"The Pass" is the second single from Rush's 1989 album Presto. The lyrics by drummer Neil Peart address teenage suicide[1][2] and the tendency to romanticize it.[3] The song peaked at No. 15 on the U.S. Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks chart, and a music video was made for the song.
The lines "All of us get lost in the darkness/Dreamers learn to steer by the stars/All of us do time in the gutter/Dreamers turn to look at the cars" alludes to Oscar Wilde's "We are all in the gutter, but some of us are looking at the stars" from his play Lady Windermere's Fan.
On the Rush in Rio DVD (2003), bassist/vocalist Geddy Lee introduces the song to the audience by saying it is one of the band's favorites. On the same DVD, in the documentary "The Boys in Brazil", Peart says he always gets emotional while playing the song, "not only for what it expresses explicitly lyrically, but because it is one of our better crafted ones."
The song was played live on the Presto Tour and Roll The Bones Tour, and then removed from the following two tours. It was then put back in the set for the Vapor Trails Tour, and removed for the next four tours. It's final presence in a live setlist was during the Clockwork Angels Tour, as an alternative song to Bravado.
Track listing
| No. | Title | Lyrics | Music | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "The Pass" (Radio Edit) | Peart | Rush | 4:04 |
| 2. | "Presto" | Peart | Rush | 5:45 |
References
- ^ "The Pass by Rush Songfacts". www.songfacts.com. Retrieved 2018-04-27.
- ^ Govin, Horst (1989-12-12). "Presto! New Rush album reaches magical heights". The Tech. Retrieved 2018-11-23.
- ^ Reed, Ryan (2015-11-21). "How Rush Closed Out the '80s With the Transitional 'Presto'". Ultimate Classic Rock. Townsquare Media. Retrieved 2018-11-23.
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