Closer to the Heart, etc.), he
   crafted a stand (actually an attachment to a Tama Titan cymbal stand)
   that holds his acoustic in an adjustable playing position.

   He soon began to sell this as a product (1st to Music Emporium) under the
   company label "The Omega Concern."  Apparently, Alex's "company" also made
   Geddy a light-up lyric stand and Neil got a newspaper/book holder so he
   could read while he eats breakfast.

What do the three spheres on the _Hold Your Fire_ cover represent?

   "It's so difficult to describe the album cover because you want to
   leave a little bit of mystery, and you want it to be interpreted by
   the person who is holding the thing in front of them.  So I'm really
   not going to say too much about what the cover says to me, but it's
   nothing extremely mystical or anything.  It has nothing to do with
   brown rice."  -- Geddy Lee, on Rockline 10/5/87

How many Rush symbols are there in the _Hold Your Fire_ inside photo?

   the fire hydrant from "Signals"

   the TV from "Power Windows"

   the clock indicating 9:12 (21:12 military time)

   the number 15 on the main building... in the "Hold Your Fire"
   tour book, they mentioned that this was their 15th album to
   date.

   the juggler is clearly holding his fire.

   at the very far left, underneath the chains is a trunk with
   the logo from their first album.  This was spotted on a 12
   inch picture disk from the album.  It cannot be seen in many
   other versions of the picture.

   The Chinese neon sign above the restaurant reads "Tai-Shan".

   A friend told me that the car is a Mercury, but I don't know this
   for sure.

   Look right off of the juggler's right shoulder in the open window.
   There is someone's hand shown holding a pistol.

   In one of the upper right hand windows of the right hand most apartment
   building you can see part of the head and crown of the Statue of Liberty
   who we all know holds a burning torch in her right hand.

   The arches on the building are suspiciously similar to the MP cover.

   Special mention goes to nth@cs.brown.edu (Nate Huang) for the most
   obscure observation yet: "The restaurant sign has the same recognizable
   font style as the lettering on the Grace Under Pressure cover."

   Leaning against the trash can in the front is an oxford shoe, just like
   the one the girl wears on the ESL cover.

   The back side of the owl on FBN is resembled on the lamp post on the far
   right side.  (Only on the CD and tour book)
    { I think this is pushing it a little, but I can see how one might
      see it as an owl...  Dan }

   There is a woman looking out the window next to the Statue of Liberty.

   A copy of the painting on the far left on MP, is wrapped up in cloth and
   leaning against the front steps.

How did Pye Dubois come to be involved with "Force Ten"?  What does
the title of that song mean?

   "It was more or less an afterthought in the writing stage.  We took
   two months to do all of our writing and preproduction, you know,
   preparation for the making of the record, and we had nine songs, and
   we had about a day and a half left of time booked before we were
   supposed to leave and get ready to make the record.  And our producer
   and all of us were pushing for ten tracks on the album, and some
   lyrics had been submitted to us by a friend of ours, Pye Dubois, who
   co-wrote 'Tom Sawyer' with us in years gone by.  And Neil was able to
   put some of his own thoughts to one of the songs that he had an
   present it to us in the morning of the last day that we were there,
   and we loved the results, so we got together and brainstormed for
   about 2 or 3 hours, and we had Force Ten."  -- Geddy Lee, on Rockline
                                                                10/5/87

   Gregg Jaeger (jaeger@buphy.bu.edu) sent me this tidbit:
   In the Presto mailing from the Backstage Club a writer asks: ``What
   does the title `Force Ten ' refer to?'' and Neil responds: ``The
   Beaufort Scale -- look it up!''.

What film are the clips in the "Lock And Key" video and the _A Show Of
Hands_ laserdisc, just before "Lock And Key," from?

   It's called _The Last Mile_.

What is Tai Shan about?

   Tai' Shan (from Hold Your Fire) is the name of an actual "holy mountain"
   in China.  The mythical (?) emperor Huang Ti had so much power that he
   was able to summon all the spirits of the world to him on top of
   Tai' Shan to proclaim his power.

   Legend has it that if you climb to the top of this mountain and
   "raise your hands to heaven," you _will_ live to be at least 100
   years old.  Neil wrote these lyrics while sitting at the top of
   the mountain.

