{{About||the FireHouse album|Hold Your Fire (FireHouse album)|the documentary film|Hold Your Fire (film)}} {{Infobox album | name = Hold Your Fire | type = studio | artist = [[Rush (band)|Rush]] | cover = Rush Hold Your Fire.jpg | alt = | released = {{start date|1987|9|8}} | recorded = January 5 – April 24, 1987 | studio = * [[The Manor Studio|The Manor]] ([[Oxfordshire]]) * [[Ridge Farm Studio|Ridge Farm]] ([[Surrey]]) * [[AIR Montserrat|AIR]] ([[Montserrat]]) * McClear Place ([[Toronto]]) | genre = {{flatlist| *[[New wave music|New wave]] *[[pop rock]] *[[progressive rock]] }} | length = {{duration|m=50|s=21}} | label = [[Anthem Records|Anthem]] | producer = * Rush * [[Peter Collins (record producer)|Peter Collins]] | prev_title = [[Power Windows (album)|Power Windows]] | prev_year = 1985 | next_title = [[A Show of Hands]] | next_year = 1989 | misc = {{Singles | name = Hold Your Fire | type = studio | single1 = [[Time Stand Still (song)|Time Stand Still]] | single1date = October 19, 1987 | single2 = Prime Mover | single2date = April 11, 1988 }} }}
'''''Hold Your Fire''''' is the twelfth studio album by Canadian [[progressive rock]] band [[Rush (band)|Rush]], released on September 8, 1987.<ref>{{Cite magazine |title=Jackson Thrills Again With New Album; Curiosity Kills Manhattan's Cat Club |magazine=[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]] |url=https://www.worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/Billboard/80s/1987/Billboard-1987-09-05.pdf |last=Gett |first=Steve |date=1987-09-05 |pages=21 |via=World Radio History}}</ref> It was recorded at [[The Manor Studio]] in [[Oxfordshire]], [[Ridge Farm Studio]] in [[Surrey]], [[AIR Montserrat|AIR Studios]] in [[Montserrat]] and McClear Place in [[Toronto]].<ref name="notes">{{cite AV media notes |title=Hold Your Fire (Remastered Edition) |others=[[Rush (band)|Rush]] |year=1997 |type=CD booklet |publisher=[[Mercury Records]] |location=[[New York City|New York]]}}</ref> ''Hold Your Fire'' was the last Rush studio album released outside Canada by [[PolyGram]]/[[Mercury Records|Mercury]]. [['Til Tuesday]] bassist and vocalist [[Aimee Mann]] contributed vocals to "[[Time Stand Still (song)|Time Stand Still]]", and appeared in the [[Zbigniew Rybczyński]]-directed video.
The album was not as commercially successful as most of the band's releases of the 1980s, peaking at number 13 on the ''Billboard'' charts, the lowest chart peak for a Rush album since 1978's ''[[Hemispheres (Rush album)|Hemispheres]]''.<ref name="album" /> However, it was eventually certified Gold by the RIAA.
== Writing == After Rush's 1986 ''[[Power Windows (album)|Power Windows]]'' tour ended, the band members took the summer off to spend more time with their families. A few months passed, and the group decided to start getting back into writing material.<ref name="Bill89">Banasiewicz, Bill (1988). p. 89.</ref> [[Neil Peart]] began writing lyrics in a cottage in early September. Meanwhile, [[Geddy Lee]] started to compose on his keyboard setup controlled on a [[Macintosh]] computer using software called [[Digital Performer]],<ref name="Off the Record">{{cite web|url=http://www.2112.net/powerwindows/transcripts/19870000offtherecord.htm|title=Geddy Lee – Off The Record|year=1987|work=Power Windows|publisher=2112.net|access-date=October 12, 2013|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131224093218/http://www.2112.net/powerwindows/transcripts/19870000offtherecord.htm|archive-date=December 24, 2013}}</ref><ref name="PeartMakingof" /> which would be useful for both the writing and production stages, and [[Alex Lifeson]] was doing experimental tapes at home.<ref name="PeartMakingof" /> Peart also used the Mac to write some lyrics for the album.<ref name="Off the Record" /> Peart wanted to do something in the same vein as ''Power Windows'', this time working around the theme of time. However, after writing lyrics for the first song he wrote, "[[Time Stand Still (song)|Time Stand Still]]", Peart started to create more material that would turn the theme into "Instinct,"<ref name="PeartMakingof" /> which was the reason for titling the album ''Hold Your Fire''.<ref name="Bill90">Banasiewicz, Bill (1988). p. 90.</ref> In an afternoon later that month, Peart and Lee together showed what they had been working on, and also discussed a few lyrical ideas they weren't able to write on paper, which would be included in "[[Mission (song)|Mission]]," "Open Secrets" and "Turn the Page."<ref name="PeartMakingof">{{cite web|last=Peart|first=Neil|url=http://www.2112.net/powerwindows/main/HYFtourbook.htm|title=Fireworks: The Making Of "Hold Your Fire"|work=Power Windows|publisher=2112.net|access-date=October 12, 2013|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131004224121/http://www.2112.net/powerwindows/main/HYFtourbook.htm|archive-date=October 4, 2013}}</ref>
