10 best Rush songs of all time

Rush is a Canadian rock band (Toronto, 1968), which consisted of Geddy Lee (bass guitar, keyboards, vocals), Alex Lifeson (guitar) and Neil Peart (drums, percussion, lyrics). After Lee's arrival, the band went through several lineups before settling on the classic power-trio version with the addition of Peart in July 1974, replacing Ratsy.

"This Rush lineup," Singer's Room reports, "remained unchanged until the last day of the band's existence. In 2018, the band announced the termination of their activities after the untimely death of their drummer and songwriter, Neil Peart.

As of 2022, Rush is ranked 84th in the United States with sales of 26 million albums, and industry sources estimate that their total album sales worldwide exceed 42 million albums.

They have 14 platinum and 3 multi-platinum albums in the U.S. and 17 platinum albums in Canada. Rush has been nominated for 7 Grammy Awards, won several Juno Awards and was honored with the International Achievement Award at the 2009 SOCAN Awards.

The band was inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame in 1994 and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2013.

Here are the 10 best Rush songs according to Singer's Room.

Tom Sawyer

The song "Tom Sawyer" was released in 1981 and opened Rush's album Moving Pictures. The band's vocalist, bassist, and keyboardist Geddy Lee called this song "a defining song for the band in the early 80s".

It is one of Rush's most famous songs, a must-have attribute of classic rock radio and the band's live performances, and has been performed on every concert tour since its release.

Limelight

"Limelight" is another Rush's song from the 1981 album Moving Pictures. The lyrics were written by Neil Peart, and the music by Geddy Lee and Alex Lifeson.

"Limelight" is dedicated to Pirt's discomfort with Rush's success and the attention it has received from the public. The lyrics paraphrase the opening lines of the phrase "All the world's a theater" from William Shakespeare's play.

The band had previously used this phrase for their 1976 live album. The lyrics also refer to "the camera eye," the title of a song from the album Moving Pictures.

Released as a single, "Limelight" peaked at #4 on the US Billboard Top Tracks chart, #55 on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart, and remains one of Rush's most popular songs commercially.

In 2021, the song was included in Rolling Stone's list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time at number 435.

Freewill

"Freewill" is the second position of the 1980 album "Permanent Waves" The music for the song was written by Geddy Lee and Alex Lifeson, and the lyrics were written by Neil Peart.

In the review of Rush's discography for Ultimate Classic Rock in 2016. Eduardo Rivadavia called "Freewill" "an intelligent but surprisingly radio-friendly track".

The song appeared on several compilation albums by the band, including Retrospective I, The Spirit of Radio: Greatest Hits 1974-1987, [5] Gold, [6] and Time Stand Still: The Collection.

At the moment, "Freewill" is a must-play for rock radio, which is focused on listening to albums. It was also one of the six songs in Rush's set at the Molson Canadian Rocks for Toronto festival (SARStock).

The Spirit of Radio

The Spirit of Radio - released in 1980 as part of the album Permanent Waves, the title of the composition is inspired by the slogan of the radio station CFNY-FM, located in Toronto.

The song played an important role in the band's growing popularity, becoming their first single to reach the top 30 in Canada and reaching number 51 on the US Billboard Hot 100. For many years, it was one of Rush's most famous songs and was always performed during their live shows.

Closer to the Heart

"Closer to the Heart" was released in November 1977 as the lead single of the fifth studio album "A Farewell to Kings". It was the first Rush song written by Neil Peart's friend Peter Talbot.

It was also Rush's first hit single in the UK, reaching number 36 on the UK Singles Chart in February 1978. In Canada, "Closer to the Heart" peaked at number 45 and in the United States at number 76 on the Billboard Hot 100.

The song was inducted into the Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame on March 28, 2010.

Cash Box called it "a strong song" and noted that it "is very similar to a Led Zeppelin number in terms of structure, timbre and the role of the vocalist".

The live version of the song was released in 1981 as a single from the live album "Exit...Stage Left", which reached number 69 on the US Billboard Hot 100.

Subdivisions

"Subdivisions" is the second single from the 1982 album "Signals.

The song was often played at the band's live performances, on classic rock radio and was included in several collections of Rush's greatest hits.

In the United States, Subdivisions peaked at #5 on the Billboard Bubbling Under Hot 100 chart and #5 on the Mainstream Rock Tracks chart.

The song was often performed live by the band, and its numerous pre-release live versions have been popular with other artists for many years.

New World Man

"New World Man" is a hit single by Rush from the 1982 album "Signals". This song was the last and fastest written on the album, which was caused by the suggestion of the then Rush producer Terry Brown to equalize the length of the two sides of the cassette version.

New World Man peaked at number one on the national RPM singles chart in Canada, where it stayed for two weeks.

Working Man

"Working Man" is a song by Rush from the band's self-titled debut album. In an interview on Rolling Stone's YouTube channel, Geddy Lee said that "Working Man" is his favorite song to perform live.

The guitar solo "Working Man" was included in the list of the 100 Greatest Guitar Solos, according to Guitar World magazine.

Fly by Night

"Fly by Night" is the title track of Rush's second album. The music was written by Geddy Lee and the lyrics by Neil Peart.

This is a song about his first trip away from home, when in 1971, at the age of 18, he left his small town and flew to England.

The song was released as a single in May 1975. It was the first time that a single by the band was released not only in the United States or Canada, but also in other countries.

YYZ

YYZ (originally pronounced why-why-zed) is an instrumental rock song from the album Moving Pictures. It is one of the band's most popular songs.

The live album Exit... Stage Left (1981) and the concert video A Show of Hands (1989) contain versions of "YYZ" in which Neil Peart includes a drum solo - in the first case as an interlude, and in the second - as an exit from the composition.