Neil Peart did not join the band until the album 2112.
Rush was very big in Buffalo, where I grew up.
Mostly because we listened to the radio stations from across the lake from Toronto, their hometown. A lot of the Toronto radio stations broadcast from the top of the CN tower. So, they had a much bigger range than the stations in Buffalo.
Rush was big in all the blue collar rust belt cities around the Great lakes. They were huge in Cleveland. Everyone could identify with “Working Man”. “Seems to me I could live my life, a lot better than I think I can, that’s why they call me the working man!”
Neil Peart did not join the band until the album 2112
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Neil was in the band on Fly by Night (1975) and Caress of Steel (1975). The first album (RUSH - 1973) is the one with John Rutsey.