I heard the band Rush for the first time when I was a teenager. I was at a friend’s house, and his brother put on a vinyl album onto a seriously cool (and amazing-sounding) hi-fi stereo system.  The sounds from those speakers perked my ears up, and I was transported to another place and time. Hey, I was probably consuming an adult beverage or whatnot, but regardless, the sound was like nothing I had heard before. And every other sound in the basement became muted because all I could hear was this band’s music.

The album was Caress of Steel. Wow!

 

This song blew me away!

The Necromancer: I. Into the Darkness

As grey traces of dawn tinge the eastern sky
The three travelers, men of Willowdale
Emerge from the forest shadow
Fording the river Dawn, they turn south
Journeying into the dark and forbidding lands of the necromancer

Even now the intensity of his dread power can be felt
Weakening the body and saddening the heart
Ultimately they will become empty, mindless spectres
Stripped of will and soul
Only their thirst for freedom
Gives them hunger for vengeance

Silence shrouds the forest
As the birds announce the dawn
Three travellers ford the river
And southward journey on

The road is lined with peril
The air is charged with fear
The shadow of his nearness
Weighs like iron tears

Shreds of black cloud loom in overcast skies
The necromancer keeps watch with his magic prism eyes
He views all his lands and is already aware
Of the three helpless invaders trapped in his lair

Brooding in the tower
Watching over his lands
Holding ev’ry creature
Helplessly they stand

Gaze into his prisms
Knowing they are near
Lead them to the dungeons
Spectres numb with fear
They bow defeated

Enter the champion
Prince By-Tor appears to battle for freedom
From chains of long years
The spell has been broken
The Dark Lands are bright
The wraith of the necromancer soars away in the night

Stealthily attacking
By-Tor slays his foe
The men are free to run now
From labyrinths below

The wraith of necromancer
Shadows through the sky
Another land to darken
With evil prism eye, oh

Source: Musixmatch

Songwriters: Alex Lifeson / Neil Peart / Geddy Lee Weinrib

The Necromancer: I. Into the Darkness / II. Under the Shadow / III. Return of the Prince lyrics © Ole Core Music Publishing, Anthem Core Music Publishing

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Holy smokes, I was hooked! I needed more of this Rush music. And from then on, I listened and enjoyed every moment. Seeing them live was like I expected – the perfection of deeply entertaining rock music. Three guys put their heads together and created some of the world’s (hell Universe’s) most exciting and well-performed music. They opened their minds and understood that music is a reflection of a soul, not notes or beats on an instrument.

Rush has been my musical inspiration. Neil Peart is my hero as a lyricist.

Thank you for reading.

To hoping music inspires you,

Francesca