Man, I am shocked I don't see more comments about your ability to just pick up a bass and play the lines after just hearing them. That's an amazing ability.
80's is the synth era of Rush. Geddy plays keys and bass. If the song calls for bass and keys at the same time, the less complicated line will be played on foot pedals live. Example, if the keys are musically complicated, Geddy may play a simple bass line on the foot pedals. Hope you react to Digital Man, just love that bass line
As addressed in the handful of documentaries made about Rush, they never appealed to mainstream music critics, especially including Rolling Stone Magazine. Instead, they had to build their fan base one show at a time, especially given how little airplay their complex (and frequently long) songs received. Rush accordingly attracted the type of fans who - themselves - felt like outcasts, never part of the in-crowd. This song - which appeared on the band's 9th of 19 studio albums, Signals - spoke directly to people who felt as though they were different from the popular crowd and/or rebelled against a cookie-cutter future envisaged for them by their families (and by society at large). I was 14 years old when this song was released, in 1982. I lived in a suburban city located 60 miles west of Toronto, in a new subdivision. I felt just as I described above. I would come to embrace my less conventional self and thrive in my chosen profession thanks, at least in part, to the neurodiversity that prevented me from "fitting in" in primary and secondary schools. But I wasn't 'there' yet in 1982, when this song was released. Upon first hearing, it spoke to me like no other music ever had. It made me a lifelong fan. It still does, over four decades later.
This is 80's Rush when they were in their synth/new wave pop era. As you delve into their catalog, you will notice different phases. The following song on this album "Analog kid" has some of the most melodic bass lines you will hear, and it's played while Geddy is singing. You will love it.
My earliest years were in the inner city, low income neighborhood. My father was a bus driver and my mother stayed home. When i was 8, we moved from the city to a suburb in So Cal. This song was written for me and my generation. All the houses looked similar, there was no culture as I knew it, and the closest movie theater was 30 minutes away. We were 30 miles from the city, and it took my father 30 minutes to get to work the first year. By the 5th year, after hundreds of homes were built, he left at 4:30 am to miss the 2 hour drive and then would take a nap for an hour once he arrived. The suburb I moved into was less than 15,000 and is now 200,000. Growing up there, you were either in the in-crowd or an outsider. Each group of houses was in a subdivision and as a youth we were subdivided into groups that thought the same, dressed the same, spoke the same etc...
It's also a play on words in how you are subdivided into cliques or groups in High School which can cause the alienation that is discussed. Later in the song, after people move into the city and sell their dreams for small desires, and as they mature they start to long for the quaint notions of the suburb life that they rejected in their youth, so the song comes full circle...Poetry.
Neil Peart writes all the lyrics and Geddy Lee plays both the bass and keys at the same time using the foot pedals.Luv your reactions Church please review Malignant Narcissism live from there Snakes & Arrows tour.You will get to see Neil Peart drummer solo. Best drummer ever.RIP Neil Peart. Concentrate on the incredible music that this 3 man band produces. You can always do lyrics later.Neil has great lyrics. Church they only made 19 Albums.😮
Just to be fair, Alex and Neil had their triggers/pedals too. We even saw Alex on the keys during the Clockwork Angels Tour. So, while Geddy played the lion's share of the synth parts, I think it's fair to say that they formed a cohesive, orchestral unit, contributing as necessary to get the job done every night.
AHHhhhh... "Subdivisions" by RUSH!!! Firstly, THANK YOU for doin' THIS PARTICULAR TRACK!!! Geddy Lee is the one who is doing the synthesizer/keyboard track work while playing the bass/foot-pedals AND SINGING (Jesus, HE IS MULTITASKING SOOOO MUCH). Alex is the one doing the background vocals (Subdivisions part)... & Neil is... being NEIL PEART... THE GREATEST DRUMMER OF ALL TIME!!!! Check out their catalog of hits songs, OR RUSH'S documentary on TH-cam (RUSH: BEYOND THE LIGHTED STAGE) for more information on the band, their origin story, their influences, etc. By the way, I subscribed AGAIN. I look forward to many more reactions from your channel in the future!!!! Peace, Love, & Liberty. MIC DROP 🎤.
Neil was a philosopher and it really comes out in his lyric writing. This song is a reflection of what he observed. For the time period of the 80's this song really reflects how most of us felt no matter where we lived and that makes it resonate.
Neil wrote the lyrics, but all 3 of the them were nerdy/ misfit kids. Neil in the more traditional - marches to the beat of his own drummer- way (sorry, couldn't resist 😁). While Geddy and Alex were kids of WWII European refugees who were caught between 'old country' and 'new world' cultures. Geddy, especially, had it rough. His family was Jewish, (had survived the concentration camps) and they faced a lot of prejudice.
There was actually a lot of tension within the band, Geddy and Alex specifically, over the dominance keys and synths were used in the albums during this time. Alex felt the guitar was being placed on the back burner while Geddy lobbied for the keys and synths. All I care about is they worked through it and continued to amaze us for decades more....
I was about 12 when this hit the radio. Didn’t grow up in a suburb, but this tune helped a whole bunch. Love these fellas. They’ve, collectively, made me a better and happier human. Love the lot. Thank y’all, RUSH. 🥰✌🏻❤️🥂❤️❤️❤️
Another great Rush reaction. Thank you for doing these. If you want to hear some killer bass listen to Freewill studio version. The jam section is insane 👍
Church Boy, loving your reaction to Rush. Great message of your upbringing your parents did a great job. Rush has some of the greatest songs and lyrically & musically. Mission, Freewill, Closer to the Heart, Anthem, Freewill, Jacob's Ladder, Limelight, Grand Design, Middletown Dreams, Territories, Witch Hunt, Enemy Within, Entre Nous, Between the Wheels & Big Money.
