Moving Pictures (Rush album)

In June 1980, the band ended their 10-month tour of the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom in support of their previous album, Permanent Waves (1980). The tour was a commercial success for the group, becoming the first of their career to earn them a profit. During their stop in New York City a month prior, the band decided to scrap plans for a second live album in favor of making a new one in the studio. Cliff Burnstein of Mercury Records suggested the idea to the band, and Neil Peart was particularly enthusiastic about the new ideas that were being developed at sound checks and was keen to put them to tape. Geddy Lee and Alex Lifeson caught on to his enthusiasm.{{cite web |url=http://www.2112.net/powerwindows/movingpictures.html#tourbook |title=Moving Pictures Tourbook – A Rush Newsreel |first=Neil |last=Peart |publisher=2112.net |access-date=September 23, 2017 |archive-date=September 24, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170924045514/http://www.2112.net/powerwindows/movingpictures.html#tourbook |url-status=live }} The trio pitched the idea to their manager and producer, who had already mapped out a two-year plan for them, but agreed to the change and cancelled the schedule.{{cite magazine |url=http://www.2112.net/powerwindows/transcripts/19810100musicexpress.htm |title=Inside Rush's Moving Pictures |first1=Greg |last1=Quill |first2=Keith |last2=Sharp |magazine=Music Express |volume=5 |issue=44 |date=January 1981 |access-date=September 23, 2017 |archive-date=September 24, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170924184327/http://www.2112.net/powerwindows/transcripts/19810100musicexpress.htm |url-status=live }} Lifeson looked back on this change of plan as the most important one in the band's history since the decision to record 2112 (1976), which became their breakthrough hit. Prior to starting on the album, Rush joined fellow Canadian rock band Max Webster to play on "Battle Scar", a track for their album Universal Juveniles (1980). During the sessions their lyricist Pye Dubois suggested a song that he thought was suitable for Rush; this was developed into "Tom Sawyer", the opening track on Moving Pictures.

The band retreated to Stony Lake, Ontario to write and develop new material. The sessions were productive. "The Camera Eye" was the first song to be worked on, followed by "Tom Sawyer", "Red Barchetta", the instrumental "YYZ", and "Limelight". Lee noticed a change in Peart's lyrics during this time, which had started with Permanent Waves, towards more concise and direct words. Following these sessions, Rush returned to Phase One Studios in late August 1980 with their longtime co-producer Terry Brown and prepared demos of these songs. The tracks were refined further during subsequent rehearsals for a series of warm-up shows across the US in September and October 1980, during which "Tom Sawyer" and "Limelight" were performed live for the first time.

Moving Pictures was recorded at Le Studio in Morin-Heights, Quebec in October and November 1980. Rush and Brown worked with 48-track recording for the first time. They'd record the basic tracks - drums and bass - to one 24-track tape reel, and transfer a stereo mix of these to a second 24-track reel for overdubs. This allowed them to wanted to preserve the quality of their recordings as much as possible, placing the original backing track reel in storage until the mixing stage, thereby reducing potential damage to the tape from frequent playback. They experimented with a pressure zone microphone, a type of boundary microphone that picks up direct sound and no reverberated signals, that was taped onto Peart's chest as he played the drums. The audio captured from it was used to pick up the ambience in the studio room and inserted into the final mix. Peart is seen wearing the microphone in the music video for "Vital Signs". The album was mixed down onto a Sony digital mastering machine, being an early example of digital recording. However, the completion of the album was delayed by two weeks due to technical issues in the studio, including with the Sony unit.

