The Rush discography is full of beautiful album covers, and artist Hugh Syme has been there every step of the way. On May 1, he's getting his due with a new book, The Art of Rush: Serving a Life Sentence.

Syme, who's been responsible for the band's artwork since 1975's Caress of Steel, sees his work collected in a 272-page coffee table book that includes analysis from author Stephen Humphries and interviews with Geddy Lee, Alex Lifeson and Neil Peart — as well as the artist himself, whose distinguished list of credits also includes work for Megadeth, Whitesnake, Iron Maiden, Queensrÿche and Aerosmith.

"From the first time Hugh and I met, we shared a level of communication that would sustain us through all the years of discussing art by long distance," says Peart in a press release announcing the book. "We had the same values and tastes in images and design, and simply spoke the same language. That's why I offhandedly referred to him one time as ‘serving a life sentence as my art director.’"

The Art of Rush: Serving a Life Sentence will be published in three versions: the Classic Edition, a signed and numbered Special Edition that's being produced in a limited 250-copy run and the extremely scarce Roadcase Deluxe Limited Edition, which consists of 100 copies that have been signed by Syme and the band and bound in a custom slipcase with a signed lithograph and metal-plated casing. Pre-orders begin March 27, and can be placed through the band's Backstage Club online store.

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