I've been a musician since I was 8, started playing guitar at 13 and Rush has been an influence on me since 1978. For me it's the time signature changes that triggers my dopamine and Rush in that aspect delivers. In this song they keep switching from 7/8 to 4/4. I can't wait to see you react to one of Power Windows album's song more precisely to Manhattan Project. Alex guitar play on that album is massive in my opinion.
This has to be one of my favorite synth era Rush songs. This song is about their childhood growing up in the suburbs of Toronto and how the cookie cutter, conformist way of life lacks any sense of inspiration. Geddy plays bass, synths, and sings, all at the same time. Geddy is the man!
This was the first release off signals and the opening synthetic riff said it all. A new era for rush was born. Purest cringed, open minded listened to what Neil did with the song and as he built the rythyms and patterns from the sublime simple to an uncontrollable fevered pitch at the end as only he could do, collectively we knew we were gonna be ok! It had the MTV style video. Ushered in millions of new fans and here you are keeping it alive. Awesome.
Clean and dirty bass is Geddy switching from keyboards to bass. Marathon live in Cleveland showcases it magnificently, along with the usual dexterity of all three. Oh, and you get more than one key!
Yesss pleeease, Church Boy… Marathon live, but I’m partial to the version from their live album “A Show Of Hands” in 1989, which has incredible video footage.
I absolutely love your Rush reactions Brother! I'll watch every one you put out. I first saw Rush in 1978 and saw every tour after that, and was at their final show. 53 shows in total.... Their music helped ironically enough lead me to Jesus.... Prayers up ❤️🙏
You should see how Neil tunes his drums in Frankfurt, (all 30 of them). No joke, he is surrounded with 2 kits - electric and standard. 🔥🔥🔥 Thanks for sharing a part of your life with us!. That's love. ✌
It was Geddy Lee playing the keyboards. It was always amazing to see them live and Geddy singing, shredding the bass and playing the keyboards with his feet using Taurus pedals. When he switched up to playing the keys with his hands for melodic parts he would play the bass using the Taurus pedals. Sometimes Alex also plays keyboards with his feet and Neil also has pads that he triggered samples with. They were doing that stuff in the 1980s, before even MIDI was a thing, much less digital sampling. I first saw Rush on their Permanent Waves tour in 1980 and never missed them on tour afterwards. Saw them live over 30 times because they were the best concerts I ever went to. As a guitarist myself, the musicianship of Rush always blew me away. All three were one of the best on their instrument. The lyric “opinions all provided, the future pre-decided, detached and subdivided in the mass production zone” describes how there is pressure to follow a particular life in the family of those in the suburbs, but he follows with “…nowhere is the dreamer or the misfit so alone” describing how those with dreams, like they had, just can’t fit into that mold. This isn’t really early in their career, more around the halfway point of their careers. They started in 1972 and this was released on Signals, which was their ninth album, released around 1982. Their last studio album was released in 2012 and would be their 19th album, 10 albums later, and was named Clockwork Angles. Neil Peart (drummer) passed away in 2020. The world lost one of the greatest drummers in rock history that year. He also wrote 99% of the band’s lyrics, including this song.
Geddy is playing keys. The Signals album followed Moving Pictures. I'm really enjoying your discovery of Rush; it takes me back to when I discovered them in high school.
Churchboy is still missing most of RUSH's Greatest song. Please do the studio versions of all of these songs. Closer To The Heart, Fly By Night, Working Man, The Trees, Lakeside Park, Limelight, Bastille Day, 2 1 1 2 , Red Barchetta, Passage To Bangkok
Going into the city to escape the boredom of living in the subdivision. Neil's lyrics always carried a lot of weight and could apply to many aspects of life. Another good one is Limelight where the lyrics are almost autobiographical of his difficulties in dealing with fame and recognition
The drummer, Neil Peart, writes 95% of the lyrics. He is an author, poet, and one of the best drummers ever. Geddy Lee sings, plays bass, and keys. Watching him live switch from bass to synth or he might play peddle synths is amazing. Rush's albums stretched from 1974 to 2012. This is from 1983... I guess early middle. A better description would be post progressive and the beginning of the synth era.
This is about living in a suburb in an aeea that was planned. I lived in a suburb, but it founded as a beach town was before the grids and homogeneous designs of 70s-90s towns. There is usually very little to do there. If you don't fit in, you get excluded and possibly bullied. They were outsiders being nerdy musicians. The official video explains both the lyrics abd you see how they play the song. One tinyvdetail in the video is that they are playing ti the studio track, but at one point you see Geddy switch from bass to keys and he quickly reaches his right hand back to mute the strings. He would need to do that live, but it isn't necessary here. 1982. Their 8th studio album.
Great reaction! I am really enjoying your comments and interpretation as well as how you personlly relate what you heard to your life. This song is from the signals album which I think came out in 1982. Their musical style evolved a lot over time and had many different influences. Rush songs from different eras can almost sound like they are from a different band but there is always a certain flavor and musicality that makes their music unmistakably Rush. Neil Peart writes the lyrics. He is extermemy well read and self educated.
Subdivisions hit in my youth at the right time, this song resonated with me greatly. It's my favorite from them. Thanks for exploring more Rush. Been enjoying your vids immensely. Any vids you review of them are great, would love to see the song Freewill (live).
This is from the Album Signals from 1982. Geddy Lee is lead vocals bass and keyboards. If you watch a live video,both Alex(guitars) and Geddy have bass pedals to augment the bass when the keyboards are used...\
Having grown up in the subdivisions of Toronto, during the time this album was released, I can say the lyrics captured the feeling and vibe of what the cities were like. "Conform or be cast out."
