Details
Max Webster's debut album was released in May 1976, and these three dates supporting Rush at Massey Hall in Toronto soon followed.
On the first night Kim came on stage dressed as a Sheik, head dress and all. They won over plenty of new fans, and were even asked for encores.
Rush recorded their "All The World's A Stage" album at these shows. This first night apparently wasn't a strong one for the band, and Geddy Lee even broke a string on his teardrop bass at one point. The live album mostly comprises of the second and third nights.
But Max Webster was great on all three nights. "The inside joke at the time was that they used our applause for the album. We were hot that night," recalls Paul Kersey. He adds, "That was Kim's debut for the hat out of the purse." Kim would often turn the hat 90 degrees between songs.
Line-up
- Kim Mitchell : Vocals/Guitar
- Mike Tilka : Bass
- Paul Kersey : Drums
- Terry Watkinson : Keyboards
Bands
- Rush
Partial Setlist
This setlist is combined from various reviews and recollections of the three nights.
- Coming Off The Moon
- Oh War!
- Diamonds Diamonds
- On The Road
- Summer Turning Blue
- Beyond The Moon
- Toronto Tontos
- Lily
- Hangover
Photos
These photos could be from any of the three nights at Massey Hall.
Photos © Philip Wright. They also could be from any of the three nights.
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anonymous
That purse Kim has, is a hat inside. It opened up HUGE. Looked like a chip and when he moved it, it would change shape. Very frikin kool.
At the time I thought that Max's show had more dynamics. In '76 sitting in front of the PA I remember wishing Max played with less dynamics because I didn't know when I was going to get blasted. And Max did quiet songs like On The Road. I never saw Rush do quiet songs. Maybe they did after I outgrew them in '78.
The first time I saw Max & Rush I didn't know Max's songs yet. The first album had only been out for a month. So I had no idea where the stops were in the music. And there were no line array PAs back then. If you were sitting directly in front of the bins, your ears were getting pummelled by a sledgehammer.
Kim didn't play acoustic guitar that night. But Max played a quiet electric version of Summer Turning Blue.