In addition to his writerly, documentarian and auctioneering pursuits, Geddy Lee hasn't ruled out getting the ol' band back together. A new interview with The Washington Post sees the singer/bassist muse about the potential of himself and bestie Alex Lifeson performing as Rush again in the wake of drummer Neil Peart's death.
Peart died at age 67 in January 2020 after living with brain cancer for three-and-a-half years, at least mercifully missing out on experiencing this ongoing pandemic that began in the following months.
Lee, who is promoting his new memoir, My Effin' Life, reflected on one of the sole occurrences of himself and guitarist Lifeson busting out the band's catalogue since: to honour late Foo Fighters drummer Taylor Hawkins last year.
As per the profile by journalist Geoff Edgers, Lee and Lifeson initially had hesitations when Dave Grohl contacted them about performing at one of the two star-studded Hawkins tribute shows in London. They worried not only about playing without Peart (on both an emotional and technical level, because Rush songs are no picnic), but about whether fans would jump to the conclusion that the band was reuniting without its drummer.
They ended up performing anyway, recruiting the Red Hot Chili Peppers' Chad Smith, Tool's Danny Carey, Omar Hakim and even Grohl himself to play drums on a section of the 20-minute epic "2112." Apparently, Paul McCartney congratulated Lifeson and Lee at the afterparty and urged them to consider touring again. The next month, the pair jammed in Lee's home studio for the first time in years.
"It had been a taboo subject, and playing those songs again with a third person was the elephant in the room, and that kind of disappeared," Lee told Edgers. "It was nice to know that if we decide to go out, Alex and I, whether we went out as part of a new thing, or whether we just wanted to go out and play Rush as Rush, we could do that now."
Inevitably, offers rolled in after the Hawkins tribute concert — and Lifeson was apparently excited, aside from the thought of a return to an existence revolving around sitting in a hotel room awaiting the next gig. The guitarist also had surgery in July of this year for long-standing stomach issues, which are reportedly improving despite the fact that he still wakes up nauseous.
"[Lifeson] needs to feel good and feel healthy and strong," Lee said, assuring that he had no intentions of pressuring his former bandmate or even bringing it up unless the circumstances felt right. "And then maybe we have a discussion."
In 2021, Lifeson founded a new band called Envy of None — but said from the jump that he wouldn't tour behind the project, telling Guitar Player magazine that year that he thought he would miss being on stage more than he actually did.
Peart died at age 67 in January 2020 after living with brain cancer for three-and-a-half years, at least mercifully missing out on experiencing this ongoing pandemic that began in the following months.
Lee, who is promoting his new memoir, My Effin' Life, reflected on one of the sole occurrences of himself and guitarist Lifeson busting out the band's catalogue since: to honour late Foo Fighters drummer Taylor Hawkins last year.
As per the profile by journalist Geoff Edgers, Lee and Lifeson initially had hesitations when Dave Grohl contacted them about performing at one of the two star-studded Hawkins tribute shows in London. They worried not only about playing without Peart (on both an emotional and technical level, because Rush songs are no picnic), but about whether fans would jump to the conclusion that the band was reuniting without its drummer.
They ended up performing anyway, recruiting the Red Hot Chili Peppers' Chad Smith, Tool's Danny Carey, Omar Hakim and even Grohl himself to play drums on a section of the 20-minute epic "2112." Apparently, Paul McCartney congratulated Lifeson and Lee at the afterparty and urged them to consider touring again. The next month, the pair jammed in Lee's home studio for the first time in years.
"It had been a taboo subject, and playing those songs again with a third person was the elephant in the room, and that kind of disappeared," Lee told Edgers. "It was nice to know that if we decide to go out, Alex and I, whether we went out as part of a new thing, or whether we just wanted to go out and play Rush as Rush, we could do that now."
Inevitably, offers rolled in after the Hawkins tribute concert — and Lifeson was apparently excited, aside from the thought of a return to an existence revolving around sitting in a hotel room awaiting the next gig. The guitarist also had surgery in July of this year for long-standing stomach issues, which are reportedly improving despite the fact that he still wakes up nauseous.
"[Lifeson] needs to feel good and feel healthy and strong," Lee said, assuring that he had no intentions of pressuring his former bandmate or even bringing it up unless the circumstances felt right. "And then maybe we have a discussion."
In 2021, Lifeson founded a new band called Envy of None — but said from the jump that he wouldn't tour behind the project, telling Guitar Player magazine that year that he thought he would miss being on stage more than he actually did.