The group started writing sessions in Elora Sound Studio, [[Ontario]] on September 27, 1986.<ref name="Bill89" /> Lifeson showed his experimental tapes, while Lee brought soundcheck jams he had done that year. According to Peart, Lifeson's tapes "would yield some good parts for several songs" and Lee's soundcheck jams were "sorted and labeled as potential verses, bridges, choruses or instrumental bits, and thus they served as a reference library of spontaneous ideas that could be drawn upon at will." Lifeson used a [[drum machine]] to write drum parts, which Lee tracked on a Lerxst Sound recorder. By early November, eight songs had been written, which the group felt wasn't enough for the album to have a good amount of musical variety. Peart said, "We decided we'd go a bit further this time. We were aware of the fact that only a small percentage of people actually buy records anymore, the vast majority choosing cassettes or CDs. Thus, we figured, why should we worry about the time limitations of the old vinyl disc? We thought we'd like to have 10 songs, and go for 50 minutes or so of music. So we did."<ref name="PeartMakingof" /> Producer [[Peter Collins (record producer)|Peter Collins]] came in to Elora Sound in early December to give the band suggestions to improve the songs. Among many small changes, a couple of major suggestions were new verses to "Mission" and chorus revisions to "Open Secrets."<ref name="PeartMakingof" /> With nine songs already written, Collins also suggested the band make a 10th track for the album, and the song "[[Force Ten (song)|Force Ten]]" would be written on the last day of pre-production, December 14.<ref name="Bill89" />
== Production == Recording of ''Hold Your Fire'' began January 5, 1987, at [[The Manor Studio]] in England. This was where the drums, bass, basic keyboards, lead guitars and lead vocals were recorded. The keyboards, guitars and vocals were recorded digitally, while the drums and bass, as preferred by Peart,<ref name="Houston Post">{{cite web|last=Claypool|first=Bob|url=http://www.2112.net/powerwindows/transcripts/19880127houstonpost.htm|title=Interview with Neil Peart|work=[[Houston Post]]|date=January 27, 1988|access-date=October 12, 2013|archive-date=December 24, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131224101631/http://www.2112.net/powerwindows/transcripts/19880127houstonpost.htm|url-status=live}}</ref> were taped using an [[analog recording|analog]] [[tape recorder]], later converted into a digital tape.<ref name="Bill89" /> On February 7, the band went to [[Ridge Farm Studio]] for [[Andy Richards]] to perform additional dynamic keyboards and exciting "events," as well as put all recorded instrument tracks into a digital machine.<ref name="Bill90" /><ref name="linernotes" /> Lifeson was also able to write guitar overdubs while recording at Ridge Farm.<ref name="PeartMakingof" />
The band headed off to [[AIR Montserrat]] on March 1 to start producing guitar overdubs,<ref name="PeartMakingof" /><ref name="Bill90" /> and later to McClear Place Studios in [[Toronto]] three weeks later to finish the overdubs, record orchestral arrangements by Steve Margoshes for "High Water," [[Mission_(song)|"Mission"]] and "Second Nature," and track additional voice parts, such as [[Aimee Mann]]'s vocals for "Time Stand Still" and "Prime Mover," and [[gospel choir]].<ref name="PeartMakingof" /><ref name="Bill90" /><ref name="Bill92">Banasiewicz, Bill (1988). p. 92.</ref> Recording was finished by April 24,<ref name="Bill92" /> and mixing took place starting May 7 at William Tell Studio in [[Paris]]. Lee mastered the album with [[Bob Ludwig]] at Masterdisk in [[New York City]] by mid-July.<ref name="Bill93">Banasiewicz, Bill (1988). p. 93.</ref>
Lee played a [[Wal (bass)|Wal]] bass guitar for ''Hold Your Fire'', as well as being vocalist and keyboardist.<ref name="linernotes" /> The synths and other electronic instruments and devices used, all programmed with the assistance of Andy Richards and Jim Burgess,<ref name="linernotes" /> were several [[Akai]] S900 samplers, two [[Sequential Circuits Prophet-5|Prophet synths]], a PPG 2.3, a Roland Super Jupiter and a D-550, two Yamaha KX-76 MIDI controllers, two QX-I sequencers and a DX-7, two MIDI Mappers, Korg MIDI pedals, and Moog Taurus Pedals.<ref name="PeartMakingof" /> Peart played on a combination of [[Ludwig-Musser]] drum set, a plated-hardware of [[Pearl Drums]], Premier drums and [[Talking drum|Tama]] drums, [[Avedis Zildjian]] cymbals, and a [[Simmons (electronic drum company)|Simmons]] pad through one of the Akai samplers, which made sounds of [[temple blocks]], a [[timbales|timbale]], [[crotales]], a [[Talking drum|Tama]], a [[gong bass drum]], [[cowbells]], [[wind chimes]], and [[marimbas]].<ref name="Bill89" /><ref name="PeartMakingof" />
