Made To Last
The tour, like all good things, came to an end on 1 October, 2004. As the threesome went back to the places they called home, it was time for a little retrospective introspection. If Rush was a journey, the travellers were the same people who had set out so many years ago, band and management, crew and collaborators, the line-up had barely changed since the very beginning. “We’ve been able to play music since we were 15, and we haven’t had to grow up,” said Alex.
Strip away the layers of the phenomenally successful, globally renowned band, and what is left? Not a great deal, to be frank. “When you eliminate everyone else from the picture, it’s just the three of us sitting around,” remarked Geddy. Three determined musicians perhaps, but there are plenty of others that share their determination. Three people who put their musicianship first… but they are not alone in that characteristic either. Three people who are somehow able to tap into each other’s energies and produce something that is far greater than the sum of its parts? Now we’re getting somewhere.
If there’s one thing we can learn from the solo efforts of Alex and Geddy, good as they are, they miss that essential Rush-ness, lacking the creative process where each musical and lyrical phrase has been repeatedly selected, moved and in some cases argued over. Somehow this is done without losing track of the fact that the song is more important than the individual words or music. The trio pushed them- selves as far as they could in the studio, but their shared heritage of downtown bar blues meant they always knew the resulting songs were to be performed, rather than acting as some demonstration of technique.
There is a personal chemistry between the fellows, that is undeniable. “It’s beyond being brothers, it’s beyond being a family, it’s beyond a marriage,” commented Alex recently. However there is also a musical chemistry, a learned ability to balance the right mix of ingredients. At its core, Rush is a power trio, a rock band whose primary purpose is to play it loud. All the same, as the musical landscape has changed, so has Rush, taking on new influences but remaining true to its ideals. “Rush is not so much a mirror, but a satellite dish moving down the road, soaking up different styles, methods, and designs,” Neil has said.
Perhaps it is the third kind of chemistry that is the most important, that chemistry between the band and its audience. While Rush’s music was never designed to work for the radio-friendly mass market, it has had consistent appeal to a vast fan base, which has been all the more devoted as a result. Rush have touched the lives of many thousands of fans around the world, fans that have stayed with the band through thick and thin. “People always ask me why we were around for so long and sure, it has to do with the fact that the three of us are great pals and we still love writing music together,” said Geddy. “But it’s also because there’s an audience waiting.”
None of the contributory factors in Rush’s success is unique in itself. Rather, the different elements combine to give the band its enduring appeal, following a mystical formula so secret that Geddy, Alex and Neil themselves would be unable to write it down. Even the most cynical of journalists would be hard pressed to ignore the thousands of live dates played to thunderous applause, the seventeen studio albums, five live albums and numerous compilations, not to mention the band’s unfailingly dependable fan base.
What of the future? The court case against Alex is now behind him, with the charges first reduced to misdemeanours from felonies, and then settled. “The sun is shining and it feels good,” he said in a statement. Neil has a new life with Carrie in California, and has even made his peace with the Internet, as demonstrated by his extensive Web site. Meanwhile, back in Toronto, Geddy has his family, his baseball and his wine.
As the band prepares itself to re-enter the studio, it is worth bearing one thing in mind. Rush is a journey rather than a destination, and the point of the journey is not to arrive. Anything could happen.