Geddy Lee is writing an “epic-length” memoir laying bare his life in Rush and beyond, for publication in 2022.
In a post on Instagram, Rush’s vocalist/bassist reveals that he took on the project during the pandemic lockdown as a way of dealing with the grief and pain he felt in the wake of his friend and bandmate Neil Peart’s death in January 2020. The as-yet-untitled memoir will be published by HarperCollins next autumn.
“My friend and collaborator on the Big Beautiful Book Of Bass, Daniel Richler, saw how I was struggling in the aftermath of Neil’s passing, and tried coaxing me out of my blues with some funny tales from his youth, daring me to share my own in return,” Lee shares. “So I did — reluctantly at first, but then remembering, oh yeah, I like wrestling with words.”
“And soon my baby-step stories were becoming grownup chapters. Being the nuclear obsessive that I am, I'd write and re-write them, reassessing perspectives in the narrative not just by scouring my memory banks but my diaries and piles of photo albums too… In a voice that sounded, well, just like me, a presentable, epic-length account of my life on and off the stage was taking shape: my childhood, my family, the story of my parents' survival, my travels and all sorts of nonsense I've spent too much time obsessing over.”
You can read Lee’s full post about the forthcoming book below.
The as-yet-untitled memoir, to be edited by Noah Eaker, is set for publication in autumn 2022.
Barenaked Ladies frontman Ed Robertson revealed this week that he's working with Lee on a "super-secret" project.