The song "Tai Shan" was an experiment in composition. It was influenced by classical Chinese music, and its title was a reference to [[Mount Tai]] in China's [[Shandong]] province, which Peart first became aware of during a bicycle trip in China.<ref name="Collins">{{cite book |last1=Collins |first1=Jon |title=Rush: Chemistry : The Definitive Biography |chapter=And then there were three |publisher=Helter Skelter Publishing |year=2005 |location=London, UK |pages=150–152|isbn=978-1-905139-28-6}}</ref> A backward sample of [[Aimee Mann]]'s vocals from another track is used at the end of the song. In a 2009 interview with ''[[Blender (magazine)|Blender]]'', Lee expressed regret in including "Tai Shan" on the album, calling it an "error" and saying "we should have known better."<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.2112.net/powerwindows/transcripts/20090400blender.htm |title=Dear Superstar: Geddy Lee |last=Tannenbaum |first=Rob |work=[[Blender (magazine)|Blender]] |publisher=Power Windows |date=April 2009 |access-date=2017-06-16 |archive-date=2018-08-02 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180802223622/http://www.2112.net/powerwindows/transcripts/20090400blender.htm |url-status=live }}</ref> Lifeson called the song "a little corny" in a 2012 interview with ''Total Guitar''.<ref>{{cite journal |title=Doublenecks, tribute bands, mid-gig chundering and his least-favourite Rush song – Alex Lifeson wraps his head around your questions |date=October 2012 |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |journal=[[Total Guitar]] |url=http://www.2112.net/powerwindows/transcripts/20121000totalguitar.htm |access-date=2015-07-21 |archive-date=2015-09-19 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150919025743/http://www.2112.net/powerwindows/transcripts/20121000totalguitar.htm |url-status=live }}</ref> Lifeson, in 2016, considered "Tai Shan" and "Panacea" the worst songs Rush ever recorded.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.ultimate-guitar.com/news/general_music_news/alex_lifeson_the_worst_songs_rush_ever_released_i_dont_know_what_we_were_thinking.html |title=Alex Lifeson: The Worst Songs Rush Ever Released, I Don't Know What We Were Thinking |access-date=October 13, 2025 |archive-date=September 22, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190922133237/https://www.ultimate-guitar.com/news/general_music_news/alex_lifeson_the_worst_songs_rush_ever_released_i_dont_know_what_we_were_thinking.html |url-status=live }}</ref> == Music == ''Hold Your Fire'' has been categorized as [[new wave music|new wave]],<ref name = "Spin2025list"/> [[pop rock]],<ref name = "Spin2025list"/><ref name = "Stereogum2014list">{{cite web|last=Begrand|first=Adrien|date=June 10, 2014|url=https://www.stereogum.com/1685666/rush-albums-from-worst-to-best/photo/|title=Rush Albums From Worst To Best|website=[[Stereogum]]|access-date=October 15, 2025}}</ref> [[heavy metal music|heavy metal]]/[[hard rock]],<ref name = "PortageDaily">{{cite news|last=Roach|first=Jim|date=February 6, 1988|url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/611797727/?match=7&terms=%22second%20nature%22%20%22rush%22|title=Rush album brings melodic interest to hard rock|newspaper=[[Portage Daily Register]]|page=14|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=October 15, 2025}}</ref> [[stadium rock|stadium]] [[progressive rock]],<ref name = "GuitarPlayerrev"/> and "thin and reedy" [[progressive rock|progressive]] [[Britpop]].<ref name = "AlbumbyAlbum">{{cite book|author-link=Martin Popoff|last=Popoff|first=Martin|year=2017|title=Rush: Album by Album|publisher=[[Voyageur Press]]|isbn=978-0760352205|location=[[Minneapolis]]}}</ref>{{rp|118}} The songs are driven by bass guitar that is a mixture of punchy and melodic.<ref name = "GuitarPlayerrev">{{cite magazine|title=Rush: ''Hold Your Fire''|magazine=[[Guitar Player]]|date=November 1987}}</ref> Although there are moments of distorted, extreme leads, Lifeson's electric guitar work on the album is mainly textural, with [[Steel-string acoustic guitar]] serving a rhythmic role, causing a glossy overall sound.<ref name = "GuitarPlayerrev"/>
