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Exit...Stage Left | 
| Artist: Rush
Label: Island / Mercury
Category: Music
List Price: $13.98
Buy New: $9.97
You Save: $4.01 (29%)
Rating:  107 reviews
Sales Rank: 45867
Format: Live, Original Recording Reissued, Original Recording Remastered
Media: Audio CD
Discs: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.2
Dimensions (in): 5.6 x 5 x 0.5
MPN: 534632
UPC: 731453463226
EAN: 0731453463226
ASIN: B000001ESR
Release Date: July 1, 1997
Shipping: Eligible for Super Saver Shipping
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| Tracks:
| • | The Spirit Of The Radio | | • | Red Barchetta | | • | YYZ | | • | A Passage To Bangkok | | • | Closer To The Heart | | • | Beneath, Between & Behind | | • | Jacob's Ladder | | • | Broon's Bane | | • | The Trees | | • | Xanadu | | • | Freewill | | • | Tom Sawyer | | • | La Villa Strangiato |
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| Editorial Reviews:
Amazon.com
Throughout their existence, the Canadian power-prog trio has steadfastly released a lengthy live collection every fifth album. Released in 1981, Exit is Rush's second (and best) such release, and it captures the band at the very top of its artistic (and commercial) curve--before keyboard and synthesizer work became central to its sound as opposed to providing mere accents. When they embarked on this tour, Rush had just released Moving Pictures, which continued their move away from longer suites and featured more streamlined song craft. Exit, however, offers a perfect blend of winding, fusion-leaning, virtuoso instrumentals ("YYZ," "La Villa Strangiato"), extended sci-fi epics ("Jacob's Ladder," "Xanadu"), sentimental ballads ("Closer to the Heart" in unison with the whole crowd, "The Trees"), and tauter songs ("Free Will," "Tom Sawyer," "Spirit of Radio") that represent the best of all worlds. Musically, they generated a huge amount of sound for three men (especially Geddy Lee's mammoth bass lines and Neil Peart's octopus-like percussion); lyrically, Peart's fantasia may be pseudo-poetry, but it is poetic, and it may be adolescent wisdom, but it is wise. --Marc Greilsamer
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| Customer Reviews: Read 102 more reviews...
 A great follow up to 'All The World's A Stage'! April 21, 2008
Johnny Boy (Hockessin, DE)
Rush is one of those great bands that knows how to put out a great live album. They proved that in the late '70s with 'All The World's A Stage' and proved it again in 1982 with 'Exit...Stage Left.'
This was recorded on the 'Moving Pictures' tour. Neil, Geddy and Alex jam here, just like on the previous live album, and perform concert classics like 'Tom Sawyer,' 'The Spirit of Radio,' and 'Xanadu' brilliantly.
'A Passage To Bangkok' is far superior to the studio version. This is just a great version, and this version was so good, Mercury put it on their 1992 compilation 'Chronicles.'
Overall, if you like Rush and great live records, than you'll love 'Exit.' It's a classic. And Mercury did a great job remastering this. In translation, the sound quality is unbeatable!
Highly recommended for any Rush fan or anybody who likes classic live records. It's a classic. ENJOY!!!
 Lifeless mix dulls potentially interesting material December 27, 2007
Carl Freire (California and Japan)
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
First, let me state right up that I'm not a huge Rush fan, so take my comments with that grain of salt right up front. Still, when I was in my teens and learning to play guitar, "Spirit of Radio" and "Tom Sawyer" were pretty hard to avoid on the radio (they may still be hard to avoid on the radio, but having given up on commercial radio some time in the early to mid-1980s, I really have no idea). They sounded pretty rad to me, and yet once you learned the trick they weren't all that hard to play, either, so I listened intently and eventually got around to buying the vinyl version of this disk.
The songs: I go back and forth on this band. If you know anything about playing guitar or bass, then you know that--horror of horrors for true Rush-ophiles--Rush actually does write pretty simple music. What makes it seem like it's not simple is that there's lots of arpeggiation and Neal Peart being, well, Neil Peart. This is not meant as a putdown--not everyone can write complex prog rock like Yes in their heyday, say, or King Crimson, nor should they. What Rush did, and I guess still does, works more than well enough; moreover, it was pretty easy for me to think I sounded cool and even vaguely metallic playing along to this stuff on an acoustic guitar in my pre-electric days. The selection of songs seems to be pretty good, mixing the more melodic numbers with a few extended suite-like pieces. Even though my musical tastes have gone elsewhere, it's good enough to still engage my interest every now and again two decades down the road.
