Motley Crue's first album was '81, and if I never hear them again, it will be too soon.

Rush's first album was '74 and it never gets old.

Yup, that used to be a fave of mine as well.

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What if Stern took another cue from Spooky offering Halloween/Ultraman, and Sterns next title was Rush/Crue - same pin, same layout, same rules, different art/callouts/music/animations and you pick the one you like. 250 RUSH LE, 250 CRUE LE

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Payola was huge back then! Likely Rush's management did not judge it worth paying the rock radio station programmers in NZ to play their music and develop a fan base in a small country (no offense) where they did not think they were likely to tour or get a big return on their investment. It could also be their management/label did not have a deal with the company that owned the rock stations in NZ for whatever reason.

For sure, Rush was a big rock act with a list of number 1 hits and were all over the album rock radio from 75-91 and continue to be popular on classic rock channels.

quote:
As it stands today, payola remains illegal, and yet widespread. Unfortunately, when the people involved get away with it, it works. The Sony BMG case shined a fresh light on the issue, however, and a crackdown is in the works. Nov 5, 2018

also-
Op-Ed: Spotify’s New ‘Discovery Mode’ Is Just Payola [May 18,2021]
https://www.rollingstone.com/pro/music-biz-commentary/spotify-payola-artist-rights-alliance-1170544/