RUSH - review added 19th November 2009
Live Album Review: Working Men (Live) (2009)
For fans of: Prog Rock... and, er, live prog rock
I'm afraid I'm no expert on the nuances of Rush. My knowledge goes as far as liking 'The Spirit Of Radio' and 'Closer To The Heart', knowing that Neil Peart is just about the best drummer in the world, and that Geddy Lee has an utterly mad but addictive voice. Apart from that I've mostly evaded their music - not necessarily through dislike, more from the fact there's only so much money in the wallet and Rush were never high up the priority purchase list.
Working Men sees Rush compiling some of their best live tracks onto one album. We don't normally cover 'best-ofs' on Rock Realms, but live discs are normally a kind of best-of anyway, and we cover live discs so, er, that's our excuse. The tracks here are pulled from 2003's Rush in Rio, 2005's R30: 30th Anniversary World Tour and 2008's Snakes & Arrows Live. There's also one version of one track - 'One Little Victory' - that's previously unreleased.
If you like Rush I can't see any reason why you aren't going to like this. Equally, if you are a Rush fan you probably own some if not the majority of these tracks already. And that's the problem...there's little that's new. With the number of albums the guys have released over the years, a single disc seems tightfisted. There's going to be a lot of moaning about missing favourite tracks by diehards.
Is there any reason to buy Working Men? Well, as a brief introduction to the band it's okay. but you'll do better with one of their other live releases - many of which have at least a couple of discs. It's hard to knock this album because the performances by Neil, Geddy, and guitarist Alex Lifeson are breathtaking, but I do feel your money would be better spent elsewhere.
Check out... One of their earlier live albums - they're more comprehensive.
Add your own thoughts on this album HERE
Track List:
1. Limelight
2. The Spirit Of Radio
3. 2112
4. Freewill
5. Dreamline
6. Far Cry
7. Subdivisions
8. One Little Victory
9. Closer To The Heart
10. Tom Sawyer
11. Working Man
12. YYZ
Label: Atlantic Records
Artist's website(s): Rush , MySpace
