Permanent Waves

In June 1979, the band finished its eight-month tour of the United States, Canada and Europe in support of its sixth studio album, Hemispheres (1978). The tour had taken its toll on the group and, for the first time in the band's history, each member agreed to take a six-week break before starting work on a new album.{{cite web|url=http://www.2112.net/powerwindows/permanentwaves.html#tourbook|title=Personal Waves – The Story of an Album|first=Neil|last=Peart|publisher=2112.net|date=1980|access-date=24 September 2017|archive-date=25 September 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170925035613/http://www.2112.net/powerwindows/permanentwaves.html#tourbook|url-status=live}} They regrouped in mid-July 1979 at Lakewoods Farm near Flesherton, Ontario to write and rehearse new material for two weeks. They set up their equipment in the basement and put down what Peart described as "a giant hodge-podge of instrumental mish-mash," initially titled "Uncle Tounouse", during the first session. The piece was not developed further but sections of it were used as the basis of passages on other songs they would record. A typical day's schedule involved Lifeson cooking breakfast for the trio after which Lifeson and Lee worked on musical ideas while Peart gathered his notes and walked to a nearby cottage to write lyrics with "Entre Nous" being the only set completed prior to their arrival at Lakewoods Farm. This routine had a productive effect on the three with "The Spirit of Radio," "Freewill" and "Jacob's Ladder" being recorded within several days without considerable effort. The new songs marked a shift in the group's musical style towards more concise arrangements and radio-friendly songs, although Peart denied that the band consciously set out to produce commercial music.{{cite magazine|url=http://www.2112.net/powerwindows/transcripts/19800301billboard.htm|title=Rush won't Rush into style fads of moment|first=Cary|last=Darling|magazine=Billboard|date=March 1, 1980|access-date=18 December 2019|archive-date=18 December 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191218165143/http://www.2112.net/powerwindows/transcripts/19800301billboard.htm|url-status=live}} Peart attempted to write a song based on Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, the 14th-century epic set in King Arthur's time, but it was abandoned after it was deemed too out of place with the other material.

With some material prepared for Permanent Waves, Rush moved into Sound Kitchen Studio in northern Toronto, Ontario with their producer Terry Brown to put their ideas onto tape. "The Spirit of Radio," "Freewill" and "Jacob's Ladder" were further polished on the warm-up tour during soundchecks and by early September, "The Spirit of Radio" and "Freewill" were being performed live on the band's warm-up tour in August and September 1979.

File:Le Studio, Morin Heights, 2018-12-01.jpg

In September 1979, Rush headed to Le Studio in Morin-Heights, Quebec to record Permanent Waves with Brown and engineer Paul Northfield.{{cite AV media notes|title=Permanent Waves|id=ANR-1-1021|publisher=Anthem Records|year=1980|others=Rush}} Having recorded their previous two studio albums in Wales the band felt it was time for a change and initially chose Trident Studios in London, but cancelled due to the high costs of studio time and accommodation. The idea of working in a busy city environment became something they now wished to avoid and instead sought a remote location.

The recording sessions involved the band tweaking the settings of instruments and positioning of microphones. They recorded basic tracks with multiple takes until they captured the best performance. While Lee, Lifeson, and Brown began overdubs, Peart began attempting to write another longer song, and after enduring three days of writer's block, "Natural Science" was born. Fin Costello was then brought in to photograph the band in the studio. Cover art director Hugh Syme was also brought in and recorded a piano solo on "Different Strings". Music was composed for "Natural Science", with some parts reused from the discarded "Green Knight". The water sounds at the beginning of the song were created by splashing oars in the private lake, performed by Brown and studio assistant Kim Bickerdike, and the natural echo outside was used to record various instruments. The rough mixes on the album were complete, and the final mix was completed in two weeks at Trident Studios.

Upon the album's completion, Lifeson felt unsure about the record and for a period of time, could not listen to it due to his feeling that it failed to present any fresh ideas. His opinion changed when he first heard the album on the radio after its release, realising he had overreacted.{{cite magazine|url=http://www.2112.net/powerwindows/transcripts/19800200musicexpress.htm|title=F.M. Radio Earns Plaudits from Rush|first=Keith|last=Sharp|magazine=Music Express|volume=4|issue=11|date=February 1980|access-date=24 September 2017|archive-date=25 September 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170925035432/http://www.2112.net/powerwindows/transcripts/19800200musicexpress.htm|url-status=live}}

