The fourth song on the self-titled
first album by the Canadian band
Rush. Words and music by
Geddy Lee and
Alex Lifeson.
John Rutsey plays the drums, while Lifeson and Lee provide guitar and bass, respectively. Lee also does the vocals.
"Here Again" is a slow-moving, reflective piece. It is the longest song on the album at over seven and a half minutes, including a 40 second introduction, 45 second interlude after the second stanza and a two minute guitar solo at the end.
The way I hear it, this song describes what can happen when you perform a repetitive task (e.g. studying a subject, playing a song, working a job) for a long time. There comes a point where the more you look, the more you see. This feeling of evolution appears in the first stanza as "the melody keeps repeating/ growing new ideas/ ...like a mountain river bleeding". The river "bleeding" refers to the way a flooded waterway will sometimes forge new channels as it overflows the original banks; the resulting rivulets go all over new territory. Because of these continual involuntary changes, it can be difficult for a person to stay mentally balanced (i.e. avoid stress). That is the thrust of the second stanza, which ends with "the hardest part...is to stay on top of a world forever churning".
On the other hand, the singer seems unsure in the last two stanzas, asking "will it ever change/ will it stay the same". It's tempting to assume he is talking about a relationship that has grown dull when he states "I've been in one place too long". Perhaps he personifies his work, using "face" as a metaphor for an important aspect of his job. Another way to interpret the lyrics is to imagine the singer is talking to himself in a mirror: "I've seen your face before/ why, I've seen it everywhere". He accuses himself of lying "you say you can laugh/ but I can see that your eyes are glass" and the phrase "without a scent revealing" can be taken either metaphorically (i.e. concealment) or literally (i.e. an illusion).
Because of copyright restrictions, only a small sample of the lyrics is reproduced below.
I said I played this song
So many times before
That the melody keeps repeating
Growing new ideas
Flowing chords and notes
Like a mountain river bleeding
Sources: My Rush CD collection