"Tom Sawyer" features a backbeat in a {{music|time|4|4}} time signature, along with instrumental and closing sections in {{music|time|7|8}}. It was the first Rush recording for which Lee used his 1972 Fender Jazz Bass, which provided a punchier lower end than he had been able to obtain with his usual Rickenbacker 4001.{{cite web |last1=Lee |first1=Geddy |title=Rush's Geddy Lee on his Fender USA Geddy Lee Jazz Bass – Fender |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=04Ekje672mo |website=YouTube |date=April 30, 2015 |publisher=Fender |access-date=29 September 2020 |archive-date=June 24, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200624052221/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=04Ekje672mo |url-status=live }} The bass became Lee's primary studio instrument from the recording of Counterparts (1993) onward. Lee said the group had more trouble with "Tom Sawyer" than any other song on Moving Pictures, and at times had doubts as to whether it would work. The band had technical difficulties with the computer that mixed the tracks, so they decided to manually operate the mixing desk with each member handling their own set of faders. Peart described it as "an enjoyable work" which took around a day and a half to record, "collapsing afterwards with raw, red, aching hands and feet". Its instrumental section grew from what Lee would play on his synthesiser during sound checks on tour, which initially was forgotten about until the band traded ideas on what the section should be. It became one of the group's best-known songs and a mainstay of subsequent live shows. The song was used as the opening music to the Brazilian dub of the spy TV show MacGyver.

Peart's lyrics for "Red Barchetta" were inspired by the short story "A Nice Morning Drive" by Richard S. Foster, originally written in the November 1973 edition of the American car magazine Road & Track.{{cite web|url=http://www.2112.net/xanadu/articles/a_nice_morning_drive.htm|title=A Nice Morning Drive|work=2112.net|access-date=January 19, 2005|archive-date=February 5, 2005|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050205100334/http://www.2112.net/xanadu/articles/a_nice_morning_drive.htm|url-status=live}} Lee described the tale as "Orwellian in nature" which deals with an individual taking their Barchetta on a fast ride despite the banning of high speeds and is chased after by hovering patrol cars for breaking the law. Instead of an MGB roadster as featured in the original story, Peart reported the Ferrari 166 MM Barchetta was the car that inspired the song's title. In 2007, Foster and Peart met for the first time and shared their mutual interest of BMW motorcycles, which was documented in an article titled "The Drummer, The Private Eye, and Me".

"YYZ" is an instrumental titled after the IATA airport code for Toronto Pearson International Airport; its rhythm is that of the letters "YYZ" in Morse code ({{Morse|dash|dot|dash|dash}}{{morse|dash|dot|dash|dash}}{{morse||dash|dash|dot|dot}}).{{cite web |url=http://www.2112.net/powerwindows/transcripts/19821200moderndrummer.htm |title=Notes on the Making of Moving Pictures by Neil Peart |publisher=2112.net |first=Kevin |last=Jowers |access-date=September 23, 2017 |archive-date=September 24, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170924045516/http://www.2112.net/powerwindows/transcripts/19821200moderndrummer.htm |url-status=live }} It stemmed from the band's enjoyment of recording "La Villa Strangiato", a nine-minute instrumental on Hemispheres (1978); it was something they wanted to do again for Moving Pictures, only shorter. The music originated while Lee and Peart were jamming as a warm-up, during which Lee came up with the main riff and Peart suggested to have a more mellow section with Lee playing keyboards. "And then, almost out of nowhere, we had this song."

The lyrics for "Limelight" are autobiographical and based on Peart's own dissatisfaction with fame and its intrusion into one's personal life. The song contains two self-references: the first, the line "living in a fish-eye lens, caught in the camera eye" references the album's following track, "The Camera Eye", while the line "all the world's indeed a stage, and we are merely players", references the title of the band's first live album All the World's a Stage (1976), itself taken from William Shakespeare's comedy play As You Like It.

"The Camera Eye" is a two-part track with sections unofficially titled "New York City" and "London". Peart wrote the lyrics after taking walks in both cities, recalling observations and the rhythms he felt during them. It was the final song the band included on a studio album with a length of over ten minutes, something which was a frequent occurrence on their earlier albums. Its title refers to short pieces of the same name in the U.S.A. trilogy of novels written by American writer John Dos Passos, which Peart admired.{{cite book |title=Rush – Updated Edition: The Unofficial Illustrated History |last1=Popoff |first1=Martin |last2=Graff |first2=Gary |page=71 |publisher=Voyageur Press |date=1 June 2016 |isbn=9780760349953}} The opening of the track features an audio clip of a busy Metropolis city from Richard Donner's Superman (1978)

