Pure Prairie League

The band was named for an actual temperance organization formed in the late 19th century.
. Vince Gill, now a major country music star as a solo artist, is a former lead singer for the band. Neil Peart has received the following awards in the Modern Drummer magazine reader's poll:. Their biggest hits included Let Me Love You Tonight and Amie. - Alex Lifeson won Best Rock Talent in 1983 (I assume that it's on the same mag), and he was inducted into the Guitar for the Practicing Musician Hall of Fame in May of 1991. Pure Prairie League was a popular American soft rock and country rock band active in the 1970s and early 1980s. - Geddy Lee won "best Rock Bass player" in the 1993 "Bass Player" readers' poll.

Something in the Night (1981). - Geddy Lee is in the Bass Hall of Fame for Guitar Player Magazine
. Firin' Up (1980). Rush has been awarded the following Juno awards:. Can't Hold Back (1979). Rush has received many awards during their career. Just Fly (1978). Solo efforts of band members:.

If the Shoe Fits (1976). It is an issue that seems to be entirely between the Hall of Fame and Rush's fans, as Geddy Lee himself has noted that the issue "seems to be a lot more important to our fans than it does to us.". Dance (1976). Nevertheless, the issue remains unresolved. Two Lane Highway (1975). Additionally, these supporters note, Rush has influenced countless musicians and bands, from inspiring numerous people to learn to play their instruments to bands that have openly declared such influence, notably Metallica, Smashing Pumpkins, and Primus. Bustin' Out (1972). They also point out that the critics seemingly ignore when Rush truly distinguished themselves, beginning with 1980's Permanent Waves and 1981's Moving Pictures, which they claim blended the virtuosity of talented players with strong song-writing skills in an accessible format.

Pure Prairie League (1972). Rush's supporters note that their music was only of the true "prog" school from 1975-1979, a small portion of their thirty year history. Rush's detractors associate the band with the progressive rock era of the 1970s, which they view as overblown and pretentious. Indeed, many believe that era to be the nadir of rock and roll. At one point, in an ESPN.com article introducing basketball star LeBron James to Cleveland just before James' rookie season in 2004, the writer suggested James be up to speed on the latest rumblings from the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame: "U2-definitely yes, REM-maybe, Rush-definitely no.". The debate has become one of the hot debates involving the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, as fans clammer extensively for the band's induction while the Hall of Fame voters steadfastly refuse.

Since that time, the Hall of Fame has not nominated Rush for induction, causing more and more frustration as time goes by. With such a fan base, it is not surprising that they were not pleased to learn that the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame passed over Rush for induction in 1999, Rush's first year of eligibility. The subsequent Vapor Trails tour grossed over $24 million and included the largest audience ever to see a Rush show - 60,000 fans in Sao Paulo. The following year, the band released Rush in Rio, which the RIAA has certified gold, marking the fourth decade in which a Rush album had been released and certified at least gold. Despite having completely dropped out of the public eye for five years following the loss of Peart's wife and daughter, and despite being relegated almost solely to classic rock stations in the U.S., their 2002 Vapor Trails release shot up to #6 on the Billboard Chart in its first week of release.

The result is strong detractors and an intensely loyal fan base. Rush themselves have noted that people "either love Rush or hate Rush." There doesn't seem to be much middle ground. The band has so far had three Grammy Award nominations, all for Best Rock Instrumental Performance. O'Leary's Cow".

Rush was nominated for a Best Rock Instrumental Performance Grammy Award in 2005 for Neil Peart's drum solo, “O Baterista” from the album Rush in Rio, but lost to Brian Wilson's "Mrs. It is rumored that the band is to go back into the studio to record a new album in early 2005. In the summer of 2004, Rush again hit the road for a successful 30th Anniversary Tour, playing dates in the United States, Canada, the UK, Germany, Italy, Sweden, the Czech Republic, and the Netherlands. June 2004 saw the release of Feedback, a studio EP featuring eight covers of such artists as Cream and The Who.

The companion DVD won the 2004 Juno for best music DVD. A live album, Rush in Rio, was released in late October 2003. Also in 2003, Alex Lifeson appeared in the highy successful Canadian mockumentary Trailer Park Boys. Rush also played for CBC's 2004 tsunami relief telethon, along with Ed Robertson (of the Barenaked Ladies) and Mike Smith (Bubbles) from Trailer Park Boys. The band was one of a number of hometown favourites to play the SARS relief concert (dubbed SARStock) at Downsview Park in Toronto in August 2003, with an attendance of over half a million people.

It debuted to moderate praise and was supported by the band's first tour in six years, including first-ever concerts in Mexico City and Brazil. The album contains the song "Ghost Rider", describing Peart's motorcycle journey. The band returned in 2002 with a surprisingly heavy and modern Vapor Trails album, their first without keyboards in over twenty years. Rush later said that they came very close to disbanding during this period.

