The Other McCain

"One should either write ruthlessly what one believes to be the truth, or else shut up." — Arthur Koestler

Pariah Dogs And Wandering Madmen

Posted on | July 10, 2010 | 18 Comments

by Smitty

Returning home, I sat down with a cuppa tea and took in Rush: Beyond The Lighted Stage. As an unrepentant fanboi, it was a full-on treat, except the part which was a pleasure. I’ll definitely catch them on the Time Machine Tour.

Somewhat cheesily, the movie ends with an exit question of why Rush never made it big in the mainstream. The movie proffers a couple of reasons; Geddy’s tenor voice, the band’s general weirdness. I wonder to what degree the ‘N’ word might have played a part. Allow me to offer a quotation from Roadshow, by Neil Peart, pp83-84, and then explain. Emphasis original.

Now that we were getting close to opening night, Alex, Geddy, and I played through that show with earnest dedication to getting everything right. I was giving it everything that I had, straining and sweating, and in fact, I was already playing for an audience, though they were imaginary. It is a defining trait in my character and attitude toward performing that no audience is more unforgivingly critical than that imaginary one. They knew exactly how well I was supposed to play, and whether I had or not.

People sometimes misunderstand the difference between doing something for fun and doing it at the highest possible level. With memories of Little League, or just a necessary fantasy to hold onto, people like to imagine that it must be fun to be a professional athlete or performer, not realizing the difference between a pastime and a profession. It is probably safe to say that any job done professionally is never going to be fun, exactly–because it’s a job.

Don’t get me wrong, I love my work as much as anyone ever could, but it is still work. As the great American journalist Ernie Pyle use to say, after describing someone’s difficult job, “Try it sometime.” Late in his life, Buddy Rich was asked if he considered himself the world’s greatest drummer, and he gave an inspiring reply: “Let’s put it this way: I have that ambition. You don’t really attain greatness. You attain a certain amount of goodness, and if you’re really serious about your goodness, you’ll keep trying to be great. I have never reached a point in my career where I was totally satisfied with anything I’ve ever done, but I keep trying.”

Amen. And it’s the trying that’s so hard, especially in live performance. Every night you push yourself to your absolute limits, mentally and physically, and as the standards rise, you’re like a high-jumper continually raising the bar. On a good day, you might clear it, but the rest of the time you just fall on your ass.

All this is context for a crucial idea:

And trying, the philosophy of Tryism, is the key to much about me, my attitude toward fans, other artists, and my own self-image. If I am uncomfortable with strangers making a fuss about me, and feel embarrassed by any show of admiration, people sometimes accuse me of thinking I am “too good”. In fact, the opposite is true–I don’t believe I deserve that kind of attention. I have never thought I was very good at anything; I just tried hard. And nothing came easily. Having one’s childhood personality shaped by being inept at every sport is a cliché, but it had its effect on me. What else do people judge you by at that age?

This un-pretentious concern for excellence as its own reward shines through Rush’s catalogue, and is crucial to their status as possibly the biggest cult band of all time. While that interest in rugged, individual purity of expression resonates with fans, it’s a standing affront to critics and executives, so admirably skewered as the Priests of the Temples of Syrinx. While Rush are less political than most, and may in fact be raging Trotskyites in real life, such a revelation would come as a shock.

Rush will always be labeled pariah dogs and wandering madmen by critics, until the precious mainstream narrative lies shattered by the weight of critical projection.

This post’s title is the opening line to “Far Cry”:

Bonus, full Colbert appearance:

Category: Music

Comments

18 Responses to “Pariah Dogs And Wandering Madmen”

  1. ykw
    July 11th, 2010 @ 12:26 am

    “While Rush are less political than most”

    You don’t come up with a song like “The Trees” if you don’t have an astoundingly strong political/philosophical streak in you. (For that matter, “Tom Sawyer” and “Freewill” are as political as anything, say, RATM has ever done. You just don’t hear the politics because, for most of us somewhere in the nebulous boundaries of “the Right”, they don’t sound so much political as they do simply =sensible=.

  2. ykw
    July 10th, 2010 @ 8:26 pm

    “While Rush are less political than most”

    You don’t come up with a song like “The Trees” if you don’t have an astoundingly strong political/philosophical streak in you. (For that matter, “Tom Sawyer” and “Freewill” are as political as anything, say, RATM has ever done. You just don’t hear the politics because, for most of us somewhere in the nebulous boundaries of “the Right”, they don’t sound so much political as they do simply =sensible=.

  3. The War Planner
    July 11th, 2010 @ 2:00 am

    Oh, that Rush. I thought you meant..

    ..well, as long ads I have got your attention, I wanted to talk about the subject of a million hits (insert usual link to TOM’s blog rules, etc.) and express the fact that despite linking you and Little Miss Attila on my site last night and posting some gratuitous but tasteful snatch, I am considerably behind schedule and off pace for the mega-hit total you promised.

