Fans of the progressive rock band Rush who tuned in to see the Canadian natives perform in the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics Opening Ceremony Friday night got left out in the cold.
There was no sign Geddy Lee, Alex Lifeson or Neil Peart anywhere during the five hour broadcast which featured Canadian artists from each region of the country, except for the Great Lakes, Rush's stomping ground. Sarah McLachlan, k.d. lang, Bryan Adams, Nelly Furtado and Joni Mitchell all turned in performances at BC Place Stadium.
The Canadian Press reported on Thursday that Geddy Lee and Alex Lifeson were seen rehearsing their hit 'Closer to the Heart' at BC Place. Now, there is speculation that the Rush performance was scrapped because the rock and roll vibe was perceived to be too upbeat to be respectful in the wake of the death of Georgian luger Nodar Kumaritashvili.
It is rumored that Rush may perform as part of the 2010 Winter Olympics Closing Ceremony.
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Comments
I would love to see Rush perform at the closing of the Olympics.
Detroit Kayaking Examiner
As soon as it was over I was hoping that they will perform at the closing ceremony. Closer to the Heart would be a great selection for the ceremonies.
I'm not convinced of the reasoning for Rush not appearing involving sensitivities to the passing of the luge athlete...I thought I witnessed plenty of loud, artsy, and (dare I say?) bizarre performances in the ceremonies last night that could easily be interpreted as insensitive - if that's in fact the concern...something else happened...but since the IOC is so tight-lipped and didn't issue any press releases on performers - and since everyone involved is resigned to NDAs anyway - we may never know what really happened.
After the letdown of them not appearing last night, I'm not going to hold my breath on a Closing Ceremonies appearance...especially if we're talking about a vocal performance from Geddy Lee, if he's asked to lip sync...I don't see the band agreeing to that. It would have to be completely live, and unless they come up with a stage design that works and nicely frames in Neil Peart's massive drumkit, I can hardly even visualize it happening.
Closer To The Heart would have been a PERFECT choice that evening. I don't understand the reasoning for not doing that part of the show. What an outstanding production.
It would be great to have them perform for the closing ceremonies, they rarely get the recognition they deserve.
Wow, there was actually a story run on this in the print/mainstream media! I thought Rush nerds on fan online message boards and blogs knew about this?
Yeah it was disappointing to not have RUSH there but I agree lip synching would not be RUSH's style. RUSH is part of the Canadian Fiber and it was really an empty space not having them there. There were so many places in the ceremony were a RUSH song would have fit in nicely. I don't think they will play a closing ceremony and if they do, I will watch it on You Tube. Closer to the Heart is a wonderful song and would have been a great selection. I'm very much looking forward to the next gift that RUSH has for us fans, new music - tour. We all await with much excitement for what the future holds... RUSH ON!
It's so simple; One Litte Victory would have lit that place up big time. That would have been awesome. :)
Correction: One Little Victory
Too bad, the gods on Olympia would have heard the celebration for sure.
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