Legendary Canadian progressive rockers Rush will cap off their R40 tour on Nov. 20 with a live album and a concert film on DVD called R40 Live. In commemoration of their 35-date tour celebrating the 40th anniversary of drummer Neil Peart joining the band, Rush taped and filmed two sold-out homecoming shows at Toronto’s Air Canada Centre on June 17 and 19.
The band released a teaser, Closer to the Heart, from the upcoming box set yesterday on A.V. Club. In the clip, lead vocalist Geddy Lee calls the track “a pretty little number.” Originally released in 1977 from the album A Farewell to Kings, the song was actually co-written by Peart and his friend Peter Talbot.
“Closer to the Heart is a sweet, ballady type of song, but we mix it up,” explained guitarist and backing vocalist Alex Lifeson to Guitar World earlier this year. “It takes an interesting course as the arrangement builds. Once we got the basic arrangement down, we knew that the intro would be acoustic, and then we took it up a notch dynamically and brought the whole band in.”
The filmed concert, also featuring tracks like Roll the Bones, includes many songs that haven’t previously been captured on video, according to a press release. While the band anticipates continue touring in a limited capacity going forward, they have said that R40 was likely their last major tour due to health issues.
But they’re definitely not breaking up. “Whatever this tour is, it’s not the end of the band,” explained Lifeson on the Eddie Trunk Podcast (via Ultimate Classic Rock). “It’s just … kind of, reviewing where we’re at in terms of major tours. And that’s kind of what it is. We’re not waving goodbye. We’re waving ‘see you later.’”
Rush previously released a live DVD for their 30th anniversary in 2005, but they haven’t filmed in their hometown since their 1997 Test for Echo tour.
