{{about|the Rush song|the novel by John Dos Passos|U.S.A. (trilogy)|the 1958 film|The Big Money (film)|similarly-titled songs and other uses|Big Money (disambiguation)}} {{Infobox song | name = The Big Money | cover = Rush - The Big Money.jpg | alt = | type = single | artist = [[Rush (band)|Rush]] | album = [[Power Windows (album)|Power Windows]] | B-side = {{ubl|"[[Red Sector A]]" (live) (US) "Middletown Dreams" (UK) "Territories" (UK)}} | released = October 4, 1985<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.worldradiohistory.com/UK/Music-Week/1985/Music-Week-1985-10-05.pdf|title=Music Week|page=20}}</ref> | recorded = | studio = | genre = {{hlist|[[Hard rock]]|[[electronic rock]]|[[synth-pop]]}} | length = 5:35 | label = [[Mercury Records|Mercury]] | writer = * [[Neil Peart]] * [[Alex Lifeson]] * [[Geddy Lee]] | producer = * [[Peter Collins (record producer)|Peter Collins]] * Rush | prev_title = [[Grace Under Pressure (Rush album)|Afterimage]] | prev_year = 1984 | next_title = [[Mystic Rhythms]] | next_year = 1986 | misc = {{External music video| {{YouTube|WQgu0MpnKq8|"The Big Money"}}}} }} "'''The Big Money'''" is a song by Canadian [[rock music|rock]] band [[Rush (band)|Rush]], originally released on their 1985 album ''[[Power Windows (album)|Power Windows]]''. It peaked at #45 on the ''[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]]'' [[Billboard Hot 100|Hot 100]]<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.billboard.com/artist/369299/rush/chart|title=Rush - Chart history {{!}} Billboard|website=www.billboard.com|language=en|access-date=2017-06-30}}</ref> and #4 on the [[Mainstream Rock (chart)|Mainstream Rock chart]], and has been included on several compilation albums, such as ''[[Retrospective II]] '' and ''[[The Spirit of Radio: Greatest Hits 1974-1987]]''.
The lyrics, written by drummer [[Neil Peart]], reflect on the power of "big money" and the sheer magnitude of trade in the modern global economy, particularly during the 1980s.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Rush Visions: The Official Biography|last=Banasiewicz|first=Bill|publisher=Omnibus Press|year=1997}}</ref> When asked about the idea that the song's lyrics were inspired by a [[John Dos Passos]] book of the same name, Peart replied, "I am a big fan of Dos Passos' stylistic ability, his poetic approach to prose, but the ideas presented in the songs are quite different from those which he exemplified." Peart also stated that "the only connection is in the titles".<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.2112.net/powerwindows/transcripts/19880100backstageclub.htm|title="'Hold Your Fire' by Neil Peart" - Backstage Club Newsletter, January 1988|last=Hansen|first=Eric|website=www.2112.net|access-date=2017-06-30}}</ref>
== Reception == ''[[Cash Box]]'' said that "The Big Money" had "a huge production sound, a dynamic arrangement and a techno-rock feel" with a "throbbing beat and an array of musical chops."<ref>{{cite magazine|title=Single Releases|magazine=Cash Box|url=https://worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/Cash-Box/80s/1985/CB-1985-11-09.pdf|date=November 9, 1985|access-date=August 2, 2022|page=11}}</ref> ''[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]]'' labeled it as one of the strongest tracks on ''Power Windows''.<ref>{{cite magazine|title=Spotlight|magazine=[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]] |url=https://www.worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/Billboard/80s/1985/BB-1985-11-02.pdf|date=November 2, 1985|access-date=March 12, 2026 |page=72}}</ref> Reviewing a March 15, 1985 concert by Rush at the [[Hollywood Sportatorium]] for ''[[The Palm Beach Post]]'', Jim Presnell reported a performance "The Big Money" that "sound incredibly strong".<ref name="PalmBeachPost">{{cite newspaper|last=Presnell|first=Jim|date=March 16, 1985|url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/129553013/?match=1&terms=%22The%20Big%20Money%22%20Rush|title=Rush Group Delivers 'Rush' of Excitement|newspaper=[[The Palm Beach Post]]|p=A24|via=[[Newspapers.com]]|access-date=October 16, 2025}}</ref>
== Music video == The video for the track was directed by [[Rob Quartly]],<ref>{{Citation|last=RushVEVO|title=Rush - The Big Money|date=2013-02-15|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WQgu0MpnKq8&list=TLj1DAiih5zks|access-date=2017-06-30}}</ref> produced by Allan Weinrib ([[Geddy Lee]]'s brother), and created by Green Light Productions, using, for the time, state-of-the-art [[Computer-generated imagery|computer graphics]] similar to those seen in the video for the song "[[Money for Nothing (song)|Money for Nothing]]" by [[Dire Straits]]. The video also features the band performing the song on an oversized [[Monopoly (game)|Monopoly]]-style game board with the words "Big Money" in the middle. A full-length version of the video was included on the [[VHS]] and [[laserdisc]] releases of Rush's ''[[Grace Under Pressure (video)|Grace Under Pressure]]'' tour concert film, while an edited version was released to [[MTV]] and other outlets, as well as on the short-lived [[CD Video]] format, directed by Weinrib.
The car featured in the animated intro has a license plate that reads "Mr. Big", a reference to producer [[Peter Collins (record producer)|Peter Collins]], who produced ''Power Windows''. Neill Cunningham, the album cover model for ''Power Windows'', also appears in the video.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.thestar.com/entertainment/music/2016/01/20/rushs-power-windows-a-window-into-record-store-owners-past.html |title=Rush's Power Windows a window into record-store owner's past |last=Patch |first=Nick |work=[[Toronto Star]] |date=2016-01-20 |access-date=2016-01-24}}</ref>
== Charts == {| class="wikitable plainrowheaders sortable" style="text-align:center" |+Weekly chart performance for "The Big Money" !scope="col"|Chart (1985–86) !scope="col"|Peak{{break}}position |- !scope="row"|Canada ([[CHUM Chart|CHUM]])<ref>{{cite web|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061107225439/http://www.1050chum.com/index_chumcharts.aspx?artist=7526|archive-date=November 7, 2006|title=Rush|url=http://www.1050chum.com/index_chumcharts.aspx?artist=7526|publisher=[[CHUM (AM)|1050 CHUM]]|access-date=February 7, 2026}}</ref> | 20 |- !scope="row"|[[UK Singles Chart|UK Singles]] ([[Official Charts Company|OCC]])<ref name = "OCC">{{cite web|url=https://www.officialcharts.com/songs/rush-the-big-money/|title=The Big Money – Rush|publisher=[[Official Charts Company]]|access-date=February 7, 2026}}</ref> | 46 |- {{singlechart|Billboardhot100|45|artist=Rush|access-date=February 7, 2026|rowheader=true}} |- {{singlechart|Billboardmainstreamrock|4|artist=Rush|access-date=February 7, 2026|rowheader=true}} |}
== See also == *[[List of Rush songs]]
== References == {{Reflist}}
{{Rush}} {{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Big Money, The}} [[Category:1985 singles]] [[Category:Rush (band) songs]] [[Category:Canadian protest songs]] [[Category:1985 songs]] [[Category:Song recordings produced by Peter Collins (record producer)]] [[Category:Songs written by Alex Lifeson]] [[Category:Songs written by Geddy Lee]] [[Category:Songs written by Neil Peart]] [[Category:Mercury Records singles]] [[Category:Canadian new wave songs]] [[Category:Synth rock songs]]