== Lyrics == ''Hold Your Fire'' comments on the socio-political state of the modern world, with the existential angst of ''[[The Joshua Tree]]'' (1987) by [[U2]].<ref name = "PortageDaily"/><ref>{{cite news|last=Brunet|first=Alain|date=September 24, 1987|url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/1062333531/?match=1&terms=%22second%20nature%22%20rush|title=Rush continues return to its roots on album|newspaper=[[Cornwall Standard-Freeholder|Standard-Freeholder]]|page=9|via=[[Newspapers.com]]|access-date=October 15, 2025}}</ref>
== Reception == === Contemporaneous === {{Album ratings |title=Contemporaneous reviews | rev1 = ''[[The Baltimore Sun|The Evening Sun]]'' | rev1Score = 1.5/4<ref name = "BaltimoreSun">{{cite news|last=Aparicio|first=Nester|date=September 10, 1987|url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/372371455/?match=1&terms=%22hold%20your%20fire%22|title=Rush, "Hold Your Fire"|newspaper=[[The Baltimore Sun|The Evening Sun]]|page=D3|via=[[Newspapers.com]]|access-date=February 19, 2025}}</ref> | rev2 = ''[[Kerrang!]]'' | rev2score = 5/5<ref name="Kerrang!">{{cite magazine |last=Chirazi |first=Stefan |date=October 3, 1987 |title=Firestarter! |journal=[[Kerrang!]] |issue=156 |publisher=[[Bauer Media Group]] |url=http://www.2112.net/powerwindows/transcripts/19871003kerrang.htm |access-date=October 13, 2013 |archive-date=December 26, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131226220533/http://www.2112.net/powerwindows/transcripts/19871003kerrang.htm |url-status=live }}</ref> | rev3 = ''[[Metal Hammer]]'' | rev3Score = 6/6<ref name = "MetalHammerrev">{{cite magazine|last=Vögel|first=Irene|date=October 1, 1987|title=Rush: Hold Your Fire|magazine=[[Metal Hammer]]}}</ref> | rev4 = ''[[NME]]'' | rev4score = 3/10<ref name = "NME">{{cite magazine|title=Rush: '''Hold Your Fire''' |last=Giles |first=David |date=7 November 1987 |magazine=[[New Musical Express]]|page=29}}</ref> | rev5 = ''[[Omaha World-Herald]]'' | rev5Score = 2.5/5<ref name = "OmahaWorldHerald">{{cite news|last=Healy|first=James|date=December 13, 1987|url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/889431643/?match=1&terms=%22hold%20your%20fire%22|title=Trinidad's Blend of Soul and Calypso Guaranteed to Give You Happy Feet|newspaper=[[Omaha World-Herald]]|page=15|via=[[Newspapers.com]]|access-date=February 19, 2025}}</ref> | rev6 = ''[[Sounds (magazine)|Sounds]]'' | rev6Score = 5/5<ref name = "Sounds">{{cite magazine|last=Elliot|first=Paul|date=October 31, 1987|title='Hold Your Fire' Album Review|magazine=[[Sounds (magazine)|Sounds]]}}</ref> }} Music publications such as ''[[Metal Hammer]]'', ''[[Kerrang!]]'' and ''[[Sounds (magazine)|Sounds]]'' awarded ''Hold Your Fire'' perfect scores.<ref name = "MetalHammerrev"/><ref name="Kerrang!"/><ref name = "Sounds"/> ''Kerrang!''{{'}}s Stefan Chirazi claimed it was one of the best albums of 1987, another Rush LP with "class, quality and consistency" and a rare record to contain ten perfect tracks.<ref name="Kerrang!"/> ''Sounds''{{'}} Paul Elliot praised the band for not losing their "warmth", "heart" and "humanity" despite the studio polish twelve albums in.<ref name = "Sounds"/>
Rush's progression with ''Hold Your Fire'' was a prominent topic, with a variety of responses. On the positive side, some critics perceived the band continually expanding their musical and sonic territory while maintaining their perfectionism and compositional intricacies.{{efn|<ref name = "MetalHammerrev"/><ref name="Kerrang!"/><ref name = "Sounds"/><ref name = "WaterlooRegionRecordrev">{{cite news|last=Randall|first=Neil|url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/993809125/?match=1&terms=Rush%20%22Hold%20Your%20Fire%22|title=No limitations|newspaper=[[Waterloo Region Record|Kitchener-Waterloo Record]]|date=September 24, 1987|page=C11|via=[[Newspapers.com]]|access-date=October 21, 2025}}</ref><ref name = "HamiltonSpectator">{{cite news|last=Krewen|first=Neil|date=September 4, 1987|url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/1011101965/?match=1&terms=Rush%20%22Hold%20Your%20Fire%22|title=Rush, Lepper deliver hard rock winners|newspaper=[[The Hamilton Spectator]]|page=B3|via=[[Newspapers.com]]|access-date=October 21, 2025}}</ref>}} Some appreciated the album for being more accessible to mainstream listeners and having tighter compositions than prior records.<ref name = "HamiltonSpectator"/><ref name = "Sounds"/>
