“Closer to the Heart” is a single by Rush, released in 1977, from the album A Farewell to Kings. It was the first Rush song to have an external co-writer, namely Peter Talbot, a friend of drummer and lyricist Neil Peart. It was issued as a single for Christmas 1977, and after two near misses with “Fly By Night” and “Bastille Day” in 1975, it finally gave Rush their first hit single in the United Kingdom, reaching No. 36 in the UK Singles Chart in February 1978. “Closer To The Heart” was one of five Rush songs inducted into the Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame on March 28, 2010.

It is one of Rush’s most popular recordings, receiving a fair amount of radio airplay still to this day. The song has also been part of the set list on nearly every tour since 1977. The band decided to drop “Closer To The Heart” for the bulk of their 2002 Vapor Trails Tour and the entire R30: 30th Anniversary Tour in 2004 because, according to Peart, “we got sick of it.” The song was also not played during the 2007 and 2008 legs of the Snakes & Arrows Tour, but was brought back for the 2010 and 2011 legs of the Time Machine Tour.