Red Lenses Lyrics

Lyric discussion by allen2112 

Cover art for Red Lenses lyrics by Rush

This is about Neil reading the newspaper "national midnight star", and getting pissed off about it's content.

i see red it hurts my head guess it must be something that i read

it's the colour of your heartbeat (opinion or letters to the editor)
a rising summer sun (New day) the battle lost -- or won (war news or stock market) the flash to fashion (style or fashion page)
and the pulse to passion --
feels red inside my head and truth is often bitter -- (reading between the lines) left unsaid said red red thinking about the overhead -- (business section) the underfed

we've got mars on the horizon (astronomy) says the national midnight star (it's true) what you believe is what you are a pair of dancing shoes -- the soviets are the blues --

the reds (fear of the Russians) under your bed lying -- in the darkness dead ahead

and the mercury is rising (weather)
barometer starts to fall you know it gets to us all the pain that is learning and the rain that is burning -- (acid rain) feel red still -- go ahead you see black and white -- (newspaper) and i see red (not blue) ?

The National Midnight Star was an entirely fictional 'tabloid' magazine - dreamed up for a skit by the comedy geniuses of a Canadian television show from the early 80's called: SCTV (Second City Television). In the sketch, the sort of 'slogan' for the magazine was that the National Midnight Star would only report something if "It's True!" :)

So - imo, no, these lyrics are not about Neil getting 'ticked off' while reading a particular newspaper; nor do I think it is some sort of cometary on newspapers/magazines in general.

What these lyrics are 'all about', imho, is...