What is happening during the "censored" section of the Show Of Hands video?

   "That's kind of a joke, but it doesn't seem like many people are
   getting that joke.  Actually, Alex, at certain parts of that song,
   would just start rambling into the microphone -- all kinds of various
   nonsense, and it actually never got recorded anywhere.  So no one had
   any idea, including him, what he had actually said.  But we loved the
   shot of him just ranting into this microphone, so we decided we would
   put up this bogus 'radioactive' warning about the fact that we had
   'censored' what he had said, and we thought we did it in kind of an
   obvious way -- it looked like it was phony, because we put the
   radioactivity symbols right on the screen, but nobody seems to be
   getting that." -- Geddy Lee, in the 12/4/89 Rockline interview

In the _A Show Of Hands_ video, does Geddy really say "Catch a fish?"

   Yes, he does.  Nobody knows why.

In the _A Show Of Hands_ video, has anybody noticed that Alex's guitar
keeps changing?

   Yes.  This has been discussed several times in the Digest.  The _A
   Show Of Hands_ video was filmed during a 3-night concert series at the
   National Exhibition Centre in Birmingham, England.  Test footage was
   shot the first night.  The majority of the video comes from the second
   night, but several shots were used from the third night's performance.
   In some cases, this was because the shots taken on the second night
   weren't quite right, but in a few places, like the beginning of _2112_,
   it was Geddy having fun in the editing stage.

   Yes, Alex does break a string at the end of "Tom Sawyer", but the
   guitar changes more than once, so it isn't just Alex swapping in a
   new guitar.

Does anybody know what stuff Geddy has sitting on the keyboards in the
_A Show Of Hands_ video?

   The following was posted on Fri, 12 Apr 91 by Dan Dickerman
                                 GSY 1-447-4425 <dickermn@hpcugsya.cup.hp.com>

   >I have yet to find a clear shot of the dolls, but from what I can decipher
   >it seems he has 6 dolls and a brandy snifter (with cash, of course)
   >distributed onto 2 keyboards: nearest the snifter is Boris Badenov
   >(Bullwinkle fame) and further to our left is a group of 3 consisting
   >of Rocky the Flying Squirrel (Bullwinkle), a toy robot, and something
   >that looks vaguely like a cowboy drawing both pistols (knees bent, etc).
   >
   >[ I think this last one might be Roger (?) Kneebend, one of Julians old
   >  toys, which the group sort of adopted as a mascott during the recording
   >  sessions.  I'll try to find the reference to him....        :rush-mgr ]
   >
   >On the other keyboard (facing the front of the stage) is a thinner toy
   >robot and (this one's really a ballpark guess) a cartoon dog (though
   >none that I recognize) that is acting the part of the gracious waiter.

What is the round thing on Alex's guitar in the _A Show Of Hands_ video?

   Here's what rjf@maxwell.physics.purdue.edu says it is:
   That circular "thing" on Alex's guitar is a patrol patch used by
   some Boy Scouts.  That particular one is the "panther" patrol patch.

What are the hands in the "Presto" liner doing?

   They are making scissors, paper, and stone, like in the children's
   game.  There is also a discussion of the scissors/paper/stone
   symbols in the Presto tour book.  This is paraphrased in TNMS #212.

What is "Chain Lightning" about?

   "I'm a weather fanatic - I really love weather, and I watch the
   weather and look for a good weatherman.  And, one night I was watching
   it, and there are two incidents in that song that are synchronicity to
   one weather report, where the weatherman showed a picture of sun-dogs,
   and described them, and they are just two little points of light that
   appear at sunset, often in the winter when the sky is clear and
   crystalline, and they are like little prisms, and they sit about ten
   degrees north and south of the setting sun, and they are just
   beautiful little diamonds of light, and often-times there's a circle
   of light -- one line, that connects them.  So they are a really
   beautiful natural phenomenon, and I love the name too.  'Sun-dogs'
   just has a great sound to it.  And in that same weather forecast, the
   weatherman announced a meteor shower that night, and so my daughter
   and I went out on the lake in the middle of the night and watched this
   meteor shower.  So the whole idea of the song was response and how
   people respond to things, and it's a thing I've found a lot in
   travelling around the world, too.  It's not enough just to travel and
   see things.  You have to respond to them -- you have to feel them, and
   a lot of the thrust of that song is how things are transferred, like
   chain lightning or enthusiasm or energy or love are things that are
   contagious, and if someone feels them, they are easily transferrable
   to another person, or in the case of watching a meteor shower, it's
   made more special if there is someone else there.  'Reflected in
   another pair of eyes' is the idea that it's a wonderful thing already,
   just you and the meteor shower, but if there's someone else there
   with you to share it, then it multiplies, you know, it becomes
   exponentially a bigger experience, so response is a theme that recurs
   in several of the songs and was one of my probably dominant sub-themes
   in the writing." -- Neil Peart, on the _Rush - Profiled!_ CD

