Primus have officially kicked off their Rush tribute tour, playing the opening date of the outing on Tuesday night (August 10th) in Nampa, Idaho.
Over the weekend, Primus’ Les Claypool revealed he was “learning from the master” and practicing Rush songs with singer-bassist Geddy Lee himself in preparation for the outing. Based on fan footage from the Idaho concert, it sounds like the hands-on training paid off.
Claypool and company covered Rush’s 1977 masterpiece A Farewell to Kings in its entirety, nailing versions of “Closer to the Heart” and prog epics such as “Cygnus X-1” — the latter being the lone song from the album that had been previously covered by Primus.
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The Rush set was preceded by a set of Primus songs, and then followed by an an encore of “Wynona’s Big Brown Beaver” and “Southbound Pachyderm.”
It marked Primus’ first live concert appearance since November 30th, 2019, when the band opened for Slayer on the latter’s final leg of their farewell tour. The Rush tribute tour was originally announced in February 2020, but was postponed and rescheduled due to the pandemic.
The tour continues tonight in Bonner, Montana, and runs through an October 25th date in Phoenix. You can pick up tickets via Ticketmaster.
Watch fan-filmed footage from the show of Primus performing Rush’s A Farewell to Kings below, followed by the setlist.
Setlist:
Opening Set (Primus Songs):
Those Damned Blue-Collar Tweekers
Mr. Knowitall
Groundhog’s Day
Fisticuffs
Seas of Cheese
Frizzle Fry
My Name Is Mud
Over the Electric Grapevine
“A Tribute To Kings” RUSH Covers Set:
A Farewell to Kings
Xanadu
Closer to the Heart
Cinderella Man
Madrigal
Cygnus X-1
Encore (Primus Songs):
Wynona’s Big Brown Beaver
Southbound Pachyderm
