Rush - Chronicles

Rush has always been a sort of landmark that many musicians want to reach, as far as musicianship is concerned. Simply put, they are the best trio of musicians to make progressive rock, and you can couple that with the fact that they have outsold pretty much any other progressive rock act in the world. In 1990, Rush released their double greatest hits album, Chronicles, showcasing their best known tracks and, once again, showing everyone why they deserve a spot in the history of rock music.

Chronicles is a great way to get to know Rush. No, it doesn't include many songs that many fans would have expected to show up, but it is still an amazing retrospective into their history between the years 1974 and 1989.

It's very difficult to try to highlight songs from any kind of greatest hits package, but nevertheless, there are standouts, as in all albums. From the early albums, Fly By Night and Working Man shine like bright stars in the sky, showing you the way to the next songs! It's hard to underappreciate the song 2112, which, in its original form, is over 20 minutes long, but still, the version shown here (much shorter than the original) gives you a glimpse into a song that made history for them. The song A Farewell to Kings is a masterpiece where everyone shines brightly, and Geddy Lee's bass lines are some of the finest of his career. Of course, guitarist Alex Lifeson doesn't fall behind, although he is perhaps considered to be the most subdued of the three, at least as far as showing off is concerned (whether intentionally or not). After all, it must be pretty interesting to try to show off when your drummer is not only the lyricist of the band, but is also considered by many to be the best rock drummer alive. The man in question being drummer Neil Peart, of course. And it must also be a chore to try to outdo Geddy Lee, who not only is a bass player with whom most would rather not be compared, but is also the singer, singing upward of 3 hours a night (!), and also the main keyboard player in the band, sometimes looking like a strange sort of musical octopus when certain songs require it during live performances.

But continuing on with the highlights of Chronicles, the songs Closer to the Heart, strangely a Rush ballad, the instrumental La Villa Strangiato and the ultra-metaphorically-interesting The Trees, show why Rush in the 70's was untouchable. Moving on to the 80s, we have Rush's biggest hit, Tom Sawyer, as well as great songs from their synthesizer era, Subdivisions and Distant Early Warning.

Reasons to own this album:

1) Geddy Lee
2) Neil Peart
3) Alex Lifeson

Need I say more?

I'm sure I'm commiting all sorts of sins here by not mentioning many other songs, but you get the idea. If you've ever been curious about Rush, Chronicles is a great way to get started! But heed my warning: it'll only be the beginning because after it, you'll be wanting their entire catalog. And it's worth it.