"The Spirit of Radio" featured the band's early experiments with a reggae style in its closing section, which was explored further in the band's next three albums, Moving Pictures, Signals, and Grace Under Pressure. The group had experimented with reggae-influenced riffs in the studio and had come up with a reggae introduction to "Working Man" on their tours, so they decided to incorporate a passage into "The Spirit of Radio," as Lifeson said, "to make us smile and have a little fun." Peart wrote the lyrics with Toronto radio station CFNY-FM in mind which had adopted the title as its slogan.{{cite web|url=http://www.cygnus-x1.net/links/rush/innerview-03.1980.php|title=An interview with Neil Peart|publisher=Innerview|first=Jim|last=Ladd|date=March 1980|access-date=18 April 2018|archive-date=18 April 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180418233302/http://www.cygnus-x1.net/links/rush/innerview-03.1980.php|url-status=live}}

"Jacob's Ladder" uses multiple time signatures, and possesses a dark, ominous feel in its first half. Its lyrics are based on a simple concept: a vision of sunlight breaking through storm clouds. The title is a reference to the natural phenomenon of the sun breaking through the clouds in visible rays, which in turn is named after the Biblical ladder to heaven on which Jacob saw angels ascending and descending in a vision. Early in Rush's 2015 R40 Live Tour, Geddy Lee incorrectly stated that the song had never been played live before, but was corrected by fans on the internet (the song had been performed during the Permanent Waves tour and a live recording of the song was featured on Exit... Stage Left).{{cite magazine|title=From Rush With Love|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/features/from-rush-with-love-cover-story-20150616?page=13|magazine=Rolling Stone|access-date=10 July 2015|archive-date=12 July 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150712025716/http://www.rollingstone.com/music/features/from-rush-with-love-cover-story-20150616?page=13|url-status=dead}}

"Entre Nous", French for "Between Us", did not receive heavy radio airplay and was not performed live until the Snakes & Arrows Tour in 2007.{{cite web |url=http://www.2112.net/powerwindows/Tours.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080601061229/http://www.2112.net/powerwindows/Tours.htm |archive-date=2008-06-01 |title=Power Windows...Tour Archives |access-date=2012-06-01}}

While the band began stepping back from the epic song format on this album, the closing track "Natural Science" is more than nine minutes long and is composed of three distinct movements: I) Tide Pools, II) Hyperspace, and III) Permanent Waves. The lyrics are driven by concepts of natural science. It was featured, with a different arrangement, on the 1996 Test for Echo Tour, the 2002 Vapor Trails Tour, the 2007–2008 Snakes & Arrows Tour and the 2015 R40 Live Tour.

The background scene comes from a photo, taken by Flip Schulke, of the Galveston Seawall in Texas during Hurricane Carla on September 11, 1961. The woman in the foreground is Canadian model Paula Turnbull, who is also featured on Exit... Stage Left (1981);{{cite web |last=Windows |first=Power |url=http://news.2112.net/2009/11/permanent-waves-album-cover-details.html |title=Rush News from Power Windows: Permanent Waves Album Cover Details Explained |publisher=News.2112.net |date=2009-11-24 |access-date=2012-03-05 |archive-date=2012-03-08 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120308003132/http://news.2112.net/2009/11/permanent-waves-album-cover-details.html |url-status=live }} the man waving in the background is sleeve designer Hugh Syme.{{cite web |url=http://artrock2006.blogspot.com/2009/09/permanent-waves.html |title=Art for art's sake: Permanent waves |publisher=Artrock2006.blogspot.com |date=2009-09-15 |access-date=2012-06-01 |archive-date=2012-04-17 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120417191205/http://artrock2006.blogspot.com/2009/09/permanent-waves.html |url-status=live }} To create the appearance of Turnbull's skirt blowing in the wind, a fan was placed out of frame when she was photographed.{{Cite web|url=https://www.gettyimages.ch/detail/nachrichtenfoto/1st-september-model-paula-turnbull-models-for-the-nachrichtenfoto/133291957?language=it|title = Model Paula Turnbull models for the cover shot of Canadian}}

{{Album ratings

| title = Professional review ratings

| rev2 = Classic Rock

| rev2Score = {{rating|5|5}} (2020){{cite web|last=Wilding|first=Philip|date=May 29, 2020|url=https://www.loudersound.com/reviews/rushs-permanent-waves-a-40th-anniversary-worth-celebrating|title=Rush's Permanent Waves: a 40th anniversary worth celebrating|work=Classic Rock|access-date=February 13, 2025}}

| rev6 = mxdwn

| rev6Score = {{rating|5|5}} (2020){{cite web|last=Sedgwick|first=Matt|date=June 8, 2020|url=https://music.mxdwn.com/2020/06/08/reviews/album-review-rush-permanent-waves-40th-anniversary/#google_vignette|title=Album Review: Rush – Permanent Waves 40th Anniversary Reissue|website=mxdwn|access-date=February 13, 2025}}

