The Analog Kid

Background and Commentary

“Almost a sequel to ‘Subdivisions,’ the analog kid, dreaming of success, represents Rush growing up in the days of analog.”—Robert Telleria, Merely Players

“I think every young musician can relate to this. You have this dream about making it but don’t really know what that means. You just go for this goal with your eyes closed, you heart wide open, and let things happen from there. I don’t think any of us realized how far Rush would go and I don’t think we like to think about it, either.” (Success Under Pressure)—Geddy in Merely Players

In the piece, “a boy’s suburban reverie of busy urban streets, autumn woods, and winter skies (visions interrupted as his mother’s voice calls him back to reality) dramatizes the desire to flee suburbs.”—Christopher McDonald, Rush, Rock Music, and the Middle Class

After the boy’s daydream is interrupted by his mother, he “pulls down his baseball cap over his eyes. Like the humanoid escapee in ‘The Body Electric’ [on Grace Under Pressure] he is experiencing overload, a clash of signals, a confusion of programming. Whose voice will he heed? That of the dryad [the beautiful maiden featured in his daydream] or his mother? Heartstrings or apron-strings? He will leave home; there’s really no question about that. But when? And what will he find?”—Carol Selby Price and Robert Price, Mystic Rhythms

“‘The Analog Kid’ was my first attempt at non-fiction. For the longest time I stepped into characters until I had my own confidence and technique to be able to step outside them as a writer.” (Canadian Musician)—Neil in Merely Players

“The fawn-eyed girl with the sun-browned legs,” about whom the narrator is daydreaming before his mother calls him home, is based on Neil’s first experience with puppy love. It was with a girl from Beach City, Ohio, that he met while attending the 1967 World’s Fair in Montreal when he was 15. For a year afterward they maintained their relationship through letters. “Her father was extremely watchful and we never even kissed. . . . When her letters trickled off, I was devastated. Maybe her father made her stop writing to me.”—Neil in Roadshow

In the production of the song, the guitar is given more emphasis than other songs on Signals, “but nowhere near the levels of earlier records. Still, there is some meticulous musical interplay between Alex and Geddy.”—Bill Banasiewicz, Rush Visions

“‘The Analog Kid’ and ‘Digital Man’ served as the inspiration for writer Troy Hickman to create the comic book heroes of the same name, Digital Man and Analog Kid, in the 2004 comic Common Grounds.”—Wikipedia

Lyrics

A hot and windy August afternoon
Has the trees in constant motion
With a flash of silver leaves
As they’re rocking in the breeze

The boy lies in the grass with one blade
Stuck between his teeth
A vague sensation quickens
In his young and restless heart
And a bright and nameless vision
Has him longing to depart

Chorus:
You move me
You move me
With your buildings and your eyes
Autumn woods and winter skies
You move me
You move me
Open sea and city lights
Busy streets and dizzy heights
You call me
You call me

The fawn-eyed girl with sun-browned legs
Dances on the edge of his dream
And her voice rings in his ears
Like the music of the spheres

The boy lies in the grass, unmoving
Staring at the sky
His mother starts to call him
As a hawk goes soaring by
The boy pulls down his baseball cap
And covers up his eyes

Chorus

Too many hands on my time
Too many feelings
Too many things on my mind
When I leave I don’t know
What I’m hoping to find
When I leave I don’t know
What I’m leaving behind

Tablature

By Pat M Ryan (pat@jaameri.gsfc.nasa.gov), Chris Eucare (ceucar1@gl.umbc.edu)

Excerpted from Fretplay.

riff [A]
A A
———————————-|
-2–2—————————–| o
-2–2———–2_0—4_2_0——-| o
-2–2—–0_2_4—–4——-4_2_0-|
-0–0—————————–|
———————————-|

intro Try this:
B * F# *
B B B * * * ————————————–
B B B * * * —–4——5——-11—-12———-
B B B * * * —–4——4——-11—-11———-
F# F# F# * * * repeat (3X) —–4——4——-11—-11———-
[key change] —–2——2——–9—-9———–
————————————–
G G C C C
A hot and windy …
G G G C C CB C D
Has the trees in …
E E A
With a …
E A
As they’re rocking ….

riff [A] (twice)
A D
The boy lies in the …
A D
Stuck between …
A D
A vague …
A D
In his young and …
G C
And a bright and …
G C
Has him …

For complete tab, go to Fretplay.