"Bastille Day"
Song by Rush
from the album Caress of Steel
Released1975 (1975)
Recorded1975
StudioToronto Sound, Toronto
Genre
Length4:37
LabelMercury
Songwriter(s)Rush
Producer(s)

"Bastille Day" is a song by the Canadian rock band Rush, and is the opening track from their third album, Caress of Steel.[7] Like most Rush songs, the music was written by Geddy Lee and Alex Lifeson, and the lyrics by Neil Peart. The song uses the storming of the Bastille, which began the French Revolution, as an allegory for revolutionary fervor needed in the struggle against tyrannical government.[citation needed]

"Bastille Day" was played as the opening number at Rush's concerts for several years following its release. Live versions of the song appear on the albums All the World's a Stage and Different Stages. The last time it was performed live was in 1981, but an instrumental section was played during the R30 Tour as part of the "R30 Overture," which opened concerts on that tour.

Progressive metal band Dream Theater, originally known as "Majesty," took their original name from founding drummer Mike Portnoy's description of the ending of "Bastille Day" as "majestic."[8]

Personnel

See also

References

  1. ^ a b Bowman, Durrell (2014). Experiencing Rush: A Listener's Companion. Rowman & Littlefield. p. 13. ISBN 9781442231313.
  2. ^ Popoff, Martin (2013). Rush: The Illustrated History. Voyageur Press. p. 26. ISBN 9780760343647.
  3. ^ Wagner, Jeff (2010). Mean Deviation: Four Decades of Progressive Heavy Metal. Bazillion Points Books. p. 23. ISBN 9780979616334.
  4. ^ Begrand, Adrien (10 June 2014). "Caress Of Steel (1975)". Stereogum. Retrieved 30 July 2017.
  5. ^ Holm-Hudson, Kevin (2013). Progressive Rock Reconsidered. Routledge. p. 190. ISBN 9781135710224. First published in 2002.
  6. ^ Harris, Craig. "Dream Theater | Biography & History". AllMusic. Retrieved 4 April 2019. The Grammy-nominated Long Island-based quintet Dream Theater are, in the 21st century, the standard bearers of progressive metal. While the subgenre's origins can be traced to Rush's song 'Bastille Day' in 1975...
  7. ^ "Caress of Steel: Released September 1975". 2112.net. Retrieved 12 July 2012.
  8. ^ "Dream Theater: 20 Majestic Years". therecordmag.com. Archived from the original on 7 January 2009. Retrieved 12 July 2012.


Categories