The Trees (Rush song)
| "The Trees" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Single by Rush | ||||
| from the album Hemispheres | ||||
| B-side | "Circumstances" | |||
| Released |
| |||
| Genre | Progressive rock, hard rock | |||
| Length | 4:42 | |||
| Label | Anthem | |||
| Songwriter(s) | Neil Peart, Geddy Lee, Alex Lifeson | |||
| Producer(s) | Rush & Terry Brown | |||
| Rush singles chronology | ||||
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| Music video | ||||
| "The Trees" on YouTube | ||||
"The Trees" is a song by Canadian rock band Rush, from its 1978 album Hemispheres. The song is also featured on many of Rush's compilation albums, and was long a staple of the band's live performances. On the live album Exit...Stage Left, the song features an extended acoustic guitar introduction titled "Broon's Bane."
Rolling Stone readers voted the song number 8 on the list of the 10 best Rush songs.[1]
Live365 ranked it the tenth best Rush song.[2]
Classic Rock readers voted "The Trees" the band's 11th best song.[3]
Lyrics
The lyrics relate a short story about a conflict between maple and oak trees in a forest. The maple trees want more sunlight, but the oak trees are too tall. The conflict ends when man cuts down the forest: And the trees are all kept equal... By hatchet, axe, and saw....[4]
Rush drummer and lyricist Neil Peart was asked in the April/May 1980 issue of the magazine Modern Drummer if there was a message in the lyrics, to which he replied, "No. It was just a flash. I was working on an entirely different thing when I saw a cartoon picture of these trees carrying on like fools. I thought, 'What if trees acted like people?' So I saw it as a cartoon really, and wrote it that way. I think that's the image that it conjures up to a listener or a reader. A very simple statement."[5][6]
See also
References
- ^ Greene, Andy (2015-03-04). "Readers' Poll: The 10 Best Rush Songs". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2020-12-26.
- ^ "Top 10 Rush Songs". Live365.com. 2018-06-07. Retrieved 2020-12-26.
- ^ "The 50 greatest Rush songs ever | Louder". Loudersound.com. 2015-06-11. Retrieved 2020-12-26.
- ^ Rush. "The Trees Lyrics". Rush.com. Retrieved April 13, 2019.
- ^ Iero, Cheech (April 1980). "Neil Peart". Modern Drummer. Retrieved April 13, 2019.
- ^ "The Trees by Rush Songfacts". Songfacts.com. 2004-06-02. Retrieved 2016-10-14.
External links
- Template:MetroLyrics song
- "The Trees... Meaning? – Rush Discussions". Last.fm. Retrieved 2016-10-14.
