Something for Nothing: A RUSH Fancast

Ep. 90: Rush Covers, Pt. 2: The Re-covering

Ever since we found some great covers of Rush songs and played them on episode 71, listeners have been asking when we were going to do it again. And now I have the answer: right now! This episode was just as fun to put together as the previous covers episode. Maybe there'll be a third Rush covers episode? We hope so!

Ep. 89: Top 10 Rush Songs With @RushFans

Way back on episode 26, we welcomed @RushFans on Instagram on the podcast. Sixty-three episodes later and @RushFans admins Ryan and Jim join us to list our top 10 favorite Rush songs, and believe me, there are some real surprises in our lists. Once you listen, head on over the @RushFans YouTube channel to see admins Ryder and Stephanie's top 10 lists and all of our runners up!

Ep. 88: Jonathan Dinklage, Clockwork Angels String Ensemble

Violinist Jonathan Dinklage played with Rush in the Clockwork Angels String Ensemble and, on select dates on the R40 tour, took over soloing duties on "Losing It." And now he's talking to us! Jonathan, a lifelong Rush fan, fills us in on how he landed his dream gig, what it was like to meet his musical heroes, and what it felt like to play that iconic solo in "Losing it" for the first time. 

Ep. 87: Martin Popoff, Author of "Driven: Rush in the '90s and 'In The End'"

We welcome back Martin Popoff--our first three-time guest--to discuss the final book is his career-spanning trilogy on the band, "Driven: Rush in the '90s and 'In The End'." On our agenda is every album from  "Roll the Bones" through Rush's final masterpiece, "Clockwork Angels." Buckle in, everyone. It's a wild ride.

Ep. 86: Eddie Trunk, Host of SiriusXM Radio's Trunk Nation, That Metal Show

Eddie Trunk is a broadcasting legend. As host of the weekly syndicated show "Eddie Trunk Rocks," the daily "Trunk Nation" show on SiriusXM, and the "Eddie Trunk Podcast," Eddie has interviewed everyone who's anyone in the world of rock and roll. On this episode, Eddie focuses solely on his many interviews and interactions with Rush, which, considering the nature of our podcast, is a good thing.

Ep. 85: Miller, Field Director for Rush: Time Stand Still

This week we talk to the Field Director for the documentary Rush: Time Stand Still, Miller. (Everyone calls him Miller, so that's what we're calling him too.) As Field Director, Miller interviewed fans, roamed concerts looking for the perfect shot, and was on hand to capture some of the most enduring images of the film. He's also a natural raconteur. We think you'll enjoy this episode.

Ep. 84: Jeremy Bout, Writer/Director of "Growth Rings," "Masters of Resonance"

Rush fans around the world were surprised and elated when a short film called "Growth Rings," cowritten by Jeremy Bout and Neil Peart. Bout also directed the film,  exploration of how music and culture affect our lives in same way climate and injury impact a tree's annular growth rings. The short film grew from a larger project, the documentary film about DW Drums called "Masters of Resonance," in which the master drum makers detail what makes their drums unique and show how Neil's beautiful R40 kit was constructed from a 1,500-year-old tree dredged from the bottom of a Romanian bog. I may be biased, but this is a good one, folks.

Ep. 83: Snakes & Arrows, Pt. 3

Well, here we are. The final installment of our Snakes & Arrows discussion. There's a lot of meat still on the bone, from the stirring instrumental Hope to the inspiring We Hold On. We hope you like our take on these amazing songs!

Ep. 82: Snakes & Arrows, Pt. 2

On the second part of our Snakes & Arrows discussion, we find Rush grappling with some serious topics, such as the disparity between the haves and the have-nots, the forces that shape our world view, and the need to reach consensus on subjects that affect us all. Plus, there's an instrumental with the word "monkey" in it! What more could you ask for?

Ep. 81: Snakes & Arrows, Pt. 1

This week we return to our bread and butter as we begin our discussion of Rush's penultimate studio album, Snakes and Arrows. Produced by Nick Raskulinecz, Snakes and Arrows sees Rush exploring new sounds and an unprecedented three--three!-instrumentals So grab some bread and butter--or something you might actually want to eat--and a pariah dog and a madman, and join us!