What is "The Pass" about?

   "There was a lot I wanted to address in that song, and it's
   probably one of the hardest ones I've ever written.  I spent
   a lot of time on it, refining it, and even more doing research.
   There was one song previously, called 'Manhattan
   Project' where I wanted to write about the birth of the nuclear
   age.  Well, easier said than done, especially when
   [writing] lyrics, you've got a couple of hundred words to say
   what you want to say.  So each word counts, and each word had
   better be accurate, and so I found in the case of the
   Manhattan Project, I was having to go back and read histories
   of the time, histories of the place, biographies of all the
   people involved, and that's not without it's own rewards, but
   it's a lot of work to go to to write a song - having to read
   a dozen books and collate all your knowledge and experience
   just so you can write, you know, if it says the scientists
   were in the desert sands, well, make sure they were and why,
   and all that.  So with this song it was the same.  I felt
   concerned about it, but, at the same time, I didn't want the
   classic thing of 'Oh, life's not so bad, you know, it's worth
   living' and all that.  I didn't want one of those pat, kind
   of cliched, patronizing statements, so I really worked hard
   to find out true stories, and among the people that I write
   to are people who are going to universities, to MIT, and collecting
   stories from them about people they had known and
   what they felt, and why the people had taken this desperate
   step and all of that and trying really hard to understand
   something that, fundamentally, to me is totally ununderstandable.
   I just can't relate to it at all, but I wanted to
   write about it.  And the facet that I most wanted to write
   about was to de-mythologize it - the same as with 'Manhattan
   Project' - it de-mythologized the nuclear age, and it's the
   same thing with this facet - of taking the nobility out of it
   and saying that yes, it's sad, it's a horrible, tragic thing
   if someone takes their own life, but let's not pretend it's a
   hero's end.  It's not a triumph.  It's not a heroic epic.
   It's a tragedy, and it's a personal tragedy for them, but
   much more so for the people left behind, and I really started
   to get offended by the samurai kind of values that were attached
   to it, like here's a warrior that felt it was better
   to die with honor, and all of that kind of offended me.  I
   can understand someone making the choice; it's their choice
   to make.  I can't relate to it, and I could never imagine it,
   for myself, but still I thought it's a really important thing
   to try to get down."  -- Neil Peart, on the _Rush - Profiled!_ CD

What is "Scars" about?

   "I think it's part of everyone's experience that a certain
   record reflects a certain period of their life, and that's a
   pleasurable scar, you know, there's a mark left on you, a
   psychological fingerprint left by a very positive experience.
   And music is an easy one, but it translates to so many other
   parts of life where it's a given that, for instance, the
   sense of smell is one of the strongest forces in your memory,
   where a given smell will suddenly conjure up a whole time of
   your life, and again, it triggers another scar, it triggers
   another psychological imprint that was left by a pleasurable
   thing.  So it was just, again, the metaphor of scars and
   using it to say that, as the song does, that these are positive
   and negative aspects of life that have both left their
   mark.  Trying to make it universal, it's not autobiographical,
   and I took a whole autobiographical story of my own and
   made it one line, basically, but there are other things in
   there, parts of life that I've responded to in a sense of
   joy, and in a sense of compassion, and there's the exaltation
   of walking down a city street and feeling like you're above
   the pavement, and Christmas in New York is the perfect time
   to feel that, really, where you just get charged up by the
   whole energy and the positive feelings of it all."
     -- Neil Peart, on the _Rush -- Profiled!_ CD

What is the song, "Anagram (for Mongo)" about?

