I have to admit that I was never one of those kids who went through a comic book phase in my early adolescence.  I was always outdoors and didn’t enjoy reading until later in life. Even comic strips seemed like too much work.  As I have grown, I’ve learned to appreciate the written word and, in this case, the visual drawings that accompany them.  Just like my love of concerts and photography married into two decades of concert pictures for Music Street Journal and others, taking one of my favorite bands (and their best record in my opinion) and bringing it to life as a graphic novel was a match made in heaven.  This hardcover book is approximately album cover sized and it is packed with some great visuals on the making of said album.  The story goes back and forth as it tells the tale in the past tense with drawings that represent the band’s look in 1977 and their new look in the 2000s.  There are some little tidbits and studio stories that true Rush fans know but the novice fan might find new and interesting.  You can truly feel the love the creator had towards the band and their music as this was exceptionally done with each factoid and graphic frame placed there for a reason.  There’s no fluff or extra images to make this graphic novel longer.  If you are a Rush fan, this is a must have but it you are a casual listener, you might not get as much out of it as someone who remembers this record when it first came out. 

This review is available in book (paperback and hardcover) form in Music Street Journal: 2022  Volume 6. More information and purchase links can be found at: garyhillauthor.com/Music-Street-Journal-2022.