Neil Peart, The Legendary Drummer Of RUSH, Passes Away At 67
Rolling Stone- Neil Peart, the drummer and lyricist for Rush, died Tuesday, January 7th, in Santa Monica, California at age 67. The cause was brain cancer, which he had been quietly battling for three years, according to Elliott Mintz, a spokesperson for the Peart family. A representative for the band confirmed the news to Rolling Stone.
Peart was widely considered one of the best drummers in rock history, with a flamboyant yet utterly precise style. He joined singer-bassist Geddy Lee and guitarist Alex Lifeson in Rush in 1974, and his virtuosic playing and literate lyrics – which drew on Ayn Rand and science fiction, among other influences – helped make the trio one of the key bands of the classic-rock era. A rigorous autodidact and a gifted writer, he was also the author of numerous books. He was fiercely principled, and never stopped believing in the possibilities of rock and despising what he saw as over-commercialization of the music industry. “It’s about being your own hero,” he told Rolling Stone in 2015. “I set out to never betray the values that 16-year-old had, to never sell out, to never bow to the man. A compromise is what I can never accept.”
Man, this one sucks.
Neil Peart, the legendary drummer/songwriter of RUSH, passed away this week after a lengthy battle with brain cancer. He was 67.
When I was growing up, I didn't know Neil Peart as anything but "The Professor". He was that crazy old drummer with a hundred toms and cymbals that rotated all around his kit. It was almost a mythical larger-than-life view of Neil Peart I had, and that never left me. In fact, through diving into RUSH's discography over the past few years, I've only thought of Peart as more of a larger-than-life mythical figure and a legend in every sense of the word, because pretty much every drum track he ever laid down was brilliant at a level we've never seen before and will never see again. He inspired thousands upon thousands of musicians throughout his career, entertained millions of fans around the world for decades, and left a mark on rock n' roll music that will remain for decades to come.
I'd recommend checking out "RUSH: Beyond The Lighted Stage" on Netflix tonight if you'd like to know more about Neil Peart, his life, and his band. It's one of the greatest rock n' roll documentaries of all time in my personal opinion, and will give you a completely newfound respect for the man that he was.
There's nothing more I could say about Neil Peart that hasn't been said already, so I'll just cap things off with a "Thank you" to Neil himself for all of the tremendous music he's provided me throughout my life. My deepest condolences go out to his loved ones.
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