Neil Peart Update: “Drummer With a Singletrack Mind" - September 2013

Back in June, during that month's edition of "News Weather & Sports" ("Shunpikers in the Shadowlands"), Neil Peart wrote "“Drummer With a Singletrack Mind” will appear in this department shortly after its print debut."  That time has come, as tonight Neil has updated his website with the expanded edition of  "Drummer With a Singletrack Mind", adding:

"This story was written during our Clockwork Angels European tour in May, 2013, for a British motorcycling weekly. They asked for about 700 words and a photo or two, and I gave them 1,700 words, and eight photos. They said they would run it like that, but took a few liberties...So I decided to present it here in its original form, which would also fill a gap in the tour’s documentation, before the 'Shunpikers in the Shadowlands' story about Continental Europe."

Another great read from the Professor, you can check it out here!

Longtime Rush Roadie Skip Gildersleeve Passes Away at 57

Skip Gildersleeve (Slider) and
Tony Geranios (Jack Secret) in 2012

On Wednesday the Rush world learned of the tragic loss of long time roadie and bass tech Russell "Skip" Gildersleeve.  Skip joined the Rush roadcrew in 1975 for the Caress of Steel tour, after meeting the band at their appearance at Detoit's Michigan Palace on the Fly By Night tour.  Nicknamed "Slider" by the band, Skip was a member of the road crew for 22 years, through the Test For Echo tour.

Skip is forever immortalized on the All The World's A Stage and Different Stages: Hammersmith Odeon live recordings; it is Skip who you hear saying "Oh won't you please welcome home, RUSH!"  Our thoughts go with his friends and family.

“The news of Russell ‘Skip’ Gildersleeve's passing is shocking and very, very sad. He was one of our original crew members from the mid-70s and we all have many great memories of his friendship, his sense of humour and his association with us over all those years. Our hearts and thoughts go out to his family and close friends. He will be missed.” - Geddy, Alex and Neil, Rush.com, September 19, 2013

Robert Scovill, who served as Rush's sound engineer in the 90's and served on the road crew Skip, posted a touching eulogy for his friend which you can read here.

"Skip was also a very caring and giving guy and his way of showing it was often times seen through his sense of humor and his willingness to play practical jokes and “punk” his tour mates, friends and family. He was Ashton Kutcher way before it was fashionable to be such. I’ve bore witness to many samples of his work and they will remain hidden away with me as cherished possessions, available to be pulled out to make me giggle and smile upon reflection, until my time comes to exit this planet.  Skip had a devious but infectious laugh that was perfectly coupled with his diminutive stature, always framed with a witty cool tee shirt and transported around by feet that displayed the largest and most varied collection of Converse tennis shoes one could ever imagine...Skip Gildersleeve, my touring brother, the man with the huge name and the small frame passed away quietly on September 17th 2013."  Robert Scovill, splnetwork.com, September 19, 2013

"How Morse Code has made its mark in music" - Grand Junction Post Indepent

"YYZ", or should I say "- . - -   - . - -   - - . .", is mentioned in today's Post Independent story, "How Morse Code has made its mark in music". - Thanks to RushIsABand for the headsup!

ESPN's Monday Night Football Commercial Featuring Rush's "Tom Sawyer"

I've been hearing about it all week, and here it is!  ESPN's Monday Night Football commercial for this Monday's game where the Oakland Raiders face off against the Peyton Manning and the Denver Broncos is now online.  The commercial features Rush's "Tom Sawyer".

Steve Hackett and Chris Squire (aka Squackett): "We could have been Rush!"

Last March, during the 2013 "Cruise To The Edge", the progressive rock concert cruise which featured both Yes and Steve Hackett's Genesis Revisited, Chris Squire and Steve Hackett (who together form "Squackett") sat down for a Q&A with fans.

