COUNTDOWN - Rush

COUNTDOWN from the 'Signals' cd by Rush. On April 12, 1981, Rush was invited to NASA to watch the launch of the first Space Shuttle Columbia. They were so impressed and inspired that they came up with this song and video to pay tribute to NASA astronauts Young and Crippen, and the whole space program. I recall being at a Rush concert during the Signals tour back around sometime in 1983 and watching them perform this song. When the song reached the point where the countdown begins prior to liftoff, the giant screen was showing the exact same footage as the music video, and the stage was filled with smoke(dry ice) to simulate the launch sequence on stage. It was an awesome experience which I will never forget. Those of you who saw this know what I am describing.

Category:

Music

Tags:

• Countdown
• Rush
• Signals
• NASA
• Peart
• Lee
• Lifeson
• Young
• Crippen
• April 12
• 1981
• Columbia
• Space Shuttle
• astronaut

[donotadjustyourtv]

Lighten up Nelson. Sounds like you lost your girlfriend to a drummer who liked Rush, or, you were kicked out of a band and replaced by a better drummer that played just like NP.

[flyjbaker]

Nelson, you're an idiot.

[TheOberheimer]

This song has such a great driving rhythm and synth section!

[juliajuliagenevieve]

How proud we were. We had every right to be proud and stand in awe.

Now only ghosts remain.

Goodbye U.S. space program. Goodbye hero's and heroines.

You will be dearly missed.

[warszawianka]

All I could think of when Columbia broke up on re-entry was this song... man, this is an amazing album and an amazing song (even if some of the rhyming is a little lame). This is Rush at their best. I mean, the runs at 2:00 and 2:58 are THE classic Rush sound...

I watched Columbia's first flight from my elementary school gym. Incredible. And it really pisses me off that the last Shuttle is about to go off and we have nothing in the pipeline to replace it.

[bichbetru]

Signals is just a flat out good damned album.I sometimes hear people diss it...Man that's some total BS. Think of how many things you've heard over the years that "sound like" Rush from Signals.If this album were a band it would be DEVO or (The) Sweet, or Slade...Or Russ Ballard.....What I mean is under-appreciated for what they did to begin with and how much it influenced later artists without getting it's due.

[centurion180ad]

At 5:01 the voice radio calls are between Houston and Columbia.

Well Columbia is gone, blown into bits and incinerated during a reentry disaster that stinks of negligent homicide which is what the Inspector General concluded during a nicely thorough and oddly honest investigation. Ofcourse nobody was penalized, except the crew that was sold down the river to their deaths.

[guionlawes]

geez i was only kidding!

[www41WorldUSAcom]

RUSH---NASA "COUNTDOWN"

[mycatwilatackyou]

@santyrush 10-4 We'll see you in Madrid , meaning when they come around the planet 

[mycatwilatackyou]

by the way I went to this concert as well as 5 other Rush concerts .. :P

[mycatwilatackyou]

Great song , great album , great group long live Rush