"Witch Hunt" opens with faint voices which were recorded on the driveway Le Studio in sub-zero temperatures, with the band and studio staff shouting in a humorous way while drinking Scotch whisky. Lifeson said one of his lines, "Fucking football", can be heard if the listener tries hard enough. The tracks were overdubbed multiple times until it sounded what Lee described as a "vigilante mob".{{cite web|url=https://www.loudersound.com/features/rush-and-the-story-of-moving-pictures|title=Rush and the Story of Moving Pictures|first=Philip|last=Wilding|date=February 12, 2023|publisher=Loudersound|access-date=February 14, 2023}} The main riff was written by cover designer Hugh Syme on a synthesizer and double-tracked drums in one verse. "Witch Hunt" would become a part of the Fear series of songs, which includes "The Weapon" from Signals (1982), "The Enemy Within" from Grace Under Pressure (1984), and "Freeze" from Vapor Trails (2002), and went on reverse chronological order by the album, except "Freeze", which is the fourth part like normal chronological order.

"Vital Signs" was the last song that the band wrote for the album, which was pieced together at Le Studio. It features a sequencer part produced by an Oberheim OB-X synthesizer, and shows a distinct reggae flavour. Reggae influences in Rush's music were first heard on Permanent Waves, and would later be heard more extensively on their next two albums.

Image:ONLegislature.JPG

The cover was designed by Hugh Syme who estimated the artwork cost $9,500 to produce. Anthem Records refused to cover the entire bill, leaving the band to pay for the rest.{{cite magazine |url=http://www.2112.net/powerwindows/transcripts/19810528rollingstone.htm |title=Power from the People |magazine=Rolling Stone |date=May 28, 1981 |first=David |last=Fricke |access-date=July 2, 2018 |archive-date=July 2, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180702150803/http://www.2112.net/powerwindows/transcripts/19810528rollingstone.htm |url-status=live }} It is a triple entendre; the front depicts movers who are carrying pictures. On the side, people are shown crying because the pictures passing by are emotionally "moving". Finally, the back cover has a film crew making a motion (moving) picture of the whole scene.{{cite web |url=http://www.nimitz.net/rush/faq2ans.html#81 |title=The Rush Frequently Asked Questions on the Internet File |work=nimitz.net |access-date=May 10, 2006 |archive-date=February 22, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170222184534/http://www.nimitz.net/rush/faq2ans.html#81 |url-status=live }} It was photographed outside the Ontario Legislative Building at Queen's Park, Toronto. The pictures that are being moved are the band's Starman logo featured on the reverse cover of 2112 (1976), one of the Dogs Playing Poker paintings entitled A Friend in Need, and a painting that shows Joan of Arc being burned at the stake. The film crew on the back cover actually shot the scene, from which a single frame was used for the cover. This was revealed to Rush concertgoers several years later when the still image was shown on the stage projector which suddenly came to life as a film sequence.

Mike Dixon, one of the movers on the cover of Moving Pictures and the band's next album, Exit...Stage Left (1981), discussed the various people on the Moving Pictures cover. The first, Bobby King, seen furthest to the left, was a member of Syme's design team and is credited for assisting Syme on A Farewell to Kings, Hemispheres, and Archives. Dixon explained that King is not only one of the movers, but also the Starman logo and the man in the hat on the Hemispheres cover. The mover holding the Starman painting is Kelly Jay, singer of the Toronto band Crowbar who performed a show with Rush in 1973. Photographer Deborah Samuel is the Joan of Arc character, and her relatives are the family on the right. However, this conflicts with information provided in the Rush biography Chemistry, which states: "Hugh borrowed friends, neighbours and even his hairdresser's parents".{{cite web |url=http://news.2112.net/2012/01/mover-mike-dixon-discusses-moving.html |title=Power Windows..A Tribute To RUSH: "Mover" Mike Dixon Discusses the Moving Pictures album cover |author=Power Windows |work=Power Windows..A Tribute To RUSH |access-date=January 20, 2012 |archive-date=July 30, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140730035522/http://news.2112.net/2012/01/mover-mike-dixon-discusses-moving.html |url-status=live }}

