The one-and-only Rush came to San Diego’s Valley View Casino Center on Wednesday, November 21st.
Bassist/vocalist Geddy Lee struggled to hit the high notes, on the opener, keyboard-centric “Subdivisions” – which was no surprise considering his infamous helium-esque voice. However, Lee, guitarist Alex Lifeson and drum phenomenon Neil Peart were so tight and their musicianship of such high caliber, the vocal foibles presented a passing observation, not a complaint.
Largely eschewing their deep catalog of Terry Brown produced, 1970s to early ‘80s heyday progressive rock, the sixty-something year old legends focused on mid-tempo cuts from their ‘80-‘90s output such as “The Big Money” from Power Windows, “Force Ten” from Hold Your Fire and “Bravado” from Roll the Bones. Lifeson’s inspired guitar solo during a jauntily paced “Analog Kid” (Signals) had the mostly middle-aged audience ignoring shoulder pains as they threw their arms in the air. Lee ultimately declared, “Since we’re a thousand years old, we have to take a break.”
When the band returned, they had an eight-piece string section in tow. Rush then played no less than six songs from their latest album, Clockwork Angels. The driving “Headlong Flight” was a highlight and harkened back to their heavier days. The string section made an impact on the poignant “The Garden”. “The measure of a life is a measure of love and respect / So hard to earn so easily burned.”
The encore was all old-school glory: “YYZ”, “Spirit of Radio”, “Tom Sawyer” and “2112 (Overture, Temples of Syrinx, Finale)”. A climax that for most Rush fans could have few equals.
