RUSH Drummer Neil Peart Says Canadian Songwriters Hall Of Fame Honor Means More Than Rock Hall Snub
March 25, 2010, 14 years ago
Nick Patch from The Canadian Press spoke with RUSH drum legend Neil Peart about being inducted into the Canadian Songwriters Hall Of Fame on Sunday, March 28th, at a gala being held at the Toronto Centre For the Arts.
Here are a few excerpts from the chat:
Many fans still linger on the one honour that's eluded the band: an induction into the Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame and Museum in Cleveland.
"No ... you know who it matters to, is the fans," says Peart. "It would matter a lot to our fans for us to have that validation. It doesn't matter to me. I've got the success and respect that we've had, and the opportunity to do exactly what we wanted for 35 years, do we need them to make us feel better? No, not at all. Being in the Canadian Music Hall of Fame and the Canadian Songwriters Hall Of Fame, that's 10 times - 100 times - more (important) than being in some critics' list."While their induction has to do with songs that Rush wrote more than a quarter-century ago, Peart is excited about their current output, too. In fact, he says the band plans to do pre-production on two new songs in the coming weeks, with a tour possibly following.
"We're going to put those (songs) together and if they turn out well, we'll maybe even release them (on their own)," he said. "We're saying, what if we do a little songwriting and then a little touring to play those songs, and then get back to the songwriting again? It would be an interesting way to shake up our usual way."There's nothing I can confirm yet ... these things are immensely complicated and so much involved, all I can say is that we're considering that."
Read the entire interview here.
The five Rush songs entering the Hall of Fame are 'Tom Sawyer', 'The Spirit Of Radio', 'Limelight', 'Closer To The Heart' and 'Subdivisions'. As part of the induction, bands influenced by Rush will be performing renditions of their hits. ALEXISONFIRE will be taking on 'Tom Sawyer', PRIMUS frontman Les Claypool and his band will be playing 'The Spirit Of Radio', and JACOB MOON will be performing 'Subdivisions'.