{{Album reviews

| rev1 = AllMusic

| rev1score = {{Rating|5|5}}{{cite web |title=Moving Pictures – Rush |url=http://www.allmusic.com/album/moving-pictures-mw0000616962 |last=Prato |first=Greg |website=AllMusic |access-date=August 24, 2012 |archive-date=September 6, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120906012604/http://www.allmusic.com/album/moving-pictures-mw0000616962 |url-status=live }}

| rev2 = Classic Rock

| rev2Score = {{rating|5|5}} (2022){{cite web|last=Jeffries|first=Neil|date=April 14, 2022|url=https://www.loudersound.com/reviews/the-40th-anniversary-edition-of-rushs-moving-pictures-is-a-goddamn-treasure|title=The 40th anniversary edition of Rush's Moving Pictures is a goddamn treasure|work=Classic Rock|access-date=February 12, 2025}}

| rev3 = The Encyclopedia of Popular Music

| rev3score = {{Rating|4|5}}{{cite book|last=Larkin|first=Colin|author-link=Colin Larkin|title=The Encyclopedia of Popular Music|year=2007|publisher=Oxford University Press|edition=4th|isbn=978-0195313734|title-link=The Encyclopedia of Popular Music}}

| rev4 = The Essential Rock Discography

| rev4Score = 7/10{{cite book |last1=Strong |first1=Martin Charles |title=The Essential Rock Discography |edition=8th |year=2006 |publisher=Open City Books |isbn=1-84195-860-3 |page=938–939 |chapter=Rush }}

| rev5 = MusicHound Rock

| rev5Score = {{rating|4|5}}{{cite book|editor1-last=Graff|editor1-first=Gary|editor2-last=Durchholz|editor2-first=Daniel|title=MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide|publisher=Visible Ink Press|location=Farmington Hills, MI|year=1999|section=Rush|isbn=1-57859-061-2|page=965}}

| rev6 = Pitchfork

| rev6score = 9.2/10 (2022){{cite web |title=Rush: Moving Pictures (40th Anniversary) Album Review |url=https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/rush-moving-pictures-40th-anniversary/ |last=Soto |first=Alfred |website=Pitchfork |date=April 16, 2022 |access-date=April 16, 2022}}

| rev7 = The Rolling Stone Album Guide

| rev7score = {{Rating|4|5}}{{cite magazine |title=Rush: Album Guide |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/artists/rush/albumguide |magazine=Rolling Stone |access-date=February 21, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130704223108/http://www.rollingstone.com/music/artists/rush/albumguide |archive-date=July 4, 2013 |url-status=dead}}

| rev8 = vinyl reviews.

| rev8Score = 4/5 (2015){{cite web|last=Taylor|first=Joe|year=2015|url=https://vinylreviews.com/album/moving-pictures/|title=Rush - Moving Pictures|website=vinyl reviews|access-date=February 12, 2025}}

| rev9 = The Virgin Encyclopedia of 80s Music

| rev9Score = {{rating|4|5}}{{Cite book|author=Larkin, Colin|year=2003|title=The Virgin Encyclopedia of 80s Music|ISBN=1852279699|publisher=Virgin Publishing|section=Rush|pp=414–415}}

}}

Moving Pictures was played in its entirety during Lee's visit to Rick Ringer's radio show on CHUM-FM in Toronto, on February 11, 1981.{{cite web |url=http://www.2112.net/powerwindows/transcripts/19810211mppremier.htm |title=Moving Pictures World Premiere |publisher=2112.net |first1=Geddy |last1=Lee |first2=Rick |last2=Ringer |access-date=September 23, 2017 |archive-date=September 24, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170924045705/http://www.2112.net/powerwindows/transcripts/19810211mppremier.htm |url-status=live }} The album was released on the following day.