| rev7 = PopMatters

| rev7Score = 9/10 (2020){{cite web|last=Blum|first=Jordan|date=May 26, 2020|url=https://www.popmatters.com/rush-permanent-waves-40-aaniversary-2646071873.html|title=Rush’s ‘Permanent Waves’ Endures with Faultless Commercial Complexity|website=PopMatters|access-date=February 13, 2025}}

| rev8 = Record Mirror

| rev8Score = {{Rating|4.5|5}}{{cite magazine |title=No Beating The Rush |last=Dome |first=Malcolm |date=26 January 1980 |magazine=Record Mirror |page=12}}

| rev10 = Uncut

| rev10Score = {{rating|3.5|5}} (2020){{cite web|last=Lewis|first=John|date=June 25, 2020|url=https://www.uncut.co.uk/reviews/album/rush-permanent-waves-127124/|title=Rush – Permanent Waves|work=Uncut|access-date=February 13, 2025}}

| noprose = yes

}}

{{Music ratings

|title = Music guide ratings

| rev1 = AllMusic

| rev1score = {{Rating|4.5|5}}{{cite web |url=http://www.allmusic.com/album/permanent-waves-mw0000195594 |title=Permanent Waves – Rush |access-date=2011-11-20 |last=Prato |first=Greg |work=Allmusic |archive-date=2012-06-04 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120604181938/http://www.allmusic.com/album/permanent-waves-mw0000195594 |url-status=live }}

| rev2 = The Encyclopedia of Popular Music

| rev2Score = {{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}}

| rev3 = The Essential Rock Discography

| rev3Score = 6/10{{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 }}

| rev4 = MusicHound Rock

| rev4Score = {{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}}

| rev5 = The Rolling Stone Album Guide

| rev5score = {{Rating|3.5|5}}{{cite magazine |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/artists/rush/albumguide |title=Rush: Album Guide |access-date=2013-02-21 |magazine=Rolling Stone |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130704223108/http://www.rollingstone.com/music/artists/rush/albumguide |archive-date=2013-07-04 |url-status=dead }}

| rev6 = The Virgin Encyclopedia of 80s Music

| rev6Score = {{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}}

}}

Permanent Waves was released in the US on January 14, 1980. In addition to receiving favorable reviews from sources such as Rolling Stone,{{cite magazine |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/albumreviews/permanent-waves-19800501 |title=Permanent Waves |access-date=2011-11-20 |last=Fricke |first=David |author-link=David Fricke |date=1 May 1980 |magazine=Rolling Stone |archive-date=2013-04-01 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130401064612/http://www.rollingstone.com/music/albumreviews/permanent-waves-19800501 |url-status=live }} it reached No. 3 in Canada and the UK and No. 4 in the US. In two months, the album had sold one million copies in the US.{{cite web|url=http://www.2112.net/powerwindows/transcripts/19800503torontostar.htm|title=Millionaire stars of high-tech rock|work=Toronto Star's Today Magazine|date=May 3, 1980|first=Dick|last=Flohil|access-date=December 18, 2019|archive-date=December 18, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191218170719/http://www.2112.net/powerwindows/transcripts/19800503torontostar.htm|url-status=live}}

The album was certified gold by the Canadian Recording Industry Association, and in September 1980 Rush sent the gold record to Terry Fox, shortly after he had to abandon the Marathon of Hope.{{cite book|title=Terry|last=Coupland|first=Douglas|authorlink=Douglas Coupland|publisher=Douglas & McIntyre|date=2005|isbn=978-1-55365-113-0}}{{rp|118}}

Following the album's release, Rush supported Permanent Waves with a concert tour of Canada, America and the UK between January 17 and June 22, 1980. The band toured with a 25-member road crew who handled the 60 tons of equipment to stage the show, which included Boeing 707 landing lights, a $50,000 mixing console and a screen projector behind the band. The tour cost $12,500 per day and each band member earned $1,000 per show.

All lyrics by Neil Peart except "Different Strings" by Geddy Lee. All music by Lee and Alex Lifeson.

