RUSH: Tom Sawyer (Conservatives: the open-minded ones!)

Music / Rock & Roll ^ | 03/19/19 | Golux

[golux]

FRiends,

Here we have a delightfully complex piece of rock and roll music with the sort of playful, abstract and visual lyricism one could only associate with a Randian, Niel Peart, often called a "conservative."

Sometimes we get so distracted by two-party political warfare we forget to enjoy life as we are: open-minded, intelligent modern day warriors delighting in the complexities of life and filled with love for all humanity.

A is A.

Enjoy!

Golux

[golux]

TOM SAWYER

Rush

A modern day warrior Mean, mean stride Today's Tom Sawyer Mean, mean pride

Though his mind is not for rent Don't put him down as arrogant He reserves the quiet defense Riding out the day's events The river What you say about his company Is what you say about society Catch the mist, catch the myth Catch the mystery, catch the drift The world is, the world is Love and life are deep Maybe as his skies are wide Today's Tom Sawyer He gets by on you And the space he invades He gets by on you No, his mind is not for rent To any God or government Always hopeful yet discontent He knows changes aren't permanent But change is What you say about his company Is what you say about society Catch the witness, catch the wit Catch the spirit, catch the spit The world is, the world is Love and life are deep Maybe as his eyes are wide Exit the warrior Today's Tom Sawyer He gets by on you And the energy you trade He gets right on to the friction of the day.

[dp0622]

New World Man has great lyrics too.

I can only assume he meant America, since the song mentions old world and 3rd world.

Great drums in Sawyer.

[markomalley]

Personally prefer 2112. The priests of Syrinx sorry if remind me of global warming dogmatists.

[BBQToadRibs]

Tom Sawyer was the first song I heard in true stereo. You get to that mid-song drum solo burst and I was literally blown away.

[M. Thatcher]

Tom Sawyer was the first song I heard in true stereo.

Scanning quickly, I misread that as:

Tom Sawyer was the first song I heard in utero.

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

[thoughtomator]

Yeah but the music in NWM doesn’t reach the heights that Moving Pictures did from end to end. Early RUSH had a primal aspect to it that got refined out of existence over time. Listen to something like Fly By Night and then switch to, say, Presto, and you wouldn’t think it was the same band other than the persistent voice of Geddy Lee.

[thoughtomator]

2112 was about liberation from Communism.

[dp0622]

Interesting.

I guess a lot of bands “evolve”, for better or for worse.

[BlueStateRightist]

“Great drums in Sawyer.”

Did Neil Peart ever let down? He actually wrote much of the lyrics for Rush also.

[PGR88]

I went to school with a guy who was Rush fan from his early teen years, from when the band were just breaking out. He travelled extensively to see them play, collected every newspaper article, tape, record, bootleg, poster etc... he could find. The stuff fills his basement today. “Ray” eventually met the band and its members and I think got to know them, at least generally.

When Rush produced their documentary/movie in 2010, “Beyond the Lighted Stage,” because of his archives, I heard they actually brought him on as a consultant! Imagine that?!

[dp0622]

Yeah I thought he did.

He was a genius.

[ifinnegan]

Such a horrible piece of crap.

Ugh.

[markomalley]

Communism, global warming tyranny... Same thing, aren’t they?

[thoughtomator]

Yes, “global warming” is just another Communist command-and-control plot. If one couldn’t figure it out by understanding the science by oneself, one could at least figure it out by noting that intimidation and groupthink are anathema to scientific method, and therefore anything pushed on that basis cannot be scientific.

[golux]

Such a horrible piece of crap.

Fair enough! We all have our opinions. But... A musician would have a different opinion.

[MrEdd]

Geddy Lee's finest performance...

[Heartlander]

Rush - The Trees

There is unrest in the forest
There is trouble with the trees
For the maples want more sunlight
And the oaks ignore their pleas

The trouble with the maples
(And they're quite convinced they're right)
They say the oaks are just too lofty
And they grab up all the light
But the oaks can't help their feelings
If they like the way they're made
And they wonder why the maples
Can't be happy in their shade

There is trouble in the forest
And the creatures all have fled
As the maples scream 'Oppression!'
And the oaks just shake their heads

So the maples formed a union
And demanded equal rights
'The oaks are just too greedy
We will make them give us light'
Now there's no more oak oppression
For they passed a noble law
And the trees are all kept equal
By hatchet, axe and saw

[Bruce Campbells Chin]

2112 was basically a rock and roll rewrite of Ayn Rand's "Anthem". Instead of rediscovering electricity, the protagonist rediscovers music.

Great piece of music. Even better than it was at least partially intended as a giant "FU" to record company executives who wanted them to dumb-down their music.

[Army Air Corps]

Speaking of Moving Pictures, Red Barchetta is another good piece of defiance against the wannabe Overlords.

[ifinnegan]

Lol.

Musicians more than anyone knows the train wreck cacophony of random noise combined with castrato caterwauling that is Rush.