Rush To Be Inducted Into Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame

Well, it is rather refreshing to see veteran rockers Rush recognized by an organization that has “Hall of Fame” as part of its name. My only question would be, what took them so long? Admittedly, the organization was founded only twelve years ago, a relative adolescent when compared to some of the other “halls,” so perhaps I should cut them some slack.

The work of Geddy Lee, Alex Lifeson and Neil Peart is set to be honored during the March 28 ceremony at Toronto’s Centre For The Arts’ George Weston Recital Hall. Well-known Rush classics “Tom Sawyer,” “Limelight,” “The Spirit of Radio,” “Subdivisions” and “Closer to the Heart” will be included.

In a somewhat ironic turn of events, a Canadian classic known as “The Hockey Theme” by Dolores Claman will also be inducted. This comes close on the heels of the release of a new version of the same song by Rush’s own Neil Peart. Surely it’s a bit too early to consider Peart’s version for induction – heck, I don’t even know if most Canadians like it, or what the original songwriter thinks of it.

I’m hoping that our neighbors to the north forgive me for any inaccuracies or omissions regarding “The Hockey Theme,” whether it be the original or new version. Not being a Canadian or a fan of the sport, I welcome any corrections from those more qualified to speak on the subject.

The bottom line is that it’s nice to see Rush recognized for their decades of work, and being such humble and decent fellows, I expect they will be happy to be in attendance at the ceremony.

After being snubbed for so long by the decision makers for that “other” music-related hall a bit further to the south for so long now, I kind of wish the guys from Rush would turn down any future invites to that particular establishment that might be – by some miracle – forthcoming. Being the nice guys that they are, that probably won’t happen.

Perhaps I should work more on being a nice guy myself.

Nah, that would definitely cut down on some of the fun I have here. Maybe I’ll work on being a bit less nice instead. After all, that’s the kind of stuff that always seems to get the most attention, right?