Album Details

• Artist: Rush
• Album: Rush
• Label: Moon/Mercury/Anthem
• Year of Release: 1974
• Original Release: 1997
• ME Rating:
• Reviewed by: solitaryman on 2011-04-03

In terms of debuts, now more than ever it sounds as if Canada's prog-rock legends Rush were on their way towards moderate, short-lived success. Their influences were worn on their sleeves in a way that made it hard for them to stand out proper. Cream, Led Zeppelin and the hard-rock wave washing ashore from England had obviously made a stir in the lives of Geddy Lee, Alex Lifeson and John Rutsey (the original drummer who, unfortunately for him, was not able to withstand the pacing and lifestyle of a travelling rock musician), and the songs on their s/t debut certainly pay homage to that whole scene. This was, however, an auspicious beginning for the band, even if they would drastically change their approach on every subsequent album.

What impresses the most about this album is the lack of experience the band had up to the point of it's recording. No more than teenagers, Geddy Lee and Alex Lifeson had only just begin to touch the tip of their creative icebergs, and speaking purely of the material here without comparing it to later work, there are some truly fantastic songs and moments to behold. It's easy to look at the album's bookends, "Finding My Way" and "Working Man" and call them the cream of the crop (both have been staples of the band's touring arsenal for decades), but hidden within are several gems. "Here Again" truly exemplifies the melding of blues and rock that formed the entire genre to begin with, and while the melody is somewhat unpolished, it sticks in your head easily enough. "Before And After" might just be my favorite song on the album, and I really never understood why it wasn't as popular as other songs. But, when it comes down to it, one cannot deny that "Working Man" planted the seeds for Rush's slow-yet-steady growth into worldwide fame. By chance, a radio station in Cleveland got it's hands on one of only a few thousand copies of the record, and began playing "Working Man" regularly. Whenever it was played, the station was hit with calls asking where to find the album. As demand increases, sales increase, and people in the business began to take notice. The song is, indeed, wonderful, one of the all-time best anthems to the blue-collars. One reason this album is sometimes disregarded as a true Rush album is, frankly, the juvenile and unpolished lyrics (a problem that a certain Professor would soon come along to amend...). While John Rutsey was tapped to provide lyrics, he never really was able to perfect the words and the job fell into the unexpecting, inexperienced hands of Geddy Lee. Lee has been quoted as saying this was more or less unfortunate, and songs like "Take a Friend" and "In The Mood", while executed well musically, are lyrically laughable. 

All and all, this was a successful debut for Rush. It quickly spread from Canada into the States, got them their first gigs out of country, and laid some of the foundation for their early albums. Of course, the nature of the band was soon to be altered with the arrival of Neil Peart, but one can still put this record in and enjoy it because it was and remains a solid piece of hard rock. Many rock fans who find listening to Rush to be problematic due to their progressive tendencies might actually find in their debut one record among many that they'd be proud to have in their collection. It is, above all, straight-forward and energenic in it's youthful passion and, throughout the album, remains blissfully unaware of just how juvenile it sounds at times. 

User Reviews and Comments

Review:

on 2011-06-18 CharlesMartel Said:

When "Finding My Way" was first played on the "Old Grey Whistle Test" (God am I showing my age or what), Whispering Bob Harris said that if imitation was the sincerest form of flattery, then Led Zeppelin should be extremely flattered by it. So, being a fan of Led Zeppelin, I went out and bought it. Lo and behold, every time I hear it "Finding My Way" does indeed sound a lot like Led Zeppelin. However, I am pretty sure that Whispering Bob did not really have any inkling of what was about to be unleashed upon the world when he played that track or made that comment. That is because, with the exception of Neil Young (who is more of an American now) and Celine Dion (who was born and brought up in Switzerland), Rush have been the most successful of all Canadian musicians.

Now when Bad Company were accused of being imitations of Led Zeppelin, I marked them down for it. That Rush do not get marked down similarly is because Whispering Bob's assessment was based on that one track. The rest of the album is definitely not like Led Zeppelin. Most of it is pretty standard heavy rock of the type which was put out by a thousand bands during the mid seventies. At the time of purchase, I felt that while this was an interesting album, perhaps with more competent musicians than many, Rush were not exactly going to go very far.

What made Rush different - and successful - where others who produced such generic rock failed? Well, in subsequent albums when they changed their style they developed one entirely of their own. Rush as an outfit had been playing the clubs and bars of their part of Ontario for many years and had not really got anywhere with it. In addition, after the release of this album, the drummer, John Rutsey decided to leave the band citing health problems and probably feeling that these would be exacerbated by the likely round of touring which would follow the album's release.

This provided the band with an opportunity - and they took it. Recruiting Neil Peart, they brought in a replacement drummer with some individual flair and ability to write lyrics to songs. Rush could move away from this style of Zeppelin-influenced music. They might have moved more towards the dreaded mind-numbing boredom of prog rock, but they always retained enough of their roots, as shown on this, their first album, to get away with it.

The result is that the debut album stands apart from any album by Rush you will ever hear. Whether they realised it themselves, I doubt. But the band had embarked on a journey which was totally different from the one which, had they followed the path laid down by this album, would have taken them somewhere completely different. That being the case, this is not a bad album. It is heavy, heavier than anything Zeppelin ever did.

Of the tracks themselves, the crowd favourite, "Working Man", sounds in its intro at least, almost like Black Sabbath. And "Finding My Way" is a good opener. "Here Again" may sound slow and plodding, but it actually has some good progressions which keep the listener hooked, especially as it builds to an impressive climax. The rest is solid, if these days uninspiring hard rock fare. At the time it was worth getting, but not worth writing home about. Better was to come from Rush though you would be forgiven for having doubts on that after listening to this.
Rating: 6/10