"2112"
Song by Rush
from the album 2112
Released	March 1976
Recorded	Toronto Sound Studios in Toronto, 1975
Genre	Progressive Rock
Length	20:31
Label	Anthem Records (Canada) Mercury Records
Producer(s)	Rush & Terry Brown
Chart positions
#1 (Modern Rock Tracks)
2112 track listing
	"2112" (1)	"A Passage to Bangkok" (2)

"2112 Overture/The Temples of Syrinx"
Single by Rush
from the album 2112
Released	1976
Recorded	Toronto Sound Studios in Toronto, 1975
Genre	Progressive Rock
Length	6:45
Rush singles chronology
"The Twilight Zone" (1976) "2112 Overture/The Temples of Syrinx" (1976) "A Passage to Bangkok" (1977)

"2112" is the title track from Canadian progressive rock band Rush's album of the same name, released in 1976. The overture and the first section were released as a single and are still popular among Rush's setlists today. Rush- 2112 album cover Used on Wikipedia under Fair use guidelines - a low-resolution copy of an image of the cover. ... A song is a relatively short musical composition. ... Rush is a Canadian rock band comprised of bassist, keyboardist, and vocalist Geddy Lee, guitarist Alex Lifeson, and drummer and lyricist Neil Peart. ... For the year 2112, see 2112. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... This article needs additional references or sources for verification. ... This does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... Anthem Records is an independent record label based in Toronto, Ontario. ... Mercury Records was a record label founded in Chicago, Illinois in 1945 by Irving Green, Berle Adams and Arthur Talmadge. ... In the music industry, a record producer (or music producer) has many roles, among them controlling the recording sessions, coaching and guiding the musicians, organizing and scheduling production budget and resources, and supervising the recording, mixing and mastering processes. ... Rush is a Canadian rock band comprised of bassist, keyboardist, and vocalist Geddy Lee, guitarist Alex Lifeson, and drummer and lyricist Neil Peart. ... Terry Brown may refer to: Terry Brown (record producer), record producer known most notably for his work with the Canadian rock bands Rush, Blue Rodeo, and Klaatu Terry Brown (football chairman), former chairman of West Ham United football club Terry Brown (football manager), manager of Aldershot Town football club Terry... A record chart, also known as a music chart, is a method of ranking music according to popularity during a given period of time. ... Modern Rock Tracks is a music chart in the United States that has appeared in Billboard magazine since September 10, 1988. ... For the year 2112, see 2112. ... A Passage To Bangkok is the second song on Rushs album, 2112. ... Rush- 2112 album cover Used on Wikipedia under Fair use guidelines - a low-resolution copy of an image of the cover. ... A collection of various CD singles In music, a single is a short recording of one or more separate tracks. ... Rush is a Canadian rock band comprised of bassist, keyboardist, and vocalist Geddy Lee, guitarist Alex Lifeson, and drummer and lyricist Neil Peart. ... For the year 2112, see 2112. ... Year 1976 (MCMLXXVI) was a leap year starting on Thursday (link will display full calendar) of the 1976 Gregorian calendar. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... This article needs additional references or sources for verification. ... Rush is a Canadian rock band comprised of bassist, keyboardist, and vocalist Geddy Lee, guitarist Alex Lifeson, and drummer and lyricist Neil Peart. ... 2112 track listing A Passage to Bangkok (Track 2) The Twilight Zone (Track 3) Lessons (Track 4) The Twilight Zone is the third track on Rushs album 2112. ... A Passage To Bangkok is the second song on Rushs album, 2112. ... Rush is a Canadian rock band comprised of bassist, keyboardist, and vocalist Geddy Lee, guitarist Alex Lifeson, and drummer and lyricist Neil Peart. ... For the year 2112, see 2112. ...

Parts

• (*) Starting times and lengths approximate.

The Canadian Progressive Rock trio Rush has written, recorded, and performed several instrumentals throughout its career. ... The Canadian Progressive Rock trio Rush has written, recorded, and performed several instrumentals throughout its career. ...

Synopsis

In the year 2062, a galaxy-wide war results in the union of all planets under the rule of the Red Star of the Solar Federation. The world is controlled by the Priests of the Temples of Syrinx, who determine all reading matter, songs, pictures... everything connected with life during the year 2112 ("The Temples of Syrinx").

In the midst of this assembly line living, a man discovers what was once known years before as a guitar ("Discovery"). The man begins to pluck the strings and turn the knobs, discovering that he can make his own music - a music very different from that of the Temples. He rushes to tell the priests of his discovery, ("Presentation") but to the man's dismay, the priests destroy the instrument, saying it doesn't fit the plan of the Solar Federation.

The man returns to the cave in which he found the guitar and, during a dream, is led by an oracle to a land of incredible beauty and serenity ("Oracle: A Dream"). Upon awakening, he can not believe it was a dream — the beauty was so real.

He remains in the cave for several days, becoming more and more depressed with each passing hour ("Soliloquy"). The man decides he can not go on as part of the Federation and takes his life to move on to a better one. As he dies, another planetary battle begins ("Grand Finale") resulting in the (perhaps deliberately) ambiguous ending "Attention all planets of the Solar Federation: We have assumed control." (This spoken section was created by Geddy Lee and Alex Lifeson reportedly "messing around with a tape recorder".)

