Rush

A Farewell To Kings

Solid Yet Missing Something

Review Score:

(8/10)
The studio follow-up to "2112" in 1977 saw Rush developing a cleaner, less-heavy sound with still plenty of punch. The also began to explore different musical elements, including classical guitar and jazz fusion, along with tricky time signatures and unexpected changes.
1. A Farewell to Kings: A socially-conscious piece that could have been written about a pre-Renaissance period or current one. I love the classical guitar intro, building with keyboards and bells and then the great power chords that bring us fully into the song. Excellent lyrics by N. Peart, with "castles in the distance" and foreshadowing "Closer to the Heart". Plus, there's the terrific fusion jam with excellent ensemble playing by Lee, Lifeson and Peart. 4 stars.
2. Xanada: Yes, Peart lifted many of the lyrics from Samuel Taylor Coleridge's "Kublai Khan" but this is still a great epic, full of atmospherics, building dynamics and nice scale techniques. Excellent lyrical imagery of the pleasure dome! 4 stars.
3. Closer to the Heart: Simple yet powerful socially/politically conscious lyrics and a nice keyboard/guitar melody. Good vocal performance by G. Lee. 5 stars.
4. Cinderella Man: A much better lyrical effort by Lee than "Tears" with another great ensemble jam. 3 stars.
5. Madrigal: Probably one of their shortest stand along songs, this relationship piece has nice poetic imagery and an underrated bassline. 3 stars.
6. Cygnus X-1: Another goofy "spoken word" intro like "The Necromancer" brings this one down a notch. It was cool when I was a teenager but brings a smirk now. Still, this piece has all kinds of cool time signature changes. For another literary reference, we have a spaceship named 'Rocinante' after Don Quixote's horse, so there's a little wink from Mr. Peart there. The music works with the lyrics, however, and the listener does feel like they're plunging into a black hole. The "to be continued..." must have been a first in the progressive rock era and hints at a connection to the next offering from Rush.
3 stars.

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