Something for Nothing: A RUSH Fancast

This week we welcome Greg Russell. Greg was a close friend of Neil Peart, and he's also the drummer of the Rush tribute band Natural Science. Greg tells us about the unusual circumstance that led to his friendship with Neil, designing Neil's first website, and working on Neil's later drum kits. Follow us on Instagram: @therushcast Follow us on X (formerly Twitter): @RushFanCast Follow us on Threads: @therushcast Email us at: therushcast@gmail.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Pantheon Media CEO Christian Swain invites you to check out the American Masters: Creative Spark podcast. It's like a front row seat to a masterclass on the creative process. We've become regular listeners, and hope you enjoy it too.

It's the last of our trilogy live from Henderson Brewing in Toronto! This week we welcome back our good friend Ray Wawrzyniak to stump us with Rush trivia. We also hear Rush Origin Stories from Bing from Houston, Texas, who also fills us in on a large language model he trained on the published works and lyrics of Neil Peart; Justin from Toronto, Ontario; and Morgan, also from Toronto. Check out Bing's AI project: https://rushologist-6171.chipp.ai Follow us on Instagram: @therushcast Follow us on X (formerly Twitter): @RushFanCast Email us at: therushcast@gmail.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It's the second of our 3 episodes live from Henderson Brewing in Toronto! This week we interview RushCon Creative Director Jillian Maryonovich; hear Rush Origin Stories from fans Jeff from Traverse City, Michigan; Ian from Kitchener, Ontario; Nyki from Honolulu, Hawaii; David from Toronto; and Christopher from Rochester, New York; and talk with RushFest Scotland founder Steve Brown. Follow us on Instagram: @therushcast Follow us on X (formerly Twitter): @RushFanCast Email us at: therushcast@gmail.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In August, the SFN team--Steve, Gerry, and Lex--recorded live from Henderson Brewing in Toronto for Rush Day 2024. In the first of 3 episodes from Henderson Brewing, we talk with owner Steve Himel about the event and Rush lighting director Howard Ungerleider, and hear some Rush Origin Stories from fans Phil from Hilton Head, South Carolina; Melissa from Orange County, California; Ray from Whitby, Ontario; Doug from Burlington, Ontario; and John from Seattle, Washington. Follow us on Instagram: @therushcast Follow us on X (formerly Twitter): @RushFanCast Email us at: therushcast@gmail.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We're rounding out our summer mini season with the incomparable Tyler Warren! Tyler is an incredible multi-instrumentalist and vocalist who tours with Queen + Adam Lambert, records with his band Flarelight, and has released full album covers of both Permanent Waves and, most recently, Grace Under Pressure on his YouTube channel. Tyler talks to us about falling in love with Rush, how he ended up touring with Queen + Adam Lambert, and the monumental task of playing every instrument on those amazing full album covers. You can watch Tyler's Permanent Waves cover here: Tyler Warren - Rush’s Permanent Waves (full album performance) (youtube.com) You can watch Tyler's Grace Under Pressure cover here: Tyler Warren - Rush's Grace Under Pressure (full album performance) (youtube.com) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week we welcome back our friend Max Mobley to count down our top 5 favorite Alex Lifeson riffs. Max previously joined us on episode 97 to talk about his book "Rush FAQ," episode 122 to rank our top 5 Alex Lifeson solos, and again on episode 146 as part of our Hold Your Fire Redux series to talk about "Mission." You can learn more about Max, including where to buy his first novel, "Howard & Debbie," at Fiction-MaxMobley. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week we're joined by Mike Gormley, who worked as the director of publicity at Mercury Records during the early days of Rush. After leaving Mercury, he was the artist manager for such bands as The Bangles, Oingo Boingo, and Concrete Blonde. He tells us about meeting the band, their early days on the road, and the difficulty selling the rock press on the band despite their growing popularity. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week, we attempt the impossible: ranking all of Rush's original studio album tracks. And guess what? We found it was impossible. So join us as we discuss out methods and frustrations and offer our sincerest apologies to anyone who has ever published a list of ranked Rush songs. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In April 2020, a task force was created to plan a memorial for Neil Peart in a place familiar to all Rush fans, Lakeside Park in Port Dalhousie, St. Catharine's, Ontario. Two years later, this week's guest, sculptor Morgan MacDonald, was chosen to create the bronze statues that will honor the late drummer. Morgan tells us about the constant presence of Rush in his life, the Rush Easter eggs hidden within the sculpture, and the enormity of the work ahead of him. The city of St. Catharine's is currently accepting donations to raise the projected $1 million it will cost to construct and install the sculptures. You can donate at www.stcatharines.ca/neilpeart. You can see Morgan's past works on his website, www.morgansculpture.ca. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Slow down! We didn't talk with Geddy, but we did the next best thing: we read his best-selling memoir, "My Effin' Life." This week, we take a deep dive into the book and discuss the life and times of the one and only Geddy Lee! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week's guest needs no introduction: Terry Brown. Terry joined the Rush camp with the band’s debut, brought in to mix the final cut. He then co-produced with the band every release through Signals--one of the greatest album runs in rock history. What else need to be said? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week we welcome back singer/songwriter Leoni Jane Kennedy. Since she last joined us back on episode 163, Leoni has been busy recording a collection of acoustic Rush covers, "New World Woman." The album is chock full of Leoni's imaginative takes on Rush classics, and we talk to her about the recording process and play a few tracks. You can find out more about Leoni's music bu heading to her website, https://www.leonijanekennedy.com/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Paul Wells is a Professor of Jazz Drums at The Juilliard School in New York City who possesses an encyclopedic knowledge of Neil Peart's kits. He joins us this week to talk about Rush--obviously--and his efforts to restore Neil's original Rush kit, the famous Chromey!  Paul has played with the likes of Curtis Stigers, Vince Giordano's Nighthawks, Deborah Harry, Joe Williams, Wynton Marsalis, Elvis Costello, and Diana Krall, among others. Learn more about him at https://www.paulwellsdrums.com.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Danny Peart is a poet and the brother of Neil Peart, and he joins us this week to give his unique perspective on his famous sibling. He talks about his life with Neil, his poetry, and what it was like performing at the long-postponed Night for Neil benefit concert that took place in 2022.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

All things must end, and this podcast is no exception. After much thought and discussion, we've decided to make this our final episode. Listen along as we go through some of our more memorable episodes, praise everyone who came on the show, and thank everyone who made the past three years and change some of the most interesting of our lives--including you, our listeners. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week, were tackling Rush's final concert tour, R40. One of the most ambitious tour concepts, R40 saw the band presenting a career-spanning setlist in reverse chronological order. It was a gift to every fan who saw the tour and has listened to this live collection. What a way for the band to go out! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week, we're deviating from our normal format and answering questions sent in by our listeners. Some are about thee podcast 8n general, some are about us, and some are actually related to Rush! I hope it's as interesting to listen to as it was to record. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week on the podcast we're discussing the Clockwork Angels Tour live set realized in 2013. The setlist leans heavily on songs from Clockwork Angels and the 1980s--18 of the 27 songs are from either the band's last album or from 1982 to 1987. It's an eclectic group of songs that's a real treat for two guys who became diehard fans during the Power Windows tour. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Join us this week as members of The Matt O'Ree Band--singer/guitarist Matt O'Ree, vocalist Eryn, drummer John Hummel, and our resident bassist Lex Lehman--talk about their raucous cover of Rush's "Making Memories" and their new album, Hand In Glove! You can watch the video for "Making Memories" right now at https://youtu.be/uw2nfgLR770. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices