[.ca] Rush: Chronicles: The DVD Collection

From Amazon.com:
Prog-rock's dominant power trio gets a worthy showcase in this DVD compilation, repeating the 1990 VHS release with minor variations and some pleasant surprises. Chronicles is aptly titled, as the videos follow Rush's 30-year evolution in fashion, performance, and visual representation. Loyalists may wish for a lengthier selection, but with remastered Dolby 2-channel stereo, this 63-minute disc clearly improves upon the VHS release. The in-studio performance of "Tom Sawyer" is new (previous versions were from the Exit, Stage Left concert video), and although hidden bonus videos of "The Enemy Within" and "Afterimage" are inaccurately listed as "previously unreleased" (they appeared on the 1985 compilation Through the Camera Eye), their inclusion here is welcome (and accessible by selecting the "Rush Chronicles" logo on the DVD's "Play Videos" menu). Also, Aimee Mann makes a playful appearance on "Time Stand Still." Recommended to Rush purists only, but on those terms, this is essential viewing. --Jeff Shannon

great concert, horrible sound:
this was a big dissapointment the band is great the songs are great.Whoever is responsible for the sound recording should be fired!!! this would have easily been a 5 star dvd. Rush should re do this

could've been better:
I think that when this was released RUSH Chronicles on DVD format they should have included some more videos. Especially since with RUSH IN RIO they got all 28 songs from the concert ont the first disc. Most of the videos are good especially "Subdivisions". I don't know why Afterimage and Enemy Within are bonus videos which you can see by clicking on the RUSH thing in the main menu, because they were already included on the VHS version. I think they should've included "Body Electric" and "Vital Signs". Also it would've been nice to see "Superconductor" and "Roll the Bones". The DVD includes a performance of "Red Barcheta" from the EXIT STAGE LEFT video and "Red Sector A" from the GRACE UNDER PRESSURE TOUR video, I think it would've been nice to see maybe "Mission" or "Marathon" from A SHOW OF HANDS. A previous reviewer said there should be a Chronicles 2 but, you can probably fit all their music videos onto one disc. I was doing a little research and I found a site which listed all of Rush's video and I believe I counted a total of 43. I'm pretty sure thats the same amount as David Bowie's DVD collection. If a Rush DVD collection included all that I think more people would buy it. And please no hidden tracks. Another thing its a little annoying having 3 videos per page. With the 30th anniversay there are many rumors about different Rush releases one of them being a Rush video anthology which is a good sign!

NEED MORE RUSH:
Yes, it's a must have for any tried and true Rush fan, but seeing this stuff just makes you ponder all the UNAVAILABLE footage that surely must exist. For me, the biggest thrill on this set is the studio version of Tom Sawyer taken from the same sessions as Limelight and Vital Signs (which deplorably, is NOT included in this DVD). Geddy on the Rickenbacker and Alex Lifeson with his black Gibson hollowbody during the solo...not to mention the psychotic and very difficult but musically perfect drum fills following the solo. Awesome, simply awesome. Why don't they just release an entire DVD of the making of Moving Pictures? Could you imagine seeing them recording The Camera Eye and YYZ? That would be sick and YOU JUST KNOW THE FOOTAGE EXISTS! Also, it's a crying shame that they haven't released Exit Stage Left domestically. Of course, you can find it in Brazil if you go online and order it and wait a few months for it to be shipped out. Still, it's well worth the wait. Maybe they will finally release some of this stuff for their 30th anniversary...as I wishfully think away. Also, I completely agree with the reviewer who said they need to release a Chronicles II so we can see the newer videos that have NEVER been released. How many times did MTV play those videos anyway? Once?!? Maybe twice?

Great for Nostalgia Purposes, But Sound Quality is Subpar:
I have debated purchasing the Rush "Chronicles" DVD for some time, but when I purchased their recent DVD release "Rush in Rio" and found it to be terrific, I decided to take the plunge on this one. It is fun to watch the videos that I used to watch on MTV and haven't seen in 15+ years. The early videos ("Tom Sawyer", "Limelight") were mostly studio shoots while they really started getting into high-end production with the albums "Signals, "Grace Under Pressure" and "Power Windows". The graphics for "The Big Money" look cheap today, but if I remember correctly, they were cutting edge in 1986. It's very interesting to see the different styles of Lee, Lifeson and Peart over the period encompassed by the DVD. As others have said, the sound on the DVD leaves much to be desired. There are noticeable cutouts in sound on numerous songs, especially some of the earlier tunes ("Closer to the Heart", "The Trees"). I played the disc in my home entertainment center (with 6 speakers) and in a DVD player merely hooked up to a TV and found the same issues with both. I thought it was just me, but other reviews here seem to illustrate the same issue. My suggestion would be to buy "Rush in Rio" instead and wait to see if the band will issue a complete video collection with remastered sound in the future.

Chronicles Good Collection:
This DVD compilation is a fine collection of the highwater marks in Rush's video-making history with Mercury Records. Beginning with Closer To the Heart (from 1977) and threading its way through Lock and Key (from 1987), a fan of this amazing trio will find themselves entralled, although in a few instances the videos are cheesy -- Distant Early Warning to name only one -- but you can blame that on the 80's -- everything was pretty cheesy then. Nice additions that would make a person who already owns the VHS version want to buy it include the "in studio" version of Tom Sawyer (as opposed to the live version from the VHS version) and the bonus videos, Afterimage and The Enemy Within, which were not on the VHS version. The sound quality is also top notch and the menus are easy to navigate. However, I do have minor gripes : most fans know that the band have videos for Fly By Night, A Farewell To Kings, and La Villa Strangiato (song featured on the CD version of Chronicles) -- yet they are not available here. Yet Lock and Key (a song not on the CD version) is here. What? But beyond that, this disc is a must-have for fans. Well worth the money. One can only hope that Atlantic will release a collection of videos from their post-Mercury years (starting with 1989's Presto).