Aug 4: 2007

Rush released 'Snakes and Arrows'.

I saw the tour in support of this album at the Sheffield Arena.

There are fewer memorable songs on this album than most of the other Rush albums.

Lifeson had met guitarist David Gilmour during Gilmour's tour stop in Toronto who inspired him to write on an acoustic guitar as an indicator of how strong a tune is. 

Gilmour is thanked in the liner notes of Snakes & Arrows.

The track Hope was one result of this conversation.

Several instrumental tracks from this album feature in their live set.

Peart was inspired to write lyrics on various themes including faith, fear, the association of religion and war, hope and despair, and the religious billboards he saw on his motorcycle journey across the United States which he detailed in his fourth book Roadshow: Landscape with Drums – A Concert Tour by Motorcycle (2006), written during the R30 tour (which I also saw). He was also inspired by Robert Frost's epitaph: "I had a lover's quarrel with the world". The album's producer had previously worked with Foo Fighters.

Source: Wikipedia

Mike Oldfield ventured into classical music with his 'Music of the Spheres' album. The live world premiere of Mike Oldfield’s Music of the Spheres took place in the Atrium of the Guggenheim Museum Bilbao. The Basque Orchestra was the formation chosen for the world launch of the British musician's first inroads to symphony music.

Arrangements for orchestra: Karl W. Jenkins
Conductor: Enrique Ugarte
Artists: Mike Oldfield, guitar; Hayley Westenra, soprano; Bilbao Choral Society.

I had visited the Guggenheim several years previously. It's an amazing building...

I was very keen to go along to this event and looked into the possibility of getting there, but it was difficult time wise to guarantee to fit around teaching... 

What were your favourite albums from the year 2007?

Let me know in the comments.