I first discovered Rush towards the end of high school, after borrowing a tape of Presto from the public library on a whim. I expected to hear heavy metal that I wasn’t fond of, but instead I was pleasantly surprised to hear a fusion of rock, jazz, progressive, and extraordinarily well composed and performed music; I was instantly hooked. Over the next few years, I consumed Rush’s entire back catalog, captivated by the exceptional musicianship and songwriting.

As a drummer myself, Neil Peart impressed me beyond anything I had heard before. Phil Collins made me want to be a drummer, but Neil Peart inspired me to be a better drummer, albeit not right away.

Neil Peart, the drumming god

For many years, Peart was simply a drumming god. Untouchable, incomprehensible, and beyond the capacity of mere mortals like me. I didn’t strive to be like him; there was no possibility of that remotely happening. I was content to listen, absorb, read articles about the band, and attempt a synth cover version of YYZ when I was in my early 20s.

I followed the band closely, and saw them perform at Maple Leaf Gardens in Toronto in 1994 on their Counterparts tour. Horrible seats, horrible sound system, but wow, what a show. Counterparts became my most overplayed album of the year.

It wasn’t until many years later that Neil Peart truly inspired me as a drummer. Throughout the 90s and 2000s, I didn’t play the drums very much, only resuming regularly after I joined the indie rock band Beige Shelter in 2016. But hearing about Peart’s study with jazz drummer Freddie Gruber, he talked about “orbital” playing and drumming with continuous motion, and how the beats between strokes matter just as much as the hits. So when I took up the drums again, many years later, this philosophy stuck with me, and I strive to be more “orbital” in my playing style.

Like my other drumming heroes such as Ringo Starr, Phil Collins, Matt Cameron, and Stewart Copeland, Neil Peart also talked about how to best serve the song. Rush referred to their instrumental sections of songs as “band solos” where all three guys were free to play complex, technical, and busy parts; you might say, too many notes. Peart talked about keeping it simple when the singer is singing, or when the guitarist or bassist has their solo. He also talked about conceiving drum parts as musical phrases, to reply to the sung melody of a song. To this day, I always try to play my drums as a conversation with the singer.

Who the f**k lets the drummer write the lyrics?

For anyone who’s new to Rush, Neil Peart, the drummer, wrote almost all of the lyrics. Read that again. The drummer wrote the lyrics. I think the guys from Foo Fighters said it best.

I’ve never been one to pay super close attention to lyrics, but from time to time, something meaningful gets through. The song Nobody’s Hero, from the album Counterparts, talked about people throughout our lives who are unsung heroes. They may not be famous, but they had a profound impact on us. For me, the song made me think of my high school music teacher, Mrs. Arlidge, who was lost to us a couple of years after I graduated. Mrs. A drove us to strive for quality in our musicianship, and encouraged me to think creatively as a composer and musician. She had a indelible impact on my growth as a musician, and I will forever consider her my greatest hero.

Many years later, I was going through a divorce, and engaged in my own mental health journey. The song Open Secrets, from the album Hold Your Fire, appeared on my iPod’s shuffle play, and despite have heard the song many times before, the lyrics suddenly spoke to me in a whole new way.

Well I guess we all have these feelings
We can’t leave unreconciled
Some of them burned on our ceilings
Some of them learned as a child

I arranged a synth cover version of the song, and got my friend Sunny Zaman to handle the vocals, and also featured the original song on an episode of Song Talk Radio about mental health songs.

Songwriting with an intellectual approach

As for songwriting, I always cite Rush as the one band in my sphere that best illustrates and inspires an intellectual approach to rock music. A lot of rock music is expressed as feelings and emotions, and intellect usually takes a back seat, if it’s even along for the ride at all. Rush was always referred to as the “thinking man’s band.” I’ve always been more of an intellect than an emotional thinker, and it’s encouraging to know that an intellectual approach to rock music can work.

Rock on, Neil, you will always be an inspiration.