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Geddy Lee Releases Archived Demo About Neil Peart’s Family Tragedy

Geddy Lee continues his sharing ways as of late with the release of two archived demos that were part of the recording session of his 2000 solo album My Favorite Headache….

Neil Peart (L) and Geddy Lee of Rush pose in the press room at the 28th Annual Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony at Nokia Theatre L.A. Live on April 18, 2013 in Los Angeles, California.
Jason Merritt/Getty Images

Geddy Lee continues his sharing ways as of late with the release of two archived demos that were part of the recording session of his 2000 solo album My Favorite Headache.

The two demos are "I Am... You Are" and "Gone." The latter demo was inspired by two tragic deaths Neil Peart experienced in the late '90s. The first was in August 1997, when Peart's 19-year-old daughter died in a car accident. The second was in June 1998, when Peart's wife died of cancer.

Lee said about "Gone" in a new interview, "It was the first song we wrote for 'My Favourite Headache,' and we demoed it, but it just felt… it was beautiful, but I felt it was too raw ... I didn’t think it was appropriate to release it, out of respect for Neil and the way he was."

Both demos can be heard below.

"Gone"

"I Am... You Are"

Geddy Lee on the Last Time He Saw Neil Peart

Lee recently shared a very personal moment of the last time he saw Peart before his death in January 2020.

During the Nov. 13 stop in New York on his book tour to promote his memoir My Effin' Life, Lee went into detail about the emotional last visit with his longtime friend and bandmate. Lee said toward the end of his life, Peart started to relisten to the Rush catalog.

Lee recalled sitting with Peart on the balcony of his house during his final visit. He said, "The last time I saw him ... he wanted to tell me how proud he was of the music we have done together ... He went on to talk about these songs and what they meant to him and he thought it was very important for me to know that, that our life as a rhythm section together was important to him."

Few bands have enjoyed legendary decades-spanning career like Rush. Fewer still have been able to take their final bow on their own terms. Once Rush reached arena-headlining status, they never had to "downsize," or even go on package tours. They rarely played multi-act festivals and towards the end of their career, even stopped using opening acts on their tours, so that they could play longer shows. They also were always able to play a lot of new music at their shows, and fans responded. They've had classic songs on every album, starting with their self-titled debut in 1974, up through their final album, 2012's Clockwork Angels. Of course, that made it difficult to narrow down this list to just 50 songs -- and of course so many of you will disagree with the songs we included, the songs we didn't include, and the order. That's part of the fun of lists, though.

50 - “The Wreckers” from ‘Clockwork Angels’ (2012)

rush-clockwork-angels-1-1.jpgRoadrunner

49 - “I Think I’m Going Bald” from ‘Caress Of Steel’ (1975)

rush-caress-of-steel-3.jpgUniversal

48 - “Seven Cities Of Gold” from ‘Clockwork Angels’ (2012)

rush-clockwork-angels-.jpgRoadrunner

47 - “In The End (live)” from ‘All The World’s A Stage’ (1976)

rush-all-the-worlds-a-stage-1-2.jpgUniversal

46 - “The Fountain of Lamneth” from ‘Caress Of Steel’ (1975)

rush-caress-of-steel-2.jpgUniversal

45 - “Resist (live)” from ‘Rush In Rio’ (2003)

rush-in-rio.jpgAnthem

44 - “The Necromancer” from ‘Caress Of Steel’ (1975)

rush-caress-of-steel-1.jpgUniversal

43 - “Mystic Rhythms” from ‘Power Windows’ (1985)

rush-power-windows-1.jpgUniversal

42 - “Ghost Rider” from ‘Vapor Trails’ (2002)

rush-vapor-trails-1.jpgAtlantic

41 - “Lakeside Park” from ‘Caress of Steel’ (1975)

rush-caress-of-steel.jpgUniversal

40 - “Best I Can” from ‘Fly By Night’ (1975)

Rush-fly-by-night-3.jpgUniversal

39 - “Here Again” from ‘Rush’ (1974)

Rush-debut-3.jpgUniversal

38 - “By-Tor and the Snow Dog” from ‘Fly By Night’ (1975)

Rush-fly-by-night-2.jpgUniversal

37 - “In The Mood” from ‘Rush’ (1974)

Rush-debut-2.jpgUniversal

36 - “Between The Wheels” from ‘Grace Under Pressure’ (1984)

rush-grace-under-pressure-1.jpgUniversal

35 - “Force Ten (live)” from ‘A Show Of Hands’ (1989)

rush-a-show-of-hands.jpgUniversal

34 - “Beneath, Between & Behind” from ‘Fly By Night’ (1975)