Ep. 80: Steve Holmes of House of Drumming

Of late,  we've had a string of great drummers on the podcast to discuss Rush and Neil Peart in particular. This week we talk with yet another great drummer: Steve Holmes, founder of HouseOfDrumming.com, a resource for drummers the worldover. Steve has been a working musician for a long time and has a unique perspective on what made Neil Peart, well, Neil Peart! 

Ep. 79: Ron Lipnicki, Former Overkill Drummer

Ron Lipnicki is a drumming beast, having spent a decade keeping time for thrash-metal pioneers Overkill as well as recording and touring with Hades and Whiplash--and he's a childhood friend of ours. In fact, Ron was with us when we saw Rush for the first time--a concert that changed the course of his life. We talk to Ron about that fateful show, the indelible imprint Neil Peart made on him, and our top five favorite Neil studio performances.

Ep. 78: Artist Charlie Roy

Charlie Roy is fast becoming a familiar name among Rush fans for his dynamic paintings and sketches of Alex, Geddy, and Neil. Roy's artwork captures the feeling of seeing Rush live, something every fan has been missing for years. Join us as Charlie discusses how he began painting, his love of prog in general, and why Alex's face is so difficult to get right.

Ep. 77: Dale Heslip, Director of the Documentary "Rush: Time Stand Still"

Joining us this week is Dale Heslip, director of "Rush: Time Stand Still," the moving documentary chronicling the band's final tour. Dale takes us behind the scenes of the R40 tour, discusses how the tour's concept came to be, and tells us what it was like to be filming what was to be Rush's last concert.

Ep. 76: Vicki Flier Hudson of The Spirit of Rush and Author of a New Book of Poetry Dedicated to Neil Peart

Our guest this week is Vicki Flier Hudson, the lead singer and rhythm guitarist of the popular Georgia-based Rush tribute band The Spirit of Rush. Vicki has also authored three books, with her most recent being "The Winter Garden," a book of poetry dedicated to Neil Peart.  We talk to Vicki about some of her poems, and we learn a new term: "dialogic imagination."

Ep. 75: David Calcano, "Neil Peart: The Illustrated Quotes"

Our pal David Calcano is back for his second appearance on the podcast, and this time we're talking about Fantoons' new "Neil Peart: The Illustrated Quotes." We ask David the origins of the book, and then Steve and Gerry read our favorite quotes and discuss them with David. Join us!

Ep. 74: Brian Hiatt, Senior Writer at Rolling Stone and author of "The Spirit of Neil Peart," a commemoration of the one-year anniversary of Neil Peart's passing

Brian Hiatt has written more than 65 cover stories during his 16-year tenure at Rolling Stone, including Rush's 2015 cover story--the band's first for magazine. Brian also wrote "The Spirit of Neil Peart," which was published on the one-year anniversary of Neil Peart's passing. We talk to Brian about the aforementioned articles, and we get the answer to the question Rush fans have been asking for decades: "What does Rolling Stone have against Rush?"

Ep. 73: Richard Houghton, Author of "Rush: The Day I Was There"

Author Richard Houghton's new book, "Rush: The Day I Was There," is an oral history of the band from a unique perspective: that of the fans. The book contains first-person accounts of Rush concerts: the effort it took to get there, the effect the show had on those who attended, the odd circumstances that surrounded the day. Every decade of Rush's career is represented, and maybe you'll find that you were there that day too!

Ep. 72: Jacob Moon

After we wrapped up our episode on Rush covers,* we thought, "Why don't we talk with the man who performs some of greatest Rush covers?" An email or two later, and voila, we have Jacob Moon on the podcast! Jacob breaks down his various Rush covers and fills us in on his performance of Subdivisions at the Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2010.

 

*For those of you who read footnotes, it was episode 71.

