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Hello , My Name is Geddy
Geddy Lee
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SAT , DEC 02 ALANIS MORRISSETTE JAGGED LITTLE PILL GAGA , PINK , GWEN
BEYOND THE BLONDE
FEMALE FOO FIGHTERS FOO LA LA
SAT , DEC 09
SABBATH , DIO & OZZY TRIBUTES
SABBATHA
HARD ROCK RADIO THRASHER
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BORN OF OSIRIS THE BROWNING RINGS OF SATURN WASTE
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ERRORS OF HUMANITY
DREAM ALAIZA THUTCH EXODIA GRIMM
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CONCENTRIC
NINE INCH NAILS TRIB
NOW I ' M NOTHING
GARBAGE TRIB
STUPID GIRL
SUN , FEB 25
OV SULFUR
MENTAL CRUELTY GHOST BATH EXTERMINATION DISMEMBERMENT
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I SET MY FRIENDS ON FIRE
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CUPCAKKE TACO
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PREMEDITATED COME CORRECT SCUMROT NO SHELTER AVERTED EYES
SAT , JAN 13
THE COLOR MORALE FOR THE FALLEN DREAMS
OF VIRTUE BOYS OF FALL
THU , JAN 25
NEMS X MAC LETHAL
FRI , MAR 1
GIDEON
LEFT TO SUFFER FOX LAKE NO CURE
R
ush bassist and frontman Geddy Lee makes it clear that the word “ retirement ” has no place in his vocabulary . Rush may be finished ( or is it ?), but Lee is a whirlwind of activity . His series for Paramount +, Geddy Lee Asks : Are Bass Players Human Too ?, premieres on December 5 as an outgrowth of his best-selling Big Beautiful Book of Bass . He ’ s preparing for
a major auction of baseball memorabilia from his stunning collection , opening on December 6 at Christie ’ s . His focus at this moment , however , is on the launch of his memoir My Effin ’ Life and a speaking tour that visits the Auditorium Theatre in Chicago on December 3 . The appearance will feature conversation with a surprise guest host and audience Q & A . Hosts in other cities have included actors Paul Rudd and Eric McCormack , DJ Donna Halper , and noted showrunner / podcaster Brian Koppelman .
My Effin ’ Life is not your run-of-the-mill rock memoir . True , Lee ’ s good-natured Canadian charm and self-deprecating wit are in ample supply . Yes , you ’ ll find chapters on Rush as a band of underdogs rising toward the breakout success of 1976 album 2112 , victories including classic rock staple “ Tom Sawyer ” and 1981 ’ s Moving Pictures , and final masterpiece Clockwork Angels .
Other portions of the book are poignant and powerful . Lee describes the challenges of growing up in Canada as a suburban Jewish kid in the ‘ 60s , drawing threads to relatable Rush songs including “ Subdivisions .” Lee describes the toll taken upon family life by his life with Rush , and his devotion to wife Nancy Young after weathering storms together . He writes movingly about the loss of close colleagues and family members , tragedies in the life of Rush ’ s beloved drummer and lyricist Neil Peart , and the devastating loss in 2020 of Peart himself due to brain cancer . One especially significant chapter tells the harrowing story of Lee ’ s parents Morris and Mary Weinrib , who survived the horrors of Nazi concentration camps during World War II .
Those darker passages provide context for the joy arising from Rush ’ s perseverance . Lee ’ s affection for Peart and guitarist / lifelong BFF Alex Lifeson are evident while chronicling the band ’ s ascent and the respected status that Rush gradually attained . There are tales of hijinks and lessons learned on the road . The book contains the story of quite an effin ’ life , indeed . Lee spoke with Illinois Entertainer by phone during his tour ’ s opening week .
IE : For a memoir , My Effin ’ Life is fairly comprehensive . What was it like diving into such a massive project ? GL : I had resisted the idea of doing a memoir for a long time because it seemed like it would be too all-consuming , in a sense of having me look backward instead of forwards . I ’ ve always run toward the light , and not tried to reexamine the past . A few things changed that . Number one was the loss of my dear friend and bandmate Neil , after a terrible threeand-a-half-year struggle [ with brain cancer ]. Then , an ensuing pandemic , where I was sort of locked away with my reflections on that loss and desperately trying to put some perspective onto it . There was also the degeneration of my mother ’ s faculties . She suffered from dementia and she was losing her memory . All those things were preying upon me . I was looking for some answers to help me regain my equilibrium and become more of my
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