Rush is a Band

New documentary explores Niagara music scene, 1964-74

Sun, 8 Nov 2009 21:14:00 -0500

A new documentary from filmmaker Paul Miilm explores the Niagara music scene of the late 60's and early 70's of which Neil Peart played a major part. It's titled The Big Story of Small Potatoes and will be released sometime this month according to the film's website. Neil Peart was not interviewed for the documentary but Jimmy Johnson, who later became a guitar tech for Alex Lifeson, is interviewed. The film makes reference to several bands that Neil played in including JR Flood - which has their song Giant Killer (not known if Neil played on this) included on the soundtrack. The film's website also includes a list of several bands that Neil purportedly played with:

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Updates and other random Rush stuff

Fri, 6 Nov 2009 11:21:00 -0500

The big news item of this past week took the form of a NeilPeart.net news update where Neil revealed that he and his bandmates will get together sometime this month to discuss the future of Rush:

... In this autumn of 2009, the three of us are poised on another kind of "reinvention." We have agreed to meet in Los Angeles in November, and discuss our future. ... these are parlous times in the music business, so our time-honored pattern of touring, recording, and touring is no longer the obvious way to do things. ... Because of that reality, record company advances that used to pay for album projects are a thing of the past, so if that was what we wanted to do, we'd be on our own. ... To this point, the three of us haven't even discussed what we might discuss, so to speak-so our ideas and shared enthusiasm for the entity of Rush will be fresh, spontaneous, and quite likely exciting. For myself, I'm open to anything we can all agree on (I've pointed out before that in a three-piece band, we need consensus, not democracy-it's no good having one outvoted and unhappy member). My favorite group activity is always songwriting and recording, and I've got some lyrical ideas and those new drumming frontiers to explore. However, those rhythmic concepts would also be inspiring for a new drum solo, if we decided to do a tour of some kind, maybe with an orchestra. We could write and record just a few songs, and release them some way. Or there were a couple of film-and-music projects we had discussed in the past. In any case, there are enough possibilities for future collaboration, and I am curious to see what we'll come up with. ...

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Bidding now open for Alex Lifeson's A Brush of Hope painting

Thu, 5 Nov 2009 11:03:00 -0500

Early last month we learned that for the 4th year in a row Alex Lifeson is participating in The Kidney Foundation of Canada's A Brush of Hope project. Alex Lifeson along with dozens of other Canadian celebrities have donated paintings to be auctioned off to raise money for the charity. The A Brush of Hope Gala takes place this evening at the Delta Hotel in Fredricton, NB. Paintings from over 100 Canadian celebrities have been put up for auction on eBay as of this morning. The auction will run through November 15th and you can bid on Alex Lifeson's painting (shown above) at .

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Neil Peart news update: Rush to discuss future plans this month

Tue, 3 Nov 2009 09:36:00 -0500

NEWS, WEATHER, and SPORTS: November, 2009 - Autumn Serenade
Neil Peart has once again updated the News page on his website. He begins by detailing some of his recent explorations in drumming:

NEWS, WEATHER, and SPORTS: November, 2009 - Autumn Serenade
... Inevitably, though, at some point I will be overwhelmed by a strong desire to play the drums for real, and that fever came upon me in late summer of this year. As often happens, the urge was sparked by listening to a couple of great drummers: Jack DeJohnette and Ian Wallace. Some musicians react to another player's greatness with envy, or even despair-like Eric Clapton's claim that he wanted to burn his guitar after hearing Jimi Hendrix, or Miles Davis allegedly making Wynton Marsalis want to smash his horn. But for me, hearing another drummer who impresses me (a long list) makes me want to go home and play. That's how it was when I was a kid, and it's still true today-not just an urge to practice and get better, but a response to inspiration. ...

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New contest at the Rush Backstage Club

Mon, 2 Nov 2009 13:29:00 -0500

Win A Masked Rider signed by Neil Peart
The Rush Backstage Club is running a new contest where you could win a signed copy of Neil Peart's book The Masked Rider. The contest ends on November 12th and you can sign up to enter at this link. Thanks to mrdriven for the heads up.