This is the song that intrigued me to the point I went down the Rush music rabbit hole, just recently. (I was a child of the '80s, so I like their keyboard era. I also like how Geddy's voice mellowed and matured during that era). Anyway, you may want to watch the music video that goes with this song, because it does a great job telling the story in the visual sense. (Geddy sings, plays bass and also plays keyboards). As for the lyrics, I feel like this song likely resonated with teenagers in the '80s, who felt misunderstood.
The lyrics are typical teen angst, anthem type,but the clever rush twist is that there are virtually no repeating drum parts, Neil Peart of course wrote the drum parts also wrote most of the lyrics,I find the title "subdivisions"infinitely amusing given the way he 'chops " up the beat
Studio versions like this should be reviewed first, then the live ones. With the exception of Xanadu. Check out the live version of this from Exit Stage Left tour. This is the best live performance of any band. IMO and many others. Geddy Lee on Bass, synths, Vocals and Pedals. And watching them perform this is just awe inspiring! I know you already reviewed a live version of this, but it’s not the same. At least review it on your own. You’ll be doing yourself a favor.
Agreed! I can honestly guarantee that Church Boy would point and shake his head off in sheer appreciation of Geddy’s playing in the studio version of Digital Man😊
To answer your question, this album was released after Moving Pictures. Your comparison of the projects to the hood is spot on. I grew up in a hood on the outskirts of Houston in the 70s and 80s. A suburb is an intentional (usually affluent) community that is an escape from the city. The outskirts are just kind of where they stopped building. Regarding your comments on the mindset of those communities -- yes, it took me probably 20 years to shed the baggage that I'd been brainwashed with. Now that i have, I've never felt happier, freer, or more confident. I don't remember hearing this song till I was an adult, but I instantly identified with every single syllable of these lyrics.
it's from their 1982 album Signals the 9th out of 19 studio album... My suggestion song to you, The garden from the Clockwork Angels Tour... the last song of the last album... a beautiful message about the essence of life... where they portrait our life as a garden that we nurture
Even more than most Rush songs, the drums just drive this song, to me, they are almost the main melodic line even more than the synths with how Neils inserts phrasing into each section instead of just playing a beat that Alex and Geddy can play over..
This song really resonated with me as an outcast youth growing up in the suburbs of Toronto. Definitely not the projects! The main theme was feeling isolated and trapped and just wanting to break free of the societal structure. I’d ride my bike for hours in the woodland ravines and out of town to find a spot to just watch nature. Fall asleep to Rush songs soothing my crazy ADHD brain. Self-expression through art and creative endeavours become an outlet for me, until I had kids and then had to conform to feed my family. Computer work. 😑 Not the struggles of the projects, but I think anyone’s biggest challenge feels the same inside when, in their youth, they have no world context to see, though trapped, how privileged they were in their gilded prison - I did get to visit Chicago on a school trip and we rode the locked, never-stop busses through the projects - an eye-opener for sure…
This song meant a lot to teenagers at the time. It really spoke to a lot of people who were at the margins of the high school cliques. This was the first song that Alex and Geddy really argued about. RUSH were moving more toward synthesizers and shorter songs and Alex found he couldn't hear his guitar in the mix. Alex had to really change how he played to find that space. You will probably notice that if you dive into their earlier discography.
CB, buddy, I think you're ripe for their entire discography, chronologically. Four songs per week and you should be done in a year. 90% bangers, 9% good, 1% bad. Rush album, Finding My Way... And don't look back. 🎉🍁🔥❤️🇨🇦
Neil the drummer is also the Lyricist conceptual mind behind theme of albums this song was a personal journey as teen growing up in the mundane life in suburbia and captured this in words at some point everyone can related truly one of his traits was being monster musician but connecting with audience in life experiences
Wait till you see the video of Neil’s iconic solo from Frankfurt. It’s been blowing minds across reaction channels all across TH-cam for a while. I was fortunate enough to see him develop it over the years, live in concert. He is a musical percussionist. He’s not just a powerhouse drummer, he’s much more than that.
You are an inspiration. Thank you for this video. I am a RUSHNUT!!!! However, I am in awe of someone that wants/needs to inspire. We need more like you.....WELL DONE.
IIRC, this song was written about Neil’s teenage daughter. She was struggling in the suburban world she was living in, and he was commenting on it. Their earlier work was more fictional and grandiose. Sadly, she was killed in a car wreck several years later. This song was powerful for me, because it came out during my first year of high school. I also grew up in the suburbs, and it felt like he wrote the song about me and my world. It’s definitely not harder than living in the hood or the projects, but nobody knows that until they get out. It’s all they’ve ever known and it’s oppressive for some.
A couple of weeks ago you commented on the power of music to make one cry. If you want a Rush song that’ll make you cry listen to The Garden live. It was Neil Peart’s final song.
This is a great song about identity and youth aspirations. Wanting to break free from what is expected of you to live the life you want to live but then also the curse of getting that reward and wishing you are back on your comfortable habitat . Listen to the entirety of their last album “ clockwork angels” because the entire concept album is the story of a young man who does just that. It is a great magnum opus swan song and to me, their best album ever.
