Geddy Lee Says Many Drummers Were Most Distasteful After Peart
Geddy Lee said many drummers contacted him after Neil Peart's death while pushing themselves as replacements, and he called the timing completely inappropriate. The Rush bassist and vocalist said the approach crossed a line for people who knew the band’s history. Rush had retired in 2015 after the R40 tour, with Peart’s deteriorating health driving that decision.
Neil Peart’s absence
Lee said the messages came in the aftermath of Peart’s passing, when succession talk should have stayed off the table. “there were many other drummers who reached out to me in the aftermath of Neil’s passing that were pushing themselves, and that was most distasteful to me. It was completely inappropriate timing.”
He added that the circle around the band understood the boundaries better than outsiders did. “People who are close to us – good friends that are successful drummers – would never infer something like that because they have too much respect, not only for Neil and for the situation.”
Anika Nilles on tour
Rush is set to hit the road next month for the first time since Peart’s death, with former Jeff Beck drummer Anika Nilles sitting in for him on the upcoming shows. A tech who spent time on the road with Jeff Beck’s 2022 tour recommended Nilles to the band, and Lee and Alex Lifeson approached her after that introduction.
That lineup choice turns the post-Peart period into a practical test for the band’s live future. The group is not treating the role as an open invitation; it moved from unsolicited pitches to a recommendation, then to a direct approach from Lee and Lifeson.
2022 stage reunions
Lee and Lifeson had already crossed back into live performance in 2022, when they linked up with Dave Grohl to play Rush songs at the Taylor Hawkins tribute concert. Two years later, they were back on stage again as part of a Gordon Lightfoot tribute show, and Lifeson said the two had been jamming.
That history suggests the new tour is built on tested chemistry rather than a sudden reunion fantasy. For Rush, the difference now is the drummer choice: not a scramble after Peart’s death, but a specific player recommended through the road crew and brought in by the surviving band members themselves.
