10 Rock Albums That Peak With The First Song
7. Moving Pictures - Rush
Whilst some may call it selling out, prog rock band Rush's decision to go more commercial in the '80s helped produce some of their best known and well-loved tracks.
The decade gave us New World Man, The Big Money, and the mammoth The Spirit of Radio, as well as this treat from their eighth studio album Moving Pictures.
The record, which fraudulently contains no moving pictures at all (see you in court), kicks off with an ode to a classic figure from American folklore. Tom Sawyer in this instance is a man struggling against the confines of modern society, looking to live his life as freely as his namesake.
The by-product of singer Geddy Lee mucking about with an Oberheim in the studio, the synths on this song are eccentric and breezy, darting about all over like a wave of light washing over the listener. They're funky, space-age, and about as far from '70s Rush as physically possible.
Moving Pictures is Rush's best-selling album in the US, and there's no doubt that tracks like XYZ and Limelight helped with that. But, if we had to thank just one song, Tom Sawyer gets the flowers every single time.