ANTHEM: RUSH IN THE '70S: Deeper Into Canadian Prog, The Popoff Way
Prior to releasing Anthem: Rush In The '70s, hard rock specialist and critic/journalist Martin Popoff had released three separate books on history: Contents Under Pressure - a paperback study of their first 30 years as a band, Rush: The Illustrated History - a jumbo combination of lavishly illustrated coffee table tome and career chronicle and Rush: Album By Album - a discussion of each of the group's albums between the author and fellow scribes and musicians. That roster of publications might lead you to believe Popoff had taken the subject of Rush as far as it could go.
And yet, Popoff has turned up again with Anthem: Rush In The '70s, the first of threebooks that expand the concept behind ContentsUnder Pressure into a trilogy that goes into deeper detail on each albumand tour while also providing granular biographical detail on the lives of thethree musicians who made up Rush. Thecynical could wonder where he would come up with fresh material and the answerlies in his work on the hit documentary Rush:Beyond The Lighted Stage. Popoff had access to the countless hours ofinterviews done by himself and the filmmakers for that production, includingnot only the band members but their families and professional support team.
As the book reveals, that gave Popoff a treasure trove of new info and he applies it with style and precision in its pages. In the author's traditional style, you learn plenty about each album from 1974's self-titled debut through 1978's Hemispheres, seven albums in total, as well as the lengthy touring that preceded and followed each release. You get the stories behind every song, which really comes in handy when dealing with side-length epics, and detailed information about the recording of each album.
Geddy Lee, Alex Lifeson and Neil Peart are front andcenter throughout the book with their musings on their development during thiscrucial period as they sought to develop their art while making a living.They're all forthright and articulate, especially Peart, and really draw thereader into the excitement of these days. Producer Terry Brown is involved inthe discussion of each album and reveals the technical challenges and artisticjoys and/or frustrations involved getting each on tape: the stories about thedifficult, protracted sessions for Hemispheresin particular are pretty absorbing. He was essentially the fourth member of theband during this era of Rush so it's great to read his enthusiastically toldand artistic-minded tales.
However, it's also worth pointing out that Anthem: Rush In The '70s steps outsidethe usual just-the-albums-and-tours comfort zone of a Popoff book and gets intobiographical content. For instance, you learn how Lee and Lifeson's experiencesas the sons of immigrants alternately nurtured and challenged their drive to bemusicians and how being a brainy misfit during his school years shaped Peart'spersonality and approach to music. Lee and Lifeson's mothers and both ofPeart's parents get to speak their piece in these sections and its fascinatinghearing them not only discuss their pride in their children's achievements butalso the challenges and fears inherent in being a parent to a budding musician.
It's also worth noting that you get a lot of detail onthe development of Rush before they ever began recording albums. Rush's career-long manager Ray Danniels andlongtime tech and confidante Ian Grandy are on hand, fleshing out the bandmembers' recollections of their early club days and how the reduction of thedrinking age dramatically expanded the concert circuit for Rush and otherbands. Everyone involved also provides insight into how John Rutsey was muchmore than just the band's pre-Peart drummer. You learn what a dominant figurehe was, functioning not only as percussionist but also M.C., road manager andthe leading light of the early days. Insight is also provided into what a difficultand complex soul Rutsey was, with an erratic and turbulent personality thatultimately played a role in his undoing.
Finally, it should be mentioned how the book gets intodetail on how the band's team and a few sympathetic industry figures helped suchan unusual, constantly evolving band break into the professional side of thebusiness. There's keen insight from Donna Halper, a Cleveland radio figurerenowned to the band's fans for giving them their first American airplay andhelping them get a record contract (Cliff Burnstein, the then-promo man andfuture super-manager who got them signed to Mercury, also chimes in here). Mostfans know about this chain of fortuitous circumstances but both Halper andBurnstein provide advanced-level insight into the complexities of how radiocould break bands in the '70s and the specific factors that made Rush appealingto Mercury.
The other half of the aforementioned breakthrough wasprovided by a relentless, often exhausting cycle of touring. Howard Ungerleider,a key managerial part of Rush's touring team, gets plenty of space to discusswhat life was like on the road as the band worked its way up from opening actto headliner. These parts give anatmospheric portrait of the grind inherent to touring and the ways they learnedto cope with it, as well as colorful stories about different acts they workedwith (everyone from Gene Simmons to Dennis DeYoung makes cameos in thesestretches with their thoughts on Rush). You also learn about the challenges ofkeeping a band afloat financially before they're big enough to turn a profit,something that only really kicked in for Rush circa Hemispheres.
In short, Anthem: Rush In The '70s proves that it is worth the effort for you to make room on your bookshelf for another Popoff-penned book on Rush. The interviews presented here are unique to this tome and simply can't be beat for insight. Even better, Popoff's wordsmithing gives it all structure and focus that synthesizes the diverse collection of voices into a coherent, richly-textured narrative that Rush fans will savor. Once you finish it, you're likely to find yourself looking forward to the next installment in the trilogy.
To purchase Anthem: Rush In The '70s directly from Martin Popoff, click here for ordering info.
To read Schlockmania's review of Contents Under Pressure, click here.
To read Schlockmania's review of Rush: Beyond The Lighted Stage, click here.
To access Schlockmania's archive of Rush album and book reviews, click here.