Geddy Lee says he and guitarist Alex Lifeson could go out and perform under the RUSH name in the future
Speaking with The Washington Post, RUSH bassist and vocalist Geddy Lee discussed reuniting with lifelong bandmate Alex Lifeson to possibly perform under the band’s name again. Last year, Geddy and Alex performed at concerts, held in London and Los Angeles, which honored the late Taylor Hawkins, drummer from the FOO FIGHTERS. Alongside them, several esteemed drummers like Danny Carey from TOOL, Omar Hakim, Chad Smith from RED HOT CHILI PEPPERS, and Dave Grohl joined the performances, doing their best to fill in for the late Neil Peart. Following the shows, at the after-party, Paul McCartney apparently extended congratulations and encouraged the duo to hit the road once again.
“It had been a taboo subject, and playing those songs again with a third person was the elephant in the room, and that kind of disappeared,” Lee told The Washington Post. “It was nice to know that if we decide to go out, Alex and I, whether we went out as part of a new thing, or whether we just wanted to go out and play RUSH as RUSH, we could do that now.”
Geddy also disclosed that in October 2022, for the first time in years, Lee and Lifeson ventured into Lee‘s home studio and jammed.
Although Lifeson was ‘excited as offers rolled in after the Hawkins shows,’ he ended up undergoing surgery in July for his long-standing stomach problems.
Asked if he plans on nudging his pal to get back onstage, Lee told The Washington Post: “He needs to feel good and feel healthy and strong. And then maybe we have a discussion.”
During the Los Angeles Taylor Hawkins tribute concert held on September 27, 2022, Lee and Lifeson took the stage to deliver a spectacular rendition of three timeless RUSH tracks. The evening commenced with an introduction by the vibrant Jack Black, setting the stage for the iconic RUSH segment of the event.
Their performance began with “2112 Part I: Overture,” the inaugural movement of the 1976 prog-rock opus, accompanied by Grohl on drums and THE BIRD AND THE BEE‘s Greg Kurstin on keyboards. Grohl‘s drumming baton was then passed to the talented Chad Smith for a vibrant rendition of “Working Man.”
Following this invigorating performance, Lee engaged with the crowd, reminiscing, “I’d just like to cast back to a moment in time, 2008, when we were contacted by the FOO FIGHTERS to see if we would go down to the Air Canada Centre in Toronto and play Taylor Hawkins’ favorite song with him onstage. That was the beginning of quite a beautiful friendship. So in honor of that and in tribute to our own departed brother, we’d like to welcome Danny Carey to join us and play ‘YYZ‘.”
The moment was not merely a performance but a heartfelt homage, symbolizing the genesis of a meaningful connection with the FOO FIGHTERS and a profound tribute to their late comrade.
Geddy and Alex previously played the same three songs at the first Hawkins tribute concert on September 3, 2022 at London’s Wembley Stadium. Drum duties were covered by Grohl and Omar Hakim for that performance.
