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The room in suburban Toronto was dimly lit with bead lights, lava lamps, and candles. Patterned rugs, guitars, amplifiers, and drums were scattered about the floor. The guitarist, bass player, and drummer locked into a fast blues jam, a relaxed acoustic number, a traditional rock anthemAs the music spiraled out, the air filled with the sounds of feedback, backwards guitar, electric twelve-string, and electric sitar. The lava lamps vibrated on the straining amplifiers. Everything was ... very ... beautiful ... It was April of 2004, but Geddy, Alex, and I were channeling back to 1966 and 1967, when we were thirteen- and fourteen -year-old beginners. We thought it would be a fitting symbol to commemorate our thirty years together if we returned to our roots and paid tribute to those we had learned from and were inspired by. We thought we might record some of the songs we used to listen to, the ones we painstakingly learned the chords, notes, and drum parts for, and even played in our earliest bands. Ironically, I first heard many of these songs as "cover tunes," played by the local bands around St. Catharines, Ontario, in the mid-sixties. The Who and the Yardbirds were both introduced to me that way. A couple of years later, my own first band, called Momblin' Sumpthin' (from a "L'il Abner" comic, I shall forever have to explain), played Cream's "Crossroads" and the Blue Cheer version of "Summertime Blues." At the same time, across the lake in the suburbs of Toronto, Alex played "For What it's Worth" in his first band, The Projection, and later, with Geddy, they also played "Mr. Soul," "Shapes of Things," and "Crossroads," in early versions of Rush, and other bands with names like Dusty Coconuts, Waterlogged Gorilla Fingers, the Wild Woodpecker Revue, and the Aquiline Dimension of the Mind (depending on the day). The other tracks on this collection are songs we liked from the era that we thought we could "cover" effectively (meaning not too many backing vocals), and have some fun with. The music celebrates a good time in our lives, and we had a good time celebrating it. Geddy Lee Bass Guitar, Vocals Alex Lifeson Guitars (electric, acoustic, mandola) Neil Peart Drums and Cymbals Produced by David Leonard and RUSH at Phase One Studios, Toronto · March/April, 2004 Recorded by David Leonard at Phase One Studios, Toronto · March/April, 2004 Mixed and Engineered by David Leonard at Phase One Studios, Toronto · May 2004 Phase One Pro Tools recording by Michael Jack, Assistant · Jeff Muir Mastered by Stephen Marcussen, Marcussen Mastering, Hollywood. Management by Ray Danniels, SRO Management, Toronto Executive Production by Anthem Entertainment · Liam Birt and Pegi Cecconi Feedback Equipment Care and Feeding by Lorne Wheaton and Rick Britton Art Direction, Illustration and Design · Hugh Syme / Photography · Andrew MacNaughtan Thanks to everyone at Phase One Studios · Barry, Donny, Mike, and Jeff and everyone at SRO · Ray Danniels, Pegi Cecconi, Shelia Posner, Shelley Nott, Anna LeCoche, Cynthia Barry, Rayanne Lepieszo, Any Curran, Bob Farmer, and Randy Rolfe. As always, we thank our families for their patience, support, tolerance, and love. Extra Special Thanks to Jason Sniderman, for planting the seed, research, and endless encouragement. For technical help & contributions, our thanks to Saved By Technology · Jim Burgess & Ted Onyszczak; DW Drum, Sabian Cymbals, & Promark drumsticks. Atlantic, June 29, 2004 © 2004 Atlantic Records © 2004 Anthem Entertainment Notes:
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