Posts

Showing posts from September, 2015

Neil Peart News, Weather, and Sports Update - September 2015 - BubbaGram™#1

Image
Neil Peart has just posted a new update to the "News, Weather, and Sports" section of his website. This edition, titled BubbaGram™#1 , is the first such entry since the end of Rush's R40 tour and though it's quite a bit shorter than his usual entries, Neil explains why right out of the gate: In recent months it became apparent that my experiences on the R40 tour in 2015 were much too vast and deep to fit into a couple of website stories. Plus I had far too many scenic and narrative photographs to fit in my usual format here. It would have to be a book. Yet I did not want to neglect this forum and its audience—just “go dark” on everybody for the year or so it might take to put together a book. A fun solution to that conundrum might be . . . this! During the tour I had been sending occasional images of the day’s travels to my circle of friends under the BubbaGram™ title, so I will continue that theme here. At semi-regular intervals I will post a photograph or two and

Rush's R40 Live Album and Concert Film Coming November 20th. First Single Released Next Week

Image
Update: You can now pre-order R40 Live (Yes, that's the name) from Amazon via this LINK . Ever since the end of the band's R40 tour in early August, fans have been anxious to learn more about the impending release of the live album and concert DVD. The band filmed and recorded both the June 17th and 19th shows at the Air Canada Centre in Toronto during the tour and while there hasn't been any official word from the band as yet, there is news that the R40 Live CD/DVD (as yet unnamed) will be released on November 20th of this year. The news comes from an e-mail message that was sent out to various music industry professionals earlier today. Coming from Zoe/Rounder Records/Concord Music Group, the e-mail indicated that the live CD/DVD would be released on November 20th. From the e-mail: CD/DVD RELEASE DATE NOVEMBER 20, 2015 Unlike other concert DVD's where the looks is the same throughout, this show has an extremely extensive setup that changes multiple times throu

The Rush Chronology by Patrick Lemieux Now Available

Image
A new book on the recording history of Rush has just been released. Written by Patrick Lemieux, the 270-page paperback is now available exclusively at Lulu.Com . From the website: The Rush Chronology is a comprehensive look at the recording and release history of Geddy Lee, Alex Lifeson, Neil Peart and John Rutsey, the past and present members of the Canadian rock band whose uncompromising career has spanned more than 40 years. This Chronology covers every aspect of the band members’ recording careers. It looks at the band’s singles, studio and live albums, rarities and collections. Pre-release live versions and works-in-progress, remixes and edits, side projects, solo albums and their many guest appearances on other artists’ works are all explored. The information is presented date by date in chronological order, accompanied by detailed descriptions of each song version, guest appearance, the edits, remixes and works in progress. The book covers as well Rush’s tours and live

NP63: Neil Peart Turns 63 Today

Image
Today marks the 63rd birthday of Rush drummer and lyricist extraordinaire Neil Peart. Neil (born Neil Ellwood Peart) came into the world on September 12th in 1952 Hamilton, Ontario. He grew up in Port Dalhousie, Ontario, Canada (now part of St. Catharines) working the occasional odd job including the role of a Parts Manager for his father Tractor Supply company. His true ambition, however, was to become a professional musician. During adolescence, he floated from regional band to regional band and dropped out of high school to pursue a career as a full-time drummer. After a discouraging stint in England to concentrate on his music, Peart returned home, where he joined local Toronto band Rush in the summer of 1974. And the rest, as they say, is history. Join me in wishing Neil a very Happy Birthday - and many happy returns.

New Rush Feature in Classic Rock Magazine: Exit Stage Left? Inside Rush's 'Farewell' Show

Image
The October 2015 issue of Classic Rock Magazine , which has just hit the newsstands in the United Kingdom, includes a feature article on Rush titled Exit Stage Left? Inside Rush's 'Farewell' Show . As the title suggests, the article, which was penned by Philip Wilding, focuses on Rush's final performances from their R40 tour; most notably their July 30th show in Irvine, California and their final show in Los Angeles on August 1st. Ray Danniels, Rush's long-time manager, was asked about the potential end of the band: "I don't think they should end," he says, sipping white wine at the pool's edge, when the inevitable question of whether this is the end of the road for Rush is broached. "They are playing as well as they ever have. Shorter tours, longer breaks, more days between shows, shorter sets, opening acts or just one last hurrah would be my vote. A lot of people wanted to see them that didn't get a chance to. That said, I know you

Alex Lifeson To Host New Guitar Show on TableRock

Image
Alex Lifeson: The Guitarist Alex Lifeson: The Painter Alex Lifeson: The Pilot and now Alex Lifeson: The Television Host? According to an article posted by TBI Vision , a new guitar show featuring Alex will be coming to TableRock Media , a new direct-to-consumer video company from Canada. From the article: Out of Canada, TableRock was created by former GlassBox TV founders Jeffrey Elliot and Joseph Arcuri, the latter of whom is also a former president of AOL Canada. Former Discovery Channel Canada president and HDTV founder Ken Murphy heads the new company's board, and with the team in place TableRock is now planning super-niche OTT channels. "We saw that there is an opportunity in delivering niche content over OTT," Elliot says. "At the start of pay TV people said it was absurd to have a one-genre channel, but they worked, and in 2015 people are willing to pay for well-produced, curated, niche content delivered on-demand." TableRock's first offer

Share This