"Marathon" | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Song by Rush | ||||
from the album Power Windows | ||||
Released | October 21, 1985[1] | |||
Genre | ||||
Length | 6:09 | |||
Label | Mercury | |||
Songwriter(s) | Neil Peart, Alex Lifeson and Geddy Lee | |||
Producer(s) | Peter Collins and Rush | |||
Rush singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
Music video | ||||
"Marathon" on YouTube |
"Marathon" is the fourth track on Canadian rock band Rush's 1985 album Power Windows.[2]
It is written by Rush guitarist Alex Lifeson and bassist/vocalist/keyboardist Geddy Lee, and its lyrics are written by drummer and lyricist Neil Peart.[2] The lyrics depict how one would feel while running in an actual marathon, but the meaning of the song is meant to use a marathon (an extreme challenge) as a metaphor for life, and say that life is full of obstacles and is all about one taking small steps to achieve their personal goals.
In a 1986 interview, Peart said "(Marathon) is about the triumph of time and a kind of message to myself (because I think life is too short for all the things that I want to do), there's a self-admonition saying that life is long enough. You can do a lot -- just don't burn yourself out too fast trying to do everything at once. "Marathon" is a song about individual goals and trying to achieve them. And it's also about the old Chinese proverb: 'The journey of a thousand miles begins with one step."[3]
The live version released on the "A Show of Hands" single reached number 6 on the US Mainstream Rock chart in 1989.[4]