CONCORD, Calif. -- There aren't many surviving acts from the '70s who can boast the kind of durability and integrity that Canadian trio Rush can. In an era when KISS continues touring years after its alleged farewell jaunt and hires two imposters to take on the costumed personas of original members, Rush's line-up of bassist/vocalist Geddy Lee, underrated guitar hero Alex Lifeson and drummer/lyricist Neil "The Professor" Peart has managed to stay intact for three decades while remaining true to the unique kind of virtuoso musicianship and thought-provoking hard rock that have become Rush trademarks.

The group's stubborn insistence on going its own route both musically and lyrically over the course of thirty years has helped cultivate one of the most rabidly loyal fan bases in popular music, a fact that the rapturous response of the near sell-out crowd in attendance at Concord's Chronicle Pavilion deafeningly demonstrated throughout Rush's over three hour performance last Saturday night. The fevered applause started as soon as a hilarious video introduction by actor Jerry Stiller (the cantankerous sitcom father from 'Seinfeld' and 'King of Queens') brought the band onstage and continued with Stiller comically rocking out larger than life in the background as the threesome roared through an instrumental medley made up of brief snippets of songs from their first six albums.

The images projected on the screen played up the passage of time, flashing pictures of the members decked out in everything from long hair and bellbottoms to skinny ties and new-wave 'dos as the trio dug into one of its early hits, "The Spirit of Radio." Leading the crowd in the first of numerous singalongs, Geddy Lee showed that his somewhat more limited vocal range was barely noticeable between his nuanced delivery and the audience's enthusiastic participation.

If the years had taken a couple of high notes away from Lee's singing voice, they also obviously helped the group attain the high level of instrumental prowess, near telepathic interplay and ferocious energy that were put on display over the rest of the evening. The complex slide-rule changes and daunting time signatures that characterize much of Rush's oeuvre could make performing the music a demanding chore, but Lee and Lifeson smiled and laughed with each other and the audience throughout the performance (Peart remained fairly straight faced and stoic). For three guys over 50, Rush tore into their intricate songs with a fervor that musicians half their age would have trouble matching.

The crowd maintained a high energy level as well, responding positively to latter era tunes like "Earthshine" and "Roll the Bones" while going completely bananas for classic songs that hadn't been heard live in some time. Early '80s standards "Subdivisions" and "Red Barchetta" were highlights of the first set, eliciting no shortage of air drumming and fist pumping (not to mention sending a visible amount of beer skyward). Perennial instrumental favorite "YYZ" also brought the audience to near pandemonium with its hectic fusion-influenced rhythms and the furious solos traded between Peart, Lee and Lifeson.

But despite the premium placed on Rush's skills as virtuoso players, one couldn't help but notice the emotional resonance of hearing songs that -- corny as it might sound -- "really meant something" to the fans when they first discovered the group as teens in the '70s or '80s. With the lyrical themes of suburban alienation, freewill and nonconformity (not to mention their adaptations of works by Ayn Rand, Samuel Taylor Coleridge and Shakespeare), Rush served as a sort of touchstone for the intellectual development of many a disaffected kid. So even if the extended oaks versus maples allegory of "The Trees" comes across as a bit simplistic to the Rush fans in their 30s and 40s, it didn't stop them from raising lighters and singing along.

A cover from the band's 30th anniversary collection of old favorites that Rush played in the early days (entitled 'Feedback') was another first set gem. Their version of the Who chestnut "The Seeker" revealed the heavy influence the late John Entwistle had on Lee's busy style of bass playing and gave the crowd the treat of hearing the tune with a bit more oomph than the surviving members of the band that wrote it could probably manage.

After a 20-minute intermission, the crowd once again got warmed up with another entertaining video clip, this time a spoof on the old sci-fi marionette kids show 'Thunderbirds' that featured bobblehead dolls of the band doing battle with a string puppet dragon. The group's sense of humor, the last thing one would expect from an outfit with such lofty lyrics and concepts, added to the celebratory vibe of the concert.

Between Lee's wry between-song banter, the often comical video backdrop (their fantasy epic "By Tor and the Snow Dog" featured more side-splitting animation) and the now familiar presence of coin-operated washers, dryers and vending machines on behind Lee's gear -- props the band has used to keep the stage looking balanced ever since the bassist decided to do away with his onstage amps and cabinets -- Rush avoids the self-importance and pretensions of prog-rockers past that might bog down the good times.

And with such generous serving of classic songs, the show certainly kept the festive atmosphere of a giant birthday party. Second set opener and rock radio staple "Tom Sawyer" brought the crowd back to its feet for what proved to be another hefty salvo of classics. Middle-era obscurities ("Between the Wheels" and "Red Sector A," both from the unheralded 'Grace Under Pressure' album) stood alongside recent cuts before the show turned to one of the most anticipated moments of the evening: Neil Peart's drum solo.

With most rock bands, the drummer's spotlight offers fans a chance to hit the bar or the bathroom, but Peart's intense polyrhythmic creations have become a thing of legend and a must-see highlight of any Rush show. Seating within his dense 360-degree thicket of drums, cymbals and exotic percussion instruments, Peart unleashed a torrential yet deeply melodic display of virtuosity.

Though spinning drum platforms were once commonplace accessories at big rock shows, Peart's kit itself rotated around the musician with the hit of a switch, essentially providing him with two completely different sets that he used to the fullest extent (he actually switched kits several times during the performance whenever the song called for a different sound). The kinetic closing tribute to such drumming legends as Buddy Rich synched up perfectly with great big-screen images of swing dancers, ending the almost ten-minute solo on jazzy high note to rapturous applause.

From there, Rush slowed things down for a brief acoustic interlude with Lee and Lifeson (including a great stripped-down version of the Yardbirds' "Heart Full of Soul") before the kid gloves really came off. Pummling the crowd into a delirious state with a fusillade of '70s epics -- a truncated version of '2112,' the instrumental mayhem of "La Villa Strangiato," the aforementioned "By Tor" and "Xanadu" all got ripping treatments -- the trio put on a clinic in crowd-pleasing rock science. By the time Rush capped off the evening with a heartfelt rendition of "Limelight," both audience and band were able to happily head off into the night worn-out, smiling and sated by the marathon performance.

Complete Set List
Introduction medley
The Spirit of Radio
Force Ten
Animate
Subdivisions
Earthshine
Red Barchetta
Roll the Bones
Bravado
YYZ
The Trees
The Seeker (Who cover)
One Little Victory
20-minute intermission
Tom Sawyer
Dreamline
Secret Touch
Between the Wheels
Mystic Rhythms
Red Sector A
Drum Solo
Resist (acoustic)
Heart Full of Soul (acoustic Yardbirds cover)
2112 abridged (Overture/Temples of Syrinx/Grand Finale)
La Villa Strangiato
By Tor and the Snow Dog
Xanadu
Working Man
Encore:
Summertime Blues (Blue Cheer version of the Eddie Cochran song)
Crossroads (Cream version of Robert Johnson song)
Limelight