Rush, Guitar-Tab Edition (Guitar Anthology Series) [Paperback]

Rush (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 1, 1999

Note-for-note transcriptions of all of Alex Lifeson's licks on 20 songs from 11 albums by this superstar Toronto trio. Includes: Closer to the Heart * Cold Fire * Distant Early Warning * Dreamline * Free Will * La Villa Stangiato * New World Man * A Passage to Bangkok * Red Barchetta * Red Sector A * Roll the Bones * Show Don't Tell * The Spirit of the Radio * Stick It Out * Tom Sawyer * The Trees * Working Man * YYZ * Xanadu.

Editorial Reviews

From the Publisher

Twenty titles from 11 albums. Includes: A Passage to Bangkok * Closer to the Heart * Cold Fire * Distant Early Warning * Dreamline * Freewill * New World Man * Red Barchetta * Red Sector A * Roll the Bones * The Spirit of the Radio * The Trees * Tom Sawyer * Working Man * YYZ * Xanadu.

About the Author

Ian Rush was born in St Asaph, Wales. He joined Liverpool from Chester City in 1980 and other than his single season with Juventus (1987-88), played for the Reds until 1996, making his final bow as a player in 2000. Rush's achievements include being Liverpool's all-time greatest goalscorer, the record Welsh international goalscorer, the leading 20th-century goalscorer in the FA Cup and all-time record FA Cup Final goalscorer, the joint-highest goalscorer in the League Cup, and winning five League Championships, three FA Cups and a European Cup. Not to mention Footballer of the Year, the European Golden Boot, various PFA Player of the Year awards and an MBE for services to football. Following retirement as a player he achieved the UEFA Pro Licence and has since become one of the most respected coaches in the game, working with strikers under Gerard Houllier at Liverpool and currently as Elite Performance Director with the Welsh FA Trust. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Paperback: 224 pages
• Publisher: Warner Bros Pubns (November 1, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0897249356
• ISBN-13: 978-0897249355
• Product Dimensions: 11.9 x 8.9 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #642,919 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Learn To Play Rush Tunes Note For Note... Not From This Book, April 10, 2009

By 

YJM "amazon fan" (Somewhere In The South) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Rush, Guitar-Tab Edition (Guitar Anthology Series) (Paperback)

There are a couple of guitar players who music has eluded the pages of guitar tab magazines or books for the most part. Artists that come to mind are Allan Holdsworth, Frank Gambale, Shawn Lane, Greg Howe, John Sykes, George Lynch and Alex Lifeson. Yes, every now and then you'll catch a tune by one of those artists transcribed in a random guitar mag, but it's rare, and if you do it's even more rare it will be transcribed correctly. I think it's a combination of the aforementioned artists having very unorthodox playing styles and/or not being part of the mainstream. The Japanese have done a much better job of honoring those muscians with accurate tab book and magazine transcriptions and I recommend you hit up Ebay for those. But here in the states it's a sad state of affairs.

Alex Lifeson is one rock guitarist who has managed to integrate complex chords and rhythms into his playing and still have it sound rocking. His solos are also very original and unorthodox sounding. His chord work often makes uses of suspended forms, various seventh chords, and lots of open string combined with fretted notes to produce a "big" sound in a trio setting. His stuff is deceptively tricky to figure out by ear alone, and that is reflected in the quality of transcribed Rush music. This book is no better. Another reviewer put it very well when he said you may use this book to get songs that sound similar, but they will be nowhere near the way Alex plays them. If you're okay with that, and you simply want to play along to Rush records and sound a little like the album you will love this book. The song selection is great, everything a Rush fan could hope for. If you however are looking for a book that contains extremely accurate Rush transcriptions look elsewhere.

I'm hoping one day Rush's early work is given the proper transcription justice it deserves. I would love to see 2112, Farewell to Kings, Hemispheres, Permanent Waves, Moving Pictures, Exit Stage Left, Signals, and Power Windows committed to print by a knowledgeable transcriber, but I won't hold my breath. It's been 34 years since 2112 was released and there has been no such Rush transcription book in that time, I'm not counting on there being any in the next 34 years either.

NOTE: The Moving Pictures tab book that has been re-released by Alfred Publishing is terrible, and is the same sort of Lifeson botch job found in other Rush transcriptions. I know Snakes and Arrows has been given a tab book treatment, but the last Rush album I enjoyed was Hold Your Fire which came out in 1987, so I can't comment on the quality of that book.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A definite must-have for all prog rockers, November 18, 2005

A Kid's Review

This review is from: Rush, Guitar-Tab Edition (Guitar Anthology Series) (Paperback)

I've always loved to play guitar as well as keyboard. This book was very satisfying and when you see the details and complexities of Alex Lifeson's riffs and solos, you realize how underrated he is. The tablature makes it very easy for anyone to learn, particularly for beginniners. My only real complaint is that the book really should have had at least 5 more songs or so. The book does include 20 of Rush's greatest hits, all of them worth learning, but you can't help noticing that songs like Cygnus X-1 and 2112 are missing. Don't get me wrong, this is still a great book, and it even transcribes most of the keyboard/synth and bass guitar parts for guitar, which can help you stay with the music. For Rush fans as well as prog rockers who want to challenge themselves, this book is a trip worth taking.

15 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Rushed attempt at transcription, April 29, 2002

By 

"hduluard" (OH) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Rush, Guitar-Tab Edition (Guitar Anthology Series) (Paperback)

The transcriptions in this book may provide one with the ability to play something that sounds something like the recordings, but are not completely accurate. Tones are missing. Fingerings are incorrect. One may argue that the musicial notation is somewhat accurate, but the tablature seems to indicate that it was produced only by translating the notes, not by listening to the recordings (e.g., by listening to the recording one could determine whether a note was played higher on a low string or lower on a higher string).
Pass on this book if you wish to play a Rush song exactly as recorded. Instead, look to back issues of guitar magazines (especially Guitar for the Practicing Musician, no longer in print).