Rush-fly-by-night-1.jpgUniversal

33 - “Finding My Way” from ‘Rush’ (1974)

Rush-debut-1.jpgUniversal

32 - “Cygnus X-1 Book One: The Voyage” from ‘A Farewell To Kings’ (1977)

rush-a-farewell-to-kings-1-3.jpgUniversal

31 - “Cygnus X-1 Book II: Hemispheres” from ‘Hemispheres’ (1978)

rush-hemispheres.jpgUniversal

30 - “Nobody’s Hero” from “Counterparts” (1993)

rush-counterparts-1.jpgAtlantic

29 - “New World Man” from ‘Signals’ (1982)

Rush-signals-1-2.jpgUniversal

28 - “Anthem (live)” from ‘All The World’s A Stage’ (1976)

rush-all-the-worlds-a-stage-1-1.jpgUniversal

27 - “The Analog Kid” from ‘Signals’ (1982)

Rush-signals-1-1.jpgUniversal

26 - “Dreamline (live)” from ‘Clockwork Angels Tour’ (2013)

rush-clockwork-angels-tour-.jpgAnthem

25 - “Time Stand Still (featuring Aimee Mann)” from ‘Hold Your Fire’ (1987)

rush-hold-your-fire.jpgUniversal

24 - “Vital Signs” from ‘Moving Pictures’ (1981)

rush-moving-pictures-2.jpgUniversal

23 - “Animate” from ‘Counterparts’ (1993)

rush-counterparts.jpgAtlantic

22 “Xanadu” from ‘A Farewell To Kings’ (1977)

rush-a-farewell-to-kings-1-2.jpgUniversal

21 - “The Big Money” from ‘Power Windows’ (1985)

rush-power-windows.jpgUniversal

20 - “Losing It (live, featuring Jonathan Dinklage”) from ‘R40 Live’ (2015)

rush-r40.jpgAnthem

19 - “Red Sector ‘A’ (live)” from ‘Grace Under Pressure Tour Live (recorded in 1984)

rush-grace-under-pressure-live-.jpgUniversal

18 - “La Villa Strangiato (live)” from ‘Exit… Stage Left’ (1981)

rush-exit-stage-left-2.jpgUniversal

17 - “Show Don’t Tell” from ‘Presto’ (1989)

rush-presto.jpgAtlantic

16 - “A Farewell To Kings” from ‘A Farewell To Kings’ (1977)

rush-a-farewell-to-kings-1-1.jpgUniversal

15 - “Freewill” from ‘Permanent Waves’ (1980)

Rush-permanent-waves-1.jpgUniversal

14 - “Distant Early Warning” from ‘Grace Under Pressure’ (1984)

rush-grace-under-pressure.jpgUniversal

13 - “Fly By Night” from ‘Fly By Night’ (1975)

Rush-fly-by-night.jpgUniversal

12 - “Bastille Day (live)” from ‘All The World’s A Stage’ (1976)

rush-all-the-worlds-a-stage-.jpgUniversal

11 - “One Little Victory” from ‘Vapor Trails’ (2002)

rush-vapor-trails.jpgAtlantic

10 - “Far Cry” from ‘Snakes and Arrows’ (2007)

rush-snakes-and-arrrows-2.jpgAtlantic

9 - “Subdivisions” from ‘Signals’ (1982)

Rush-signals-.jpgUniversal

8 - “Working Man” from ‘Rush’ (1974)

Rush-debut.jpgUniversal

7 - “Limelight” from ‘Moving Pictures’ (1981)

rush-moving-pictures-1.jpgUniversal

6 - “2112” from ‘2112’ (1976)

rush-2112.jpgUniversal

5 - “Closer To The Heart” from ‘A Farewell To Kings’ (1977)

rush-a-farewell-to-kings-.jpgUniversal

4 - “YYZ (live)” from ‘Exit… stage Left’ (1981)

rush-exit-stage-left-1.jpgUniversal

3 - “Tom Sawyer” from ‘Moving Pictures’ (1981)

rush-moving-pictures.jpgUniversal

2 - “Red Barchetta (live)” from ‘Exit… Stage Left’ (1981)

rush-exit-stage-left.jpgUniversal

1 - “The Spirit Of The Radio” from ‘Permanent Waves’ (1980)

Rush-permanent-waves.jpgUniversal
Erica Banas is a news blogger who's been covering the rock/classic rock world since 2014. The coolest event she's ever covered in person was the 2021 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony. (Sir Paul McCartney inducting Foo Fighters? C'mon now!) She's also well-versed in etiquette and extraordinarily nice. #TransRightsAreHumanRights