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Rush - Permanent Waves (1980) Album Artist/Composer Rush Length 35:35 Format CD Genre Progressive Rock Label Anthem Index 358 Collection Status In Collection Packaging Jewel Case Musicians Drums and Percussion Neil Peart Bass Guitar Geddy Lee Guitar-Electric Alex Lifeson Keyboards-Various Geddy Lee Vocals Geddy Lee Credits Songwriter Neil Peart Producer Alex Lifeson Producer Geddy Lee Producer Niel Pear Producer Terry Brown Track List 01 The Spirit Of Radio 04:59 02 Freewill 05:24 03 Jacob's Ladder 07:28 04 Entre Nous 04:37 05 Different Strings 03:50 06 Natural Science 09:17 Personal Details Spars DDD Rare No Sound Stereo Notes 4001 Since Neil Peart joined the band in time for 1975's Fly By Night, Rush had been experimenting and growing musically with each successive release. By 1980's Permanent Waves, the modern sounds of new wave (the Police, Peter Gabriel, etc.) began to creep into Rush's sound, but the trio still kept their hard rock roots intact. The new approach paid off - two of their most popular songs, the "make a difference" anthem "Freewill," and a tribute to the Toronto radio station, CFNY, "The Spirit of Radio" (the latter a U.K. Top 15 hit) are spectacular highlights. Also included were two "epics," the stormy "Jacob's Ladder" and the album closing, "Natural Science," which contains a middle section that contains elements of reggae. Geddy Lee also began singing in a slightly lower register around this time, which made their music more accessible to fans outside of the heavy prog-rock circle. The album proved to be the final breakthrough Rush needed to become an arena headliner throughout the world, beginning a string of albums that would reach inside the Top Five of the U.S. Billboard album charts. Permanent Waves is an undisputed hard rock classic, but Rush would outdo themselves with their next release.