Tuned drums, yes 100% and these guys spent more time on sound quality than most and it shows. As a drummer (back in the day of course) I wouldn't buy a pair of drum sticks unless I could 'tune them' in matched pairs from music shops. Very simple process but first they have to be exactly straight (roll them on glass to check) then proceed to 'tune them.' Hold one drumstick at a time between thumb and forefinger roughly about 4" from the butt end and at the tapered shank flick it with your finger. The stick must be by your ear to hear the tone. A matched pair are a third of an octave from one another. Higher pitch (heavier/more dense) for right hand (if right handed) and the other (lighter/less dense) for left hand. They last longer too. Kind of hilarious but my nephew took up drumming many years ago and for Christmas one year I bought him 3 pair. His Dad, my younger brother... Sat there grinning from ear to ear (he played drums too as well as our older brother) but seeing his son get these from his uncle was priceless. My nephew heard about this (technique) but hadn't been accustomed to it at the time so when he opened the package he was beaming. I also wood burned his name on each of them. Just like we did it in the old days about 40 years ago. Why? Because it matters. Great review again!! Love to hear stories that relate to how our souls are what they are.
Subdivisions (1982) was conceived right after their seminal Moving Pictures album, and began a journey to integrate more synth to reflect the times/music trends of early 80’s, so this was 10 yrs into the career. Inspiring testimonies of your youth and wonderful parents- God bless you all🙏 Couple suggestions for you that will rivet you to your chair: 1- Limelight, from Moving Pictures, but their live version remastered here: m.th-cam.com/video/_15-8d-XvrA/w-d-xo.html 2- Red Barchetta also from Moving Pictures (proper pronunciation “bar-ketta”, which means “little boat” in Italian, this live version from their R30 tour (30yr anniversary!). m.th-cam.com/video/rMPdKmyYg9Q/w-d-xo.html&pp=ygUbcnVhaCByZWQgYmFyY2hldHRhIHIzMCB0b3Vy Both are top shelf, gold standard Rush songs. You’ll see their energy and talents didn’t miss a step as they aged, and I believe they actually improved! Crazy guitar solo in Limelight(Alex’s fav!), and yup, more harmonics to begin and end Red Barchetta, while Geddy RIPS the bass. The hair on my back raises every time I listen to these, and I get sense of melancholy (good sadness) from their musical approach, and of course because of the nostalgia. Was too young to see the exit stage left show(‘81, my hometown, Montreal!), but I did see R30 in Montreal and Ottawa shows. Stellar performances! Enjoy brother Church Boy and may ye be, ever blessed!
Geddy Lee : Keyboads, Bass Guitar, Main Singer Real name : Gary Lee Weinrib (Jewish heritage) His parents met in a nazi concentration camp when they were kids. Alex Lifeson : Main Guitarist Real name Aleksandar Živojinović (Serbian heritage) Neil Peart : Drum, Percusion, Composer, Lyricist Real Name : Neil Ellwood Peart
Man, I am shocked I don't see more comments about your ability to just pick up a bass and play the lines after just hearing them. That's an amazing ability.
He’s got an excellent ear, and I would say perfect pitch to be able to call out the key they’re in.
It’s cool to see someone who really knows music appreciate them. I mean how can you not?
Hear Hear, I thought the same thing.....
Agreed!
Kinda like Justin Panariello. If you’re a Rush fan, you’ve probably seen him. Great to watch musicians react to Rush.
Neil would have been very pleased that his lyrics made you reflect that is all a writer can ask for
80's is the synth era of Rush. Geddy plays keys and bass. If the song calls for bass and keys at the same time, the less complicated line will be played on foot pedals live. Example, if the keys are musically complicated, Geddy may play a simple bass line on the foot pedals. Hope you react to Digital Man, just love that bass line
Came here to say this.
Also Alex plays foot pedals live as well.
@@leemiracle6840 Not to mention his huge pedal board.
RUSH WORLDS GREATEST 3 PIECE ORCHESTRA🥁🎸🎸🎙🎶🎵🎼
R.I.P.NEIL PEART YOU ARE MISSED RUSH ON😊
You can never go wrong with a Rush drum solo.
As addressed in the handful of documentaries made about Rush, they never appealed to mainstream music critics, especially including Rolling Stone Magazine. Instead, they had to build their fan base one show at a time, especially given how little airplay their complex (and frequently long) songs received. Rush accordingly attracted the type of fans who - themselves - felt like outcasts, never part of the in-crowd. This song - which appeared on the band's 9th of 19 studio albums, Signals - spoke directly to people who felt as though they were different from the popular crowd and/or rebelled against a cookie-cutter future envisaged for them by their families (and by society at large).
I was 14 years old when this song was released, in 1982. I lived in a suburban city located 60 miles west of Toronto, in a new subdivision. I felt just as I described above. I would come to embrace my less conventional self and thrive in my chosen profession thanks, at least in part, to the neurodiversity that prevented me from "fitting in" in primary and secondary schools. But I wasn't 'there' yet in 1982, when this song was released. Upon first hearing, it spoke to me like no other music ever had. It made me a lifelong fan. It still does, over four decades later.
I love how Rush earned the title "biggest cult band in the world".
This is 80's Rush when they were in their synth/new wave pop era. As you delve into their catalog, you will notice different phases.
The following song on this album "Analog kid" has some of the most melodic bass lines you will hear, and it's played while Geddy is singing. You will love it.
A band that was able to reinvent themselves over and over without alienating any of their fans.
Your parents raised you in the projects AND got College educated? Bravo to them!
My earliest years were in the inner city, low income neighborhood. My father was a bus driver and my mother stayed home. When i was 8, we moved from the city to a suburb in So Cal. This song was written for me and my generation.
All the houses looked similar, there was no culture as I knew it, and the closest movie theater was 30 minutes away. We were 30 miles from the city, and it took my father 30 minutes to get to work the first year. By the 5th year, after hundreds of homes were built, he left at 4:30 am to miss the 2 hour drive and then would take a nap for an hour once he arrived. The suburb I moved into was less than 15,000 and is now 200,000.