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Ari Gold of Adventures of Power interviews Neil Peart

Sat, 31 Oct 2009 00:01:00 -0500

Ari Gold "One on One" Interview with Neil Peart

Ari Gold "One on One" Interview with Neil Peart
If you're a regular reader of this site, then you already know that the film Adventures of Power made its theatrical debut a few weeks ago in New York City. The movie chronicles the adventures of air-drummer extraordinaire Power (played by filmmaker Ari Gold) and contains a cameo from Neil Peart along with a slew of Rush references. Back in September we learned that Neil Peart and Ari Gold paid a visit to the Drum Channel studios to film an air drum-off video which was released to YouTube a couple of weeks ago. While in the studio they also sat down together for a one-on-one interview/discussion which was just posted to the Drum Channel website Friday afternoon. The 2 chat for nearly 25 minutes about their involvement with the film, air-drumming, how they were introduced to music and the importance of music education. The interview is then capped off with their Tom Sawyer air drum-off. Thanks to DigitalMan745 for the heads up.

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Updates and other random Rush stuff

Fri, 30 Oct 2009 10:24:00 -0500

The big news of the past week was Alex Lifeson's Tuesday appearance on the Rick Mercer Report. The six and a half minute segment followed Rick and Alex as they went out on a man date. They flew a plane to Niagara Freefall Indoor Skydiving and then hung out at Alex's night club The Orbit Room where Alex taught Rick a little guitar and the two played some Rock Band. You can view the clip at the CBC website or on YouTube. There are also several photos from their outing up on the Rick Mercer Report Facebook Page.

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New interview with former Rush engineer Paul Northfield

Thu, 29 Oct 2009 22:10:00 -0500

RecordingHacks.com: Interview with Paul Northfield
Paul Northfield is a prolific sound engineer and record producer who has worked on a number of Rush albums from Permanent Waves on through Vapor Trails. Matthew McGlynn recently interviewed Paul for RecordingHacks.com and spoke at length with him about his experiences recording with Rush. Here's an excerpt:

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Rush-inspired fine art digital paintings

Wed, 28 Oct 2009 17:36:00 -0500

Macrographs: Fine Art Digital Paintings inspired by the works of Rush
Graham Whieldon is a UK based digital artist who creates limited edition fine art prints inspired by the songs of Rush. He recently launched a website at macrographs.com where you can learn all about his paintings and purchase his prints. So far he has one completed painting for sale; a print inspired by Rush's epic song The Fountain of Lamneth from their Caress of Steel album. Also in the works is a painting inspired by the Rush song Red Barchetta with more to come in the future. You can see previews of his work by visiting the Macrographs website. I've also included some images from the Fountain of Lamneth print which you can view by clicking on the thumbnails above.

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Reminder: Alex Lifeson on the Rick Mercer Report tonight

Tue, 27 Oct 2009 10:28:00 -0500

UPDATE - 11/2@1:28PM: Rick was interviewed on Toronto's Q107 and talked a little about Alex's appearance. You can listen to it at this link (thanks RushFanForever).

UPDATE - 10/28@10:44AM: It's on YouTube too (thanks RushFanForever).

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Neil Peart's Slingerland drum kit to appear at PASIC

Tue, 27 Oct 2009 08:00:00 -0500

Neil Peart's original Slingerland drum kit (which he used from Fly By Night through 2112) was put up for auction on eBay a couple of months ago and ended up being sold for over $25,000. Ever since the purchase Michael of NeilPeartDrumsticks.com has been working with the new owner of the kit to help restore it to a playable condition so it could be put on display. I'd mentioned on Friday that Michael had finally released all the details regarding when and where the kit would be displayed. The kit will be at the upcoming Percussive Arts Society show (PASIC) in Indianapolis the week of November 11-14 and people will even be able to play the kit themselves with a donation of $10 to the American Cancer Society for 1 minute on the kit. Here are all the details straight from Michael:

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Updates and other random Rush stuff

Fri, 23 Oct 2009 10:21:00 -0500

The Bubba's Bar -n- Grill section of Neil Peart's website received a major overhaul this past week. First and foremost Bubba's has a new manager; Neil's longtime friend and riding partner Brutus. You can read all about Brutus's management philosophy, email Brutus and sign up to receive updates at this link (just click on Talk to the Manager). You can also now purchase official Bubba's Bar -n- Grill merchandise via BubbaWares.com including a men's t-shirt, women's t-shirt, a tote bag, an apron and a baseball hat. There are also several new recipes and a new Bubba-Q section which is completely devoted to barbecue. So if you haven't checked it out yet, head on over to Bubba's and grab yourself a bite to eat!

