Neil Peart is dead. The drummer and lyricist of Rush died on January 7th in Santa Monica, California at the age of 67 from a brain tumor. The multi-award-winning drummer and book author had already left the band in 2015 for health reasons. Rush had thereupon declared the end of their career. Throughout his life Peart was a researcher, a seeker. Whether it was playing drums, reading literature or acquiring knowledge in general: The unpretentiously shy, but at the same time warm-hearted and extremely eloquent Canadian was constantly on the lookout for new subjects, into which he knew how to plunge with almost childish naivety, only to emerge from this process as a grown-up personality.
As the drummer and lyricist of Rush, he built up a legendary reputation from 1974 onwards with meticulousness and discipline, but this did not stop him from further developing his style in the 90s, inspired by playing in the Buddy Rich Big Band. At times he even changed his playing style from matched grip to traditional grip. Peart's elaborate drum solo, a constantly changing organism, nourished by the most diverse influences and experiences, was always a highlight of every Rush show until the very end.
But fate didn't stop at Peart either: On August 10, 1997, shortly after completing the "Test For Echo" tour, his 19-year-old daughter Selena died in a traffic accident. 10 months later his partner Jaqueline died of cancer. Peart retired completely, even spoke of "retirement" and traveled, among other things, by motorcycle across North and Central America. Private happiness returned in the person of photographer Carrie Nuttall, who married Peart in September 2000. Only in 2002 Rush returned with the album "Vapor Trails". But apart from concerts and special exceptions, the drummer avoided the public even more. In 2009, the then 56-year-old once again became father of a daughter named Olivia ...