Kerrang! magazine listed the album at {{Numero|43}} among the "100 Greatest Heavy Metal Albums of All Time".{{cite book |last1=Jeffries |first1=Neil |title=Kerrang! |chapter=Rush ' Moving Pictures' |volume=222 |publisher=Spotlight Publications Ltd. |date=January 21, 1989 |location=London |title-link=Kerrang! }} Rolling Stone has listed Moving Pictures at {{Numero|10}} on the 2012 readers poll 'Your Favorite Prog Rock Albums of All Time', at {{Numero|3}} on the 2015 list '50 Greatest Prog Rock Albums of All Time' (behind Pink Floyd's The Dark Side of the Moon at #1 and King Crimson's In the Court of the Crimson King at #2), and at {{Numero|379}} on the 2020 edition of its 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.{{cite magazine |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/pictures/readers-poll-your-favorite-prog-rock-albums-of-all-time-20120725/10-rush-moving-pictures-0245490 |title=10. Rush – 'Moving Pictures' |magazine=Rolling Stone |access-date=September 5, 2017 |archive-date=September 24, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170924045205/https://www.rollingstone.com/music/pictures/readers-poll-your-favorite-prog-rock-albums-of-all-time-20120725/10-rush-moving-pictures-0245490 |url-status=live }}{{Cite magazine |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/lists/50-greatest-prog-rock-albums-of-all-time-20150617/rush-moving-pictures-1981-20150616 |title=Rush, 'Moving Pictures' (1981) | 50 Greatest Prog Rock Albums of All Time | Rolling Stone |magazine=Rolling Stone |access-date=June 12, 2018 |archive-date=June 12, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180612143147/https://www.rollingstone.com/music/lists/50-greatest-prog-rock-albums-of-all-time-20150617/rush-moving-pictures-1981-20150616 |url-status=live }}{{cite magazine |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-lists/best-albums-of-all-time-1062063/rush-moving-pictures-1062854 |title= 379. Rush, 'Moving Pictures' |magazine=Rolling Stone}} In 2014, readers of the Rhythm voted Moving Pictures the greatest drumming album in the history of progressive rock.{{cite web |url=https://www.teamrock.com/news/2014-10-03/rush-neil-peart-influential-prog-drummer |title=Peart named most influential prog drummer |publisher=TeamRock |date=October 3, 2014 |access-date=August 21, 2015 |archive-date=September 15, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150915121812/http://www.teamrock.com/news/2014-10-03/rush-neil-peart-influential-prog-drummer |url-status=live }} Moving Pictures and 2112 (1976) are the two Rush albums listed in 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die.{{cite web|url=http://www.rocklistmusic.co.uk/steveparker/1001albums.htm|title=Rocklist.net...Steve Parker...1001 Albums..|work=rocklistmusic.co.uk|access-date=October 28, 2008|archive-date=January 30, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120130151506/http://rocklistmusic.co.uk/steveparker//1001albums.htm|url-status=live}}

Moving Pictures was played live in its entirety for the first time to open the second set during each show of Rush's 2010–11 Time Machine Tour.{{cite web|url=http://www.rush.com|title=Rush.com|access-date=November 6, 2011|archive-date=February 23, 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110223014438/http://www.rush.com/|url-status=live}}

In a knockout-style Facebook poll conducted in 2021, the album was voted the best album of the 1980s, narrowly beating out Depeche Mode's 1986 album Black Celebration to take the win with 52% of the vote. More than 22,100 votes were cast in the final round alone.{{Cite web|title=The Greatest Album of All Time – Posts|url=https://www.facebook.com/greatestalbumofalltime/posts/3798876900224993|access-date=April 16, 2022|via=Facebook|language=en}}

In 2023, Sean Murphy of PopMatters wrote, "Moving Pictures is, without any question, not only Rush’s masterpiece but one of those rare albums that epitomizes an era. It represents both a culmination and a progression: the peak of the band’s development as well as the blueprint for Rush’s subsequent work." He also credited the album for serving as "a template of sorts" for how rock albums would be produced in the early 1980s. He explained, "Along with King Crimson’s Discipline, Moving Pictures illustrates that the first great era of progressive rock had been taken as far as it could, or should, go."{{Cite web |date=2023-03-07 |title=The 25 Best Classic Era Progressive Rock Albums » PopMatters |url=https://www.popmatters.com/best-classic-progressive-rock-albums/3 |access-date=2025-03-24 |website=www.popmatters.com |language=en-US}}