He subsequently wrote about his travels in his book Ghost Rider: Travels on the Healing Road. Peart embarked on a self-described "healing journey" by motorcycle in which he travelled thousands of miles across North America. After 1996's Test for Echo, the band entered a six-year hiatus due mainly to personal tragedies in Peart's life. Peart's daughter Selena died in a car accident in August 1997, followed by his wife Jacqueline's death from cancer in June 1998. Each of the three individual artists has produced and released work independent of the band's structure, to varying degrees of commercial and critical success.

From that point on, their albums of the 1980s tended to incorporate more keyboards and stuck to accessible style that began with Permanent Waves, even to the point that their recordings in the later 1980s and 1990s have sometimes been derided as being too mainstream. Tom Sawyer can be heard frequently on American classic rock stations to this day. The lead track, Tom Sawyer, is perhaps the band's best known song, and Geddy Lee has referred to it as "the quintessential Rush song." Moving Pictures shot up to #3 on the Billboard Album Chart and has been certified quadruple platinum by the RIAA. Rush's popularity hit its zenith with the release of Moving Pictures in 1981.

One song in particular, Spirit of Radio (named for the Toronto-local groundbreaking radio station, CFNY), went on to become a huge hit on the alternative circuit. As a result, the album cracked Billboard's Top 10 and went platinum. With Permanent Waves, Rush began to receive frequent airtime on rock radio stations. Beginning with Permanent Waves, their music maintained certain progressive aspects, such as an emphasis on playing and time signature changes, but melded those elements into a more accessible format that placed more emphasis on songwriting.

The themes of the songs changed dramatically, and became far more in common with alternative rock than prog-rock. Although the music was still based on heavy-metal style, more and more keyboards were introduced. Rush felt they had taken the genre of lengthy, progressive-influenced music as far as they could or wanted, and began to opt for shorter, more compact compositions. Permanent Waves changed things dramatically.

The lyrics of that time were heavily influenced by science fiction and, in a few cases, the writings and philosophy of Ayn Rand, as exhibited most prominently by 1975's Anthem (named after Rand's novel) 1976's 2112 and 1978's Hemispheres. Many of their early songs received limited airplay because of their extended length (in some cases exceeding ten minutes) which were deemed unprofitable by station managers. Albums prior to 1980's Permanent Waves are a mix of heavy metal and progressive rock similar to Yes or Genesis. Demonstrating their birth within the short-lived era of glitter rock bands, such as Alice Cooper or Ziggy Stardust, Rush were known to have flashy costumes and stage shows. Rush's musical style has changed greatly over the lifetime of the group. Rush have been awarded the Juno Award (Canada's equivalent of the Grammy Award) on numerous occasions, and all three individuals are Members of the Order of Canada.

They take an attitude of perfectionism into the studio, and this fact is made clear by the crispness and superb engineering evident on most of their studio albums. Often considered the musician's musicians, Rush is known for their professional prowess on each respective instrument that they have mastered. Fans of the band argue that Rush displays a virtuosity and longevity rarely achieved in hard rock circles. Lee and Lifeson usually write the music and Peart writes the lyrics, although every once in a while they will collaborate on lyrics or music.

Since Peart joined in 1974, they have remained intact. The band was formed in the summer of 1968, in Toronto by Lifeson, Lee, and John Rutsey (who played drums for Rush on the first album but resigned for health concerns shortly thereafter). Rush is an award-winning Canadian progressive rock band comprised of bassist/keyboardist/vocalist Geddy Lee, guitarist Alex Lifeson, and drummer Neil Peart (pronounced: 'Peert') that has been consistently recording since 1973. All Music Guide (http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=11:4ubyxd0bjolk).

Rush MIDI (http://www.jgeoff.com/rush/). RushRadio.org (http://www.rushradio.org/) - a 24/7 Rush Internet radio station. Rush @  (http://www.music-wiki.org/Rush)MusicWiki. Rush Tablature Project (http://www.cygnusproductions.com/rtp/).

The Rush Forum (http://www.therushforum.com). By-Tor.com (http://www.by-tor.com). www.rushmessageboard.com (requires registration). Counterparts Rush Fan Website (http://www.rushweb.net).

Power Windows (http://www.2112.net/powerwindows/) - a Rush tribute site. www.rush.com. 1986 Honor Roll: Rock Drummer, Multi-Percussion. 1992: Roll The Bones.

1990: Presto. 1989: A Show of Hands. 1988: Hold Your Fire. 1986: Power Windows.

1985: Grace Under Pressure. 1983: Signals. Stage Left. 1982: Exit..

Best Recorded Performance: 1981: Moving Pictures. Best All Around: 1986. Most Promising New Drummer: 1980. Best Percussion Instrumentalist: 1982.

Best Multi-Percussionist: 1983,1984,1985,1986. Best Rock Drummer: 1980,1981,1982,1983,1984,1985. Hall of Fame: 1983. O'Leary's Cow".

"O Baterista" from Rush In Rio Lost to Brian Wilson's "Mrs. 2004 Nomination in Best Rock Instrumental Performance