| "Tom Sawyer" | ||||||||||||||
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| Single by Rush from the album Moving Pictures |
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| Released | February 28, 1981 | |||||||||||||
| Recorded | October - November 1980 at Le Studio, Morin Heights, Quebec | |||||||||||||
| Genre | Progressive Rock | |||||||||||||
| Length | 4:33 | |||||||||||||
| Label | Mercury Records | |||||||||||||
| Producer | Rush and Terry Brown | |||||||||||||
| Rush singles chronology | ||||||||||||||
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| "Vital Signs" (1981) |
"Tom Sawyer" (Live) (1981) |
"Closer to the Heart" (Live) (1981) |
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| Moving Pictures track listing | ||||||||||||||
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"Tom Sawyer" is a 1981 song by Canadian progressive rock band Rush named for Mark Twain's literary character. The song relies heavily on Geddy Lee's skill as a synth player and the techniques of drummer Neil Peart. Geddy Lee has referred to the track as the "quintessential Rush song"; It is one of Rush's best-known songs and is a staple of classic rock radio. Notably, it reached No.24 in the UK singles chart in May 1981 as a follow-up to their breakthrough hit "The Spirit of Radio".
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Origin
The song was written by Lee, Peart, and guitarist Alex Lifeson in collaboration with Canadian lyricist Pye Dubois (a member of Max Webster), who also co-wrote other Rush songs such as "Force Ten," "Between Sun and Moon," and "Test For Echo." According to the US radio show In the Studio with Redbeard (which devoted an entire episode to the making of Moving Pictures), "Tom Sawyer" came about during a summer rehearsal holiday that Rush spent at Ronnie Hawkins' farm outside Toronto. Peart was presented with a poem by Dubois named "Louis the Warrior" that he modified and expanded. Lee and Lifeson then helped set the poem to music. The unique growling sound heard in the song came from Lee's fiddling with his Oberheim synthesizer.
Structure and fan reaction
Fans of Rush cite "Tom Sawyer " as an example of Rush's distinctive songwriting, blending intelligent yet enigmatic lyrics with an intricate pattern of multiple time signatures . The middle section of the song is built around a simple riff that was originally a 'little melody' Geddy Lee used to test his synthesizers: A - F# - G# - E - F# - D - A - F# - G# - E - F# - B - as it is 'passed over' from one instrument to another. During the synth part, an unusual 7/8 time signature is used. As a Twain reference, "Tom Sawyer" can be considered an abstract commentary on a free-thinking "modern day warrior". Beyond this, in the December 1985 Rush Backstage Club newsletter, drummer and lyricist Neil Peart said: "Tom Sawyer was a collaboration between myself and Pye Dubois, an excellent lyricist who wrote the lyrics for Max Webster. His original lyrics were kind of a portrait of a modern day rebel, a free-spirited individualist striding through the world wide-eyed and purposeful. I added the themes of reconciling the boy and man in myself, and the difference between what people are and what others perceive them to be - namely me I guess."
Album appearances
The song was released on Mercury Records and PolyGram in 1981 on the Moving Pictures album and later also appeared on 1990's Chronicles as track 1 on disc 2. Its duration is approximately 4 min 33 sec (studio version). It has also appeared on numerous Rush live albums and bootlegs.
Covers and appearances in pop culture
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- For several years (until the 2006 playoffs) the New England Patriots played the song in its entirety when Tom Brady came on the field for pre-game warmups.
- The synth intro to the song was later used by The Beastie Boys as part of a DJ set during one of their tours. It was also covered by Deadsy on 2002's Commencement and by Mindless Self Indulgence on their 2005 album You'll Rebel to Anything and was sampled in The Aquabats' song Pool Party.
- The main/verse guitar riff of the song was used by Metallica as the bridge of the song Sanitarium that originally appeared on their 1986 album Master of Puppets. Metallica has often listed Rush as one of their main influences and thanks the band in the credits section of the album.
- The song appeared in the movie Small Soldiers (remixed by DJ Z-Trip) and in the movie The Waterboy starring Adam Sandler.
- Professional wrestler Kerry Von Erich (who wrestled under the nickname "The Modern Day Warrior") used "Tom Sawyer" as his entrance music.
- During the episode Anthology of Interest II of Futurama, the song plays during the Space Invaders scene, referring to the lyrics: "Today's Tom Sawyer, he gets high on you, and the space he invades he gets by on you."
- In the Aqua Teen Hunger Force episode Spirit Journey Formation Anniversary, there are numerous references to both Rush and Geddy Lee, including Shake claiming the 'new happy birthday song' was a collaboration between Geddy and himself, Meatwad humming/singing to both the synth riff of Tom Sawyer and the lyrics of The Spirit Of Radio, and even a personal jet shaped like a bass guitar that supposedly belonged to Geddy.
- The opening riff is also found in "Grade 9" by the Canadian band Barenaked Ladies on their Gordon album.
- In 1993, short-lived Rap collective the Young Black Teenagers sampled Tom Sawyer on their song "Tap The Bottle" on the grounds that "it's the phattest shit ever recorded and deserves to be revisited".
- The instrumental intro to "Tom Sawyer" was used in television commercials for the Nissan Maxima in 2000.
- In the episode "Chick Cancer" of the 5th season of Family Guy makes reference to the song, with Chester Cheetah declaring "Oh God! There is no fucking drummer better than Neil Peart!" as the song plays in the background.
- In Brazil the song was used as the opening theme for the TV series MacGyver, aired by TV Globo.
- The song was mentioned in Brian Keene's novel Ghoul. The book took place in 1984.
- The Bad Plus recorded an instrumental cover for their 2007 album Prog.
- The Golden State Warriors of the NBA used the first verse which was looped with the lyrics of a "modern day Warrior" when they took to the court in pre-game shootaround during the late 1990s. Occasionally, the team still uses the song during the game.
- A cover version of the song is featured as a playable track in the video game Rock Band.
- Fort Minor sampled the main riff and beat of the song for its song "All Night."
- The song is referenced in the movie Beer League when the main character Artie wants to have sex with his girlfriend. His girlfriend is worried that Artie's mother will hear them through the walls to which Artie responds: "These walls are soundproof, you could play the fucking drum solo from Tom Sawyer and no one would hear it".
- The song was used as the intro music for Triple-A baseball player Gary Burnham of the Ottawa Lynx.
- The song is also on the soundtrack for All-Pro Football 2K8
- The song could be heard in the 2007 remake of Halloween (2007 film) by Rob Zombie and is also featured on the movie's official soundtrack.
- In the "Everybody Hates Caruso" episode of Everybody Hates Chris, the song plays during the rematch between school bully Joey Caruso and Bernard Yao.
- The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame named it one of the 500 Songs That Shaped Rock and Roll[1]
- The characters of South Park, formed as a band called "Li'l Rush" and covered the song for an opening to a Rush concert. Eric Cartman (As Geddy Lee), sings the lyrics: "Modern-day warrior, today's Tom Sawyer! He floated down a river, on a raft with a black guy!" Kyle interjects, stating "Those aren't the right lyrics!" To which Cartman responds, "Tom Sawyer build a raft, and floated down a river with a black guy; I read the book!" This, as Stan points out, shows that Cartman has confused Huckleberry Finn with Tom. The black guy refers to Injun Joe.
See also
- Moving Pictures, the 1981 album on which the song appeared
- Synthesizer, an instrument that played a significant role in defining the sound of this recording
- The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, the book that is referenced in the song
