Included in the August 2011 issue of Guitar World is their list of the 100 Greatest Classic Rock Guitar Songs of All Time. Along with the listing of the songs, a short description / story of the bands behind the songs are included.

Coming in at #25 is Rush's Limelight: "Limelight"
Artist: Rush (Moving Pictures, 1980 [Released in 1981, written in 1980])
Recorded: Le Studio, Morin Heights, Quebec: October-November 1980
Guitarist: Alex Lifeson
Gear: Stratocaster with Bill Lawrence L-5000 in the bridge and a Floyd Rose vibrato, Marshall 4140 Club & Country Combo

Background: "'Limelight' is about being under the microscopic scrutiny of the public, and the need for privacy-trying to separate the two and not always being successful at it," guitarist Alex Lifeson says. "Because we've never been a high-profile band, we've managed to retain a lot of our privacy. But we've had to work at it."

For the recording, Lifeson used a modified St…

Late last week, the launch of the Space Shuttle Atlantis marked the the start of the NASA's final Space Shuttle mission. In celebration of the event, Spinner Canada counted down their Top 10 astronaut wake-up calls. Rush's Countdown from their Signals album took the #1 spot:1. 'Countdown'
Rush
Canada brought more to the Shuttle Program than the Canadarm, and it came in the form of a Rush song. The iconic Canuck prog-rockers' 1982 single 'Countdown' was wholly inspired by Columbia's first trip in 1981, the first of the Shuttle Program. The song even samples audio from this launch and was played to wake up the crew on Columbia's 27th flight in 2002, on the day the shuttle landed back on Earth for the last time. So it's a pretty perfect pick to complete our wake-up song countdown as NASA's space shuttle program enters T-Minus Zero. To see the entire list, click HERE.

Thanks to RushFanForever for passing along the news. Related News Stories
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The 2011 Guiness Book of World Records - Gamer's Edition includes a category for the Longest Song Featured In A Rhythm Game where the band's epic 2112 is identified as the current record-holder: Holder: "2112" (Rush, 1976) The prize for the longest commercially released song to be featured in a rhythm game goes to veteran Canadian rockers Rush, whose 20-min 23-sec 1976 track "2112" features as the final number in Guitar Hero: Warriors of Rock (Activision, 2010). Click HERE to order your own copy of the Guinness Book.

Thanks to Eric from Power Windows for the news.

The September 2011 issue of Vintage Guitar Magazine features Alex Lifeson on the cover and includes an article with the Rush guitarist.Alex Lifeson
Rush Keeps Rollin’
Critics have called them pretentious since the start, and not every rock listener signed on as a fan. But Rush has always focused on writing songs, playing, and performing to the best of their individual abilities. Through the group’s many musical changes, Alex Lifeson has provided unique guitar work, and played mandolin, bouzouki, mandola, along with other instruments. By Elliot Stephen Cohen More about Vintage Guitar Magazine:Published monthly since 1986, each huge issue of VG is packed with articles to inform, entertain, and save you money, with information and histories of the instruments and the people and companies that built them, great interviews with the top players of today and yesterday and the instruments they use, the secret repair tips of the experts, pricing info, and much more! And Vintage Guitar has thou…

The August 2011 issue of Rhythm Magazine, the UK's best-selling Drum Magazine, features Neil Peart on the cover and includes an 11-page article on The Professor: Rush's prog drumming legend Neil Peart tells us about his continuing pursuit of drumming excellence. The Professor lets us in on why after 45 years behind the kit he's still working to make himself a better player. Neil talks about taking lessons, improvisation, finding the perfect sound and much more. We also get a guided tour of the Time Machine kit from Neil's drum tech Lorne Wheaton and wind the clock back to The Professor's first-ever Rhythm cover. Click HERE for more information and ordering instructions.

Update: Click HERE for a photo gallery from the Seattle concert. Last night, Rush took the stage for the final time in 2011, drawing a close to the two-year long Time Machine tour at the scenic Gorge Amphitheater outside of Seattle, Washington. Throughout the two-year tour, Rush played 83 shows across North and South America as well as Europe.

And though the tour may now be just a memory, it shouldn't be long before we can relive it with the Time Machine DVD; a concert filmed on April 15th in Cleveland. The DVD is expected to be released on September 27th.

For more memories of the tour, you can check out the Time Machine Tour Gallery featuring well over 1,000 pictures from over 30 venues.

With the tour now over, and after a well-deserved break, Rush will turn its attention to (finally) completing Clockwork Angels; their long-anticipated 20th studio album. Geddy has recently been quoted in saying that he "hopes" to have the album finished before Christmas (presumably C…

There was a Rush sighting on tonight's episode of The Soup; the weekly entertainment show hosted by Joel McHale on the E! Entertainment Network. Below is the rather humorous clip: Lee Farber, the writer and supervising producer of 'The Soup' is apparently a huge Rush fan which likely led to the Rush mention on the show.

You can also watch the video clip directly at YouTube via this LINK.

In celebration of Canada Day, artist William Meire held an exhibit at Canada Place titled Face of Canada. In it, Meire showcased more than 100 oil paintings of notable Canadians. Asked to select his favorite, Geddy Lee was the obvious choice for the self-proclaimed Rush fan: “I love Rush, I’m a Rush fan. I love Geddy Lee, as far as entertainers, he’s very inspiring to me. And Neil Young, of course, they’d be right up there as far as entertainers. They’re so inspiring, I listen to them both constantly as I paint,” he says. "Friday marked the debut of Meire’s show. Outside, Canada Place was awash in red-and-white-clad revellers celebrating the country’s 144th birthday, but plenty of people were drawn indoors to check out Meire’s exhibit, dramatically lit in a dark ballroom. Some gasped as they found their favourite Canadians; others studied the portraits in quiet contemplation." -The Province.

Meire's Gallery Website can be view via this LINK.