The disk itself: now we get to the problem. Big caveat: I haven't heard the CD remaster, but there was one thing I always hated about the vinyl version that wasn't fixed with the first CD release and that's the terrible mix. This is lifeless. The guitar and bass just aren't loud enough, while Peart's drums seem to float on top of everything. The studio versions of most of these songs sound more energetic and better balanced, so now that we're in the digital era I was finally able to just create my own "Exit Stage Studio" collection so I could listen to these songs and not get irritated. With the exception here of "YYZ," improvisation and ad lib aren't part of the Rush picture anyway, at least on this record, so it's not as though you miss out on some amazing jams by listening to the studio versions. To my ears, the band just doesn't sound especially pumped up on the live versions anyway, though as to how much that can be blamed on the inferior mix I really can't say. But I was amazed at how much more lively the studio versions sounded in comparison.
In sum, the songs are probably compelling enough if Rush or metallic prog is your sort of thing--it's not mine anymore, but as I said I still find this interesting so take that as you will. If you've already got the studio recordings, I don't think you would miss much if you skipped this. If you don't and are curious about what Rush sounded like at this time, the group of songs here make a good "best of" collection, but I'd try to check samples of the tracks first to see if the actual sound of the recordings works for you. Maybe the bad mix was fixed with the remasters, but the bad mix on the original is why this disk gets 3 stars instead of 4.
Not just one of the best live albums ever, but one of the best ever PERIOD December 17, 2007
spiritual seeker
Before I got this album for my birthday, I had only heard songs like "Tom Sawyer" and "Working Man" and was never really into Rush. One night I decided to relax in my room, put on my headphones, and listen to the album straight through. WOW.
"Spirit of Radio" - terrific opening song, especially the way it just abruptly starts with that awesome riff. I haven't heard different versions of this song, but I think it's safe to say the band is totally together and knows what they're doing to start a concert with this. 9/10
"Red Barchetta" - this one drags on a little bit too long, but is nicely sprinkled with mini-solos throughout from all players. It has a nice "driving" beat (pun intended) and is overall musically good, but just a tad bland. 7.5/10
"YYZ" - How amazing this would've been in concert I'll never know. Without Geddy Lee's vocals, you see how terrific all 3 musicians are. Great guitar work, unbelievable bass (especially the part right before the drum solo), and the SICK drum solo in the middle. It sounds like four people playing every type of percussion instrument ever made. I don't know how Peart does it, but this is probably the best drum solo I've ever heard. 9.5/10
"Passage to Bangkok" - It's pretty hard to follow up such an amazing instrumental, but I feel Rush could've done a better job with this. It's just an OK song, nothing that catchy, but it does have one of the many kickass guitar solos Lifeson shreds in this concert. 7/10
"Closer To The Heart" - I can see why this radio-friendly hit was popular, but it never connects with me. Good lyrics and obviously great playing, but not one of my favorites. Luckily it has an excellent transition to the next song. 6.5/10
"Beneath, Between and Behind" - Pretty bland, actually. Sounds like a mix of a lot of Rush hits with nothing that special or distinctive. 6/10
"Jacob's Ladder" - Here's where the album starts to pick up for an incredible second half. I always love songs with many different parts (a la Pink Floyd) and this one is no exception. Bizarre time signatures are a Rush staple, and the 13/8 in this song is played flawlessly. Peart just has a natural ability to stay with these off-putting beats but manages to fool you into thinking it's easy. It's one of the more trippy Rush songs yet is musically genius and just brilliant. 10/10
"Broon's Bane/Trees" - "Bane" is a beautiful classical-sounding piece played with much power by Lifeson. It transitions awesomely into "Trees" which is simply a good old rock song. Nothing much to say that hasn't been said - complex rhythms, screaming guitar, fantastic drum and bass. 8.5/10
"Xanadu" - following a flawless transition into a trippy Phish sounding intro sets up one of the best live rock epics. Seriously, I can't believe they pulled off something this massive in concert. Like I said before, I love songs with many different parts. After the trippy part comes the part that begs to be played at full volume. While after Lee sings Xanadu is a little anticlimatic as it goes right back into verses, it's still great. The last few minutes are an awesome jam and it ends on a crazy chord that they hold and have fun with for about 20 seconds. 10/10
"Freewill" - signature Rush sound right here. 5/4, 7/8 time sigs are present, great instrument work. It's pretty hard to talk about this sound, but if you like Rush's hits even a little bit this is sure to suffice. 9/10
"Tom Sawyer" - my favorite Rush hit, it's got awesome synth, great lyrics and knows how to rock. You all know the song, and this version will not disappoint.
