| Rush – Something For Nothing Lyrics | 5 years ago |
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@[Farranger:30354]: Here's another open door story about Rush you might appreciate. During the Grace Under Pressure tour I won two tickets and backstage passes in a KQRS 92 call in contest. You had to be caller number 9 or 2. I was caller number 9. Backstage Neil was nowhere to be found. It was almost an afterthought when I realized we weren't going to meet him because the other guys were so much fun and easy to talk to. They were mostly clowning around the whole time and razzing us about the Minnesota Twins. There were lots of people milling about including press and local radio personalities plus the number 2 callers who were snapping photos of Geddy and Alex like fools. So while we were backstage bouncing around like pin balls we decided to explore. We went off limits down a quiet corridor and that's when I stumbled into a very cluttered Rush dressing room. There I found Alex Lifeson's sock which I still have framed and hanging on my bedroom wall. Yes, I stole your sock Alex. So if you ever wondered what happened to it. That was me. I stuffed it down my pants and walked back to the car. I couldn't help it. I'll never part with it. It's one of my prized possessions. It's a white cotton crew athletic sock and has the Rush starman logo printed on both ankles in black. It's fuckin cool. And it's got LERXST written in magic marker on the sole, that's how I know it was his. And that's how I know about open doors. They do exist. You should look for them. And you should walk through them when they appear. Neil, Alex, and Geddy understand this basic principle of success very well. And now Alex knows not to leave a door unlocked if he values his socks. |
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| Rush – Something For Nothing Lyrics | 5 years ago |
| @[Farranger:30352]: You're right. If you, or Geddy Lee and Alex Lifeson, had been left to write this song, that's what the lyrics would have said: "Hard work pays off, baby. Yeah, whoa Yeah! Hard work pays off, baby baby!" The song title would be "Hard Work Pays," not Something for Nothing. Neil did transform the character of the band even when he was inspired by Ayn Rand's bullshit. Rush went from being a couple of Toronto dorks with guitars trying to sing about chicks and other masculine themes to being an art band over night. Neil Peart was an open door to another dimension for the fledgling Rush. | |
| Rush – Something For Nothing Lyrics | 12 years ago |
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Definitely one of Neil Peart's most preachy songs. Peart was an Ayn Rand adept and you really hear it coming through in this song. In reality, Rush was an "open door" for Peart. He learned about the opportunity to audition for Rush through an associate. He was "looking for" such an opportunity at that time. The band was not his invention. It's worth noting because "open doors" are a necessary component in anyone's success. The risk with Rand, and with what Peart might suggest to some with this song, is an idealized self-hero worship that's a little out of touch with reality. Something tells me Peart would be the first to agree with me. Rush would probably be nowhere without Gene Simmons of Kiss who invited the band to tour with them in the early 1970s when Rush was an almost unknown one-hit wonder with their tune Working Man. Another open door. Success is not made of whole cloth or pure toil. No doubt Peart is talking from some experience. He is clearly a guy who has worked very hard to develop his talent. You just know that he met lots of other drummers while in school who had much different ideas about how they would be successful. He was also blessed with a profound talent. Good for him. He is one who could afford to go with his heart and it eventually panned out pretty damn well! One of the greatest rock tunes of all time for its positive import. Taken to heart in the right spirit it could be very motivating and awakening. It honors the unique self on its journey and the necessity of sustained effort. The other comments here did a pretty good job of covering the details. Hopefully there will be more. |
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