Search - Rush :: Grace Under Pressure Tour CD

Rush's Grace Under Pressure Live soundtrack finally as a sta

Terrence J. Reardon | Lake Worth (a west Palm Beach suburb), FL | 08/19/2009

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Rush's new live album Grace Under Pressure Live 1984 Tour is a must for all Rush fans.

This CD was previously available only as part of the 3 DVD/1 CD box set Rush Replay X 3 which was released in June of 2006 which comprised of DVD versions of the 1981 concert film Exit... Stage Left, this 1984 MTV concert Grace Under Pressure Live 1984 and 1989's A Show of Hands film (which all of the DVDs subsequently got released as stand alone DVDs respectively).

Now Grace Under Pressure Live 1984 was recorded and filmed in September of 1984 at the Maple Leaf Gardens in Toronto, Ontario, Canada with the Le Mobile unit by engineer Guy Charbonneau plus former Rush producer Terry Brown and the group's then Front Of House soundman Jon Erickson and over an hour was used for MTV and Westwood One/King Biscuit Flower Hour radio broadcasts respectively.

We kick the live CD off with the "Intro" which is of course the now legendary "Three Stooges Theme" song which Rush used as entrance music for when the band took to the stage (for the 1982-88 and then Vapor Trails tours). We kick the concert off properly with a spirited fast paced version of "The Spirit of Radio". Then we have the whole original Fear Trilogy (before it became a saga with the song "Freeze" for 2002's Vapor Trails) and it starts with The Enemy Within (previously released on the UK released "Prime Mover" EP). Next is a superb version of "The Weapon" with famed Count Floyd intro (Joe Flaherty of SCTV fame) and "Witch Hunt" (with Neil pounding away on electronic drums). Next we have a great version of "New World Man" (which had also been previously released on the UK released "Prime Mover" single).

Then we have "Distant Early Warning" with a nice fanfare into the track (slightly different to the intro on A Show of Hands). Next is a great version of "Red Sector A" (previously released on "The Big Money" single). We follow with "Closer To The Heart" (with a short jam at end of track). We then follow with a medley of the instrumental "YYZ", 2112's "The Temples of Syrinx" and of course the set closer "Tom Sawyer" (this medley works very well). We then have the encore starting with "Vital Signs" (which rocks) and the final medley of "Finding My Way" and "In The Mood".

There you have it but some wished that Anthem/Mercury would issue the full original show on CD with the tracks that weren't filmed on its DVD counterpart (pardon the expression). The track missing are "Subdivisions", "The Body Electric", "Between the Wheels", "Red Barchetta", "Kid Gloves" and "Red Lenses (with drum solo)" but either the multi-tracks with outtakes from the show were lost or thrown out so that is why they are not here.

The audio was painstakingly remixed by guitarist Alex Lifeson and engineer Mike Fraser. Plus the artwork recreates the concert program that Rush sold at shows on the Grace Under Pressure Tour.

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!"

Great, but STILL missing half the *&^%$#@ show!

Evil Monday | Athens, GA | 01/07/2010

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Grace Under Pressure has always been my favorite Rush album and have been hoping they would someday release the ENTIRE show on cd or dvd. Why do they keep refusing to do it? Subdivisions, The Body Electric, Red Barchetta, Between The Wheels, Afterimage , and Red Lenses (with drum solo) were played at this concert, but for some reason, we have been forbid to hear the live versions of those songs. This cd would have recieved 100 stars from me if it were a 2 disc set of the whole show. Maybe even add Kid Gloves as a bonus track which replaced Afterimage in the 2nd leg of the tour.

But as far as what we've got here, this disc does sound great. On the old VHS version, the audience was way too loud. They fixed that here. It sounds better than the thousands of bootlegged versions that were recorded directly from the VHS version. This cd is also part of the Replay box set. If you already have that then don't buy this cd because you already have it."

Excellent for those who prefer not to buy Replay 3

Murdoch | Massachusetts | 08/13/2009

(5 out of 5 stars)

"In short, I don't have time to watch concert videos, so I was pretty pissed off at the time of the replay dvd set release that I couldn't get my hands on the bonus audio cd of the Grace Under Pressure Tour. Well, now I have, and can say without reservation that its an excellent live set. The fear trilogy, and the generally really punchy performance and clear recording quality, among other strong points, make this a must have."