Neil Peart beats things for a living.....that's why he's confused.

When I was in high school I abandoned my U2 worship for another band. RUSH. For 6 years I would listen to nothing but RUSH. Studying every nuance of Geddy Lee's bass lines. The rhythmic complexity of Neil Peart's drumming and the lush textures of Alex Lifeson's guitar work. I honestly think I could play every bass line (or at least my interpretation) from the debut album through Roll The Bones. I was committed to the gospel of RUSH. I never really paid attention to the lyrics except for the fact that Neil Peart wrote 99% of them. At work with the advent of the iPod we can share and listen to each others music. One co-worker has the entire RUSH collection on his shared play list. So I took a walk down memory lane and filled my aural cup with RUSHy goodness. Trying in my own right to be a songwriter I was fixated now not on the music, but the lyrics. I was surprised by what I discovered. Neil Peart, although extremely well read, is quite confused. Now in his defense he has had to write lyrics for a bazzillion RUSH records. Not an easy task. And though I don't worship RUSH like I did 15 years ago, I have heard that Neil has had some pretty tough personal issues lately. I haven't listened to the last 3 records they put out. Maybe he has written more introspectively about these things lately. The biggest example I bring is this. On the 1979 RUSH release "Permant Waves" there is a song called "Natural Science" which clearly endorses a Darwinian Philosophy. 4 albums later on their 1986 release "Power Windows" there is a song called "Grand Designs." This song doesn't embrace the Creationist viewpoint, but the idea of some sort of designer. Anyway, I have returned from my trip down the RUSH memory lane. I have decided not to return again.........for a long, long time. Except maybe our brief encounters on the radio sandwiched in between The Scorpions and Boston classics. From my trip down memory lane I bring a present. Somebody had a lot of time on their hands and nothing better to do. And it had to have been a drummer.........Enough Said.