I watched a very good documentary last night on the legendary Canadian rock band,
Rush. The film,
Rush: Beyond the Lighted Stage, is a brand new, two hour film that tells the story of the band from their days playing high school dances in the 1960s to their prog-rock days of the 1970s to the synthed up sounds of the 80s, and all the way to the present.
I think every music geek goes through a "Rush phase" at some point in their life. Mine started in high school, as it did for countless teens. For many, that
Rush phase coincides with someone's first experimentation with pot, for others it comes when one first begins playing a musical instrument. The unbelievable musicianship, along with wholly original and intellectual lyrics and a "stoner friendly" style of music, make
Rush hard to resist to many smart, though often alienated, young people. Personally, my phase never really ended. Sure, I don't listen to
Rush much any more, but whenever a song like "Spirit of Radio," "Fly By Night" or "Working Man" comes on the radio, I instinctively turn it up. It's a subconscious reflex.
In addition to very rare footage of the band in its early days, and lots of concert footage from throughout its nearly 40 year career, the documentary also highlights younger musicians who were inspired by
Rush. Among those featured were: Billy Corgan (Smashing Pumpkins), Taylor Hawkins (Foo Fighters), Tim Commerford (Rage Against the Machine), Kirk Hammett (Metallica), Trent Reznor (Nine Inch Nails), Vinnie Paul (Pantera) and Les Claypool (Primus). Rush peers like KISS' Gene Simmons also appear, as do comedian Jack Black and South Park co-creator Matt Stone.
I learned a lot about the group that I didn't already know. For example, though I knew bassist/vocalist
Geddy Lee was Jewish, I didn't realize that both of his parents were Holocaust survivors who came to Canada after the war. I didn't realize that
Lee and
Alex Lifeson (guitar) had been friends since junior high (both were immigrants), nor that they existed for many years playing high school dances across Canada. Drummer and lyricist
Neil Peart is the most confusing and interesting member of the band.
Peart is considered one of rock music's all time great drummers, but his lyrics are what set
Rush apart from most of its peers.
Peart was heavily inspired by conservative philosopher
Ayn Rand; and the band's landmark double album,
2112, was influenced by themes presented in
Rand's novel,
The Fountainhead, and her concept of objectivism.
Peart suffered some personal tragedies in the 90s that almost derailed the band for good. His daughter died in a car accident, and shortly thereafter, his wife died as well. To try and make sense of things and clear his head,
Peart embarked on a 55,000 mile motorcycle trip all across Canada and Alaska. He was gone for nearly two years, and rarely communicated with anyone. Following that, he decided to re-learn how to play drums in an effort to reconnect to what it was that made him a musician in the first place. He emerged with a new style that forced the band to adapt. After a nearly four year break,
Rush returned and has not stopped since.
I would recommend this flick to anyone who likes music and/or a well made documentary.
