Milestones: 'Permanent Waves'

With the arrival of the ‘80s the band streamlined their approach a bit by incorporating some of the sounds of the day and adding shorter, radio-friendly songs to their regular proggy fare (perennial favorite “The Spirit of Radio”, as well as “Freewill” and “Entre Nous”) on album number seven. 

 

While initially regarded with trepidation by guitarist Alex Lifeson upon completion, his opinion changed after release: positive reviews; #3 in the UK and their native Canada; #4 in the US. It’s also their third best-selling album, behind Moving Pictures [1981] and 2112 [1976] and made them arena headliners all over the world, not to mention becoming a classic album not only in their catalog, but of the 1980s and beyond. 

 

Released January 14, 1980.