"La Villa Strangiato" - well, it looks they saved the best for last. Kickass opening guitar solo; it's a shame that Geddy Lee and Neal Peart seem to steal all the thunder when Alex Lifeson can shred like this. This song builds and builds and then changes to a minor key that ends with a guitar solo that really has tons of emotional power. A terrific three-part song, and a perfect way to close out one of the best concerts recorded on CD.
Overall, excellent, excellent album, especially if you let it play through just to hear some of the greatest rock transitions this side of "Dark Side". It's great to hear progressive rock sound like this and how well it holds up more than 25 years later. This is also a good album if you're just getting into Rush, as it's accessible and is a true showcase for this brilliant Canadian trio.
Arguably Rush's best live album to many November 7, 2007
Terrence J. Reardon (Port Saint Lucie, FL)
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
Canadian power trio rockers Rush's tenth album entitled Exit...Stage Left was released in October of 1981.
Exit...Stage Left was Rush's second double live album and the album took its title from the old Hanna-Barbera cartoon character Snagglepuss' classic quote.
Exit...Stage Left is my third favorite live Rush album of the seven Rush albums out (I like Different Stages and Snakes and Arrows Live a tad more due to the fact that they are raw sounding and you can hear the crowd singing loudly on each of those) and I first heard most of the album on a now-defunct radio station in Boston in May of 1990 and got on cassette in July of 1990 and subsequently the remastered CD.
The bulk of this album (sides 1,3 and 4 on the original vinyl) were recorded on the band's 1981 tour in support of their Moving Pictures album in Canada (which consist of spirited versions of "The Spirit of Radio", "Red Barchetta", "YYZ" (with drummer Neil Peart's classic drum solo and arguably his most famous drum solo of his), the "Broon's Bane" guitar solo of guitarist Alex Lifeson's, "The Trees", a 12 minue plus "Xanadu" (originally found on 1977's A Farewell to Kings), "Freewill", "Tom Sawyer" and "La Villa Strangiato") with four tracks (side 2 of the original vinyl album) recorded in the UK on the European leg of the band's 1980 Permanent Waves tour (these include a stellar "A Passage to Bangkok" (which was inexplicably removed off of the original CD due to time constraints (reinstated on the remastered CD), "Closer to the Heart" (with the Glaswegian (as in Glasgow, Scotland) crowd singing in unison with the band), "Beneath, Between and Behind" and a nine minute "Jacob's Ladder" with a nice instrumental intro and bass player/singer/keyboard player Geddy Lee crediting this track to T.C. Broonsie (a pseudonym for producer Terry Brown (whom produced this live album and had a hand in some capacity on all of their first 11 albums)).
There were some complaints from some fans that Rush had overpolished the tracks on this album (re-recorded bits of a solo or vocal but not the whole songs like KISS did on Alive in 1975 and Rush admitted this in all interviews unlike KISS whom waited 28 years to come clean) and faded out the live noise which was done even more so on 1989's A Show of Hands which had worse twinkering than this.
Despite this, Exit...Stage Left reached #10 on the Billboard album chart upon its release and was Rush's fourth Platinum album of 1981 (the only band that accomplished this feat then) and was the band's third Top 10 album in a row and another great live album in the pantheon of rock and roll.
Highly recommended!
 The Closing of Rush's Progressive Era October 12, 2007
Richard Thompson (El Paso, Texas)
This is part two of a comprehensive four part series of Music Reviews of the Progressive Rock band Rush. When a band has been around as long as RUSH has (30 years), their styles will change just as their clothing and hairstyles. I group the bands second five releases into what I call their "Mid-Era Progressive" phase. These albums include: A Farewell to Kings (1977), Hemispheres (1978), Permanent Waves (1980), Moving Pictures (1981) and Exit Stage Left "Live" (1981)
Rush ends this chapter of their musical career with... what else? A Live album that captures the band's latest and most extensive tour yet, the Moving Pictures tour. Which rolled right into the Exit Stage Left tour in October of 1981. Featuring recordings from both the previous Permanent Waves tour and the Moving Pictures tour, Exit Stage Left is Rush's second official live release and is considered by many fans as the band's best ever live offering.
Exit is a very nice cross-section of songs from their latest album to selected classics from their progressive era. 4 1/2 stars actually.
Best Tracks: Xanadu and La Villa Strangiato Live
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