Introverts can be very charming and engaging in situations in which they are comfortable. Whether that be one on one, speaking about something they are passionate about, etc. Agree with you. It was the “worship” and him being treated as anything more than some dude named Neil that made him uncomfortable
People - Neil’s Ghost Rider is a literary revelation. The free Amazon/Audible offering has me deep inside his articulate personal, historic, topographic, literary, musicographic, gustatory and technical details is deeply compelling/entertaining. Do yourselves a favor. Seriously.
My classmates would have seen the band the following night, in Glasgow, and are on Exit Stage Left LP side 2 (definitely for Closer To The Heart, as "The Glasgow Choir" in the credits.) That must have been a great night, because one of my classmates raved about it the next day. I wasn't part of the "in crowd", so it was something of a surprise that he talked to me about the band. I guess he could tell my curiosity was genuine, because he then lent me his vinyl of 2112 and Hemispheres. I had to cycle in the heavy rain to his place to collect the LPs, and then cycle to another friend's house to record them - I only had a mono cassette player and needed a record deck with a 5 pin DIN connection (anyone remember them?). To this day, I struggle with the track The Oracle, because the needle jumped that night and that's the way it stayed in my memory from wearing that cassette out - hearing it "complete" takes a bit of getting used to. That was probably a watershed moment in my teenage years, as I gradually became more accepted into the circle, and other classmates offered to tape me the other albums. And by the time the Moving Pictures/ESL tour rolled in to Edinburgh in 1981, I was a complete fan, having then bought everything on authorised cassettes.
I can only hope that I create such musical "failures" in my lifetime in that case lol I dig both of those albums, and especially love Vapor Trails both musically and spiritually - Earthshine, Secret Touch, and Ghost Rider are amazing latter-period Rush songs
That's great, being a Rush got you in with the right crowd! I saw the Moving Pictures/Exit Stage Left down in Wembley (three nights), but the following tour I made the trip up to Edinburgh, the Royal Highland Exhibition Centre? As I recall the venue was awful, stuck outside the city on a trading estate. And it still had the lingering aroma from a farming exhibition! I saw later tours at Birmingham NEC and Sheffield Arena, and the R30 at Glasgow SECC. I never enjoyed any of the arena shows half as much as those early City Hall shows, the large venues just don't work for me and the sound can be very hit & miss, depending on where you're located. These days I've pretty much given up going to 'big' shows with the rare exception (Neil Young, Nick Cave). Very glad to have memories of those early shows. NP
His books are fantastic. It’s a shame that most of Neil’s books seem to now be out of print. Does anyone know that state of his publishing arrangement?
The term “Renaissance Man” is sorely overused, but it is truly an apt description for Neil. He had so many passions in life, put hard work into all of them, but made it look so effortless. Or not effortless, but with great ability.
I'm reading Ghost Rider currently ... it is a great book. Neil's writing style makes you feel like you're riding right next to him, and his descriptive prose is quite reminiscent of Hemmingway. Seriously. Highly recommended.
I was at that Edinburgh Signals gig - didn't enjoy it much. If I recall, they didn't close the overhead shutters so the late sun streamed in and ruined the lightshow. Also, it was a concrete box, and no matter whether you were at the front or the back, the sound was terrible that night. I saw the MP/ESL tour at the same venue, but sound and visuals were so much better that night. I wasn't too enamoured with the Signals setlist either, seeing my fave tracks chopped into medleys, and being a metal fan with a narrower perspective back then, I didn't take to the boys' new look. I think the band were short on options for a big enough Scottish venue to house their full show back then, and had decided after the PWaves tour that they were short-changing UK fans by leaving the full rig at home. So Ingliston was a flawed but logical choice rather than multiple nights in a theatre. Still, that Signals gig put me off the band for a while. Didn't see them again until....R30 at Glasgow! That was much more like it. Terrific atmosphere just before the band came on, and everyone enjoying themselves in case they had to wait another 12 years for a Scottish gig. That rekindled my love for the band, and I made a point of seeing the three tours that followed, as I felt each one might be the last.
besides the thin sound Presto is an amazing album to me.i dont understand why its on the bottom of the list on some peoples lists.im not saying its there best album ever but its on a weekly rotation as with roll the bones.the ones that are on my bottom of my list are counterparts and test for echo and vapor trails.
i would love to hear someone get ahold of the clockwork angels masters and remaster it to have peaks and valleys,and make it sound like the 70s rush albums or 80s rush albums. it sucks hearing the drums and the other instruments buried in a wave of flatness.
I don't know if this has been posted. Great interview. Neil Peart Interview with Jim Ladd on SiriusXM's Deep Tracks 2015-02-03 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3oob2Py923Q
Heard this the other day on XM, they were replaying it. I love one of the last quotes from Neil on there: "There is magic in life, it just takes some planning." (1:25:06) Profound.
I like RTB and TFE the least. There's a few killer tracks on them though. Recently been giving some attention to snakes and arrows. Along with the Blu Ray of snakes and arrows live. I feel this is an amazing album. Their best post 80s and better than windows and fire IMO. I also hold counterparts and vapor trails in higher regard.
Presto is brilliant, the fact some people can’t appreciate it makes me enjoy it even more. In my top 5. One of my favourite albums to drive to. LOUD.
Scars is one of my fav tracks off that album - super cool and funky drum part along with some really cool vibey keys and guitar parts
Wasn't aware of that but I suppose it's not surprising. Last one was 2016 with ECW and the publishing industry has changed over the years.
3-4 really good songs. And those ones do measure up. But not a great one through and through. Neil did his part. Geddy and Alex didn't have the songs on that one. T4E, Driven, Totem, and Time & Motion all score for me.
