This month, I’m jumping into the #APlaceInTheSong challenge from @JukeboxJohnny2. Great songs have that special ability to describe places in a way that makes us feel like we’re right there. Each day, I’ll pick a track that I think accomplishes that feat.
It’s quite appropos that one of the key entry points into the catalog of one of Canada’s greatest rock bands of all time is named after the international code for Toronto’s main airport. Moving Pictures – like The Wall or Led Zeppelin IV – was a gateway album for me. But here’s the difference for me. Not only did Moving Pictures get me into the greater Rush canon, it helped solidify my passion for music, for life. While it was much more mainstream than a 2112 or Hemispheres, it was still largely progressive in so many ways. The lyrics. The song composition. The experimentalism. Only “The Camera Eye” clocked in at over ten minutes. But “YYZ” felt like an epic, “2112 Side A”-level affair compacted into four minutes.
Absolutely mammoth. Geddy’s bass lines run at impossibly fast lightning speed. Alex takes full advantage of the song’s instrumental nature, delivering one monster riff after another, culminating in his solo at the 2:20 mark. As for Neil, no corner of his drum kit is spared on this track. He uses everything at his disposal. The piece's introduction, played in a time signature of 10/8, repeatedly renders "Y-Y-Z" in Morse Code using various musical arrangements. From there, the greatest track lets loose, daring countless musicians to try their own rendition, including Taylor Hawkins of the Foo Fighters, Dream Theater, Primus and Muse. “YYZ” has become a sort of rite of passage for both musicians and fans alike.