Growing up there, you were either in the in-crowd or an outsider. Each group of houses was in a subdivision and as a youth we were subdivided into groups that thought the same, dressed the same, spoke the same etc...
Geddy Lee is the master of multitasking. He’s playing the bass the bass pedals the synthesizer and singing the lyrics.
I'm always amazed at your excellent ear and ability to immediately replicate the tune.
Geddy Lee plays all the keys as well as the bass. Neil Peart writes all the lyrics.
Neil writes all the lyrics. He was an avid reader and put as much into words as he did with his drum parts.
I like your dad. You were blessed.
👍🙏
The best gift a dad can give to his kids is to truly believe in the concept of self-determinism.
It's also a play on words in how you are subdivided into cliques or groups in High School which can cause the alienation that is discussed. Later in the song, after people move into the city and sell their dreams for small desires, and as they mature they start to long for the quaint notions of the suburb life that they rejected in their youth, so the song comes full circle...Poetry.
Your family testimony is inspiring. Your parents did you right. Good people there.
Neil Peart writes all the lyrics and Geddy Lee plays both the bass and keys at the same time using the foot pedals.Luv your reactions Church please review Malignant Narcissism live from there Snakes & Arrows tour.You will get to see Neil Peart drummer solo.
Best drummer ever.RIP Neil Peart.
Concentrate on the incredible music that this 3 man band produces. You can always do lyrics later.Neil has great lyrics.
Church they only made 19 Albums.😮
Just to be fair, Alex and Neil had their triggers/pedals too. We even saw Alex on the keys during the Clockwork Angels Tour. So, while Geddy played the lion's share of the synth parts, I think it's fair to say that they formed a cohesive, orchestral unit, contributing as necessary to get the job done every night.
Man there’s hope for the world hearing this young man.
I love that you have the Red, White and Blue flying.
AHHhhhh... "Subdivisions" by RUSH!!! Firstly, THANK YOU for doin' THIS PARTICULAR TRACK!!! Geddy Lee is the one who is doing the synthesizer/keyboard track work while playing the bass/foot-pedals AND SINGING (Jesus, HE IS MULTITASKING SOOOO MUCH). Alex is the one doing the background vocals (Subdivisions part)... & Neil is... being NEIL PEART... THE GREATEST DRUMMER OF ALL TIME!!!! Check out their catalog of hits songs, OR RUSH'S documentary on TH-cam (RUSH: BEYOND THE LIGHTED STAGE) for more information on the band, their origin story, their influences, etc. By the way, I subscribed AGAIN. I look forward to many more reactions from your channel in the future!!!! Peace, Love, & Liberty. MIC DROP 🎤.
Actually, the Subdivisions line is Neil, but they made Alex do it for the video.
Neil was a philosopher and it really comes out in his lyric writing. This song is a reflection of what he observed. For the time period of the 80's this song really reflects how most of us felt no matter where we lived and that makes it resonate.
Neil wrote the lyrics, but all 3 of the them were nerdy/ misfit kids. Neil in the more traditional - marches to the beat of his own drummer- way (sorry, couldn't resist 😁).
While Geddy and Alex were kids of WWII European refugees who were caught between 'old country' and 'new world' cultures. Geddy, especially, had it rough. His family was Jewish, (had survived the concentration camps) and they faced a lot of prejudice.
You have a good ear for their little details 😁
There was actually a lot of tension within the band, Geddy and Alex specifically, over the dominance keys and synths were used in the albums during this time. Alex felt the guitar was being placed on the back burner while Geddy lobbied for the keys and synths. All I care about is they worked through it and continued to amaze us for decades more....
Thank you!!!!!!! This is one of my favorite RUSH songs!!!!
I was a freshman in high school when this song was released, and I felt like the lyrics were written with me specifically in mind.
I was about 12 when this hit the radio. Didn’t grow up in a suburb, but this tune helped a whole bunch. Love these fellas. They’ve, collectively, made me a better and happier human. Love the lot. Thank y’all, RUSH. 🥰✌🏻❤️🥂❤️❤️❤️
All the guys in Rush grew up in the suburbs and All of them felt like they never fit in. They all quit high school early to play music.
Geddy..sings, bass, keyboards..and childhood friends with alex on guitar. And of course the awesome Neil
Another great Rush reaction. Thank you for doing these. If you want to hear some killer bass listen to Freewill studio version. The jam section is insane 👍
Church Boy, loving your reaction to Rush. Great message of your upbringing your parents did a great job. Rush has some of the greatest songs and lyrically & musically. Mission, Freewill, Closer to the Heart, Anthem, Freewill, Jacob's Ladder, Limelight, Grand Design, Middletown Dreams, Territories, Witch Hunt, Enemy Within, Entre Nous, Between the Wheels & Big Money.
The music video really gives the lyrics context. Geddy is playing the keys.😊
I've been a musician since I was 8, started playing guitar at 13 and Rush has been an influence on me since 1978. For me it's the time signature changes that triggers my dopamine and Rush in that aspect delivers. In this song they keep switching from 7/8 to 4/4. I can't wait to see you react to one of Power Windows album's song more precisely to Manhattan Project. Alex guitar play on that album is massive in my opinion.
This has to be one of my favorite synth era Rush songs. This song is about their childhood growing up in the suburbs of Toronto and how the cookie cutter, conformist way of life lacks any sense of inspiration. Geddy plays bass, synths, and sings, all at the same time. Geddy is the man!
