Gene Wilder copies of Mel Brooks films, while "Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory" was not a commercial success, although it later gained a cult following and an Oscar nomination for Best Score, as well as a Golden Globe award nomination for Wilder. When Woody Allen offered him a role in one segment of "Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Sex* (*But Were Afraid to Ask)", Wilder accepted, hoping this would be the hit to put an end to his series of flops. "Everything ... " was a hit, grossing over $18 million in the United States alone against a $2-million
Everything Your Listeners Ever Wanted to Hear by Rush... But You Were Afraid to Play partly due to both the increasing length and complex nature of the material. "2112" had been a surprise success in 1976, but still had not received much airplay. The band were working on a fifth studio album to be released later in 1977, so presumably the compilation was intended to promote some of the more radio-friendly tracks from the albums in between. Incidentally, the album's back cover has a blurb from "Circus" magazine with the headline "'Closer To The Heart' Will Be The Group's Sixth LP". Though no rare material is included, two songs were excerpts from their corresponding full-length