GRACE UNDER PRESSURE

Finally we reach my favorite Rush album. It is not as "proggy" (can we say that ?), as Hemispheres, which is a strong and straight five star album; so I rate it four and a half star. As a favorite one, I will set it to five, in the same way I did to Permanent Waves.

I think Rush reached their peak right here. There are no songs here that does not matches any interest of being radio-friend, except the closing Between the Wheels, which IMHO is one of most memorable Rush song. Almost all others are high level songs; exception made to Red Lenses ? a poor song ? and The Body Eletric ? a little weak but a different song.

Side one is fully strong. Distant Early Warning and Red Sector A pairs with Between The Wheels among my best preferred songs. In Afterimage we have a lost opportunity; if it had a longer instrumental section in its middle, it would reach perfection. It is a wrong strategy when producers arrest bands in too short tracks, losing the chance of performing greater progressive moments here. A final comment goes to Kid Gloves, a harder and very good song that along with The Body Eletric gives an alternative mood to the album.

So this is Grace Under Pressure. If it had only six songs in longer way, or if it was a released in the middle of the nineties when 40 minutes to an album was not a standard anymore and que bunch of good songs here could have more instrumental development (something very easy to be performed by Lee&Lifeson composing skills); it would reach solid five star. As I said, it is for and a half; and I will set to five because I really love this work.

After Grace Under Pressure, I don´t think Rush released a really fantastic album as those many that we use to love so much. Here and there some very good songs, but they would not be so respected if their job was only from Power Windows on?