Rush’s “La Villa Strangiato”, as recorded on “Hemispheres”, is to me the absolute best rock instrumental ever. Bar none. Period. It never ceases to amaze me how three guys in their middle 20s were able to create such masterful composition. These 9 minutes, 33 seconds of music, are divided into 12 sections as follows:

(00:00) Video intro

(00:14) a. Buenos Nochas, Mein Froinds!
(00:42) b. To Sleep, Perchance To Dream…
(02:15) c. Strangiato Theme
(03:31) d. A Lerxst In Wonderland
(06:04) e. Monsters!
(06:25) f. The Ghost Of The Aragon
(07:01) g. Danforth And Pape
(07:41) h. The Waltz Of The Shreves
(08:05) i. Never Turn Your Back On A Monster!
(08:18) j. Monsters! (Reprise)
(08:32) k. Strangiato Theme (Reprise)
(09:32) l. A Farewell To Things

BTW, “Monsters!” is the second theme from Raymond Scott’s “Powerhouse” ( ), widely used on Warner Bros. cartoons.

Original 1978 Canadian pressing on red vinyl, a treasured gift from my friend Gary Verrinder ( a.k.a. DJ Gury Gury – ) from Canada.

Numark TTXUSB turntable – Nagaoka MP-500 phono cartridge – ART DJPRE II phono stage preamp – Vinyl record vinilo LP