Rush – Tom Sawyer

"Tom Sawyer" is the opening track on Rush's Moving Pictures album and was released as the second single from the record. The song became an immediate hit, a rock classic (named the 19th greatest hard rock song of all time by VH1), and is used in several movie soundtracks and covered by other artists.

"Tom Sawyer" was inducted into the Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2010 and frequently appears on lists of the best Canadian songs of all time:

• Chart magazine: #9 in 1996, #17 in 2000, #6 in 2005
• CBC radio: #33 in 2005, #7 in 2014
• Bob Mersereau: #12 in 2010

One of the things I've noticed about this list, based on input from my Facebook friends, compared to the two previous lists I've made, based on input from the readers of my family newsletter in 1992 and 2011, is that Rush is getting a lot more respect this time around.

Click below for:

• the Moving Pictures version
• the liver Exit Stage Left version
• the 2013 Rock 'n' Roll Hall of Fame induction version
• a 2015 live Foo Fighter version from Edmonton

Click on the heading below to toggle more information.

Personnel

• Geddy Lee – bass guitars, Oberheim OB-X, vocals
• Alex Lifeson – guitars, Taurus pedals
• Neil Peart – drums, percussion

• Rush – The Spirit of Radio (song)
• Rush – Closer to the Heart (song)
• Rush – Moving Pictures (album)
• Rush – 2112 (album)
• Rush – Permanent Waves (album)