The album was released on compact disc in 1984 by Mercury Records. Initial pressings were missing the first beat of "Tom Sawyer" by mistake but were corrected in subsequent releases.{{cite web |url=http://www.masterdisk.com/andy-vandette-on-remastering-14-rush-albums |title=Andy VanDette On Remastering 15 Rush Albums |work=themasterdiskrecord.com |access-date=May 1, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170924135718/http://www.masterdisk.com/andy-vandette-on-remastering-14-rush-albums/ |archive-date=September 24, 2017 |url-status=dead}} In 1997, Mercury Records released a digitally remastered version. The disc tray has a logo of three fingerprints with "The Rush Remasters" printed, a feature of all remastered albums from Moving Pictures through A Show of Hands, originally found on the cover of Retrospective II. The remaster restores all of the original artwork and lyrics found on the vinyl release (including the picture of Peart that had been left off of the original CD issue).

Moving Pictures was remastered twice in 2011. The first, by Andy VanDette, was for the "Sector" box sets which re-released all of Rush's Mercury-era albums. It is included in the Sector 2 box set. The second reissue was in April 2011, as a two-disc 30th-anniversary set. The first disc contains the standard stereo mix and the second, available as a DVD-Audio or Blu-ray disc, contains the album in a stereo and 5.1 surround sound mix with music videos of the three singles as bonus features.{{cite web |work=Blabbermouth.net |url=http://www.roadrunnerrecords.com/blabbermouth.net/news.aspx?mode=Article&newsitemID=154250 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130201175016/http://www.roadrunnerrecords.com/blabbermouth.net/news.aspx?mode=Article&newsitemID=154250 |url-status=dead |archive-date=February 1, 2013 |title=RUSH: More 'Moving Pictures' 5.1 Surround Sound Remix Details Revealed – Feb. 20, 2011 |access-date=February 20, 2011}}

In 2015, Moving Pictures was remastered for vinyl as part of the "12 Months of Rush" promotion.{{cite web |title=12 Months of Rush: 14 Albums From Mercury Era For Release in 2015 |url=http://www.rush.com/12-months-of-rush-14-albums-from-mercury-era-for-release-in-2015/ |website=Rush.com |access-date=July 10, 2015 |archive-date=July 11, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150711024744/http://www.rush.com/12-months-of-rush-14-albums-from-mercury-era-for-release-in-2015/ |url-status=live }} The mastering was also made available in a 24-bit/48 kHz digital format on various high-resolution online music stores. These remasters have less dynamic range compression than the 1997 and 2011 versions. Sean Magee remastered the album from an analogue copy of the original digital master tape using a 192 kHz sample rate. However, as Moving Pictures was originally mixed on digital equipment at 16-bit/44.1 kHz, no audio above 22 kHz exists in the original master or any of the remasters, which explains why many digital music stores only sell the album with 48 kHz as the maximum available rate.{{cite web |title=Rush – new 2015 vinyl and hi-res reissues thread |url=http://forums.stevehoffman.tv/threads/rush-new-2015-vinyl-and-hi-res-reissues-thread.399367/ |website=Steve Hoffman Music Forums |access-date=July 10, 2015 |archive-date=July 10, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150710130122/http://forums.stevehoffman.tv/threads/rush-new-2015-vinyl-and-hi-res-reissues-thread.399367/ |url-status=live }}

The band released a 40th anniversary edition of Moving Pictures on April 15, 2022. The five record set includes the 2015 remaster and a previously unreleased live recording of their show at Maple Leaf Gardens in Toronto on March 25, 1981.{{cite web|title=Moving Pictures 40th Anniversary Release|date=11 February 2022 |website=Rush.com |url=https://www.rush.com/moving-pictures-40th-anniversary-release/|access-date=February 11, 2022}}