Less favorably, ''Guitar for the Practicing Musician'' and the ''[[Omaha World-Herald]]'' categorized the record as Rush's most-stale tropes prominent in all of their albums, but combined with a sterile, predictable, technically-sophisticated, and synthesizer-heavy sound characteristic of the group in the 1980s.<ref name = "GftPMrev">{{cite magazine|title='''Hold Your Fire''' - Rush|date=January 1988|magazine=Guitar for the Practicing Musician}}</ref><ref name = "OmahaWorldHerald"/> ''[[NME]]'', a publication that historically panned Rush's music and their socio-political beliefs, joked, "Locked in a timewarp along with the music, [Peart] is still bent on devising an LP based on a ''concept''."<ref name = "NME"/> At worst, Nester Aparicio of ''[[The Baltimore Sun|The Evening Sun]]'' labeled the overall product "wimpy" and "fluffy", with none of the "glory" of albums like ''2112'' and ''Moving Pictures''.<ref name = "BaltimoreSun"/> Elliot and the ''[[Press & Sun-Bulletin]]''{{'}}s Anand Agneshwar described the lyrics as human and personal, with vulnerability and introspection.<ref name = "Sounds"/><ref name = "HamiltonSpectator"/><ref>{{cite news|last=Agneshwar|first=Anand|date=October 30, 1987|url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/257525552/?match=11&terms=%22high%20water%22%20%22hold%20your%20fire%22%20rush|title=Rush finds awareness in 'Hold Your Fire'|newspaper=[[Press & Sun-Bulletin]]|page=3|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=October 13, 2025}}</ref> Conversely, "they are too cumbersome and distanced to be embraceable" for ''Guitar for the Practicing Musician''.<ref name = "GftPMrev"/>
''Hold Your Fire'' peaked number 13 in the [[Billboard 200|''Billboard'' 200]] album chart, the first time a Rush studio album outside the Top 10 since 1978's ''[[Hemispheres (Rush album)|Hemispheres]]''.<ref name="album">{{cite web |url=http://www.allmusic.com/album/hold-your-fire-r17147/charts-awards |title=Hold Your Fire Billboard Albums |access-date=2011-11-20 |work=[[Allmusic]] |publisher=[[Rovi Corporation]] |archive-date=2021-04-02 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210402022342/https://www.allmusic.com/album/hold-your-fire-mw0000192905 |url-status=live }}</ref> Although ''Hold Your Fire'' was certified gold in the United States shortly after its release, it failed to reach platinum status according to the [[RIAA]], becoming the first Rush studio album to not do so since 1975's ''[[Caress of Steel]]''.<ref name="RIAA">{{cite web |url=https://www.riaa.com/goldandplatinumdata.php?table=SEARCH |title=RIAA Database Search for Rush |access-date=2011-11-20 |publisher=[[Recording Industry Association of America]] |archive-date=2007-06-26 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070626050454/http://www.riaa.com/goldandplatinumdata.php?table=SEARCH |url-status=live }}</ref>
=== Retrospective === {{Album ratings |title=Music guides and retrospective reviews |rev1 = [[AllMusic]] |rev1score = {{Rating|3|5}}<ref name="Allmusic">{{cite web |url=http://www.allmusic.com/album/hold-your-fire-mw0000192905 |title=Hold Your Fire – Rush |access-date=2011-11-20 |last=Rivadavia |first=Eduardo |work=[[Allmusic]] |publisher=[[Rovi Corporation]] |archive-date=2013-08-24 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130824073602/http://www.allmusic.com/album/hold-your-fire-mw0000192905 |url-status=live }}</ref> | rev2 = ''[[The Encyclopedia of Popular Music]]'' | rev2Score = {{Rating|3|5}}<ref>{{cite book|last=Larkin|first=Colin|author-link=Colin Larkin|title=The Encyclopedia of Popular Music|year=2007|publisher=[[Oxford University Press]]|edition=4th|isbn=978-0195313734|title-link=The Encyclopedia of Popular Music}}</ref> | rev3 = ''[[Martin C. Strong|The Essential Rock Discography]]'' | rev3Score = 5/10<ref name="Strong">{{cite book |last1=Strong |first1=Martin Charles |title=The Essential Rock Discography |edition=8th |year=2006 |publisher=Open City Books |isbn=1-84195-860-3 |pages=938–939 |chapter=Rush }}</ref> | rev4 = ''[[Metal Storm (webzine)|Metal Storm]]'' | rev4Score = 7.7/10<ref name="Metal Storm">{{cite web |url= http://www.metalstorm.net/pub/review.php?review_id=7836 |title= Rush - Hold Your Fire |access-date= October 13, 2025 |last= Espiau |first= Olivier |date= April 23, 2010 |website= [[Metal Storm (webzine)|Metal Storm]]}}</ref> | rev5 = ''[[MusicHound Rock]]'' | rev5Score = {{rating|2.5|5}}<ref>{{cite book|editor1-last=Graff|editor1-first=Gary|editor2-last=Durchholz|editor2-first=Daniel|title=MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide|publisher=Visible Ink Press|location=Farmington Hills, MI|year=1999|section=Rush|isbn=1-57859-061-2|page=965}}</ref> |rev6 = ''[[The Rolling Stone Album Guide]]'' |rev6score = {{Rating|2|5}}<ref>{{cite magazine |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/artists/rush/albumguide |title=Rush: Album Guide |access-date=2011-11-20 |magazine=[[Rolling Stone]] |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130704223108/http://www.rollingstone.com/music/artists/rush/albumguide |archive-date=2013-07-04 |url-status=dead }}</ref> |rev7 = ''[[Sputnikmusic]]'' |rev7Score = 4/5<ref name = "Sputnikmusic">{{cite