It should be mentioned that this story is a parallel of the short novella 'Anthem' by Ayn Rand - who is credited in the liner notes. In Anthem, the society is similar to that described in "Temples of Syrinx". They are very socialist, with the word "I" being banned and forgotten. There is no electricity and all light is by candle. Rather than a guitar, in Anthem, the protagonist discovers a light bulb in a tunnel. He brings it to the leaders who, like in "Presentation," dismiss it and even claim that it would be the death of society as they know it. Anthem (ISBN 0451191137), first published in 1938, is a science_fiction novella by Ayn Rand. ... Ayn Rand (IPA: , February 2 [O.S. January 20] 1905 – March 6, 1982), born Alisa Zinovyevna Rosenbaum (Russian: ), was a Russian-born American novelist and philosopher,[1] best known for developing Objectivism and for writing the novels We the Living, The Fountainhead, Atlas Shrugged and the novella Anthem. ...

Lyricist Neil Peart has claimed that while he based the song around the concept of Anthem, he was unaware that the parallels were so similar until after writing the song - thus necessitating the liner tribute to "the genus of Ayn Rand."

Overture

2112 commences with a lengthy instrumental section ("Overture") which concludes with the spoken phrase "And the meek shall inherit the Earth" (a reference to the Beatitudes of the New Testament and Psalm 37:11.) The "2112 Overture" contains a guitar adaptation of a familiar part of Tchaikovsky's 1812 Overture. The Canadian Progressive Rock trio Rush has written, recorded, and performed several instrumentals throughout its career. ... The Beatitudes (from Latin, beatitudo, happiness) is the name given to the well-known, definitive and beginning portion of the Sermon on the Mount of the Gospel of Matthew. ... This article is about the Christian scriptures. ... Psalms (Tehilim תהילים, in Hebrew) is a book of the Hebrew Bible or Tanakh, and of the Old Testament of the Christian Bible. ... Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky Pyotr (Peter) Ilyich Tchaikovsky (Russian: Пётр Ильич Чайкoвский, Pëtr Il’ič ÄŒajkovskij;  )[1] (7 May [O.S. 25 April] 1840 – 6 November [O.S. 25 October] 1893), was a Russian composer of the Romantic era. ... This article needs additional references or sources for verification. ...

The priests

Section two, "The Temples of Syrinx", sets an immediate counterpoint to this line by introducing the arrogant villains of the story. The Priests of the Temples of Syrinx, characterized by an uncharacteristically high, even shrieking singing phased and processed voice by Geddy Lee^{[citation needed]}, boast that "All the gifts of life are held within our walls." The Priests, who rule over the Earth, have united the surviving human colonies, after a long war, under "the red star of the Solar Federation", supposedly under the principles of equality and brotherhood. The "meek" mentioned in the opening line seem to be the contented people of the Solar Federation who have submitted to the rule of the Priests. According to Bulfinchs Mythology, Syrinx (Greek Συριγξ) was a nymph and a follower of Artemis, known for her chastity. ... Geddy Lee OC (born Gary Lee Weinrib on July 29, 1953 in Toronto, Ontario) is a Canadian musician best known as the vocalist, bassist, and keyboardist for the Canadian rock group Rush. ... Red star on the Soviet flag The five-pointed red star (a pentagram without the inner pentagon) is a symbol of Communism and Socialism and represents the five fingers of the workers hand, as well as five of six inhabited continents. ...

The protagonist

The third section, "Discovery", introduces our main character (Geddy's voice left natural with no processing save some echo), who finds a guitar in a remote cave behind a waterfall. Alex Lifeson builds up from simple open string guitar playing into increasingly complex patterns and chords, showing us the man's progress as he teaches himself to play the guitar. Alex Lifeson OC (born Alexander Zivojinovich on August 27, 1953, in Fernie, British Columbia, Canada), is a Canadian musician, best known as the guitarist for the rock group Rush. ...

Confident that the Priests will be impressed with his discovery, he brings the guitar before them in part four, "Presentation". The dialogue between the man and the Priests alternates between the gentle guitar work and clear pitch of the man, and the hard-rocking guitars and shrieking pitch of the Priests. Ultimately, the Priests dismiss the instrument and destroy it, saying that it was just 'another toy that helped destroy the elder race of man'.

The protagonist returns home, discouraged. In part five, "Oracle: The Dream", he has a dream where an oracle takes him on a journey to see the true fate of the Elder Race, who had not been destroyed—instead, "they left our planets long ago" and now inhabit a "wondrous land" graced by "the works of gifted hands". He is amazed by its wonder and beauty, and the way in which the people were free to do and create what they please. In the dream he sees the Elder Race growing in power and preparing to return to destroy the temples. Consulting the Oracle by John William Waterhouse, showing eight priestesses in a temple of prophecy An oracle is a person or persons considered to be the source of wise counsel or prophetic opinion; an infallible authority, usually spiritual in nature. ...

He then awakens in part six, "Soliloquy", and is distraught by the fact that such a world, so perfect for him, will never exist. In the cave where he first discovered the guitar, he kills himself, unable to bear the thought of a life without the wonders he knows are possible of the human race.

Part seven, "The Grand Finale", is a grand instrumental concluding with the spoken words "Attention, all planets of the Solar Federation: We have assumed control". Some fans interpret the Grand Finale as the victorious return of the Elder Race, while others interpret it as the establishment of absolute power by the Priests who have finally destroyed the last dissident to their order. The Canadian Progressive Rock trio Rush has written, recorded, and performed several instrumentals throughout its career. ...