Listening to Caress of Steel today is an odd task. Their next record wound up spelling trouble for the band. The group’s record company weren’t terribly keen on the new direction but allowed the band the creative freedom they wanted in their follow up. ‘Anthem’ saw Rush burn through a mind-bending opening section, while side one ended with their first multi-part epic, ‘By-Tor and the Snow Dog’. The most obvious addition was Peart, whose drumming was more technically proficient and painstakingly precise than Rutsey’s, but also in the band’s compositions and arranging. Those who listened to Fly By Night might have heard a change in the band’s sound. They recorded Fly By Night over the course of one month, and the band continued on their upward trajectory.

They also needed to return to the studio quickly in order to capitalise on the success of their debut and have a record out by the start of 1975. Musical differences, health issues, and personal problems led to original drummer John Rutsey’s removal in 1974, and with just two weeks to rehearse before going on tour, the band quickly hired Neil Peart without any indication that this lineup would gel as personalities, much less last another four decades. Held up as the Canadian version of Led Zeppelin, Rush were quickly booked as opening acts for artists like Uriah Heap and Kiss.īut all was not well. After slogging it out in bars across Toronto as teenagers, the band financed and recorded their own debut album that eventually picked up steam across the border in the United States.

That being said, they had found a fair bit of personal and professional success up to that point.

Rush were still a group finding their feet in 1975.

By tor and the snow dog