web|author=SaiseiTunes|date=February 7, 2022|url=https://www.sputnikmusic.com/review/84376/Rush-Hold-Your-Fire/|title=Rush - Hold Your Fire (album review) |website=[[Sputnikmusic]]|access-date=October 13, 2025}}</ref> | rev8 = ''[[Colin Larkin|The Virgin Encyclopedia of 80s Music]]'' | rev8Score = {{rating|2|5}}<ref>{{Cite book|author=[[Colin Larkin|Larkin, Colin]]|year=2003|title=The Virgin Encyclopedia of 80s Music|isbn=1852279699|publisher=[[Virgin Publishing]]|section=Rush|pages=414–415}}</ref> }} For Adrien Begrand, ''Hold Your Fire'' was the best Rush album of the era starting with ''Signals'', containing a much smoother balance between the U2/Big Country-style rock and cutting-edge electronic sounds than ''Power Windows''.<ref name="Stereogum2014list" /> Conversely, ''[[Loudwire]]''{{'}}s Jordan Blum considered it the worst of the band's keyboard era, an "uninteresting and awkward slog that can't help but feel dated and misguided".<ref>{{cite web|last=Blum|first=Jordan|date=September 22, 2025|url=https://loudwire.com/best-worst-synth-era-albums-classic-prog-rock-bands/|title=The Best + Worst Synth-Era Albums From 5 Classic Prog Rock Bands|website=[[Loudwire]]|access-date=October 15, 2025}}</ref>
2010s and 2020s rankings of Rush studio albums generally placed ''Hold Your Fire'' near or at the bottom.<ref name = "BBCMusicmag">{{cite web|last=Wright|first=Steven|date=July 27, 2025|url=https://www.classical-music.com/features/recordings/rush-albums-ranked|title=Rush albums ranked: all 19 studio LPs, from worst to best|work=[[BBC Music Magazine]]|access-date=October 15, 2025}}</ref><ref name = "ClassicRock">{{cite web|last=Jeffries|first=Neil|date=October 10, 2025|url=https://www.loudersound.com/features/rush-albums-ranked|title=Every Rush album ranked from worst to best|work=[[Classic Rock (magazine)|Classic Rock]]|access-date=October 15, 2025}}</ref><ref name = "UCRworsttobest">{{cite web|last=Rivadavia|first=Eduardo|date=December 25, 2014|url=https://ultimateclassicrock.com/rush-albums-ranked/|title=Rush Albums Ranked Worst to Best|work=[[Ultimate Classic Rock]]|access-date=October 15, 2025}}</ref><ref name = "Spin2025list">{{cite web|last=Shipley|first=Al|date=February 12, 2025|url=https://www.spin.com/2025/02/every-rush-album-ranked/|title=Every Rush Album, Ranked|work=[[Spin (magazine)|Spin]]|access-date=October 15, 2025}}</ref><ref name = "Mojo2025ranking">{{cite web|last=McNair|first=James|date=January 19, 2025|url=https://www.mojo4music.com/articles/the-mojo-list/rushs-greatest-albums-ranked/|title=Every Rush Album Ranked!|work=[[Mojo (magazine)|Mojo]]|access-date=October 15, 2025}}</ref> Very few put them in the middle.<ref name = "HardTimes">{{cite web|last=Powers|first=Nigel|date=December 17, 2024|url=https://thehardtimes.net/lists/every-rush-album-ranked-worst-to-best/|title=Every Rush Album Ranked Worst to Best|work=[[The Hard Times]]|access-date=October 15, 2025}}</ref><ref name = "MusicRadar">{{cite web|last=Elliott|first=Paul|date=October 7, 2025|url=https://www.musicradar.com/artists/the-high-priests-of-conceptual-rock-every-rush-studio-album-ranked-from-worst-to-best|title='The high priests of conceptual rock!': Every Rush studio album ranked – from worst to best|work=[[MusicRadar]]|access-date=October 15, 2025}}</ref> However, opinions towards the album, even for rankings that placed the album last, were mixed rather than outright negative. They noted their technical proficiency and self-reflective lyrics but also a lack of "dynamic punch", energy and "quirkiness" of their better albums.<ref name = "BBCMusicmag"/><ref name = "ClassicRock/> They most prominently discussed the album's smooth production, which was the considered the slickest in the band's discography and alienating to fans.<ref name = "Spin2025list"/><ref name = "UCRworsttobest"/><ref name = "MusicRadar"/><ref name = "BBCMusicmag"/><ref name = "ClassicRock"/> They also were the harshest of tracks outside of "Time Stand Still", "Force Ten" and "Mission", calling them "bland" and "forgettable" "filler", where the "songwriting quality-control dips as the record progresses".<ref name = "HardTimes"/><ref name = "Mojo2025ranking"/><ref name = "ClassicRock"/>
==Reissues== A remaster was issued in 1997.<ref name="notes" /> *The tray has a picture of three fingerprints, light blue, pink, and lime green (left to right) with "The Rush Remasters" printed in all capital letters just to the left, mirroring the cover art of ''[[Retrospective II]]''. All remasters from ''[[Moving Pictures (Rush album)|Moving Pictures]]'' through ''[[A Show of Hands]]'' are like this. * Includes all the artwork that came with the original album, except for the lyrics to "Prime Mover".