{{Track listing

| headline = Side one

| title1 = The Spirit of Radio

| length1 = 4:59

| title2 = Freewill

| length2 = 5:23

| title3 = Jacob's Ladder

| length3 = 7:30

}}

{{Track listing

| headline = Side two

| title1 = Entre Nous

| length1 = 4:37

| title2 = Different Strings

| length2 = 3:50

| title3 = Natural Science" {{plainlist|

• I. "Tide Pools" (2:23)
• II. "Hyperspace" (2:47)}} III. "Permanent Waves

|note3 = 4:08

| length3 = 9:18

}}

{{Track listing

| headline = Bonus disc

| title1 = Beneath, Between & Behind

| note1 = Recorded at the Manchester Apollo, Manchester, UK

| length1 = 2:30

| title2 = By-Tor & the Snow Dog" (Parts I–III.ii) (Recorded at the Hammersmith Odeon, London, UK)
I. "At the Tobes of Hades" (0:44)
II. "Across the Styx" (0:37)
III. "Of the Battle" (4:33)
i. "Challenge and Defiance" (2:53)
ii. "7/4 War Furor

| note2 = 1:40

| length2 = 5:52

| title3 = Xanadu

| note3 = Recorded at the Hammersmith Odeon, London, UK

| length3 = 12:16

| title4 = The Spirit of Radio

| note4 = Recorded at the Manchester Apollo, Manchester, UK

| length4 = 5:08

| title5 = Natural Science" (Recorded at the Manchester Apollo, Manchester, UK)
I. "Tide Pools" (2:23)
II. "Hyperspace" (2:51)
III. "Permanent Waves

| note5 = 3:33

| length5 = 8:46

| title6 = A Passage to Bangkok *†

| note6 = Recorded at the Manchester Apollo, Manchester, UK

| length6 = 3:57

| title7 = The Trees

| note7 = Recorded at the Manchester Apollo, Manchester, UK

| length7 = 5:28

| title8 = Cygnus X-1" (Recorded at the Hammersmith Odeon, London, UK)
"Prologue" (4:27)
"1" (0:41)
"2" (0:15)
"3

| note8 = 2:43

| length8 = 8:05

| title9 = Cygnus X-1: Book II Hemispheres" (Parts I and IV-VI) (Recorded at the Hammersmith Odeon, London, UK)
I. "Prelude" (4:27)
IV. "Armageddon (The Battle of Heart and Mind)" (2:53)
V. "Cygnus (Bringer of Balance)" (6:24)
VI. "The Sphere (A Kind of Dream)

| note9 = 1:02

| length9 = 14:45

| title10 = Closer to the Heart

| note10 = Recorded at the Manchester Apollo, Manchester, UK

| length10 = 3:26

| title11 = Jacob's Ladder

| note11 = Recorded at the Kiel Auditorium, St. Louis, Missouri.

| length11 = 7:38

| title12 = Freewill

| note12 = Recorded at the Hammersmith Odeon, London, UK

| length12 = 5:46

}}

* Included on the vinyl and digital deluxe releases only

† Previously available on 2112 Deluxe Edition (2012)

Credits are taken from the 1980 liner notes.

Rush

• Geddy Lee – vocals, bass guitar, Oberheim polyphonic synthesizer, Minimoog synthesizer, Taurus pedal synthesizer, Oberheim OB-1 synthesizer
• Alex Lifeson – electric and acoustic six- and twelve-string guitars, Taurus pedals
• Neil Peart – drums, timpani, timbales, orchestra bells, tubular bells, wind chimes, bell tree, triangle, crotales, cover concept

Additional personnel

• Terry Brown – arranger, producer, mixing
• Fin Costello – photography
• Robert Gage – hairdresser for the cover girl
• Bob Ludwig – remastering
• Adam Moseley – mixing assistant
• Craig Milliner – mixing assistant
• Paul Northfield – engineer
• Deborah Samuel – photography
• Flip Schulke – photography
• Ray Staff – mastering on original album
• Hugh Syme – piano, art direction, design, cover concept
• Paula Turnbull – cover girl (credited as "Ou La La")
• Robbie Whelan – assistant engineer

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{{Certification Table Top}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=Canada|type=album|award=Platinum|artist=Rush|title=Permanent Waves|relyear=1980|certyear=1980|access-date=July 3, 2020}}

{{Certification Table Entry|type=album|region=United Kingdom|artist=Rush|title=Permanent Waves|award=Gold|relyear=1980|certyear=1981|id=5067-789-2}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=United States|type=album|award=Platinum|artist=Rush|title=Permanent Waves|relyear=1980|certyear=1987|access-date=July 3, 2020}}

{{Certification Table Bottom | nosales=true}}

{{Reflist}}

• {{Discogs master|type=album|7540|name=Permanent Waves}}

{{Rush}}

{{Authority control}}

Category:1980 albums

Category:Rush (band) albums

Category:Anthem Records albums

Category:Albums produced by Terry Brown (record producer)

Category:Albums recorded at Le Studio

Category:Albums recorded at Trident Studios