    Instead of opting for the Jack Daniels and Darvon route you suggest, I’m wondering if I could get a little linky love from your eminence by way of a link back to my site, The War Planner. I can provide personal references from M.A. over at MAinfo.com (*just* everyone knows her!) and Lipton T. Bagg of Viewed from the Right and if you wait until after this weekend, you can probably get a kind word from the Left Coast Rebel as well.

    Anyway, any morsel you can throw my way; I am a vet and a really old guy and it’s a real pathetic sight when I beg like this.

    ..pulllleeeeeeeeeaaaaaassssseeeee?

  4. The War Planner
    July 10th, 2010 @ 10:00 pm

    Oh, that Rush. I thought you meant..

    ..well, as long ads I have got your attention, I wanted to talk about the subject of a million hits (insert usual link to TOM’s blog rules, etc.) and express the fact that despite linking you and Little Miss Attila on my site last night and posting some gratuitous but tasteful snatch, I am considerably behind schedule and off pace for the mega-hit total you promised.

    Instead of opting for the Jack Daniels and Darvon route you suggest, I’m wondering if I could get a little linky love from your eminence by way of a link back to my site, The War Planner. I can provide personal references from M.A. over at MAinfo.com (*just* everyone knows her!) and Lipton T. Bagg of Viewed from the Right and if you wait until after this weekend, you can probably get a kind word from the Left Coast Rebel as well.

    Anyway, any morsel you can throw my way; I am a vet and a really old guy and it’s a real pathetic sight when I beg like this.

    ..pulllleeeeeeeeeaaaaaassssseeeee?

  5. MrPaulRevere
    July 11th, 2010 @ 2:10 am

    Not only has Rush’s music stood the test of time, they have a work ethic second to none. Thank’s Smitty.

  6. MrPaulRevere
    July 10th, 2010 @ 10:10 pm

    Not only has Rush’s music stood the test of time, they have a work ethic second to none. Thank’s Smitty.

  7. song_and_dance_man
    July 11th, 2010 @ 4:02 am

    Ah, so you are a Rush fan. I caught the Time Machine tour. It opened here in Albuquerque and was excellent. Without giving away too much you are going to get a real kick from the vids. I also just purchased Beyond the Lighted Stage and it was well worth the $17.

  8. song_and_dance_man
    July 11th, 2010 @ 12:02 am

    Ah, so you are a Rush fan. I caught the Time Machine tour. It opened here in Albuquerque and was excellent. Without giving away too much you are going to get a real kick from the vids. I also just purchased Beyond the Lighted Stage and it was well worth the $17.

  9. mpw280
    July 11th, 2010 @ 1:54 pm

    The Time Machine Tour got a great review on July 5th in Chicago, I had tickets for the July 7th show and it got rained out. There was much disappointment over that. I hope I can go to the makeup date. mpw

  10. mpw280
    July 11th, 2010 @ 9:54 am

    The Time Machine Tour got a great review on July 5th in Chicago, I had tickets for the July 7th show and it got rained out. There was much disappointment over that. I hope I can go to the makeup date. mpw

  11. Joe
    July 11th, 2010 @ 3:30 pm

    Smitty, you must have loooooved, I Love You Man.

  12. Joe
    July 11th, 2010 @ 11:30 am

    Smitty, you must have loooooved, I Love You Man.

  13. Joe
    July 11th, 2010 @ 1:07 pm

    Slappin da bass, man!

  14. Joe
    July 11th, 2010 @ 5:07 pm

    Slappin da bass, man!

  15. Joe
    July 11th, 2010 @ 7:03 pm

    Kejda has words of advice.

    Okay, here is some advice back.

    To the pasty faced pundit, get some sun. Vitamin D deficiency is a real bitch.

  16. Joe
    July 11th, 2010 @ 3:03 pm

    Kejda has words of advice.

    Okay, here is some advice back.

    To the pasty faced pundit, get some sun. Vitamin D deficiency is a real bitch.

  17. Bob Belvedere
    July 11th, 2010 @ 5:40 pm

    1) I just watched the doc for the second time last night. Can’t wait to buy it for the bonus features.

    2)These guys have lasted because they seem to really be friends and have never let business get in the way of their friendship, and they have kept their egos in check. In other words, unlike most musicians they are adults. Look at the way they conducted themselves when Neal’s child then wife died.

    3) Smitty, methinks you’re onto something with your theory. The same thing happened to Led Zeppelin and Black Sabbath, who all expressed some rightwing ideas [Jimmy Page has always been a Tory member].

    4) I’m off to listen to The Necromancer

    4)

  18. Bob Belvedere
    July 11th, 2010 @ 9:40 pm

    1) I just watched the doc for the second time last night. Can’t wait to buy it for the bonus features.

    2)These guys have lasted because they seem to really be friends and have never let business get in the way of their friendship, and they have kept their egos in check. In other words, unlike most musicians they are adults. Look at the way they conducted themselves when Neal’s child then wife died.

    3) Smitty, methinks you’re onto something with your theory. The same thing happened to Led Zeppelin and Black Sabbath, who all expressed some rightwing ideas [Jimmy Page has always been a Tory member].

    4) I’m off to listen to The Necromancer

    4)