The Spirit Of Radio: Greatest Hits 1974-1987

I wasn't alone. When Rush were nominated for Best New Band at the Junos (Canada's Grammy awards), they lost to the ever popular Myles & Lenny. Inexplicably nominated in the same category the next year, they lost again.

But someone was listening...

Rush toured and toured, putting on phenomenal shows, playing with ever-increasing virtuousity and writing the most intelligent songs in the hard rock genre.

They hold the record, by a wide margin, of most consecutive Billboard top 10 albums by a heavy metal act. Including Led Zeppelin.

Several reviewers have complained that the tracklisting for this set is also available on Chronicles, a 2-CD set. True, but this set isn't for completists. The songs alone rate 5-stars, regardless of how often they are repackaged.

Ironically the song "The Spirit Of Radio", for which the album was named, was the slogan of radio station CFNY in Toronto. The station played an eclectic mix new wave, punk, and obscure album tracks, not the big heavy metal acts of the day that Rush, rightly or wrongly, was categorized as being amongst.

CFNY never played Rush.

But most other Toronto stations did, effectively giving free advertising to a competitor.


Essential Rush!!   May 15, 2003
Louie Bourland (Garden Grove CA)
11 out of 12 found this review helpful

The latest Rush compilation "The Spirit of Radio" covers the band's years with Mercury Records from 1974 to 1987. During this period, the band churned out classic after classic beginning with their hard-hitting debut album, followed by the equalling hard-hitting "Fly by night" and "Caress of Steel". Then it was off into prog-rock territory with the classic trilogy of "2112", "A Farewell To Kings" and "Hemispheres". This was followed by two more progressive style albums "Permanent Waves" and the great "Moving Pictures". Following this was the more synthetic album "Signals". The final trilogy consisting of "Grace Under Pressure", "Power Windows" and "Hold Your Fire" finds the band leaving behind the heavy rock and progressive elements and merging into a unique brand of power-pop-rock. This is where the 'classic' Rush years ended. "The Spirit of Radio" compilation beautifully covers this period beginning with "Working Man" from the first album and ending with "Time Stand Still" from "Hold Your Fire". Inbetween, we hear classics such as "Closer To The Heart", "The Trees", an extract from "2112", "Freewill", "Limelight" and "Tom Sawyer". The only albums which this compilation skips over are the three live albums "All The Worlds A Stage", "Exit Stage Left" and "A Show of Hands" and the 1975 studio album "Caress Of Steel". It hardly seems to matter though because this compilation clocks in 8-seconds short of a solid 80-minutes. Every single track on this CD is something special from a special time. I have my own personal memories when I hear Rush from these years. This is a must-have for any Rush fan and also serves as an ideal introduction to the band if one has never heard them before. This is music for, like the old Rush song says, "Making Memories".


Straightforward Hits   February 19, 2006
Frighteneer (Cincinnati)
7 out of 7 found this review helpful

Looking for a simple collection of Rush hits? This is it. While not as comprehensive as some others, particularly "Chronicles", this cd delivers exactly what it intends to-a brief retrospective of their most familiar songs and radio hits. The low price also makes this a great buy for any casual fan.


Sure to please most people. ^^   August 20, 2003
Tricia Bayfield (Aurora, IL)
6 out of 6 found this review helpful

I became interested in Rush about 5 months ago, and one day I was looking for a new album to add to my small collection. So one day, I picked up this CD and started listening to it.

I absolutely loved it.

Some of the songs I had heard on the radio before, so I recognized them, and there were some "new" ones to me. I can tell why they were the greatest hits at the time.

I had considered getting "Chronicles" instead, since it had more songs and it wasn't much more expensive where I bought it. But I already had a bunch of the songs on different CDs, so I thought it would be kind of a waste. So instead, I got "The Spirit of Radio" (plus it was on sale :D)

I think the reason I like this compilation of songs is...well, not only are the classics, but the melodies, lyrics, and overall moods are so different. I mean, not all of them are as hard rocking as "Working Man" and "Tom Sawyer", or as soft (for lack of a better word) as "The Trees" or "Time Stand Still". I have shown this CD to several friends of mine with very different musical tastes and every single person has found something they liked.

I rate this CD a 4 1/2 (since they didn't have halves, I just put 5) overall. Because even though I love this CD and the songs make me happy and such, there are songs that could have been taken off and I wouldn't mind (i.e. Red Barchetta and The Big Money...not that these songs are bad, I just would like to hear Xanadu or La Villa or something like that)

I recommend this CD to anyone, newbie fans especially (like meee! =b).

~Amy Rose