Rock & roll HEALTH Chick
“One likes to believe in the freedom of music. But glittering prizes and endless compromises Shatter the Illusion of Integrity”
by Elektra
the best, if not the best, drummers of all time, but he was also responsible for their mind- blowing lyrics. His ferocious playing and mas- sive circle-o-drums were not to be outdone by his brilliance, wit and timeless social com- mentary. His lyrics reflect his observance of a deeper reality. I am in awe of his grasp of the meaning and experiences of life and “fame.” I find that there is a song for almost every mood and experience, especially those in the pursuit of stardom. Included in that reality was his keen bullshit meter. The story goes that the record company
I may be going out on a limb, but I will
venture to say if you are not a RUSH fan, ei- ther you haven’t really listened to them, or you don’t get the deeper meaning behind their songs and souls. Of course, it could be that it’s not your kind of music, but I can’t re- ally wrap my head around that idea. I believe them to be one of the best bands that ever ex- isted or ever will. Their lyrics and musician- ship cannot be equaled. The crazy thing is that the band had only three guys! All that sound was from three individuals, Getty Lee, Alex Lifeson and Neil Peart, working as a col- lective unit. You probably heard about Neil Peart
passing away from brain cancer on January 7th. Peart was the driving force behind RUSH. He was not their first drummer, but what a gift to us that these guys found each other. Not only is he considered to be one of
was giving RUSH a hard time about their next album needing to be a “hit.” That pissed the boys off, of course. Rarely does a record com- pany care about the actual art for art’s sake. It’s really about the money. If you can’t make a certain amount, you’re out. Getty Lee says they decided that if this was to be their last album, they would make it very heartfelt and true to themselves, even if it flopped. The rest is rock-n-roll history. The album2112 pro- pelled RUSH into the collective consciousness of progrock fans, but also that of many others who wanted their music to vibrate at a higher level. The wonderful thing was that the theme of the album was a big fuck-you to the corpo- rate machine. It didn’t produce any radio “hits,” but it is one of the best-selling and most important albums of all time. Peart remained true to his message. “I
never set out to betray the values of my 16- year-old self,” said Peart. ”A compromise is what I can never accept.” And compromise he didn’t. When he was done four years ago, he left the band. No mailing it in for him. I am forever grateful to have seen RUSH on their Clockwork Angels tour. I will never forgive myself for not seeing their last tour. It was dedicated just to Moving Pictures. Getty Lee and Alex Lifeson went on to form a new thing.
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