''Hold Your Fire'' was remastered again in 2011 by Andy VanDette for the "Sector" box sets, which re-released all of Rush's Mercury-era albums. It is included in the ''Sector 3'' set.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.themasterdiskrecord.com/2011/11/andy-vandette-on-remastering-14-rush-albums |title=Andy VanDette on Remastering 15 Rush Albums | the Masterdisk Record |access-date=2016-07-12 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140823055546/http://www.themasterdiskrecord.com/2011/11/andy-vandette-on-remastering-14-rush-albums/ |archive-date=2014-08-23 }}</ref> For the 2011 remaster, master tapes containing different mixes of ''Hold Your Fire'' were inadvertently used, with the result that the mix is noticeably different from previous releases in several places; particularly during "Mission", where string parts that were not present on the original release can be heard, and in the introduction to "Tai Shan", where wind chimes have been added. There is also a panning stereo effect on the vocals during the first pre-chorus of "Turn the Page" which is absent from the original mix.
In 2015 it was reissued after being remastered by Sean Magee at [[Abbey Road Studios]] following a direct approach by Rush to remaster their entire back catalogue.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.abbeyroad.com/engineer/sean-magee|title=Abbey Road - Engineers - Sean Magee|access-date=2020-12-14|archive-date=2020-12-14|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201214135425/https://www.abbeyroad.com/engineer/sean-magee|url-status=live}}</ref>
==Track listing== {{tracklist | all_lyrics = [[Neil Peart]] except "Force Ten" by Peart and [[Pye Dubois]] | all_music = [[Geddy Lee]] and [[Alex Lifeson]] | headline = Side one | title1 = [[Force Ten (song)|Force Ten]] | length1 = 4:31 | title2 = [[Time Stand Still (song)|Time Stand Still]] | length2 = 5:09 | title3 = Open Secrets | length3 = 5:38 | title4 = [[Second Nature (Rush song)|Second Nature]] | length4 = 4:36 | title5 = Prime Mover | length5 = 5:19 }} {{tracklisting | headline = Side two | title1 = [[Lock and Key (Rush song)|Lock and Key]] | length1 = 5:09 | title2 = [[Mission (song)|Mission]] | length2 = 5:16 | title3 = Turn the Page | length3 = 4:55 | title4 = Tai Shan | length4 = 4:17 | title5 = High Water | length5 = 5:33 }}
==Personnel== Sources:<ref name="linernotes">{{cite web|url=http://www.2112.net/powerwindows/main/HYFlyrics.htm|title="Hold Your Fire" linernotes and lyrics|work=Power Windows|publisher=2112.net|access-date=October 12, 2013|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091121230824/http://www.2112.net/powerwindows/main/HYFlyrics.htm|archive-date=November 21, 2009}}</ref><ref name="Bill93" />
===Rush=== *[[Geddy Lee]] – bass guitar, synthesizer, vocals *[[Alex Lifeson]] – electric and acoustic guitar *[[Neil Peart]] – drums, percussion
===Additional musicians=== *[[Aimee Mann]] – co-lead vocals on "Time Stand Still", backing vocals on "Tai Shan", "Open Secrets" and "Prime Mover" *[[Andy Richards]] – additional keyboard, synthesizer [[programming (music)|programming]] *Steven Margoshes – strings arranger and conductor *[[Fairey Band|The William Faery Engineering Brass Band]] arranged and conducted by [[Andrew Jackman]]
===Production=== *[[Peter Collins (record producer)|Peter Collins]] – producer, arrangements *James "Jimbo" Barton – engineer *[[Bob Ludwig]] – mastering *[[Hugh Syme]] – art direction *[[Glen Wexler]] – photography
==Charts== ===Weekly charts=== {| class="wikitable plainrowheaders sortable" |+Weekly chart performance for ''Hold Your Fire'' !Chart (1987) !Peak<br />position |- !scope="row"|Canadian Albums (''[[RPM100]]'')<ref name="RPM100">{{cite web |url=http://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/rpm/028020-119.01-e.php?&file_num=nlc008388.0886&type=1&interval=50&PHPSESSID=m89iq841abagb37ld9c0fdc1f3 |title=Top Albums/CDs – Volume 47, No. 2, October 17, 1987 |access-date=2011-12-01 |date=17 October 1987 |publisher=[[Library and Archives Canada]] |archive-date=2013-10-07 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131007055602/http://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/rpm/028020-119.01-e.php?