Steve mentions that the last time he was on a cruise was in 1957 when his family emigrated by ship to Canada, before moving back to the UK only four months later.  Chris then replies that in 1948 his family also nearly moved to Canada, but that his mother, who was pregnant at the time, decided it was better not to travel and therefore travel plans were canceled.  He then smiles and says to Steve, "You do realize, we could have been RUSH!".

You can see the full Q&A here; the above conversation begins at the 22:30 mark. - Thanks to Brian S. for the headsup!

Alex Lifeson Talks to Classic Rock Magazine About "Vapor Trails Remixed"

Today Classic Rock magazine posted a new interview with Alex Lifeson where he discussed Vapor Trails Remixed, and gives his thoughts on problems with the original release and the results of the remix.

"The original mastering was the problem. It was poorly done. At the time we should have remastered. It bothered us forever – particularly Geddy, who had the task of remastering of the original album and feels responsible for it. It irked him for many years. The original version is hard on your ears, because the mastering was pushed so hard, there’s distortion and so much compression – I found it very difficult to listen to it...There was so much invested in that record and it just didn’t sit with us that we had this blemish on our recording history. We wanted to rectify that. I’d like to remix every record we did – maybe update some parts. But that’s crazy, you know? You don’t do that – records are moments in time, markers of these different periods of progression and growth. But this one was a very important record – our return after a horrible nightmare. And it deserved better...To me [Vapor Trails Remixed] sounds so good. It’s blossomed. It’s a really great Rush record – some great playing and great ideas. And now that it all knits together in a much more complete way, it feels right.  It’s much more pleasurable to listen to. Now, everything’s open, you can hear everything, and everything has its place. It’s so well-balanced. There’s a sort of creaminess and a smoothness to the sound of it. It’s so much more dynamic. Before, everything was just balls to the wall. Now it breathes." - Alex Lifeson, ClassicRockMagazine.com,  September 18, 2013

Previously announced for an October 1st release date, Vapor Trails Remixed will be released September 30th on CD, Vinyl, iTunes, and as part of Rush: The Studio Albums 1989-2007 (which contained remastered versions of the rest of the Atlantic Rush catalog).   For more on the back history of the original Vapor Trails mix, click here.

Neil Peart's first drum teacher Don George talks to Drum Talk TV

Yesterday Drum Talk TV posted an interview with Don George, who Neil Peart began taking lessons from in 1965.  From Drum Talk TV:

"While Don George is known as Neil Peart's first drum teacher - and proudly says, 'Neil didn't need another lesson for 30 years,' referring to Neil getting with the late Freddie Gruber later in life - Don has remained an exceptional one-on-one drum instructor for over 45 years and is also somewhat of a historian on Drumming Education.

"In his first Drum Talk TV interview, filmed with an in-studio audience by the way, Don discusses some of his collection of materials dating back to 1923, as well as demonstrates and talks about his magic formula for teaching drums to all ages - a must see for all players and instructors. Don also demonstrates how to develop limb independence and explains why it is so important to drumming. Oh - Dan of course asked Don about teaching a young Neil Peart and Don talks about their continuing relationship as well."

- Thanks to Greg Nosek for the headsup!

Rush On Last Night's Late Show with David Letterman "Top Ten"...sort of

Back in June 2011, when promoting Drum Solo week (click here for Neil's performance), the Late Show with David Letterman showed a clip of Representative Anthony Weiner playing Neil's Snakes & Arrows drum kit with his (pixelated space over the pertinent part).

Last night, one day aver losing the New York mayoral primary with less than 5% of the vote, the topic of the Late Show Top Ten was "Anthony Weiner Future Plans".  Coming in at number three was "Learn To Play The Drums", and Dave said "Uh oh, it's this again" as they replayed the clip of Weiner playing the drums.  The video is currently on CBS.com here.
- Thanks to BP for the headsup!

