A SHOW OF HANDS

A Show Of Hands closes out the Third Chapter of RUSH with a rather wimpy band. The set- list comprises of songs from Signals-Hold Your Fire with the tracks "Closer To The Heart" and "Witch Hunt" thrown in for good measure. Of all the band's live releases this one will draw the least attention and for good reason.

The set-list for this gig certainly isn't the strongest one of any RUSH recording. Why relatively weaker tracks like "Turn The Page" and "The Big Money" are included while countless classics from Signals, which only receives one representative, are omitted really boggles me. However, this set list could still make for a fantastic album, but the quality of the recording isn't excellent. There's a real problem with the mixing that is really bad up until "Turn The Page" where the troubles seem to be fixed to some degree. However, the mix still tends to tarnish the songs often times with Geddy's bass being overpowering leaving Alex to sit almost undistinguished from background noise. Also, the synthesizers seem to be too low in the mix.

Neil Peart's solo spot on the album can be considered his worst officially recorded performance. With each year he keeps the same basic template but trims the fat and ornaments when necessary, and this solo falls near the beginning so it is in a rather primitive, by comparison, form. Not weak but certainly not his best.

This is by no means a bad album, but more casual fans should probably be wary about buying it, and likewise, Rush fanatics will find this really isn't their favorite Rush release.