&file_num=nlc008388.0886&type=1&interval=50&PHPSESSID=m89iq841abagb37ld9c0fdc1f3 |url-status=live }}</ref> | style="text-align:center;"|9 |- {{albumchart|Netherlands|40|album=Hold Your Fire|artist=Rush|refname=Dutchcharts|access-date=2011-12-02|rowheader=true}} |- !scope="row"|Finnish Albums ([[Suomen virallinen lista]])<ref>{{cite book |url=https://musiikkiarkisto.fi/oa/_tiedostot/julkaisut/sisaltaa-hitin.pdf#page=221|first=Timo |last=Pennanen |year=2021 |title=Sisältää hitin - 2. laitos Levyt ja esittäjät Suomen musiikkilistoilla 1.1.1960–30.6.2021 |section=Rush|page=221|publisher=Kustannusosakeyhtiö Otava |location=Helsinki|access-date=May 17, 2022}}</ref> |align="center"|9 |- {{albumchart|Germany|34|id=32512|album=Hold Your Fire|artist=Rush|refname=Germancharts|access-date=September 6, 2024|rowheader=true}} |- {{albumchart|Sweden|21|album=Hold Your Fire|artist=Rush|refname=Swedishcharts|access-date=2011-12-02|rowheader=true}} |- !scope="row"|Japanese Albums ([[Oricon]])<ref name="Oriconcharts">[http://www.oricon.co.jp/prof/artist/174288/products/music/13437/1/ ホールド・ユア・ファイアー] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131011211320/http://www.oricon.co.jp/prof/artist/174288/products/music/13437/1/ |date=2013-10-11 }} (In Japanese). oricon.co.jp. Accessed from July 8, 2013.</ref> |align=center|67 |- {{albumchart|UK2|10|refname=UKcharts|access-date=September 6, 2024|date=1987-11-15|rowheader=true}} |- {{albumchart|Billboard200|13|album=Hold Your Fire|artist=Rush|refname=Billboard200charts|rowheader=true}} |}
===Year-end charts=== {| class="wikitable plainrowheaders" |+1987 year-end chart performance for ''Hold Your Fire'' !Chart (1987) !Position |- {{albumchart|Canada|56|chartid=0918|rowheader=true|access-date=May 17, 2022}} |}
==Singles and chart positions== {| class="wikitable" |- !align="left"|Information |- |align="left"|'''"[[Time Stand Still (Rush song)|Time Stand Still]]"''' *Released: October 19, 1987 *Written by: Geddy Lee, Alex Lifeson and Neil Peart *Produced by: [[Peter Collins (record producer)|Peter Collins]] and Rush *Chart positions: No. 3 US Mainstream Rock;<ref name="singles">{{cite web |url=http://www.allmusic.com/album/hold-your-fire-r17147/charts-awards/billboard-single |title=Hold Your Fire Billboard Singles |access-date=2011-11-20 |work=[[Allmusic]] |publisher=[[Rovi Corporation]] |archive-date=2021-04-02 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210402022358/https://www.allmusic.com/album/hold-your-fire-mw0000192905 |url-status=live }}</ref> number 41 UK |- |align="left"|'''"[[Force Ten (song)|Force Ten]]"''' *Written by: Geddy Lee, Alex Lifeson, Neil Peart and Pye Dubois *Produced by: Peter Collins and Rush *Chart positions: number 3 US Mainstream Rock<ref name="singles" /> |- | style="text-align:left;"|'''"[[Lock and Key (Rush song)|Lock and Key]]"''' *Written by: Geddy Lee, Alex Lifeson and Neil Peart *Produced by: Peter Collins and Rush *Chart positions: number 16 US Mainstream Rock<ref name="singles" /> |- |align="left"|'''"Prime Mover"''' *Released: April 11, 1988 *Written by: Geddy Lee, Alex Lifeson and Neil Peart *Produced by: Peter Collins and Rush *Chart positions: number 43 UK<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.officialcharts.com/search/singles/The%20Body%20Electric |title=Prime Mover The Official Charts Company |access-date=2012-03-11 |publisher=[[Official Charts Company]] |archive-date=2015-12-09 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151209124932/http://www.officialcharts.com/search/singles/the%20body%20electric/ |url-status=live }}</ref> |}
==Certifications== {{Certification Table Top|caption=Certifications for ''Hold Your Fire''}} {{Certification Table Entry|region=Canada|artist=Rush|title=Hold Your Fire|award=Platinum|type=album|relyear=1987|certyear=1987|access-date=August 19, 2022}} {{Certification Table Entry|region=United Kingdom|artist=Rush|title=Hold Your Fire|award=Silver|id=2952-789-2|type=album|relyear=1987|certyear=1987|access-date=August 19, 2022}} {{Certification Table Entry|region=United States|artist=Rush|title=Hold Your Fire|award=Gold|type=album|relyear=1987|certyear=1987|access-date=August 19, 2022}} {{Certification Table Bottom|nosales=true}}
== Notes == {{notelist}}
==References== {{Reflist}}
==Further reading== *{{cite book|last=Banasiewicz|first=Bill|title=Rush Visions: The Official Biography|year=1988|publisher=Omnibus Press|isbn=0-7119-1162-2}}
==External links== * {{Discogs master|type=album|7519|name=Hold Your Fire}}
{{Rush}} {{Authority control}} [[Category:Rush (band) albums]] [[Category:1987 albums]] [[Category:Anthem Records albums]] [[Category:Mercury Records albums]] [[Category:Vertigo Records albums]] [[Category:Albums produced by Peter Collins (record producer)]] [[Category:Albums recorded at AIR Studios]]