After decades spent selling millions of albums, winning Junos and basking in the glow of their adoring fanbase, iconic Canadian prog rockers Rush have now been bestowed with the nation's prestigious Governor General's Performing Arts Award.
A press conference in Calgary earlier this morning (March 6) revealed that the trio, along with a list of another Canadian notables, were announced as laureates in 2012 for their "outstanding lifetime contribution to Canada's cultural life." Each laureate wins a $25,000 cash award from the Canada Council of Arts and a commemorative medallion from the Royal Canadian Mint.
The core of Alex Lifeson, Neil Peart and Geddy Lee have been honoured in Canada before, with each member being inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame in 1994, but the group still have not been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland, OH, despite selling millions of records in the U.S. They have been eligible since 1999, marking 25 years since the release of their self-titled debut.
As previously reported, Rush are still going strong, and have their new album Clockwork Angels, as well as its novelization by sci-fi author Kevin J. Anderson, arriving sometime this spring.
Other Governor General's Award winners announced this morning include comedian Mary Walsh, concert pianist Janina Fialkowska, film director Deepa Mehta, dancer/choreographer Paul-André Fortier and theatre director Denis Marleau.
Rush have yet to comment on the honour.
A press conference in Calgary earlier this morning (March 6) revealed that the trio, along with a list of another Canadian notables, were announced as laureates in 2012 for their "outstanding lifetime contribution to Canada's cultural life." Each laureate wins a $25,000 cash award from the Canada Council of Arts and a commemorative medallion from the Royal Canadian Mint.
The core of Alex Lifeson, Neil Peart and Geddy Lee have been honoured in Canada before, with each member being inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame in 1994, but the group still have not been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland, OH, despite selling millions of records in the U.S. They have been eligible since 1999, marking 25 years since the release of their self-titled debut.
As previously reported, Rush are still going strong, and have their new album Clockwork Angels, as well as its novelization by sci-fi author Kevin J. Anderson, arriving sometime this spring.
Other Governor General's Award winners announced this morning include comedian Mary Walsh, concert pianist Janina Fialkowska, film director Deepa Mehta, dancer/choreographer Paul-André Fortier and theatre director Denis Marleau.
Rush have yet to comment on the honour.