Listening now, it's hard to believe that this was ever Rush...sort of. On some level it sounds like the rest of their seventies output: Geddy's distinctive vocals, Alex's Gibson ES-335, the crisp and clear production courtesy of Terry Brown and the band themselves. The biggest difference would be the songs. They are all very much in line with the Kiss, Bad Company, and Free side of seventies album rock. The guitars are loud, fast, and heavily indebted to hard rock/blues licks and riffs and are void of the immense and (almost always) successful experimentation that characterizes virtually all of their other albums. The songs are often about the average concerns of the average teenager (maybe the average working age adult, especially in the case of "Working Man"). On some level, this makes them more relatable to the average listener which is certainly good for them. One has to wonder if the Rush that could have been if Neil Peart hadn't joined the band wouldn't have been the preferred Rush to so many people. But this is meandering speculation. Not worth it. And besides, much of the same can be heard by bands who were much better at it than they were on this album, like Heart, Thin Lizzy, and Kiss for example. That and one gets the impression that the lyrics are more or less them trying to fit in with the demands of the musical market of the time rather than them just being themselves (which in the long run turned out to be best for their careers and their legacy). They were more about guitars and songs than they were chicks and booze apparently.
What to say of John Rutsey? A good drummer, but in comparison to Neil Peart who, if Geddy and Alex weren't in the band, would BE Rush the way Trent Reznor IS Nine Inch Nails, is forgettable. Their Spinal Tap moment if you wanna be really mean about it. He left the band due to poor health after the tour for this album and apparently went into body building. Good for him. Too bad he didn't continue as a drummer for someone else. He was good and probably would have gotten better. He would have made a good punk drummer.
Speaking of "Working Man":
"It seems to me
I could live my life
a lot better than I think I am.
I guess that’s why they call me,
they call me the workin’ man."
Wilhelm Reich would know what to do. Leave it to Rush to accidentally (I bet) write lyrics that address the objective conditions of the American proletariat during the welfare state age. But, as you could probably guess, the song is only so subversive and should not be confused with actually subversive music (so the Liberal Reptilians who started Covid-19 don't sacrifice all who read this review and don't eliminate "Working Man" from all classic rock frequencies because, and I repeat, "Working Man" lacks the necessary conditions to be truly subversive, ideological or otherwise). Thank you. Goodnight.
Rating: 3/5 because the songs are fine but are better left to others. "Working Man" (not subversive) is quintessential guitar rock. "Finding My Way" is retroactively clever because this is not the Rush we all know and love. The opening riff is also a really great moment for Alex.
Tracklist:
1) Finding My Way
2) Need Some Love
3) Take a Friend
4) Here Again
5) What You're Doing
6) In the Mood
7) Before and After
8) Working Man