From: dan@rat.csc.calpoly.edu (Dan Delany)
Newsgroups: alt.music.rush
Subject: Rush FAQ pointer
Date: 20 Dec 92 08:30:10 GMT
Organization: The Rat's Nest, Cal Poly SLO


This is an automated posting to tell people a little bit about the Rush FAQ
list.  FAQ is short for "Frequently Asked Questions", and I've collected
the answers to many common questions about Rush and their music into this
file.  If you're curious about one of these questions, please check the FAQ.

   The FAQ file has been expanded into 3 files because some mailers have
problems with files that are longer than 60K.  Part 1 contains general
questions about the band.  Part 2 contains questions inspired by
specific albums and songs up to and including stuff on _A Show Of Hands_.
Part 3 contains questions about material starting with _Presto_.

This set of files is posted automatically to alt.music.rush, rec.music.info,
and TNMS on the 2nd and 4th Sunday of each month.  If you can't wait
until the next time it gets posted to read it, it is available via
anonymous ftp from syrinx.umd.edu (128.8.2.114) in the /rush/special
directory.  
Quick explanation of how to ftp the files:

(on a Unix machine)

% ftp syrinx.umd.edu
login as "anonymous", password="guest".

cd /rush/special
mget FAQ*

If you have difficulty, check with your local system administrators.

There is also a mail server available (for those unable or unwilling to
ftp).  For more info, send email with the subject line of HELP to:

    server@ingr.com

These are the most common questions, so they should be posted first:

What is The National Midnight Star?

   It's a Rush fans newsletter that is distributed via email.
   Submissions are all sent to one address, and the moderator goes through
   the submissions periodically and sends out a digest containing lots
   of submissions.

   (If you don't know where the name "The National Midnight Star"
   comes from, that means you don't watch enough Canadian TV.)

How can I subscribe to The National Midnight Star?

   Send email to rush-request@syrinx.umd.edu asking to have your name added
   to the list.  Don't send email to me - I can't add you!

   I'll repeat that.  I (dan@rat.csc.calpoly.edu) have absolutely nothing
   to do with the management of TNMS.  I can't add your name to the
   subscription list.

Latest Word on the next album:

   I haven't seen any official word about the rumors of a boxed set of
   Rush CD's.  Until I see official word on the subject, I'll treat that
   as a rumor.

   The band is scheduled to go into the studio in January or February
   1993.  According to an interview with Alex on 97.7 HTZ FM in
   Hamilton, Ontario, the album is expected to come out in June.  Also
   mentioned is that they will be taking the summer off, so we can't
   expect an immediate tour.  This info was originally posted in
   alt.music.rush on Nov 4 by v281nr6a@ubvmsb.cc.buffalo.edu (Mark D Uher).
   (According to Jeff Robertson, 97.7 HTZ FM is actually in St.
   Catharines.)

   Atlantic/SRO has denied the rumors that there is a video release
   scheduled for December.



The following questions are in the FAQ:


In part 1:

What albums has the band released?  What are the catalog numbers for
CD/LP/Cassette?

What album is <song> on?

When was <album> released?

How many copies did <album> sell?

Are any videotapes of the band available?

Are these tapes available on laserdisc?

What songs has the band made videos for?

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?

Does anybody know if <band> ever opened for Rush?  When did Rush play in
<city> last?

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 that Neil Peart was going to publish some of his writings.  Has
this been done?  Can I buy this book?

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

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

What issue of TNMS is <item> in?

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

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

What other Rush newsletters are there?

What is the marital status of the band members?

Do any of the band members have kids?

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

What are the birthdays of the band members?

But in "Thrice Told Tales", it says that Geddy's birthday is June 29!

What are the real names of the band members?

What equipment does <band member> use/endorse?

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?

What's the story behind Alex's "Hentor Sportscaster" guitar?

Where did the name "Rush" come from?

Whatever happened to John Rutsey?


In part 2:

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?

Has anybody noticed that Lakeside Park is mentioned in _Strange Brew_?

What is the significance of May 24?

Has anybody noticed that "Didacts and Narpets" is an anagram for "Addicts
and Parents"?

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?

What does "Terminat hora diem, terminat auctor opus" mean?

Where did the story of _2112_ come from?

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

Has anybody noticed the whispering in the background in "The Twilight Zone"?

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

Where does the name "Cygnus X-1" come from?

Where does the name 'Rocinante' come from?

What do the french lyrics in "Circumstances" mean?

What does "La Villa Strangiato" mean?

Ooooh!  I just found out that there is really an intersection of Danforth
and Pape in Toronto!  Has anybody noticed this before?

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.)

Has anybody noticed that the signs on the right side of the _Permanent
Waves_ cover say Lee, Lifeson, and Peart?

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)?

But I'm *sure* that what the lyric sheet says isn't what Geddy sings!

Where is "Lotus-Land?"

I heard something about a song called "Sir Gawain and the Green Knight."
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?

Where can I get a copy of "A Nice Morning Drive", by Richard S. Foster?

What does "YYZ" mean?

How does Neil play plywood?

At 8:54 and 8:56 in "The Camera Eye," there are some mumblings that I can't
quite make out.  Does anybody know for sure what is being said?

What is the mob saying at the beginning of "Witch Hunt"?

What is that thing on Neil's chest in the "Vital Signs" video?

Has anybody noticed that the ESL cover photo contains stuff from all of
the band's previous studio albums?

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

Who is T.C. Broonsie?

What is the _Signals_ cover supposed to mean?

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?

Is "Afterimage" about anybody in particular?

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?

Has anybody noticed that _Power Windows_ is "brought to you by the letter M"?

Why is _Power Windows_ brought to us by the letter M?

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?

Has Aimee Mann ever appeared live with Rush?  How are her vocals in
"Time Stand Still" reproduced live?

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 the 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?


In part 3:

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 spoken section?

Who is the boy in the RTB video and on the RTB cover?

Is there a "Gangster of Boats" trilogy?

But why is "Where's My Thing" labelled as Part IV of the 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?

Will there be a live album or concert video from the RTB tour?

-- 
Dan Delany                                              dan@rat.csc.calpoly.edu
  "If Bob can't figure out his VCR, he'll never be able to figure out women."