My favorite song all time from my favorite band all time. 🤘🏻🤘🏻🤘🏻
Neil Peart writes the lyrics and Geddy Lee plays bass and keyboards, sometimes with his feet while he's playing bass.
Dude you should definitely check out Neil’s solo from Frankfurt
To me the drum and cymbal sound is the greatest on this record. The way they recorded them is fantastic. The toms are so resonant
Some of Neil Peart's most iconic drumming.
There's a great video of the guy who prepped Neil's drums. It's fascinating.
You get it!!! Welcome to the RUSH rabbit hole! Check out the live 81" Xanadu. You can really SEE them do their thing. Enjoy!!
THIS!!!!!!
This was the first release off signals and the opening synthetic riff said it all. A new era for rush was born. Purest cringed, open minded listened to what Neil did with the song and as he built the rythyms and patterns from the sublime simple to an uncontrollable fevered pitch at the end as only he could do, collectively we knew we were gonna be ok! It had the MTV style video. Ushered in millions of new fans and here you are keeping it alive. Awesome.
Clean and dirty bass is Geddy switching from keyboards to bass. Marathon live in Cleveland showcases it magnificently, along with the usual dexterity of all three. Oh, and you get more than one key!
Yesss pleeease, Church Boy… Marathon live, but I’m partial to the version from their live album “A Show Of Hands” in 1989, which has incredible video footage.
I absolutely love your Rush reactions Brother! I'll watch every one you put out. I first saw Rush in 1978 and saw every tour after that, and was at their final show. 53 shows in total.... Their music helped ironically enough lead me to Jesus.... Prayers up ❤️🙏
Love the reaction and the commentary...thanks again, Todd from Ohio...
You are now RUSH ARMY. Welcome brother.
You should see how Neil tunes his drums in Frankfurt, (all 30 of them). No joke, he is surrounded with 2 kits - electric and standard. 🔥🔥🔥
Thanks for sharing a part of your life with us!. That's love. ✌
You, sir, are awesome. So understanding and empathetic And an astute musician. Love that you love Rush. 🇨🇦
Great reaction & reflection on the song. Rush are great musicians but Your parents are GOATS.
It was Geddy Lee playing the keyboards. It was always amazing to see them live and Geddy singing, shredding the bass and playing the keyboards with his feet using Taurus pedals. When he switched up to playing the keys with his hands for melodic parts he would play the bass using the Taurus pedals.
Sometimes Alex also plays keyboards with his feet and Neil also has pads that he triggered samples with. They were doing that stuff in the 1980s, before even MIDI was a thing, much less digital sampling. I first saw Rush on their Permanent Waves tour in 1980 and never missed them on tour afterwards. Saw them live over 30 times because they were the best concerts I ever went to. As a guitarist myself, the musicianship of Rush always blew me away. All three were one of the best on their instrument.
The lyric “opinions all provided, the future pre-decided, detached and subdivided in the mass production zone” describes how there is pressure to follow a particular life in the family of those in the suburbs, but he follows with “…nowhere is the dreamer or the misfit so alone” describing how those with dreams, like they had, just can’t fit into that mold.
This isn’t really early in their career, more around the halfway point of their careers. They started in 1972 and this was released on Signals, which was their ninth album, released around 1982. Their last studio album was released in 2012 and would be their 19th album, 10 albums later, and was named Clockwork Angles.
Neil Peart (drummer) passed away in 2020. The world lost one of the greatest drummers in rock history that year. He also wrote 99% of the band’s lyrics, including this song.
Geddy is playing keys. The Signals album followed Moving Pictures. I'm really enjoying your discovery of Rush; it takes me back to when I discovered them in high school.
the video for this song shows the canadian suburbs they came from
Churchboy is still missing most of RUSH's Greatest song. Please do the studio versions of all of these songs.
Closer To The Heart, Fly By Night, Working Man, The Trees, Lakeside Park, Limelight, Bastille Day, 2 1 1 2 , Red Barchetta, Passage To Bangkok
I agree, but with the exception of Xanadu live from exit stage left.
Jacob’s ladder too.
You may as well copy paste their entire discography lol it’s pretty much all golden.
@@scottlaughlin9897ha, I was just typing the same response
Start with the studio version for most of their songs. This is one of my all-time favorite Rush songs, but it sounds much better in the studio.
Your dad sounds like a great man. Your solid upbringing comes across on your channel. Keep it up!
This song was about Neil growing up in the suburbs being constantly picked on and bullied for not being “cool” and being a nerd.
Love how fellow musicians really appreciate the craftmanship of the Triumphant Trio, RUSH. RIP Professor!
Going into the city to escape the boredom of living in the subdivision. Neil's lyrics always carried a lot of weight and could apply to many aspects of life. Another good one is Limelight where the lyrics are almost autobiographical of his difficulties in dealing with fame and recognition
The drummer, Neil Peart, writes 95% of the lyrics. He is an author, poet, and one of the best drummers ever. Geddy Lee sings, plays bass, and keys. Watching him live switch from bass to synth or he might play peddle synths is amazing.
Rush's albums stretched from 1974 to 2012. This is from 1983... I guess early middle. A better description would be post progressive and the beginning of the synth era.
Music is one of Gods gift.
This is about living in a suburb in an aeea that was planned. I lived in a suburb, but it founded as a beach town was before the grids and homogeneous designs of 70s-90s towns. There is usually very little to do there. If you don't fit in, you get excluded and possibly bullied. They were outsiders being nerdy musicians.
The official video explains both the lyrics abd you see how they play the song. One tinyvdetail in the video is that they are playing ti the studio track, but at one point you see Geddy switch from bass to keys and he quickly reaches his right hand back to mute the strings. He would need to do that live, but it isn't necessary here.
