Petition to Induct RUSH into the Rock N Roll Hall of Fame

As a child and grandchild of musicians as well as sibling to a current musician, I have been exposed to music for all of my 39 years. I have developed a taste for all types of music and consider myself pretty rounded when it comes to musical tastes. When I was 18 years old, a friend of mine visited my house with a cassette tape of "his" favorite band; a band I only had been exposed to, occasionally, on radio.

The band is named Rush and the album my friend brought along was "Fly By Night". This was the band's second studio album, released in 1975 and I was instantly in-love. From that moment on, I began to amass their entire collection, which spans, at this point, over 30 years. The three members of Rush include Alex Lifeson on guitar, Geddy Lee who plays bass, keyboards and is the band's vocalist, and Neil Peart, percussionist extraordinaire, who is also the band's lyricist. Formed in 1968, this band has evolved from fledgling Led Zeppelin-esque hard-rock star-wannabes to the progressive power trio with world-wide recognition they are today and from the beginning they did it their way, writing their own songs, refusing to bow to industry standards or "cover" songs and doing what was expected of bands in the early 1970's.

Regarded as a musicians' band, they never bent to try and stay mainstream and, at times, critics seem to resent them for walking their own, at times, rocky paths. The musicianship of these three players is extraordinary. Extremely talented musicians as individuals, together they play of the same mind, with the same heart and have never lowered their standards of quality and professionalism. You won't find the odes to heartsick romance, glamorizing of drug-use or death and destruction in their lyrics; instead, Neil Peart tackles the events of the day and goes to the heart of the matter, with a conviction and intelligence rarely noted in mainstream rock music lyricists, writing instead on topics such as faith, terrorism, individualism, grief, spiritualism, human interests and even space.

Having never truly gained radio respect and airplay, with the exception of a handful of tunes that gained popularity through the years, the band has amassed an almost cultish following, mainly spread by word-of-mouth, of devoted fans that include many fellow professional bands, up and coming musicians and open-minded music lovers of all ages. As the band's sound and style has grown and evolved throughout the years, it has become increasing more difficult to label them under any one type of music as even their more popular songs cannot define them; therefore, they have singlehandedly created their own niche in the music scene.

WHY am I am Rush fan? It's simple. At the point in my life when I was leaving childhood behind and the reality of adulthood loomed large ahead of me, I needed something to believe in and in the music and lyrics of Rush, I found an understanding; they related to me and the dreams, hopes, beliefs, trials and tribulations that I was dealing with. They spoke of things I could wrapped my thoughts around. They have endured in the face of criticism and animosity to achieve a recognition of their incredible talents and musicianship. Rush fans around the world love them, not only for their message or music, but because they are one of us, they don't do what they do for commercial purposes but instead they do it for themselves and in the process, they take us along with them. They are like family members to those of us who call ourselves RUSH fans and it is a title I am very proud to claim.

By signing this petition, you let those who make the induction decisions know that it is time to stop the snub. You help lead the charge to correct an injustice.  You let it be known that the omission of RUSH from the Hall of Fame for all these years is an oversight that needs to be corrected, once and for all.