A new documentary about the late Neil Peart, Rush’s drummer and lyricist, will debut on Canada’s CBC network Sept. 23. Neil Peart: No One’s Disciple will tell Peart’s life story, and it will also feature interviews with Rush co-founders Geddy Lee and Alex Lifeson, as well with a crew of legendary drummers talking about his influence.
Also for the documentary, Lee and Lifeson filmed rehearsal hall performances of classic Rush songs with some well-known guest drummers, including the Police’s Stewart Copeland, the Red Hot Chili Peppers’ Chad Smith, and Tool’s Danny Carey. The pair previously played with Smith and Carey at a Taylor Hawkins tribute concert in 2022, but had never before performed with Copeland, who was close friends with Peart.
Peart, who is widely considered one of the greatest rock drummers of all time, died of cancer in 2020.
“[Peart] never rated himself as highly as everyone else did,” Copeland told Rolling Stone in 2020. “But he did very much feel the responsibility that he carried to be the God of drums. Kind of a burden, actually.”
“I was thinking about a Buddy Rich quote,” Peart told Rolling Stone in 2015. “He was asked, ‘What do you think about being the greatest drummer in the world? He said, ‘Ya know what, dummy’ — the way Buddy would say it — ‘you don’t achieve greatness. If you work hard at it, you achieve a certain amount of goodness and then you just try to preserve that.’ And he said, ‘I’ve never been happy with anything I’ve done but I keep trying.’ Bingo. You know?”
Lee and Lifeson are currently on the road with touring drummer Anika Nilles, with each concert featuring multiple tributes to Peart.
A portrait of Rivas Hernandez on display as authorities announced murder charges in the case in April. Frederic J. Brown/AFP/Getty Images
Burke at his arraignment in April. Ted Soqui/Pool/AP