1.13.20 Hero of the Day: Neil Peart

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Bee-otch of the Day honors are awarded Monday through Thursday; Bee-otch of the Week is awarded Sunday morning on Chuck69.com.

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A SPECIAL HERO OF THE DAY!

Name: Neil Peart
Age: was 67
Occupation: former drummer, Rush
Last Seen: catching the mystery and catching the mist
Awarded For: maybe being the greatest rock drummer, period

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When a nervous 22-year-old Neil Peart showed up to audition to become the drummer for Rush in 1974, he carried his drum set in trash cans, stowed away in his crappy Ford Pinto. Lead singer and bassist Geddy Lee and guitarist Alex Lifeson thought he was batshit crazy.

However, from that experience, Neil would only get better. So much so that he would be known to fans and drum enthusiasts alike as "The Professor".

The boy did good for a kid from a small farming town in Ontario. As a matter of fact, his father sold tractor parts for a living. With a transistor radio, he became a fan of 1960s pop music stations which introduced him to rock music. As a young boy, Peart learned to play the piano and the drums. He played in local rock bands and even lived in England in the early 70s in hopes of gaining fame. He ended up moving back to Canada where he worked at his father's tractor dealership during the day and at night, playing drums for a local band, ironically called Hush.

It was a mutual acquaintance of Peart's who convinced him to audition for Rush after original drummer John Rutsey left the band due to issues with diabetes. Their first album, which was self-titled, was released early in 1974 and became an unexpected hit thanks to the rock radio standard "Working Man". Only 3500 copies of the album were originally produced through Moon Records, a company owned by Rush. However, Cleveland Rock station WMMS DJ Donna Halper obtained a copy of the album and starting playing "Working Man" on her show. Soon, record stores in Cleveland had problems keeping Rush's album on shelves. As a result, Rush was soon signed to Mercury Records, who re-released the album.

With Rush's new-found success, they needed a new drummer. When Neil Peart officially joined Lee and Lifeson in 1974, Rush was a Canadian copy of Led Zeppelin and other hard rock bands at the time. Neither Lee nor Lifeson liked writing lyrics, but Peart did, and became the band's lyricist. While living in England, Peart became fascinated with the writings of Ayn Rand, which also fueled his involvement with Libertarian politics. Starting with Rush's next album and Peart's first, "Fly By Night" from 1975, the band started producing a more-progressive rock sound. Over the years, the group produced AOR staples like "Closer To The Heart", "Limelight", "Spirit of Radio" and the band's only hit on the pop charts, 1982's "New World Man". 

Rush had a very distinguishable sound. Geddy Lee's falsetto vocals and fast-paced bass-playing, Alex Lifeson's super-charged guitar solos and Neil Peart's fast playing of multiple drums, plus all that synth gave Rush fans some thought-provoking sounds. But, they didn't call Neil Peart "The Professor" for nothing. He toured the world with a 360-degree drum set that was high on top of a turntable, as seen above.

In a world where rock bands change members like underwear, Rush's lineup remained intact for over 40 years. However in 2015, Peart announced his retirement. His bandmates later claimed that he was simply taking a break. Three years later, Rush formally announced their breakup, 50 years after the band - with Lifeson as its only original member - originally formed. At the time, the band claimed that Peart's problems with tendinitis was the culprit as to why they were retiring.

Sadly, a week ago tomorrow, Neil Peart died at the age of 67. The announcement of his passing was not made until last Friday. Neil battled Glioblastoma, the same brain cancer that claimed the life of my aunt two years ago. Neil's cancer battle was a closely-guarded secret among close friends and family. Instead of making his fight with the disease public, he chose to spend his last three and a half years quietly with his wife, Carrie Nuttall and daughter Olivia, born in 2009 at home in Santa Monica, CA.

Since Neil's passing, it comes without saying that so many have paid their respects to one of rock's finest musicians. Last Friday, Danny Carey of Tool performed a number dedicated to Peart. Styx's Lawrence Gowan - a fellow Ontarian - performed "Limelight" in concert. And yes, Richard Christy.

Like many rock fans, Rush's music played a huge role in my musical diet growing up. There's many drummers - rock or traditional - who could beat one until they indeed got blisters on their fingers. Buddy Rich was definitely an influence on Neil Peart and other drummers. He hated rock music with a passion, but watching him drum - especially with The Tonight Show's Ed Shaughnessy - was truly a music lover's dream. Peart himself drummed with Rich's group and produced a tribute album for him.

But if there's an honor that Peart was bestowed on, it was the fact that he was the finisher to David Letterman's "Drum Solo Week" back in 2011. He joined fellow drum greats Sheila E. and Roy Haynes along with Letterman drummer Anton Fig. Rewatching those clips, Peart's performance was on a Friday, and by golly, Letterman saved the best for last.

So, it is without saying that we need to give our thanks to The Professor. He may be gone, but his lessons will teach us all for years to come.


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