Neil...
Cannot even believe i'm writing this...but, as we all know, we lost an integral part of that beautifully wonderful, terrifyingly abstract beast, which we collectively entitle, " music " ...no matter the genre, slant, take on what it sounds like, it's all vibrations: kinda colliding with each other to create that sonic cacophony we know and love...
RUSH, in their heyday, which for me was in the mid to late 70s, were such a huge influence on me, i'll cherish our bond until my dying day.
It all started with their 3rd album, Caress of Steel...and solidly, consistently lasted until 1982...with Signals. Of course i loved them, so anything was pretty good. But that period of their creativity, genius, intrigued me more than any other. For me, that was the pinnacle of what i wanted to hear.
Each member of RUSH, had their own influence on me...just some random kid...drinking it all in, one song at a time. Alex, Geddy and Neil, were my music teachers, band-mates, older brothers, mentors!
Neil, was 33 1/3%...of my life!
To imagine such a genius, reduced to a dying, weakened, defeated shell of a man, due to what amounted to brain cancer...is just, ( insert words here...i don't have any. )
So, do yourself a favor. Go listen to Caress of Steel...check out their music if you haven't heard it...people living underneath rocks need music too!;)
Thank you for listening...um, with yer...eyes?
Denny