Rush - Rush

1. Finding My Way
2. Need Some Love
3. Take A Friend
4. Here Again
5. What You’re Doing
6. In the Mood
7. Before And After
8. Working Man

Rush’s self-titled debut album is unique in one significant respect: it is the only release in the trio’s extensive catalogue that does not feature the renowned drummer and lyricist Neil Peart. This distinction forms an essential part of the origins and unconventional history of Rush—an album whose straightforward performances and no-frills songwriting continue to fascinate listeners more than five decades after its original release in March 1974.

The band’s members at the time—Geddy Lee, Alex Lifeson and John Rutsey—entered Eastern Sound Studios in 1973 to record their first session with producer Dave Stock. These recordings suffered from considerable production shortcomings. Aware that these issues had to be corrected, especially given the importance of making a strong first impression, Rush returned to the studio later that same autumn. This time, the band worked with engineer Terry Brown at Toronto Sound.

The improvements Brown made were dramatic. New and essential overdubs, together with the recording of three new songs, put everything firmly back on track and lived up to the motto the band used at the time: “Energized Rock”!

Rush quickly established a reputation as an impressive live band. The members had developed their chemistry over a period of almost five years by performing at high-school dances, in bars, small arenas and virtually any other venue where a rock ’n’ roll band could play. Their ambition eventually took them into the studio to release an LP without the support of a record label.

Working together with their management, the band’s own Moon Records label pressed 3,500 copies of Rush, most of which were intended for sale in their native Canada. Although the album initially gained momentum primarily in the band’s home province of Ontario, it was promotional support from Cleveland radio station WMMS that, through a fortunate turn of events, ultimately brought Rush to the attention of the mainstream.

Drawn to the song’s working-class lyrics, DJ Donna Halper added “Working Man” to the station’s rotation after receiving a copy of the record from an A&M Records manager who had become friendly with the band. She subsequently began receiving calls from listeners who wanted to know who Rush were and where they could obtain a copy of the LP.

Shortly after Rush achieved their breakthrough in Cleveland, Mercury Records stepped in to reissue the album and distribute it internationally. Another dramatic twist of fate helped transform Rush into the band we know today. Despite his solid playing, drummer John Rutsey left the group at the end of July 1974, shortly before Mercury’s edition of the gold-certified album Rush was released.

A combination of health problems and incompatibilities with the musical interests of Lee and Lifeson led to his departure and paved the way for Neil Peart. His audition impressed his future bandmates so greatly that he was hired that very same evening. Lee, Lifeson and Peart would go on to change the course of musical and cultural history.

MFSL now presents Rush in audiophile reference quality for the first time. Mastered from the original tapes at MoFi’s California studio and manufactured at Fidelity Record Pressing, this numbered 180-gram double LP plays at 45 RPM.

Housed in a luxurious Stoughton Printing gatefold jacket, the release delivers the finest sound quality the album has ever received on vinyl. This collectible reissue features the iconic cover artwork, as well as a bonus photographic print, and establishes new standards in spaciousness, transparency and dynamics. No previous version offers the warmth, clarity and impact of this new MoFi edition.