Apple Uses Rush To Demonstrate iOS 7

Today Apple gave their keynote address to introduce the new iPhone 5s and 5c, as well as the new features of iOS 7.  At about 14:30 into the address when Apple senior vice president of Software Engineering Craig Federighi was demonstrating to the audience how to make an iTunes radio station, they used Rush as their example! They mentioned that they were going to show (via creating a Rush radio station) how to get a pure dose of awesome. The CNET liveblogger also remarked that, "Never have I heard so much applause for Rush!"
- Thanks to RushIsABand for the heads up!

Cyril Neville covers Working Man on "Magic Honey"

Cyril Nevill of the Neville Brothers has covered Rush's "Working Man" on his new blues album, Magic Honey.  Hitting store shelves today, September 10th, a 30 second sample can be heard here; you can order the CD here, and it is also available on iTunes.

"Neville’s vocals have never lacked swagger, but here they have an arena-rock power that he’s seldom reached for in the past. So it makes sense that the track 'Working Man' isn’t the one Mike Bloomfield wrote and Otis Rush recorded (as the cover credits have it), but the one by those venerable bluesmen, Geddy Lee and Alex Lifeson. And the sound of New Orleans funkateers doing a Rush song—and doing it damn well—is about as colorblind as music gets." - Offbeat.com

Alex Lifeson's "Sunflowers" painting - limited edition print now available

Alex Lifeson's "Sunflowers" painting is available now in a limited print run of 300, each numbered and signed individually by Alex, for the Kidney Foundation of Canada.  For details click here.

13 Bands That Have Been Together Since High School - Business Insider

On Monday Business Insider posted the feature "13 Bands That Have Been Together Since High School".  Rush is #7 on the list, with the description:

Rush consists of classmates from Canada.

Rush's Alex Lifeson and Geddy Lee first started playing together in 1968, when they were high school classmates in Ontario, Canada.

Drummer Neil Peart joined the band six years later, finalizing the lineup.

- Thanks to David Wholihan for the headsup!

Alex Lifeson on BBC Radio 2's "Sounds Of The 70s"

On Saturday Alex Lifeson appeared on BBC Radio 2's Sounds of the 70s with Johnnie Walker. You can hear the the interview here; Alex comes in at the 1:24:00 mark. Alex reminisces about Rush's early career playing the Toronto bar scene back in the early 70s, and introduces The Who's Won't Get Fooled Again and Pink Floyd's Comfortably Numb. - Thanks to RushIsABand for the headsup!

The Spirit of Rush Fanzine Archive

John Patuto at Cygnus-X1.net has created a new archive which will feature EVERY issue of The Spirit of Rush fanzine, one of the only sources of Rush news before the internet came along.   The fanzine includes fan writings, as well as magazine transcripts, concert reviews, convention news, etc., and John has done a fantastic job insuring this fanzine gets the honor it deserves.  Check it out here.

Fender Custom Shop's "Limited Geddy Lee 1972 Jazz Bass®

Fender Custom Shop as just announced the release of the "Limited Geddy Lee 1972 Jazz Bass.  The bass has a suggested retail price of $8,000.  "The Custom Shop has meticulously replicated every detail in neck shape, wiring, pickups and more in creating the Limited Edition Geddy Lee Jazz Bass, including the wear and tear of nearly 35 years of touring."  For more visit Fender.com. - Thanks to Rushisaband for the headsup!

Neil Peart's "News Weather and Sports" - August 2013

Neil Peart has just updated his website with the latest edition of News, Weather & Sports titled "It’s Not Over When It’s Over".   Neil writes about the final days of the tour, including narrowly avoiding a massive forest fire in Washington state, as well as the moving of the Calgary show to Red Deer:

The first show of this final run had been scheduled for July 24 in Calgary, but just a few weeks earlier that city endured a massive flood. The arena we were supposed to play in was underwater up to the tenth row.  It was fairly certain we would not be playing that building, but rather than cancel our show, I suggested to the Guys at Work and manager Ray that we move it somewhere else, to higher ground—maybe outdoors—and play a benefit for those people who had lost so much. Everybody readily agreed, and Ray set about making it happen. It turned out that nowhere in Calgary itself was going to work, and the considered alternatives of Lethbridge, Alberta, and Kelowna, British Columbia, were rejected in favor of . . .  Red Deer, Alberta.

