Last night (our HQ is on CET), the world learned the shocking news of the passing of one of the greatest drummers in history – Neil Peart. He is obviously best known as the drummer and songwriter for the Canadian group Rush, but he was also the band’s primary lyricist and the author of widely-read memoirs documenting his travels. The artist died on January 7 from brain cancer. He was 67.
The statement on Rush’s official website reads:
“It is with broken hearts and the deepest sadness that we must share the terrible news that on Tuesday our friend, soul brother and band mate of over 45 years, Neil, has lost his incredibly brave three and a half year battle with brain cancer.”
Mike Portnoy remembers the late artist on his FB profile:
“Neil Peart will always be a mentor and a hero to me and his influence on me as a drummer for the past 40 years is absolutely impossible to measure. But beyond that, over the past 15 years or so, he’s become a friend.
I still don’t know if I can properly put all my thoughts down as frankly I’m still devastated & a bit paralyzed w shock (as I know MILLIONS of people around the world are…)”
Also, Dave Grohl has paid tribute to one of his heroes:
“Today the world lost a true giant in the history of rock and roll. An inspiration to millions with an unmistakable sound who spawned generations of musicians (like myself) to pick up two sticks and chase a dream. A kind, thoughtful, brilliant man who ruled our radios and turntables not only with his drumming, but also his beautiful words.
As a drummer, his power, precision, and composition was incomparable. He was called ‘The Professor’ for a reason: we all learned from him.
Thank you, Neil for making our lives a better place with your music. You will be forever remembered and sorely missed by all of us. God bless Neil Peart.”
