167 songs spread across 19 core albums recorded between 1974 and 2012. The span of genres ranges from hard blues rock through to majestic progressive, electronica, and synth-heavy, and back to modern heavy rock. Often impossible to categorise, Rush have forged their own path over 40 years and are now back delivering, by all accounts, one of their best ever tours.
Currently two months into their North American schedule, the reviews are fantastic. But what about their catalogue? Well, the boss asked me to pen a Top 20 no less. Give me the impossible job and let’s see how we get on.
I am going to preface this with a disclaimer. It is an impossible job. I could spend days slotting songs in and out of the list. I could spend hours refining where each track sits in order of placement. But as I am off to Canada and Toronto to catch the band for their first two nights, some things must give. So, in reverse order.
20. The Main Monkey Business – Snakes & Arrows
They have ample instrumentals, including the monsters YYZ and La Villa Strangiato. But for me, it is the interplay on The Main Monkey Business, from 2007’s Snakes & Arrows, that warrants inclusion in this list. A sublime piece that sprawls across six minutes, it is one of three instrumentals included on their penultimate album.
A band rediscovering their mojo, it reeks of fun and quality.
19. The Necromancer – Caress Of Steel
Included on Caress Of Steel, the album that spawned the Down The Tubes tour in 1975, The Necromancer is a glorious 12 minutes of indulgent progressive rock which features narrative by Neil Peart, alongside some genuinely explorative ’70s hard rock.
It ebbs and flows as the story unfolds, and although By-Tor and the Snow Dog on Fly By Night was their first weighty piece, The Necromancer, which followed a mere six months later, is still a masterful work, with some fantastic explosive guitar work from Alex Lifeson.
18. Anthem – Fly By Night
The debut track to feature Neil Peart, Anthem kicks off Fly By Night in style. Although partly written by former drummer John Rutsey before he left the band, Anthem bears Peart’s stamp, with the name and lyrics inspired by the Russian-American writer Ayn Rand, who would have a major influence on the new drummer’s writing for the next few albums.
Still an essential live staple, it really is a statement that Rush was continuing to grow.
17. Closer To The Heart – A Farewell To Kings
Opening side two of the mighty A Farewell To Kings, this is the first track where Neil collaborated with another writer, namely Peter Talbot, a friend of the group.
The answer to the questions posed in the title track, this has become an instantly recognisable anthem of the band and one that gets the audience on their feet and singing every time.
16. Turn The Page – Hold Your Fire
Unpopular though Hold Your Fire is in certain quarters, this is an album that holds some gems. My first live Rush show was at Wembley Arena on 29th April 1988. It was the Hold Your Fire tour, so this album naturally holds a dear place in my heart.
Although the album is another dominated by keys and electric drums, there is plenty of guitar lurking underneath the skin, and Geddy Lee’s bass playing on this track is fantastic. Alex contributes a storming lead break whilst the contemporary approach gives it a great hook or two.
15. The Spirit Of Radio – Permanent Waves
“Begin the day with a friendly voice”. It is one of their best-known tracks, an ode to the influence and changing state of radio at the time. Beginning with an instantly recognisable riff that Alex wanted to sound like “radio waves bouncing around”, it is another song that really has become an essential inclusion in the band’s setlist.
14. Manhattan Project – Power Windows
Nestled amongst those Rush albums that I first explored as a teenager, Manhattan Project provided a chilling history lesson. It also features Rush at their finest in terms of the Mid-’80s style.
The song rocks along, led by Geddy’s throbbing bass line, whilst Alex’s guitar adds the necessary flicks. Lyrically, it is amongst Neil’s most biographical, whilst the string section, courtesy of Anne Dudley, is often overlooked. The inclusion of Andy Richards on fretless bass via synth is a rare trivia question.
13. Cygnus X-1 Book II: Hemispheres – Hemispheres
If you discount The Camera Eye and Natural Science, this is the last real epic track that Rush recorded. Filling side one of Hemispheres, this is a glorious progressive rock workout that followed directly from the conclusion of A Farewell To Kings.
It is majestic in every aspect, with chunky riffs, great vocals and the band working in tandem to provide one of the most brilliant tracks they ever crafted. The story started in Cygnus X-1 concludes with the traveller drawn into the struggle between Apollo and Dionysus.
