http://www.eveningtimes.co.uk/lo/features/7014707.html
BY: KEN MCNAB
ALEX LIFESON watched in amazement at the surreal scene before his
eyes.
Three thousand music fans sang as one, never missing a word.
The balcony appeared perilously close to collapse as the concrete pillars
heaved in time to the music.
The date was April 1979. The band was Rush. The song was Closer To The
Heart. And the venue, well, it could only be the Glasgow Apollo.
That image has remained in Alex's mind, and was immortalised in the 1981
live album Exit Stage Left, which had a tribute to the Glasgow choir in the
sleevenotes.
But next month, those memories will come back into sharp focus when Rush
return to Glasgow.
For guitarist Alex, singer Geddy Lee and drummer Neil Peart, their SECC gig
on September 24 will be a sort of homecoming.
Rush are celebrating their 30th anniversary this year with Feedback, an
outstanding new album of covers of songs that fired the group as
teenagers.
In an exclusive interview with Times Out, Alex said: "I will never forget
the crowd at the Glasgow Apollo singing Closer to the Heart. Glasgow was one
of the first places to be into Rush.
"I just remember how vocal the audience was; they were so loud and so
enthusiastic.
"I remember seeing that balcony swaying. It was just an amazing sight. To
hear these guys sing our song so clearly was a fantastic moment. No other
audience did that."
Alex is delighted so many fans remain loyal.
He said: "We haven't been back in 12 years and didn't know what to expect
when tickets went on sale.
"We couldn't believe it when they sold out on pre-sale."
Rush's reputation was forged with albums such as 2112,and
Hemispheres.
But the band has gone full circle with Feedback which has hi-energy covers
of Summertime Blues, The Who's The Seeker, The Yardbirds' Heart Full of Soul
and blues standard Crossroads.
Alex said: "We wanted to approach these songs in the spirit they were
recorded and the studio we used is celebrating its 30th anniversary.
"They had an old console from the '60s, old vintage gear so it was very much
in the spirit of that."
Fans of the band feared Rush would split when drummer and lyricist Peart
suffered heartbreak in 1997 after his daughter Selena was killed in a car
crash and he lost his wife Jacqueline a year later to cancer.
Alex said: "Neil was in a very bad state but he's doing great now.
"He called us with the idea of coming back and doing the last album, Vapor
Trails."
Alex promises next week's SECC show will include songs running the gamut of
the band's 29-albums.
He added: "When we began, we hoped to just sign a deal to make another
record.
"Our original deal was for five albums and I thought, 'this is great.
Whatever happens after that, who cares'."