Ep. 71: Rush Covers

One test of a great song is how well it survives translation to another genre, and we all know that Rush has written some great songs. That's why this week we've compiled 10 of our favorite Rush covers, from the expected to the ones out of left field. This episode promises to be a fun one!

Ep. 70: Donna Halper

In 1974, Donna Halper, then music director of WMMS-FM in Cleveland, OH, dropped the needle on a record by an unsigned band called Rush, and in that instant, she became the reason why we're all Rush fans. Donna has been our most-requested interview, so we asked her to be on the show and she said yes! We talk about, of course, the early days of the band, her longtime friendship with the boys, and a certain Shakespeare play she had to replace.

Ep. 69: Alexander Hellene, Author of Dreamers & Misfits: The Definitive Book About Rush Fans

This week we talk with Alexander Hellene, author of the new book Dreamers & Misfits: The Definitive Book About Rush Fans.  Alexander created a survey to find out who the typical Rush fan is. What did he discover? That's what we're here to find out!

Ep. 68: Ryan Reed, Contributing Editor at Spin Magazine, Contributor to Ultimate Classic Rock, Rolling Stone, Pitchfork

Ryan Reed is a contributing editor at Spin Magazine and is a regular contributor to Rolling Stone and sites like Pitchfork and Ultimate Classic Rock. In an article for the latter site, Ryan put his Rush fandom to the test by ranking all 167 original Rush songs from worst to best--a Herculean task. We talk about what went into the making of the list and the insanity of attempting it in the first place.

Ep. 67: A Show of Hands

This week, we talk about Rush's third live album, A Show Of Hands, which chronicles songs from Signals, Grace Under Pressure, Power Windows, and Hold Your Fire. It's a fantastic album, one that perhaps we didn't give enough credit to when it came out. But we've made up for it in this episode, because A Show of Hands rocks! Listen to find out more!

Ep. 66: All the World's a Stage

This week, we're covering some more live Rush: All the World's a Stage. This is Rush's first live album, recorded at Toronto's Massey Hall on the 2112 tour. ATWAS is loud, fierce, and brash, just like any great concert should be--but especially a great Rush show. So let's rock!

Ep. 65: Exit...Stage Left

The true test of any band is how well they perform live, and RUSH always got a perfect score. Exit...Stage Left is the band's second double-vinyl live album and captures the boys on the Moving Pictures tour. With the exception of two tracks, the album focuses on songs from A Farewell to Kings, Hemispheres, Permanent Waves, and Moving Pictures. So relive the majesty of seeing RUSH live by listening to this episode!

Ep. 64: Rob Wallis of Hudson Music on His Decades-long Friendship With Neil Peart

Rob Wallis worked with Neil Peart for 30-plus years on instructional videos that brought Neil's meticulous compositions to life for aspiring and practiced drummers everywhere. Over the years, Rob became part of Neil's "inner circle" of trusted and most valued friends, and that friendship deepened their working relationship. Join us as Rob reminiscences on the life of his good friend Neil Peart--who once described their working relationship as second only to that of his bandmates in Rush.

Ep. 63: Steven Drozd of The Flaming Lips

Our guest this week is Steven Drozd, multi-instrumentalist songwriter for the endlessly creative and innovative band The Flaming Lips. Steven first got into Rush with Caress of Steel when he was 6 years old, and the band's music helped form his artistic backbone. We talk about which Rush album The Lips might cover, favorite Rush songs, and The Flaming Lips' new album, American Head.

Ep. 62: Grace Under Pressure, Pt. 3

This is it. The Return of the Jedi of our Grace Under Pressure episodes, wrapping up the trilogy. This time under the microscope: Kid Gloves, Red Lenses, and Between the Wheels--the last of which is to us a contender for "Best Rush Song to Cry Yourself to Sleep To." What I'm saying is, its themes are heavy.

Ep. 61: Grace Under Pressure, Pt. 2

This week we continue our chronicle of Grace Under Pressure with discussions of Red Sector A, The Enemy Within, and The Body Electric—a trio of songs that plumb the depths of human, and android, experience. This one gets a little heavy at times.