Rush week is in full action right now in Toronto. More than five decades after forming in the city, Geddy Lee and Alex Lifeson are returning home tonight as part of the band’s Fifty Something Tour, a comeback that once seemed impossible after their final performances in 2015 and the death of drummer Neil Peart in 2020.
Now, as the band reconnects with fans across North America, Rush are also celebrating the album that changed the course of their career. On October 2, the band will release a special 50th-anniversary edition of 2112, alongside the first-ever vinyl release of The Spirit of Radio: Greatest Hits 1974-1987.
When 2112 came out in 1976, Rush were still fighting for recognition. Their previous albums had earned them a dedicated following, but the band’s increasingly ambitious approach had not yet translated into major commercial success. Instead of simplifying their sound, Lee, Lifeson and Peart doubled down, creating a side-long, seven-part science-fiction epic that became the defining statement of their artistic vision.
2112 became the breakthrough that established Rush internationally and helped cement their reputation as one of rock’s most technically ambitious and creatively fearless bands. Decades later, the album remains a cornerstone of progressive rock and is forever etched in Canadian music history.
The new anniversary edition embraces the album’s distinctive visual identity with a black liquid vinyl pressing inspired by the original artwork.
The band are also giving fans a new way to experience their catalogue with The Spirit of Radio: Greatest Hits 1974-1987 arriving on vinyl for the first time. Originally released as a compilation in 2003, the collection captures Rush’s evolution from the progressive experimentation of the 1970s through the arena-rock dominance of the 1980s, featuring songs including “The Spirit of Radio,” “Tom Sawyer,” “Subdivisions” and “Fly by Night.”
Rush begin their residency at Toronto's Scotiabank Arena tonight, running through August 13th.
Courtesy of Mary Austin 
