"The Larger Bowl" is the fourth track and third single from
Rush
Rush(es) may refer to:
Places
United States
* Rush, Colorado
* Rush, Kentucky
* Rush, New York
* Rush City, Minnesota
* Rush Creek (Kishwaukee River tributary), Illinois
* Rush Creek (Marin County, California), a stream
* Rush Creek (Mono Cou ...
's 2007 album ''
Snakes & Arrows
''Snakes & Arrows'' is the 18th studio album by Canadian rock band Rush, released on May 1, 2007, by Anthem Records. After their R30: 30th Anniversary Tour ended in October 2004 the band took a one-year break, during which they agreed to start ...
''.
Inspiration and lyrical structure
The lyrics were written by the drummer and primary lyricist
Neil Peart
Neil Ellwood Peart OC (; September 12, 1952 – January 7, 2020) was a Canadian-American musician, best known as the drummer and primary lyricist of the rock band Rush. Peart earned numerous awards for his musical performances, including an ...
. The title was inspired by a "
dysentery
Dysentery (UK pronunciation: , US: ), historically known as the bloody flux, is a type of gastroenteritis that results in bloody diarrhea. Other symptoms may include fever, abdominal pain, and a feeling of incomplete defecation. Complications ...
dream" he had while touring
West Africa
West Africa or Western Africa is the westernmost region of Africa. The United Nations defines Western Africa as the 16 countries of Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, The Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Ivory Coast, Liberia, Mali, Maurit ...
on his bicycle in 1988.
[Neil Peart]
''The Game of Snakes and Arrows''
(accessed May 19, 2007).
Peart's book ''
The Masked Rider: Cycling in West Africa'' includes a chapter entitled "The Larger Bowl" in which he describes the dream. The excerpt in which he mentions the song is as follows:
Anyway... a song was playing in the store, a plaintive ballad called "The Larger Bowl." Something about loneliness and the misfortunes of life, I recall. No such song as far as I know, but I like the title.[Neil Peart. The Masked Rider: Cycling in West Africa. ]Lawrencetown Beach Lawrencetown may refer to:
*Lawrencetown, County Down, Northern Ireland
* Lawrencetown, County Galway, Ireland
* Lawrencetown, Annapolis County, Nova Scotia, Canada
* Lawrencetown, Halifax County, Nova Scotia, Canada
**East Lawrencetown, Nova Scot ...
: Pottersfield Press
Pottersfield (also spelled "Potter’s Field") was a large historically Black neighborhood located in downtown Chapel Hill, North Carolina. It was originally built over a hundred years ago to be a home for those working at the University of Nort ...
, 1996).
In the early 1990s, Peart put words to the title.
The song is written in the form of a
pantoum
The pantoum is a poetic form derived from the pantun, a Malay verse form: specifically from the ''pantun berkait'', a series of interwoven quatrains.
Structure
The pantoum is a form of poetry similar to a villanelle in that there are repeating lin ...
.
See also
*
List of Rush songs
A ''list'' is any set of items in a row. List or lists may also refer to:
People
* List (surname)
Organizations
* List College, an undergraduate division of the Jewish Theological Seminary of America
* SC Germania List, German rugby union ...
References
Rush (band) songs
2007 singles
Songs written by Geddy Lee
Songs written by Alex Lifeson
Songs written by Neil Peart
Song recordings produced by Nick Raskulinecz
2007 songs
Atlantic Records singles
2006 songs
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