{{Track listing

| all_lyrics = Neil Peart except "Tom Sawyer", by Peart and Pye Dubois

| all_music = Alex Lifeson and Geddy Lee, except "YYZ", by Lee and Peart.{{Cite web|url=https://www.cygnus-x1.net/links/rush/albums-movingpictures-40th.php|title=Rush: Moving Pictures 40th Anniversary Box Set – Album Lyrics and Liner Notes|website=www.cygnus-x1.net|access-date=November 24, 2024}}

| headline = Side one

| title1 = Tom Sawyer

| length1 = 4:34

| title2 = Red Barchetta

| length2 = 6:10

| title3 = YYZ

| length3 = 4:26

| title4 = Limelight

| length4 = 4:20

}}

{{Track listing

| headline = Side two

| title5 = The Camera Eye

{{plainlist|

• I (6:00) ({{refn|group=note|Unofficially known as "New York" as it was inspired by that city.}})}} II (5:00) ({{refn|group=note|Unofficially known as "London" as it was inspired by that city.}}

| length5 = 11:00

| title6 = Witch Hunt

| note6 = Part III of "Fear"{{refn|group=note|"Witch Hunt", subtitled "Part III of 'Fear'" is a part of a tetralogy of songs exploring the concept of fear.Rush: Song by Song. (2019). (n.p.): Fonthill Media."Counterparts". Rush Backstage Club Newsletter. January 1994. All songs were written together, but were released in reverse order (except Part IV). "Witch Hunt" is Part III of the tetralogy, 1984's "The Enemy Within" is Part I, 1982's "The Weapon" is Part II, and 2002's "Freeze" is Part IV.{{cite book | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=19WEEAAAQBAJ&dq=rush%20witch%20fear%20part%20iii&pg=PA192 | isbn=978-1-4930-6236-2 | title=Moving Pictures: How Rush Created Progressive Hard Rock's Greatest Record | date=January 2, 2023 | publisher=Rowman & Littlefield }}}}

| length6 = 4:46

| title7 = Vital Signs"{{plainlist|

• "+ [Plus]" (0:47)
• "÷ [Divided By]" (0:29)
• "{{=}}" (0:26)
• "− [Minus]" (0:29)
• "× [Multiplied By]" (0:31)}} "{{=}}

| note7 = 2:02

| length7 = 4:46

| total_length = {{Duration|m=40|s=03}}

}}

Notes

{{reflist|group=note}}

The 40th Anniversary Edition's Discs 2 and 3 were recorded live at Maple Leaf Gardens, Toronto, by Guy Charbonneau using Le Mobile Remote Recording – March 24 & 25 1981; Mixed by Terry Brown at Blue Sound & Music, Toronto, ON – December 2020 – February 2021; Technical Assistance: Russ Mackay; Mastered by Peter Moore – 2021.

{{Track listing

| headline = Compact Disc two: Live in YYZ 1981 (Maple Leaf Gardens (March 24 & 25 1981) {{Cite web|url=https://www.discogs.com/release/22897931-Rush-Moving-Pictures-40th-Anniversary|title=Rush – Moving Pictures (40th Anniversary) (2022, CD) – Discogs|website=Discogs }}

| total_length = {{Duration|m=101|s=33}}

| title1 = 2112" – "Overture

| length1 = 4:26

| title2 = 2112" – "The Temples of Syrinx

| length2 = 2:17

| title3 = Freewill

| length3 = 5:51

| title4 = Limelight

| length4 = 4:47

| title5 = Cygnus X-1 Book II: Hemispheres" – "Prelude

| length5 = 4:23

| title6 = Beneath, Between & Behind

| length6 = 2:51

| title7 = The Camera Eye

{{plainlist|

• I (5:49)}} II (5:13)

| length7 = 11:02

| title8 = YYZ

| music8 = Lee, Lifeson, Peart

| length8 = 7:55

| title9 = Broon's Bane

| music9 = Lifeson

| length9 = 0:50

| title10 = The Trees

| length10 = 4:20

| title11 = Xanadu

| length11 = 12:48

}}

{{Track listing

| headline = Disc three: Live in YYZ 1981 [cont'd]