   "It doesn't really say one thing; it says a bunch of little things, and
   I think that's OK as long as it sounds good.  You know, as long as it
   rolls off the tongue kind of thing?  So I think different songs are
   different exercises, to a degree, and I think that if they feel like
   exercises, then there's something wrong with the song.  But if they
   can slip by in a kind of cohesive and fluid way, or if the effect is
   to be disjoint, and sometimes that's what you're after.  Sometimes you
   want it to be jarring and disjointed and nonsensical.  I think it
   depends on what you're trying to do, and whether you've achieved it in
   your mind, and whether it actually worked, and 'Anagram,' I think,
   did work, even though it's a game - the whole song is a game.  The
   choruses are quite smooth and quite interesting, and they have a nice
   sound to them and they kind of mock the whole song itself, so I think
   it was effective there."  -- Geddy Lee, on the _Rush - Profiled!_ CD

Has anybody noticed that  Anagram (for Mongo) contains lots of anagrams?

   Yes.  {I resisted putting this into the faql for a long time, since
          this seems to be about as shocking as pointing out that
          "The Big Money" is about, of all things, money, or that
          "Countdown" is about a launch.  But it shows up in TNMS
          every once in a while.  Dan}

What does (for Mongo) after "Anagram" on the "Presto" album mean?

   It's a joke from the movie _Blazing Saddles_, referring to the
   "Candygram for Mongo" scene, according to Geddy on Rockline 12/4/89.

What is "Red Tide" about?

   "It's a bit of a selfish concern, really.  I really love
   wildlife, and I spend a lot of my time in the outdoors when
   I'm not working, so that's important to me.  One of my main
   hobbies is cycling, so air quality kind of becomes of critical
   importance.  So it is a selfish thing, and it's something
   I've written about before, on the previous album - the song,
   'Second Nature'.  So, again, you want to say things in a way
   that is not only not preachy, but also not boring.  So finding
   the images like 'Second Nature' - I was really fond of
   that analogy of saying 'we want our homes to be a second
   nature', you know.  That was, again, taking a common phrase
   and being able to twist it to say what you want it to say.
   So, with 'Red Tide'  it was a little more adamant, because I
   think the time is a little more critical, and I had to be
   firmer about it, but still there are ways of getting at it,
   and to me there are jokes in there, too, that probably no one
   in the world will ever get, but in the first verse, when I'm
   talking about 'Nature's new plague' and then 'Lovers pausing
   at the bedroom door to find an open store' and all that, to
   me that was obviously referring to AIDS, but it was the irony
   of modern life, you know, where spontaneous love still certainly
   does occur, but here are two lovers who have just met
   in the middle of the night, and they have to go find a store
   before they can consummate their new relationship, you know,
   and to me, when I put those things down, I have a smile, but
   I know that it's one that will never be shared."
     - Neil Peart, on the _Rush-Profiled!_ CD

Who does the RTB chat section?

   Geddy Lee, according to Neil on the Dec 2 1991 "Rockline".

Who is the boy in the RTB video?

   According to "The New Music Magazine" 11/11/91, his name is
   Michael Vander Veldt.

Is there a "Gangster of Boats" trilogy?

   No songs other than "Where's My Thing?" are labelled as being part of
   this trilogy.

Is there a reason for the arrangement of the numbers on the dice on the RTB
cover?

   I doubt it.  And if there is a reason, I doubt that it will be
   made public.  (Much like the significance of the HYF cover)

Has anybody noticed that the "Gangster of Boats" is mentioned in the HYF
liner notes?

   Yes.

Who is the "Gangster of Boats?"

   degennar@bmsrs.usc.edu sent me this:
   According to Neil on the Dec 2 1991 Rockline, it's a running joke.
   Geddy and Alex keep saying to Neil, "If you don't come up with a name
   for the album soon, we're going to call it Gangster of Boats."
   It's also, supposedly, the nick-name given to the Mac they use.

What does the pattern of skulls and bones at the bottom of the inside
front cover of the RTB tourbook mean?  Is there a pattern to it?

   It's Morse code for "Remember Death".

 ##############################################################################

        Please send me your suggestions for additions or corrections.

Dan Delany                                             ddelany@eros.calpoly.edu
  "If Bob can't figure out his VCR, he'll never be able to figure out women."
Newsgroups: alt.music.rush