Check it out here!

"Rush: The Studio Albums 1989-2007" Featuring All New Remasters Now Available for Preorder

Rush: The Studio Albums 1989-2007 is now available for preorder, to be released October 1st.  The 7-disc boxed set features every studio album Rush recorded for Atlantic Records presented in a wallet sleeve that faithfully reproduces the original artwork (except for Vapor Trails Remixed, which features a reinterpreted version of the original cover).

Those that passed on the Atlantic Remasters when they were released in 2004 may be interested in knowing that The Studio Albums 1989-2007 box contains new CD versions of the six Atlantic albums newly remastered by Masterdisk's Chief Mastering Engineer, Andy VanDette, released last May digitally only on iTunes and HDTracks.  The box also includes the all-new Vapor Trails Remixed, which is also being released October 1st as a stand-alone CD as well as on Vinyl and iTunes.  This boxed set is Atlantic's complement to the Sectors boxed sets, which were also remastered by VanDette in 2011.

Also check out

• Masterdisk Chief Engineer Andy VanDette On Remastering Rush for iTunes

Headlong Flight To Be Included On "XXX: Three Decades Of Roadrunner Records" Box Coming October 1

"Roadrunner Records celebrates its three-decades-plus legacy as one of the most highly regarded labels in heavy metal and hard rock history by releasing a four-CD boxed set covering a broad spectrum of heavy music with tracks from dozens of the world’s most legendary artists.XXX: Three Decades of Roadrunner Records

"The set, due for release on October 1, includes 54 tracks spread across four discs, packaged in a deluxe fold-out paneled box, at a retail price of $39.98. Decibel contributor Chris Dick has written the liner notes, which trace Roadrunner’s entire history and include quotes from founder Cees Wessels; legendary A&R guru Monte Conner; and artists such as King Diamond, Sepultura/Soulfly/Cavalera Conspiracy mastermind Max Cavalera, Trivium frontman Matt Heafy, Opeth leader Mikael Åkerfeldt, Slipknot drummer Joey Jordison, and more....The final disc, “Rock For The Ages,” focuses on Roadrunner’s hard rock contingent with tracks from mainstays such as Rush, Nickelback, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Theory Of A Deadman, Airbourne, Black Stone Cherry, and Korn featuring Skrillex, among others" - Roadrunner Records, August 19, 2013 (Thanks to RushIsABand for the headsup!)

Auction: Neil Peart autographed drum head to benefit Mike Hesser

Currently up for auction is an autographed 10" concert tom drum head last used during "All the Worlds a Stage" tour.  Proceeds will benefit Mike Hesser, a self employed arborist who for the past two years has been dealing with some very serious health issues that is keeping him from working. This, unfortunately, has left him with no source of income or health insurance. He is now homeless and in desperate need of basic essentials to survive. Mike has been diagnosed with Fibromyalgia, which is a condition that causes long-term, body-wide pain, tenderness in the joints, muscles, tendons and other soft tissues. The pain then spreads out from these areas to include the back of the neck, shoulders, lower back, hips, shins, elbows, and knees. Mike also suffers from lesions throughout his body, which he is currently going through extensive testing at the Florida Department of education vocational rehab center. As of now, doctors have not yet been able to determine the cause.  The auction ends August 25th. - Thanks to Dean Bobisud for the headsup!

Autographed NEP Books for sale

For sale: copies of Neil Peart's books "Masked Rider", "Ghost Rider" and "Traveling Music", each with a personal, hand written message to Peter Brockbank on the inside cover from the author.  Peter Brockbank has known NEP since 1971, and narrated many of their adventures together in the "Legends Of Brocklehurst" (a nickname given him by Neil).  Any doubts about these being genuine will be dispelled by one to one contact with any interested person; if interested send an email to brockbank192@hotmail.com.