Fans of Rush holding out for a reunion will have to keep on hoping, according to an interview with the iconic Canadian rock band’s guitarist, Alex Lifeson.
Lifeson paid a virtual visit to SirisXM’s “Trunk Nation with Eddie Trunk”, and insisted that Rush officially ended with the death of drummer Neal Peart, who lost his battle with brain cancer in 2020.
“I think, really, Rush ended in 2015,” Lifeson declared, via Blabbermouth. “There’s no way Rush will ever exist again because Neil’s not here to be a part of it. And that’s not to say that we can’t do other things and we can’t do things that benefit our communities and all of that. I have lots of plans for that sort of thing that don’t necessarily include [bassist] Geddy [Lee].”
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As Lifeson pointed out, he and Lee have been best friends since they were 14, and remain tight.
“I talk to Ged every couple of days or so. We try to get together for dinner. That’s been a more challenging thing lately. But we did get out once recently. It’s great, ’cause mostly we’re pals,” he said.
“If there’s something that comes up in the future — an opportunity for us to do something — we’ll decide over a cup of coffee what that’ll be. But there’s no urgency or there’s no pre-planned thing now. He’s doing whatever he’s doing, I’m doing whatever I’m doing, and we keep each other informed and stuff like that, but, God, we had such a great history and did so much great stuff together, it’s not really a big deal if, for the rest of our lives, we’re just best friends,” Lifeson said of any future musical collaborations with Lee.
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Looking back on the final Rush tour in 2015, Lifeson has come to realize that was the perfect way to conclude the band’s story.
“And in retrospect, it couldn’t have been better, because we were playing great, and we finished on such a high note,” he said..
“The fans were so happy… That was the great way to ensure our legacy and be remembered for those guys, for being that band that played that way… all in all, it really turned out to be the opportune time for us to end a long career. Not a lot of bands lasted 40 years of that regular touring and many, many, many albums and all of that stuff.”
