RIP Neil Peart

WOW Can't even imagine this sad news.... Rest in peace and may you have plenty of drum beats in Heaven.

 

RIP

Wow. Just saw this.

Legend.

 

@scocar

I didn't go back through all the posts since I posted on the first page to see if this had been linked. As you know all to well, Neil was a very private person and very seldom gave interviews. I've watched this one many times in the past but in memory to him I feel it's appropriate that he be seen as more than just one of the best musicians / lyricist of our time but also as a genuinely nice, thoughtful human being. I'm sure you have seen this before but it's worth watching once more.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q_mKr28G7og

 

Just got twigged onto this performance...

Fitting

 

They did a great job.

 

Such a great lyricist and drummer. I've been a fan since about 1993. Roll the Bones was my first Rush album. Followed by Hold Your Fire, Presto, and the modern era stuff. I also picked up Moving Pictures.

On the Test for Echo Tour my buddy Jason was working local crew in Milwaukee at the Bradley Center. He called me that day we linked up and he said "We can walk through the arena probably around noon without much obstruction" .

We were driving down 4th street and a guy on a BMW motorcycle pulls up next to us in full gear head to toe. My buddy says "i bet that's Neil" jokingly.

We parked and went into the arena and we walked around the lower ring underneath the seats. We get backstage to the load in area and we see Neil laying on the floor changing the oil to the BMW GS! MY GOD, we both shit our pants and tried not to stare b/c we knew that'd get attention. We saw Neils' motorcycle partner - was it Brutus? I forget his name off hand The guy that got busted by the cops IIRC. We got out of there after a minute or two of watching. Such a treat. We didn't dare ask for autographs.

That was my first Rush show and they opened with Dreamline - It was an emotional experience that brought tears to my eyes - I hate to admit that. The energy of that band was overwhelming.

I've read all of Neil's books - if you haven't - I can't recommend them more.

I think my favorite line by Neil is still "we're only immortal for a limited time" from Dreamline. For years, whenever I'd go on long roadtrips - I'd leave in the middle of the night usually and I'd leave my house listening to Dreamline -

"He's got a road map of Jupiter
A radar fix on the stars
All along the highway
She's got a liquid-crystal compass
A picture book of the rivers
Under the Sahara"

 

The music of Rush and Neil Pearts amazing lyrics were my escape from a violent abusive home in the late 70s. I would drown out the screaming and yelling when I turned out the light and cranked up my stereo and buried my thoughts into Neils lyrics. He was my hero and helped me escape when I needed to. There was always hope in their songs when I didn't have any. I swore I never would see 30 and now Im 60. I think Something for Nothing from 2112 was my favorite song when things got bad.
I saw Rush during the Roll the Bones tour and was amazed that 3 guys could put on a show like that.
God bless Neil Peart. He touched many lives including mine.

 

wow. similar here. if he had a mission to leave positivity behind for many, he succeeded.

 

I am currently reading the book Neil Peart wrote called the Ghost Rider, The Healing Road. It is good reading. He lost his daughter and wife with in a year and found if he could keep moving the past would have a harder time catching up to him. Lots of good stories and thoughts as only Neil could tell them. There was a lot more to him than just being a drummer for Rush. That was obvious not only with his amazing talent playing drums but also with his contributions to the lyrics of the music Rush would preform.

 

He actually has 8 autobiographical books similar to Ghost Rider that are all just excellent reads. Along with those he co-authored a fictional novel set in a Steam Punk world that is pretty fun to read. He was incredibly intellectual and as well read as most literature professors.

 

I'm sure I'm not telling anyone anything new but, Netflix has a Rush documentary that's a great watch.