| total_length = {{Duration|m=159}}

| title1 = The Spirit of Radio

| length1 = 5:24

| title2 = Red Barchetta

| length2 = 6:55

| title3 = Closer to the Heart

| lyrics3 = Peart, Peter Talbot

| length3 = 3:42

| title4 = Tom Sawyer

| lyrics4 = Peart, Dubois

| length4 = 4:59

| title5 = Vital Signs" {{plainlist|

• "+ [Plus]" (0:53)
• "÷ [Divided By]" (0:30)
• "{{=}}" (0:26)
• "− [Minus]" (0:28)
• "× [Multiplied By]" (0:31)}} "{{=}}

| note5 = 2:34

| length5 = 5:23

| title6 = Natural Science" {{plainlist|

• I. "Tide Pools" (2:11)
• II. "Hyperspace" (2:45)}} III. "Permanent Waves

| note6 = 3:33

| length6 = 8:29

| title7 = Working Man" / "Cygnus X-1 Book II: Hemispheres" – "Armageddon: The Battle of Heart and Mind" / "By-Tor & The Snow Dog" / "In The End" / "In The Mood" / "2112" – "Grand Finale

| note7 = medley

| length7 = 12:32

| title8 = La Villa Strangiato

| music8 = Lee, Lifeson, Peart

| length8 = 10:03

}}

Credits are adapted from the album's 1981 liner notes.{{cite AV media notes |title=Moving Pictures |others=Rush |year=1981 |publisher=Anthem Records |id=ANR-1-1030 |url=http://www.2112.net/powerwindows/movingpictures.html |access-date=September 23, 2017 |archive-date=September 24, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170924045514/http://www.2112.net/powerwindows/movingpictures.html |url-status=live }}

Rush

• Geddy Lee – bass guitars, keyboards, bass pedals, vocals
• Alex Lifeson – 6- and 12-string electric and acoustic guitars, Moog Taurus pedals
• Neil Peart – drums, timbales, gong, orchestra bells, glockenspiel, wind chimes, bell tree, crotales, cowbell, plywood

Additional musician

• Hugh Syme – synthesizer (on "Witch Hunt")

Production

• Rush – production, arrangements
• Terry Brown – production, arrangements
• Paul Northfield – engineering
• Robbie Whelan – assistant engineering
• Albert, Huey, Dewey, Louie – computerized companions
• Peter Jensen – digital mastering, editing
• Bob Ludwig – mastering and remastering
• Hugh Syme – art direction, graphics, cover concept
• Deborah Samuel – photography

{{col-start}}

{{col-2}}

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{{col-end}}

{{Certification Table Top}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=Canada|type=album|award=Platinum|number=4|artist=Rush|title=Moving Pictures|relyear=1981|certyear=1990|access-date=July 3, 2020}}

{{Certification Table Entry|type=album|region=United Kingdom|artist=Rush|title=Moving Pictures|award=Gold|relyear=1981|certyear=2023|id=4404-789-2|access-date=October 14, 2023}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=United States|type=album|award=Platinum|number=5|artist=Rush|title=Moving Pictures|relyear=1981|certyear=2021|access-date=July 3, 2020}}

{{Certification Table Bottom|streaming=true|nosales=true}}

{{reflist}}

• {{Discogs master|type=album|7532|name=Moving Pictures}}

• [http://www.radio3net.ro/dbartists/supersearch/TW92aW5nIFBpY3R1cmVzIChNZXJjdXJ5KQ==/Moving%20Pictures%20%28Mercury%29 Moving Pictures] {{dead link|date=August 2018 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes}} (Adobe Flash) at Radio3Net (streamed copy where licensed)

{{Rush}}

{{Authority control}}

Category:1981 albums

Category:Rush (band) albums

Category:Anthem Records albums

Category:Mercury Records albums

Category:Albums produced by Terry Brown (record producer)

Category:Albums recorded at Le Studio