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Neil Peart remembers Blue Cheer's Dickie Peterson

Wed, 21 Oct 2009 16:52:00 -0500

"Louder Than God": Rush's Neil Peart Remembers Blue Cheer's Dickie Peterson
Blue Cheer bass player and frontman Dickie Peterson died this past October 12th at the age of 61 after a battle with cancer. Blue Cheer fan and our favorite drummer Neil Peart wrote a short piece for RollingStone.com in remembrance of Peterson. Here's an excerpt:

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Alex Lifeson to appear on the Rick Mercer Report next Tuesday

Wed, 21 Oct 2009 10:46:00 -0500

UPDATE - 10/22@9:56AM: Reader Matthew noticed that a bunch of photos of Alex and Rick from the video segment have been posted to the Rick Mercer Report Facebook page.

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Official Bubba's Bar -n- Grill merchandise at NeilPeart.net

Tue, 20 Oct 2009 18:27:00 -0500

Bubba's Bar -n- Grill Official Merchandise Store
UPDATE - 10/21@9:55AM: The official announcement regarding all the Bubba's Bar -n- Grill changes went out last night via the Rush newsletter. If you didn't receive your copy you can check out the web version of the newsletter at this link.

Bubba's Bar -n- Grill Official Merchandise Store
UPDATE - 10/20@7:41PM: Reader thomas pointed out a couple of other new items to the Bubba's Bar -n- Grill that I had totally missed. Inside the menu jukebox if you click on Bubba-Q it'll take you to a new page devoted completely to barbecue. Also, if you click on Talk to the manager you'll see a message from the new manager, Neil's friend and riding partner Brutus. You can even sign up to receive email updates! Very cool.

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Classic Rock's Prog feature on Rush now available online

Tue, 20 Oct 2009 09:17:00 -0500

Classic Rock Presents: PROG: Rush Through Time
For their August 2009 issue Classic Rock's quarterly Prog magazine featured 4 separate collectible Rush covers covering different eras of the band along with a 9-page feature story on Rush titled Making Waves where Alex Lifeson was interviewed. I'd featured a few scans and several excerpts from the article back in August and have referenced it several times since. John at Cygnus-X1.net recently transcribed the entire article including the side article on the Rush documentary and posted it to his website along with all the images and covers from the feature. You can check it out at this link. It's a great article and while much of the information in it is now outdated, it's well worth taking the time to read.

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Updates and other random Rush stuff

Fri, 16 Oct 2009 12:08:00 -0500

There's not too much to report in Rush news this week other than the fact that Alex Lifeson will be appearing on an upcoming episode of the Rick Mercer Report. According to this Niagara Falls Review article Alex and Rick Mercer were spotted Wednesday filming a segment for an upcoming episode at Niagara Freefall Indoor Skydiving. There's no word yet on when the episode will air. Both Geddy Lee and Neil Peart have also appeared on the Rick Mercer Report. Neil did a segment back in 2006 where he gave Rick some drum lessons. You can watch the video here. And Geddy appeared on the program back in January of 2004 for his now famous Tobogganing Safety tips video which you can watch here.

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New contest at the Rush Backstage Club

Thu, 15 Oct 2009 17:36:00 -0500

Win A Test For Echo Poster!
The Rush Backstage Club is running a new contest where you could win a 24" X 36" Test For Echo poster. The contest ends on October 28th and you can sign up to enter at this link. Thanks to thomas for the heads up.

Alex Lifeson to appear on the Rick Mercer Report

Wed, 14 Oct 2009 19:34:00 -0500

What a Rush: Rick Mercer, Alex Lifeson go freefallin'
Alex Lifeson will soon be making an appearance on the Rick Mercer Report according to this Niagara Falls Review article. Alex and Rick Mercer were spotted earlier today filming a segment for an upcoming episode at Niagara Freefall Indoor Skydiving. From the article:

What a Rush: Rick Mercer, Alex Lifeson go freefallin'
When it came time for their 'man date,' Canadian comic Rick Mercer and rock legend Alex Lifeson went straight to the Honeymoon Capital.
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Neil Peart's top ten Atlantic Canadian books

Tue, 13 Oct 2009 11:24:00 -0500

Stephen Clare and Trevor Adams of Halifax Magazine are conducting an internet poll of writers, readers and literary luminaries to determine the top 100 Atlantic Canadian books ever written. They then plan on publishing the results in an upcoming book titled Spindrift: The 100 Greatest Atlantic Canadian Books Ever Written. They are also running a contest to guess what the top 5 books will be. According to QuillandQuire.com one of the writers polled was Neil Peart. Here is Neil's top 10 list:

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