1982. Their 8th studio album.
Great reaction! I am really enjoying your comments and interpretation as well as how you personlly relate what you heard to your life. This song is from the signals album which I think came out in 1982. Their musical style evolved a lot over time and had many different influences. Rush songs from different eras can almost sound like they are from a different band but there is always a certain flavor and musicality that makes their music unmistakably Rush. Neil Peart writes the lyrics. He is extermemy well read and self educated.
8:56 from my memory that is Geddy on the keyboard.
All of them multitalented musicians.
Subdivisions hit in my youth at the right time, this song resonated with me greatly. It's my favorite from them.
Thanks for exploring more Rush. Been enjoying your vids immensely.
Any vids you review of them are great, would love to see the song Freewill (live).
This is from the Album Signals from 1982. Geddy Lee is lead vocals bass and keyboards. If you watch a live video,both Alex(guitars) and Geddy have bass pedals to augment the bass when the keyboards are used...\
Geddy on keyboard and bass. This was the beginning of the eighties RUSH sound!
I was also born in the projects, when I was ten, we moved out, at nineteen Rush became my favorite group.
Having grown up in the subdivisions of Toronto, during the time this album was released, I can say the lyrics captured the feeling and vibe of what the cities were like.
"Conform or be cast out."
This is the song that intrigued me to the point I went down the Rush music rabbit hole, just recently. (I was a child of the '80s, so I like their keyboard era. I also like how Geddy's voice mellowed and matured during that era). Anyway, you may want to watch the music video that goes with this song, because it does a great job telling the story in the visual sense. (Geddy sings, plays bass and also plays keyboards). As for the lyrics, I feel like this song likely resonated with teenagers in the '80s, who felt misunderstood.
The lyrics are typical teen angst, anthem type,but the clever rush twist is that there are virtually no repeating drum parts, Neil Peart of course wrote the drum parts also wrote most of the lyrics,I find the title "subdivisions"infinitely amusing given the way he 'chops " up the beat
The "CLEAN BASS" is bass pedals. The "DIRTY BASS" is his bass guitar.
This song appeared on their 9th studio album. They put out 19 albums of original material.
Your father and mother sound like they were terrific parents, and you did a great job in honoring them!
Your dad was awesome!
When Geddy plays keyboards he is using Taurus pedals for the bass. The dirty bass is him actually playing bass.
Good call.
Studio versions like this should be reviewed first, then the live ones. With the exception of Xanadu. Check out the live version of this from Exit Stage Left tour. This is the best live performance of any band. IMO and many others. Geddy Lee on Bass, synths, Vocals and Pedals. And watching them perform this is just awe inspiring! I know you already reviewed a live version of this, but it’s not the same. At least review it on your own. You’ll be doing yourself a favor.
Agreed. I was not a fan of Xanadu until I discovered the liveversion on TH-cam. Now it's my favorite Rush song.
Agreed.
So much of ESL was “fixed” in the studio though. It’s hard to know what is actually live.
Agreed! I can honestly guarantee that Church Boy would point and shake his head off in sheer appreciation of Geddy’s playing in the studio version of Digital Man😊
God bless you young man. You’re extremely talented and I love your faith. I’m a drummer. I started in 76’ so Neil is my guy.
To answer your question, this album was released after Moving Pictures.
Your comparison of the projects to the hood is spot on. I grew up in a hood on the outskirts of Houston in the 70s and 80s. A suburb is an intentional (usually affluent) community that is an escape from the city. The outskirts are just kind of where they stopped building. Regarding your comments on the mindset of those communities -- yes, it took me probably 20 years to shed the baggage that I'd been brainwashed with. Now that i have, I've never felt happier, freer, or more confident.
I don't remember hearing this song till I was an adult, but I instantly identified with every single syllable of these lyrics.
Great story about your family. Good parents there.
it's from their 1982 album Signals the 9th out of 19 studio album... My suggestion song to you, The garden from the Clockwork Angels Tour... the last song of the last album... a beautiful message about the essence of life... where they portrait our life as a garden that we nurture
Even more than most Rush songs, the drums just drive this song, to me, they are almost the main melodic line even more than the synths with how Neils inserts phrasing into each section instead of just playing a beat that Alex and Geddy can play over..
This song really resonated with me as an outcast youth growing up in the suburbs of Toronto. Definitely not the projects! The main theme was feeling isolated and trapped and just wanting to break free of the societal structure. I’d ride my bike for hours in the woodland ravines and out of town to find a spot to just watch nature. Fall asleep to Rush songs soothing my crazy ADHD brain. Self-expression through art and creative endeavours become an outlet for me, until I had kids and then had to conform to feed my family. Computer work. 😑 Not the struggles of the projects, but I think anyone’s biggest challenge feels the same inside when, in their youth, they have no world context to see, though trapped, how privileged they were in their gilded prison - I did get to visit Chicago on a school trip and we rode the locked, never-stop busses through the projects - an eye-opener for sure…
Yeah! You HEARD NEIL- that’s why you laughed. Hahaha I love your reaction to that!!!!
This song meant a lot to teenagers at the time. It really spoke to a lot of people who were at the margins of the high school cliques. This was the first song that Alex and Geddy really argued about. RUSH were moving more toward synthesizers and shorter songs and Alex found he couldn't hear his guitar in the mix. Alex had to really change how he played to find that space. You will probably notice that if you dive into their earlier discography.
CB, buddy, I think you're ripe for their entire discography, chronologically. Four songs per week and you should be done in a year. 90% bangers, 9% good, 1% bad.
