"A Passage to Bangkok" is the second song on Rush

Rush (band)

Rush is a Canadian rock band formed in August 1968, in the Willowdale neighbourhood of Toronto, Ontario. The band is composed of bassist, keyboardist, and lead vocalist Geddy Lee, guitarist Alex Lifeson, and drummer and lyricist Neil Peart...

's album, 2112

2112 (album)

2112 is the fourth studio album by Canadian rock band Rush, released in 1976.The album features an eponymous seven-part suite written by Geddy Lee and Alex Lifeson, with lyrics written by Neil Peart telling a dystopian story set in the year 2112. The album is sometimes described as a concept album...

. Released in 1976

1976 in music

-January–February:*January 5 – Former Beatles road manager Mal Evans is shot dead by Los Angeles police after refusing to drop what police only later determine is an air rifle....

, the song follows the album's title song 2112

2112 (song)

2112 is the sidelong title track of Canadian progressive rock band Rush's album of the same name, released in 1976. The overture and the first section, Temples of Syrinx, were released as a single and are still popular among Rush's setlists today. The "sci-fi" sounds in the beginning of the song...

. The song opens with a driving guitar riff. The song's lyrics have been interpreted as relating to marijuana,http://www.amazon.com/dp/customer-reviews/B000001ESF as the song references places such as Colombia

Colombia

Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia , is a unitary constitutional republic comprising thirty-two departments. The country is located in northwestern South America, bordered to the east by Venezuela and Brazil; to the south by Ecuador and Peru; to the north by the Caribbean Sea; to the...

, Mexico

Mexico

The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...

, Jamaica

Jamaica

Jamaica is an island nation of the Greater Antilles, in length, up to in width and 10,990 square kilometres in area. It is situated in the Caribbean Sea, about south of Cuba, and west of Hispaniola, the island harbouring the nation-states Haiti and the Dominican Republic...

, Morocco

Morocco

Morocco , officially the Kingdom of Morocco , is a country located in North Africa. It has a population of more than 32 million and an area of 710,850 km², and also primarily administers the disputed region of the Western Sahara...

, Thailand

Thailand

Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...

, Afghanistan

Afghanistan

Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...

, "golden acapulco nights" (a possible reference to Acapulco gold

Acapulco gold

Acapulco gold is the traditional name of a potent strain of cannabis originating in Acapulco, Mexico. The plant is named after its brownish gold, or gold and green color.-History:...

), Nepal

Nepal

Nepal , officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked sovereign state located in South Asia. It is located in the Himalayas and bordered to the north by the People's Republic of China, and to the south, east, and west by the Republic of India...

, and Lebanon

Lebanon

Lebanon , officially the Republic of LebanonRepublic of Lebanon is the most common term used by Lebanese government agencies. The term Lebanese Republic, a literal translation of the official Arabic and French names that is not used in today's world. Arabic is the most common language spoken among...

.

In earlier performances of the song (such as the version recorded on Exit...Stage Left

Exit...Stage Left

Exit...Stage Left is a live album by Canadian band Rush, released in 1981. A video release with the same name, with slightly different content, was released in 1982 on VHS and later on Laserdisc, and in 2007 on DVD....

), Geddy Lee

Geddy Lee

Gary Lee Weinrib, OC, better known as Geddy Lee , is a Canadian musician, best known as the lead vocalist, bassist, and keyboardist for the Canadian rock group Rush...

 would use a doubleneck Rickenbacker bass guitar, so that he could play rhythm guitar during Alex Lifeson

Alex Lifeson

Aleksandar Živojinović, OC, better known by his stage name Alex Lifeson, is a second generation Serbian-Canadian musician, best known as the guitarist of the Canadian rock band Rush. In the summer of 1968, Lifeson founded the band that would become Rush with friend, drummer John Rutsey...

's guitar solo. However, when the song was played on the 2007-2008 Snakes And Arrows Tour, Lee used his Rickenbacker 4001

Rickenbacker 4001

The Rickenbacker 4001 is a bass guitar that was manufactured by Rickenbacker as a "deluxe model" of the 4000 between 1961 and 1981 before being replaced by an updated version, the Rickenbacker 4003...

 bass to play the song.

The introduction and finale of the song both incorporate a variation of the Oriental Riff.

Tool

Tool (band)

Tool is an American rock band from Los Angeles, California. Formed in 1990, the group's line-up has included drummer Danny Carey, guitarist Adam Jones, and vocalist Maynard James Keenan. Since 1995, Justin Chancellor has been the band's bassist, replacing their original bassist Paul D'Amour...

frequently uses the main riff of "A Passage to Bangkok" as the intro for their own song "Cold and Ugly" (and "Jambi" at several shows on their 2006-2007 tour) when they play it live.

An orchestrated version of "A Passage to Bangkok" appears on Exit... Stage Right, a string quartet tribute album that features 12 Rush songs converted into classical pieces.