Permanent Waves [Original recording remastered]

Amazon.com essential recording
One of Rush's finest moments, second only to Moving Pictures. This album includes two classic songs, "The Spirit of Radio" (which has one of the most recognizable guitar riffs in all of rock) and "Freewill." There's also the epic-feeling "Jacob's Ladder," as well as "Entre Nous," a sort of intellectual love song (if such a thing can be said to exist). The introspective "Different Strings" and the anthemic "Natural Science" (which clocks in at over nine minutes) close the album. Though there are only six songs on Permanent Waves, it's enough; the material is rich enough that more of it would be like overdosing on chocolate. -- Genevieve Williams

Permanent Waves,Rush,Mercury / Universal,Album Rock,Arena Rock,Canada,Hard Rock,Pop,Prog-Rock/Art Rock,Rock,Rock/Pop

Permanent Waves [Original recording remastered]

Average customer rating:

Rush backs off from the epics while still maintaining a very high technical standard
The Awesome Prelude To Moving Pictures
One of a number of personal favorites.
signals
A classic album (4.5 stars)

Permanent Waves
Rush
Manufacturer: Island / Mercury
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music

Canada | North America | International | Styles | Music

General | Rock | Styles | Music

Progressive Rock | Progressive | Rock | Styles | Music

Progressive Metal | Progressive | Rock | Styles | Music

General | Hard Rock & Metal | Styles | Music

Hard Rock | Hard Rock & Metal | Styles | Music

Pop Rock | Pop | Styles | Music

Album-Oriented Rock (AOR) | Classic Rock | Styles | Music

Arena Rock | Classic Rock | Styles | Music

$7.99 and Under | Blowout Music | Stores | Music

Pop | Styles | Blowout Music | Stores | Music

Classic Rock | Styles | Blowout Music | Stores | Music

Rock | Styles | Blowout Music | Stores | Music

Alternative Rock | Styles | Blowout Music | Stores | Music

Hard Rock & Metal | Styles | Blowout Music | Stores | Music

International | Styles | Blowout Music | Stores | Music

All Blowout Music | Blowout Music | Stores | Music

$7.99 and Under | Prices | Blowout Music | Stores | Music

More Titles at Least 25% Off | Blowout Music | Stores | Music
Similar Items:

Hemispheres
A Farewell to Kings
Moving Pictures
Signals
2112

ASIN: B000001ESN
Release Date: 1997-05-06

Tracks:

The Spirit Of Radio
Freewill
Jacob's Ladder
Entre Nous
Different Strings
Natural Science

Amazon.com essential recording

One of Rush's finest moments, second only to Moving Pictures. This album includes two classic songs, "The Spirit of Radio" (which has one of the most recognizable guitar riffs in all of rock) and "Freewill." There's also the epic-feeling "Jacob's Ladder," as well as "Entre Nous," a sort of intellectual love song (if such a thing can be said to exist). The introspective "Different Strings" and the anthemic "Natural Science" (which clocks in at over nine minutes) close the album. Though there are only six songs on Permanent Waves, it's enough; the material is rich enough that more of it would be like overdosing on chocolate. -- Genevieve Williams

Customer Reviews:

Rush backs off from the epics while still maintaining a very high technical standard .......2007-07-22

By 1980, Rush had left the large scale compositions behind them and had started to shorten the format. Interestingly, the band did not sacrifice any of the technical excellence that characterized their music even as they started to inch into the musical mainstream. In fact, I do remember hearing Spirit of the Radio and Freewill played a lot on the radio and thinking that they were just fantastic tunes. As I recall, it was the sophistication with which the songs were played that really grabbed me.

The lineup on Permanent Waves included bassist extraordinaire Geddy Lee (lead vocals Rickenbacker bass; Oberheim polyphonic synthesizer; OB-1; mini-moog synthesizer; and Taurus bass pedals); Neil Peart (drum kit; and lots of percussion including: tympani; timbales; orchestra bells; tubular bells; wind chimes; bell tree; triangle; and crotales); and Alex Lifeson (6 and 12 string electric and acoustic guitars; Taurus bass pedals). This group of only three individuals managed to churn out a wall of sound that sounded as if had been made by an ensemble twice that size. Their technical ability was astounding too: these guys could rock out in 7/8 just as easily as they could in common time (4/4). I do recall seeing Rush in concert as a teenaged prog rock fan back in 1981 (Moving Pictures tour) and just being wowed by the performances - Neil Peart still amazes me, both with his approach to the drums and his lyric writing ability. As I recall, his drum kit was at an absolute peak of "massiveness" in 1980 - 1981.

The six tunes on Permanent Waves range in length from 3'48" to 9'17" with most in the 3-6 minute range (this album is a bit short overall). There is a broad spectrum of music on the album that includes the densely arranged, yet shorter pieces that (somehow) managed to get radio play, to the more prog rock pieces that got me into the band in the first place including Jacob's Ladder and the incredible, riff-heavy progger Natural Science. The two tracks that I always enjoyed listening to and that somehow seem to fall through the cracks include Entre Nous and Different Strings - both are somewhat quieter and a bit more reflective, yet do not lose the distinctive stamp of Rush's unique brand of progressive hard rock/heavy metal. Geddy's use of synthesizers is very tasteful and he generates some fairly atmospheric moments in-between the more powerhouse sections of wall shaking, "thinking man's" progressive metal that made the band famous.

