Rush Was A Canadian Rock Band Formed In 1968 In Toronto That Was Comprised Primarily Of Geddy Lee bass Vocals Alex Lifeson guitar And Neil Peart drums Percussion Lyricist . The Band Was Formed In Toronto In 1968 By Lifeson Drummer John Rutsey And Bass Guitarist/vocalist Jeff Jones Who Was Immediately Replaced By Lee. After Lee Joined The Band Went Through Several Line-Up Configurations Before Arriving At Its Classic Power Trio Line-Up With The Addition Of Peart In July 1974 Read More On Last.Fm
"Red Barchetta" Is A Song By Rock Band Rush From Their Album Moving Pictures. Synopsis The Song Describes A Post-Petroleum Future In Which The "primitive" Gasoline-Burning Sports Cars Are Prohibited By "the Motor Law." The Narrator's Uncle Has Kept One Of These Illicit Vehicles The Titular Red Barchetta In Pristine Condition For Some "fifty-Odd Years" And Keeps It Hidden At His Secret Country Home Previously A Farm Before The Aforementioned Motor Law . During One Of His Weekly Drives The Narrator Encounters An "alloy Air Car" That Begins To Chase Him Along The Roads. A Second Such Vehicle Soon Joins The Pursuit Which Continues Until The Narrator Drives His Barchetta Across A One-Lane Bridge That Is Too Narrow For The Air Cars. The Song Ends With The Narrator Returning Safely To His Uncle's Farm. Background The Song Was Inspired By The Futuristic Short Story "A Nice Morning Drive " Written By Richard Foster And Published In The November 1973 Issue Of Road And Track Magazine. The Story Describes A Similar Future In Which Increasingly-Stringent Safety Regulations Have Forced Cars To Evolve Into Massive "Modern Safety Vehicles" MSVs Capable Of Withstanding A 50-Mile-Per-Hour Impact Without Injury To The Driver. Consequently Drivers Of MSVs Have Become Less Safety-Conscious And More Aggressive And "bouncing" Intentionally Ramming The Older Smaller Cars Is A Common Sport Among Some. Rush Lyricist Neil Peart Made Several Attempts To Contact Foster While Working On The Album But Road And Track Did Not Have An Up-To-Date Address And Rush Were Forced To Settle For A Brief "Inspired By" Note In The Lyric Sheet Mentioning The Story. In July Of 2007 Foster And Peart Finally Made Contact With One Another Foster Later Posted An Online Account Of Their Journey By Motorcycle Through The Backwoods Of West Virginia Between Stops On Rush's Snakes And Arrows Tour. In The Original Album Version Geddy Lee Mispronounces "Barchetta" -- The Correct Pronunciation Sounds Like "Barketta" But Lee Pronounces The "ch" Like That In "cheese " Not The Proper Italian Pronunciation.