Rush album, Finding My Way... And don't look back. 🎉🍁🔥❤️🇨🇦
Neil the drummer is also the Lyricist conceptual mind behind theme of albums this song was a personal journey as teen growing up in the mundane life in suburbia and captured this in words at some point everyone can related truly one of his traits was being monster musician but connecting with audience in life experiences
Thanks for sharing your story, that was a beautiful message from your parents.
Wait till you see the video of Neil’s iconic solo from Frankfurt. It’s been blowing minds across reaction channels all across TH-cam for a while. I was fortunate enough to see him develop it over the years, live in concert. He is a musical percussionist.
He’s not just a powerhouse drummer, he’s much more than that.
Your father was right and kudos to him for telling you that.
You are an inspiration. Thank you for this video. I am a RUSHNUT!!!! However, I am in awe of someone that wants/needs to inspire. We need more like you.....WELL DONE.
IIRC, this song was written about Neil’s teenage daughter. She was struggling in the suburban world she was living in, and he was commenting on it. Their earlier work was more fictional and grandiose.
Sadly, she was killed in a car wreck several years later.
This song was powerful for me, because it came out during my first year of high school. I also grew up in the suburbs, and it felt like he wrote the song about me and my world.
It’s definitely not harder than living in the hood or the projects, but nobody knows that until they get out. It’s all they’ve ever known and it’s oppressive for some.
Not about her at all. She wasn't even in school yet when this song was released.
It was his experience - in fact, all of theirs.
@@incensejunkie7516 Hmm. I wonder where I got that? I've thought that since my youth. Ah well, wrong again... it happens.
Love that you've become such a Rush fan from a musicians perspective. I'm really curious how you'll react to Tool.
A couple of weeks ago you commented on the power of music to make one cry. If you want a Rush song that’ll make you cry listen to The Garden live. It was Neil Peart’s final song.
This is a great song about identity and youth aspirations. Wanting to break free from what is expected of you to live the life you want to live but then also the curse of getting that reward and wishing you are back on your comfortable habitat . Listen to the entirety of their last album “ clockwork angels” because the entire concept album is the story of a young man who does just that. It is a great magnum opus swan song and to me, their best album ever.
You have just started very deep rabbit hole of songs you never get to hear on the Radio, Try Natural Science studio version next
Tuned drums, yes 100% and these guys spent more time on sound quality than most and it shows.
As a drummer (back in the day of course) I wouldn't buy a pair of drum sticks unless I could 'tune them' in matched pairs from music shops. Very simple process but first they have to be exactly straight (roll them on glass to check) then proceed to 'tune them.' Hold one drumstick at a time between thumb and forefinger roughly about 4" from the butt end and at the tapered shank flick it with your finger. The stick must be by your ear to hear the tone. A matched pair are a third of an octave from one another. Higher pitch (heavier/more dense) for right hand (if right handed) and the other (lighter/less dense) for left hand.
They last longer too.
Kind of hilarious but my nephew took up drumming many years ago and for Christmas one year I bought him 3 pair. His Dad, my younger brother... Sat there grinning from ear to ear (he played drums too as well as our older brother) but seeing his son get these from his uncle was priceless. My nephew heard about this (technique) but hadn't been accustomed to it at the time so when he opened the package he was beaming. I also wood burned his name on each of them.
Just like we did it in the old days about 40 years ago. Why? Because it matters.
Great review again!! Love to hear stories that relate to how our souls are what they are.
The official music video for this is very descriptive for the answers you’re looking for.
Subdivisions (1982) was conceived right after their seminal Moving Pictures album, and began a journey to integrate more synth to reflect the times/music trends of early 80’s, so this was 10 yrs into the career.
Inspiring testimonies of your youth and wonderful parents- God bless you all🙏
Couple suggestions for you that will rivet you to your chair:
1- Limelight, from Moving Pictures, but their live version remastered here:
m.th-cam.com/video/_15-8d-XvrA/w-d-xo.html
2- Red Barchetta also from Moving Pictures (proper pronunciation “bar-ketta”, which means “little boat” in Italian, this live version from their R30 tour (30yr anniversary!).
m.th-cam.com/video/rMPdKmyYg9Q/w-d-xo.html&pp=ygUbcnVhaCByZWQgYmFyY2hldHRhIHIzMCB0b3Vy
Both are top shelf, gold standard Rush songs. You’ll see their energy and talents didn’t miss a step as they aged, and I believe they actually improved!
Crazy guitar solo in Limelight(Alex’s fav!), and yup, more harmonics to begin and end Red Barchetta, while Geddy RIPS the bass. The hair on my back raises every time I listen to these, and I get sense of melancholy (good sadness) from their musical approach, and of course because of the nostalgia.
Was too young to see the exit stage left show(‘81, my hometown, Montreal!), but I did see R30 in Montreal and Ottawa shows. Stellar performances!
Enjoy brother Church Boy and may ye be, ever blessed!
Geddy plays keys, bass, foot pedals, and sings. This song is from 1981.
1982.🙂
@@Stevedrums741 thank you. Hard to keep all the dates straight.
They have a pretty good variety of musical styles over the years, but they always sound like RUSH, aways unmistakable, always unique.
I like when people say that they don't know who wrote a song. Neil did all lyrics.
Geddy plays bass, keys, pedal bass, pedal samples
Geddy Lee : Keyboads, Bass Guitar, Main Singer
Real name : Gary Lee Weinrib (Jewish heritage) His parents met in a nazi concentration camp when they were kids.
Alex Lifeson : Main Guitarist
Real name Aleksandar Živojinović (Serbian heritage)
Neil Peart : Drum, Percusion, Composer, Lyricist
Real Name : Neil Ellwood Peart