This remastered version of the album is about as close as it will get for those folks that never owned the vinyl (the original photos and lyrics to each piece have been included). As somebody who did buy this on vinyl when it came out, the CD will never hold the same magic, but it did (admittedly) bring back some fond memories. The sound quality is superb and the production by Terry Brown is excellent.

All in all, this is a fantastic example of progressive hard rock/heavy metal and is very highly recommended along with A Farewell to Kings (1977); my personal favorite (Hemispheres, 1978), and Moving Pictures (1981). For those folks that like this particular brand of progressive rock, a few albums by Kansas are highly recommended including Leftoverture (1976) and Point of Know Return (1977).

The Awesome Prelude To Moving Pictures.......2007-07-08

Apparently we die-hard Rush fans have a little war going on amongst ourselves as to which album is the best Rush album of all time. Some say Moving Pictures is the pinnacle (myself included) and some say Permanent Waves is clearly the better of the two. All I have to say about that is 1. Permanent Waves is a great album, hands down and 2. The production of Moving Pictures make it a superior album to Permanent Waves. Sorry, but it's true. Now that we have that out of the way, let's move forward to the review of Permanent Waves, one of Rush's greatest albums. After the excellence of A Farewell To Kings, Rush continued to hone their craft into a more FM radio-friendly sound and Neil Peart continued to create great lyrics along the way. Short and sweet and to the point, Permanent Waves finds Rush at the peak of their prowess as far as song construction goes. Let's take a look at the song listing.

The Spirit Of Radio - One of the all-time great Rush tunes along with Closer To The Heart and Tom Sawyer and so many more. This is awesome. A nod to the greatness of radio as a whole and the freedom of musical expression. The clever homage to Simon & Garfunkel's "The Sound Of Silence" is great and most people don't notice it. S&G: "...the words of the prophets are written on the subway walls...tenement halls!" Rush: "For the words of the prophets were written on the studio wall....concert hall!" Both great songs. One of Rush's best.

Freewill - Another killer tune. Freewill was a live stape for years and years. A host of holy horrors to direct our aimless dance. Neil's lyrics shine here. Perfect.

Jacob's Ladder - A brooding, moody epic tune. Again, Neil's lyrics are inventive and clever. Alex wails here. An often-overlooked song.

Entre Nous - Middle of the road Rush. If Permanent Waves has a weak link, this would be it along with the next tune. This song isn't terrible in any way, it just doesn't have the punch of the earlier tunes.

Different Strings - Much like Cinderella Man from their previous album, Geddy wrote the lyrics here. This song starts out slow and light and pretty much stays there. Geddy isn't a bad lyricist, he's just not Neil Peart. The diet coke of Rush, just one calorie, not Rush enough.

Natural Science - I was delighted when they started to do this song live a some of years back. It's always been one of my favorites. In the same vein as Cygnus X-1 and the latter The Camera Eye, Natural Science is one of the multi-part mini-concept songs that Rush was so good at creating. Computerized clinic, for superior cynics, who dance to a synthetic band... Awesome!

All in all, Permanent Waves is a great album. Entre Nous and Different Strings and its production keep it from being as truly great as Moving Pictures, but it is very close. Always one of my favorites, you wouldn't go wrong starting out here if you were new to Rush. If you are an old fan like me, it's clearly one of their best efforts!

Dig it!

One of a number of personal favorites........2007-06-18

Enough has been said about this album already by others that anything I add would simply be superfluous, except to suggest that, aside from Geddy's different vocal approach (probably brought about by age as much as anything else) this would be the last album where Alex would be the star attraction. Whether that was a conscious decision on his part, a collective decision made by the group as a whole, or just a genetic mutation is a subject perhaps Neil should write a song about! Suffice to say that, as a guitar player for 30 years, the solo in 'Freewill' is still, today, up there with the best that May, Gilbert, Satriani, et al can put forward.

signals.......2007-06-10

wonderful C.D from Rush, they are the best musician in the world.

Do not miss the concert June 15, 2007 at the sound advice amphitheater in West Palm Beach .

A classic album (4.5 stars).......2007-04-06

Consider this a 4.5 star review.

Permanent Waves is one of Rush's best albums. This is a total 180 degree change in direction from the prior album, Hemispheres; the songs on this album are much more accessible and radio friendly. Geddy Lee's singing also started to be singing, rather than screaming, starting with this one. Even though this is a 27 year old album, it still sounds fresh and current. Every single song on this album is a winner (my personal favorites are "Freewill" and "Jacob's Ladder"). I think the only negative about Permanent Waves is that you can start to feel the limits of Terry Brown's production abilities starting on this album (which is why Rush dropped him two albums later). Anyway, this is a classic album and highly recommended for any fan of good rock music.