Rush announce deluxe 40th anniversary edition of Hemispheres

Robert Ham
Updated
Rush Hemispheres Deluxe

While they may never make music together again, the members of Rush are making sure that the sound that they did make during their 50-year lifespan remains in circulation. To that end, the Canadian trio has announced the forthcoming 40th anniversary reissue of their sixth studio album Hemispheres in a variety of formats and configurations.

The Super Deluxe Edition boasts a remastered edition of the album on both CD and vinyl, as well as a Blu-ray disc featuring the music mixed for 5.1 surround sound and four music videos. The set also includes a recording of a live performance from that era captured at the 1979 edition of the Pinkpop Festival in the Netherlands, minus their version of “2112” as apparently the engineer at the fest didn’t hit record for the first few minutes. So, to make it a complete package they’ve added in a recording of that tune from the Tucson, Arizona, stop of the Hemispheres tour.

Rounding out the Super Deluxe Edition are, among other goodies, a hardcover book with never-before-seen photos and an essay from music writer Rob Bowman, a replica of the Hemispheres tour program, and an iron-on patch for your denim jacket.

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Rush are also releasing this new version of Hemispheres as a 180-gram three LP set and as a double CD set with the remastered album and the live material. Both will include some of the photos from the Super Deluxe version and an edited version of Bowman’s essay. Naturally, the music will also be available for digital download.

Released in 1978, it was a record that proved to be a bridge between the expansive prog-rock epics of their breakthrough release 2112 and the more pop-leaning sound heard on ‘80s classics Permanent Waves and Moving Pictures. If nothing else, Hemispheres is best known as the home of “La Villa Strangiato,” the nine-minute, 12-part instrumental that incorporated elements of Raymond Scott’s “Powerhouse” and was allegedly based on nightmares that guitarist Alex Lifeson was having at the time.

“Hemispheres was one of our most challenging and demanding records to make,” Lifeson said in a statement. “From its inception in a Wales farmhouse where it was written over a 4 week span to the very difficult mixing sessions in two London recording studios, it stands as a key transitional album in Rush’s long recording history.”

The various 40th anniversary editions of Hemispheres will be released on November 16th. Click here to pre-order a copy, and see an unboxing video and tracklists below:

Hemispheres – 40th Anniversary Editions – Tracklists:

SUPER DELUXE EDITION

CD – DISC 1
Original Album – Produced by Rush and Terry Brown

  1. Cygnus X-1 Book II: Hemispheres

  2. Circumstances

  3. The Trees

  4. La Villa Strangiato

CD – DISC 2
Live at Pinkpop Festival – June 4, 1979

  1. A Passage To Bangkok*

  2. Xanadu*

  3. The Trees*

  4. Cygnus X-1 Book II: Hemispheres – The Sphere A Kind Of Dream*

  5. Closer To The Heart*

  6. La Villa Strangiato*

  7. In The Mood*

  8. Drum Solo*

  9. Something For Nothing*

Live in Arizona – November 20, 1978

  1. 2112*

BLU-RAY AUDIO – DISC 3
96kHz 24-bit 5.1 Surround Mix
96kHz 24-bit Original Stereo Analog 2015 Remaster

  1. Cygnus X-1 Book II: Hemispheres*

  2. Circumstances*

  3. The Trees*

  4. La Villa Strangiato*

Bonus Promo Videos
48kHz 24-bit Stereo Only

  1. Circumstances (1978 Promo Video)*

  2. The Trees (1978 Promo Video)*

  3. La Villa Strangiato (1978 Promo Video)*

  4. La Villa Strangiato (Live at Pinkpop Festival: June 4, 1979)*

3-LP VINYL
LP 1 – SIDE A
Original Album – Produced by Rush and Terry Brown
1. Cygnus X-1 Book II: Hemispheres

LP 1 – SIDE B

  1. Circumstances

  2. The Trees

  3. La Villa Strangiato

LP 2 – SIDE C
Live at Pinkpop Festival – June 4, 1979

  1. A Passage To Bangkok*

  2. Xanadu*

LP 2 – SIDE D

  1. The Trees*

  2. Cygnus X-1 Book II: Hemispheres – The Sphere A Kind Of Dream*

  3. Closer To The Heart*

  4. La Villa Strangiato*

LP 3 – SIDE E

  1. In The Mood*

  2. Drum Solo*

  3. Something For Nothing*

LP 3 – SIDE F
Live in Arizona – November 20, 1978

  1. 2112*

2CD DELUXE EDITION / DELUXE DIGITAL EDITION
DISC 1
Original Album – Produced by Rush and Terry Brown

  1. Cygnus X-1 Book II: Hemispheres

  2. Circumstances

  3. The Trees

  4. La Villa Strangiato

DISC 2
Live at Pinkpop Festival – June 4, 1979

  1. A Passage To Bangkok*

  2. Xanadu*

  3. The Trees*

  4. Cygnus X-1 Book II: Hemispheres – The Sphere A Kind Of Dream*

  5. Closer To The Heart*

  6. La Villa Strangiato*

  7. In The Mood*

  8. Drum Solo*

  9. Something For Nothing*

Live in Arizona – November 20, 1978

  1. 2112*

*Previously unreleased