As Rush prepares to embark on their first tour in 11 years, Geddy Lee has recalled his favorite memory of touring with Alex Lifeson, and it involves a mistake the guitarist isn’t likely to recreate any time soon.
Lee says he served Lifeson an ultimatum to get Rush back together, with former Jeff Beck drummer Anika Nilles chosen as the successor to the late Neil Peart’s drum throne. The new-look lineup, completed by former Who keyboardist Loren Gold, made its debut at the Juno Awards last month.
During a recent interview with Chris Lord (see below), Lee was asked to recall his funniest touring experience.
“That's a tough one, because there are so many crazy moments to choose from,” he says. So, to get himself out of a tight spot, he leans on an anecdote included in his memoir, My Effin' Life.
“We were in Manchester, and we had a two-night gig there,” Lee goes on. “After the first night, we went back to the bar in our hotel. Alex had been under a little bit of strain because he had had a son the year before, and I think he was feeling very homesick to be with his kid. So he challenged our 6’ 11” stage manager to a cognac drinking contest.”
Given that Lifeson's eldest son was born in 1970, while the guitarist was just 17, the story likely takes place circa 1978, a year after the birth of his second son. That suggests the band was touring Hemispheres at the time.
“After about 12 shots of cognac, he broke a glass in the bar, and so our road manager and touring manager both escorted him to his room,” Lee continues.
Lifeson, however, wasn’t quite ready to go to bed.
“He would not be contained! When we went into the elevator to go to the room to say good night for the evening, the elevator doors opened, and out he came on a room service cart” – and he was headed for the bar.
“Chaos ensued for the next couple of hours,” says Geddy.
What Lee fails to mention here is that, as per his memoir, Lifeson was very scantily clad at the time. Their tour manager had also been nicknamed ‘Lurch’ – a reference to the Addams family’s towering butler – so it’s no mystery that Lifeson, 11 inches shorter, couldn’t keep up with his shot-necking abilities.
Lifeson was also prone to having bad dreams on tour, which he’d regularly share with his bandmates – and often in the dead of night. That helped inspire one of Rush’s most ambitious songs, and one they were determined to record in one take.
Lee, meanwhile, has teased the possibility of the new Rush lineup recording new music, so long as they survive next year’s globe-trotting tour, while Robin Trower has namedropped the band as he makes his claim for power trios being the best setup for rock bands.