Hugh Syme’s artwork really does the job here, Bob King’s pose the image of a thousand battle jackets going forward.
12. Jacob’s Ladder – Permanent Waves
Few Rush songs are as dark as Jacob’s Ladder. Described by Robert Telleria in the book Merely Players as “part Heavy Metal, part new age, this song is not about the vision seen by Jacob in the bible but the rather atmospheric phenomena that has been named after the image.”
The band can craft imagery that shines past any biblical reference. Heavy tympani and metallic riffs blend with Geddy’s iconic synth work to create a memorable if sometimes overlooked transition from progressive to contemporary.
11. Headlong Flight – Clockwork Angels
For many Rush fans, this is a composition of all the band’s styles in seven minutes. It certainly saw the band hit top gear on their final album in 2012. Heavy rock in all its glory, all three members are on top form as they power through a song that is getting real cheers when it hits the 2026 set list.
10. 2112 – 2112
How could we not include the career-saving opus that is 2112? 20:33 of grandiosity. A magnificent folly that ultimately bought the band their musical freedom.
Listen to the parts today, and you will see how beautifully they lock together. A soaring tale based on Ayn Rand’s Anthem, it begins with Hugh Syme’s swirling introduction before the real riffage takes over. A journey that Rush fans never tire of hearing, this is an essential inclusion.
9. Losing It – Signals
Most prominent thanks to the haunting violin of Ben Mink, Losing It from 1982’s Signals is an emotionally deep song that has become a favourite of many over time. Its slower tempo and perfect composition provide a perfect foil to many of Rush’s higher-paced tracks.
8. Afterimage – Grace Under Pressure
Few songs have such personal reflections as Afterimage. Based on the loss of Robbie Whelan, a tape operator at Le Studio who died in a car crash, it has significant poignancy following Neil’s passing in 2020.
7. Ghost Rider – Vapor Trails
The return of Neil in 2003’s Vapor Trails resulted in such emotion amongst Rush fans that I had to add this track to the list. Not only the title of his book, but the biographical charting of how he recovered from such personal tragedy, it is a song that has so much about his journey.
It is also a cracking song with a great riff and hook and Geddy in fine form.
6. Red Sector A – Grace Under Pressure
“All that we can do is just survive.” The chilling opening line of 1984’s Red Sector A. A massively poignant track for both Alex and Geddy, Neil’s lyrics paint a picture of a piece of history that should haunt the world forever.
It is a brilliant song with Alex’s clipped guitar work riffs over the thick keyboard and controlled drumming. Another I would view as essential.
5. The Pass – Presto
A much-maligned album, Presto has many great songs. None better than The Pass, which Geddy referred to as “some of Neil’s best writing.”
You can hear why. It has got clever lyrics that weave around the bass line that dominates whilst Alex once again adds subtle and perfect guitar work.
4. Red Barchetta – Moving Pictures
A fantastic tale of evasion and breaking the law, Red Barchetta is one of the heaviest in the Rush catalogue. It is a phenomenal song, which sees the trio in blistering form as they combine to create the story based on A Nice Morning Drive by Richard S Forster. Orwellian in nature, it is a firm favourite that sees air drumming hit maximum levels.
3. Limelight – Moving Pictures
Possessing one of Alex’s best solos, Limelight has a feel-good vibe despite the message of anti-hero that runs through it. Instantly recognisable, it is a classic that does not really need much introduction.
2. The Trees – Hemispheres
Friends of mine think this is a bit twee. For me, it is the first Rush track I ever heard. Sandwiched on Side 1 of Axe Attack Vol 2, a K-Tel Heavy Metal compilation released in 1981, it featured a host of Metal bands including Scorpions, MSG, Iron Maiden and UFO.
It is a brilliant song, a story written in about five minutes by Neil and with a scorching lead break just before the climax to the song. Fantastic and included here as much for the significance of my intro to Rush as anything else.
1. Witch Hunt – Moving Pictures
As relevant today as it was in 1981, the message in the fourth song I have included from Moving Pictures is clear. Intolerance and discrimination remain a threat to society.
Although the mob sounds were the band and crew and a bottle of scotch, the significance of the song is clear. Another deeply dark and sinister track, it has always been my favourite Rush song and happily sits at No. 1.
