Why Geddy Lee Didn't Want to Put Rush's Biggest Song on an Album

Despite his musical virtuosity, Rush's Geddy Lee is humble enough to admit when he was wrong.

Case in point: In a new interview with Rick Beato (which you can watch below), the singer and bassist revealed how "dumb" he was for wanting to omit Rush's biggest song from their highest-selling album.

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Why Geddy Lee Was 'So Sick' of Rush's Biggest Song

The song, of course, is "Tom Sawyer," which served as the third single off Rush's quintuple-platinum 1981 album Moving Pictures.

When asked why he thought "Tom Sawyer" resonated with so many listeners, Lee confessed: "I can't answer that. I don't know. I'm the last guy to know because when we finished that song in the studio, we were so frustrated. It was a very difficult song to make, difficult song to mix. Every step of the recording was beset with problems."

Lee continued: "And at the end, I was so sick of that fucking song, I didn't want to put it on the record. So, can you imagine how dumb that was? Like, let's not put our most popular song on the record."

Why 'Moving Pictures' Was the Album Rush 'Weren't Supposed to Make'

Lee went on to describe Moving Pictures as "the finest moment of our collaboration together ... because our songwriting and [Terry Brown's] production melded perfectly. Again, that was the album we weren't supposed to make."

The multi-instrumentalist explained that Rush "were supposed to do a live album" to follow up 1980's successful Permanent Waves before their record label intervened.

Watch Geddy Lee's Rick Beato Interview

"And I remember sitting in the dressing room in New York City. And we got a visit from Cliff Burnstein, who worked for our record company then," Lee recalled. "And he just sat us down [and] he said, 'I hear you're doing a live album. And I'm here to ask you not to do a live album. Your previous record had so much new energy. I think you should keep writing.' He said, 'There's just something about that record that works and I think you're just onto something. So you can do a live album next time.'

"And so we looked at each other — and we had already had plans to record and mix and do all this stuff — and we looked at each other and went, 'Hey, that's fun, let's do that.' So we were out of character and just said, 'Yeah, okay.' And we booked studio time and off we went."

Who's Playing on Rush's Fifty Something Reunion Tour?

"Tom Sawyer" is all but guaranteed to appear in Rush's setlists when they embark on their Fifty Something reunion tour next month. Lee and guitarist Alex Lifeson will be joined by drummer Anika Nilles, who replaces the late Neil Peart, and keyboardist Loren Gold.

Following a North American run, the Fifty Something tour will head to South America and Europe in early 2027.

See who else is hitting the road this summer in our 2026 Rock + Metal Tour Guide: