Traveling Music: The Soundtrack To My Life And Times

Rating:
Summary: Can't wait for the next book
Review: As I was reading this book, some parts felt as though the dragged a bit, and others were sections I could not stop reading. (I loved the sections where Peart talked about his musical influences and now I really hope he writes a book just about Rush. We'll see.) After I read the book, however, I noticed how much I liked all of it. Peart writes so conversationally, no matter what he's talking about it's easy to read, even when he's talking about bird watching. Definately worth the read if you're a Rush fan, still worth the read even if you're not.

Rating:
Summary: Poor writing, too many tangents, too many excerpts
Review: Got this from the library. Being a huge Rush fan, I planned on buying this if I liked it. I am certainly glad I got it from the library. Too many explanations of places, other authors' works.. just really, really, really boring, long-winded, and too many tangents. I love Rush, am a GIANT fan, but this book is horrendous, and had not Neil Peart been the writer, no one would have ever heard of this book, nor bothered to read it. The guy's a walking encyclopedia, apparently, and I respect that.. I just don't care to read about tectonic plates, utlity companies, World's Fairs, etc, etc, etc.. The excerpts from other writers' books is, to me, unforgiveable and just downright mundane. I expected this type of writing somewhat because of Ghost Rider.. but not this bad, not so early within the book. Neil himself once said, "Have something to say...." I would advise him of this advice before the next book.

Rating:
Summary: Enjoyable, but not polished
Review: I certainly am not regretting the 20 bucks I spent on this book, but I think it could have been, well, tighter. Perhaps one would expect that an artist known for such machine-precision drumming would write prose the same way, but this book is neither tight and precise like Mr. Peart's drumming or cerebral and evocative like much of his lyricism with Rush.

After reading the book, I read the reviews here on Amazon. I suppose the theme that keeps coming up in reviews for this book as well as "Ghost Rider" is an assumption that the voice in his writing is arrogant, snobby and/or elitist. Speaking strictly of "Traveling Music", I do not hear that voice in the writing. Riding solo on his motorcycle while the "rest of the band" is on the bus is basic to the personality Peart reveals in this book, and to me did not come across as elitist. Who knows... I'd rather be flying down the highway on a bike than in a bus any day. Ordering him to join the band every day on the bus might well tinker with the magic that is Peart's creative, driving force behind Rush, and besides, he'd just do his own thing anyhow. That is one of the points of this book: living individually while participating in community. Therein are lessons. Today's publicly visible artists, as Peart writes, are unfortunately not always treated well by those that claim to appreciate them (he mentions John Lennon... point made). If the man wishes to lead a life of seclusion and peace, who is to begrudge him? Like most people, he writes of wanting to go to work, give it his all, and then, well... go home or go private. Peart apparently is quite cognizant that there are those who feel he shuns them, and at least makes an attempt to address it. Peart writes of his frustration with people who invade his privacy. As for the "I love your work" quote - well, Peart seems to have appreciated it and, more to the point, appreciated the unobtrusive nature of the comment. Fans who feel short-shrifted by such behavior should remember that a person like Peart is essentially a captive audience... a target for far more people's attention than can be realistically accepted on an individual level. He gives us what the normal unspoken contract between star and fan agrees to give us... his professional hours on stage and wonderful art otherwise. Autographs are nice, and public appearances are good, but no wonder there is a tendency to carve out ones' own private space. I certainly am not defending the man, but I relate to the writing in this book about needing sanctuary. Anyone who works in a profession that deals with a crush of people (musicians, athletes, actors, politicians - OK, SOME politicians...) can understand Peart's desire for "down time". Basically, the desire to live a private life is not snubbing his fans... get over it, people...

Back to the writing... as a road-trip junkie myself (and who has taken many of the roads Peart describes in my rather less inspired vehicle), I easily was transported along. Yes, the constant reference to The Macallan gets a bit impish, but, hey, the man's just that way. (Personally, I prefer The Balvenie, but who really cares, right...). The loose narrative style fits the subject matter well, and alternating the chapters between the current journey and the lifelong journey is effective. I enjoyed his presentation of his musical influences and CD collection immensely, and now have some new stuff to listen to. Those reviewers who complained about his focus on these musicians apparently forgot to read this book's title...

Students of literature may well find Peart's writing a bit simple, but therein lies the beauty of this book... it is a road-trip... not a medical science journal. Peart may, or may not, be a self-centered, arrogant, unapproachable star. It really doesn't matter. The fact that he chose to share his basic life story, whether altruistically or with a profit motive (perhaps both) is unusual enough in a person of his professional standing. Rush fans... it is more information than we ever thought we'd see. Everyone else... at the least you may find Peart an interesting study.



Rating:
Summary: Neil Peart's message...."Carpe Diem!"
Review: I have been a long time fan of Rush (I owned "All The World's a Stage" and "2112" on 8-Track!) and have always had a slight fascination with Neil Peart as a musician. Granted, as a lyricist that aren't too many better in our generation, but to watch the guy pound out on a set for 3 hours a night the way he does is facinating. His energy and technical discipline is astounding. Now, getting a little older and not one to "race out" for the newest release of ANYONE these days, I was surprised to find out that Neil published a book (let alone 3 books). I was quick to buy the book, not only for the reasons mentioned, Neil has always mantained almost complete anonymity his entire career and I wanted to read what the man had to say.

I am not one to generally label the BEST this or the BEST that, but this book is the best book I've ever had the pleasure of reading thus far. Yes, there is a lot of music in the book--and the conversation offered by the author on the subject is all around pleasing. Interesting musical anecdotes and musical insight, always intelligent and fair. But the music is just the delivery system to a whirl-wind of the author's memories, passions and travel expeditions.

I particularly enjoyed reading about the smaller things that many take for granted. The performance of good, powerful driving machinery, great scotch, singing birds, side road bbq joints and the "regular Joe" you meet on the road who might have something both subtle and profound to offer. To hear Neil Peart talk about the Mariachi bands of Oaxaca has lead me to research this destination for a weekend getaway this March (I read his book in Akumal, Mexico on the Yal Ku Lagoon--a place that can inspire 1,000 books).

I think the part that I enjoyed the most when I finished the last page is reading a book written by a man with (without sounding to cliche) an enormous lust for life and knowledge. Better than that, a man who can write intelligently about these lusts with a good heart and little pretention. A friend traveling with me in Mexico was reading the new offering from Anthony Kiedis (Red Hot Chili Peppers). A book riddled with petty complaints, physical abuse and heroin addiction. After hearing me talk about Traveling Music (which I finished in 4 days) he tossed his book out and borrowed mine.
Now that's something...try finding an intelligent book written by a popular musician that not only doesn't bring you down, it gives cause to celebrate life and all of its beauty.

One critisism I've read more than a few times about Neil Peart is his uncomfotable relationship with being recognized by fans. In my business I find myself crossing paths with quite a few and I can sympathize with the man. He says saying "nice work" is an invasion of privacy. Well, just saying that isn't REALLY, but the always obvious before and after gauking and inevitable forced handshakes are.

Good for you Neil. Honest from front to finish.

Rating:
Summary: PRETENTIOUS
Review: I really did not like this book. In fact it has sort of put me off of the genius that is Rush music. This book features Mr. Peart dispensing his highly biased wisdom on everything from the music he was influenced by, his extensive travels, his personal life and all that this entails. The topics grew tedious and repetitive very quickly, rather self indulgent throughout. I could not read the final third of the book. Peart speaks as though he's the authority on any number of rambling subjects. Eventually I just had to put the book down with a resounding "I don't really care what you think!" A well written narrative that is too long and overall just exposes Peart's PRETENTIOUS attitudes. Stick to the drums and lyrics kind sir.

I also want to add that for Neil Peart to separate himself from his band mates while touring i.e. traveling in his own bus with his own friends and crew is just a little too elitist for me. He should hang with his fellow musicians who helped make him famous as much as his own personal effort and talent did. Alex and Geddy seem to enjoy each other's company enough to travel together. It's called a "group" or a "band", not a one man show.


Rating:
Summary: Intricately Woven
Review: I'd consider this the most well written published work of Neil Peart to date.

He uses the songs of a solo drive over an extended weekend as the springboard for reflections on his past and his evolution to what he has become. The music and his life have many parallels.

I found the diversity of music he likes fascinating and certainly got turned onto some music I never would have considered seriously before reading this (Frank Sinatra, Linkin Park) while others were fairly obvious influences that I directly related to.

It was interesting how open Neil was about his past, esp. his Teen years and how the behavior of others so permanantly and dramatically impacted who he became as an adult. I think we can all relate to that.

This book could easily have become confusing and bogged down in the changes from distant past stories to recent past to present time. But it doesn't. It easily kept my interest, had me nodding in agreement, and search in the music store and bookstore shelves for referenced books and albums.

My one complaint, and it was a complaint with Ghost Rider as well, is that he doesn't include a biography of the books and albums he mentioned. I kept a bookmark and pen handy and wrote down most of the albums I want to check out and books I want to read, but it would be nice if they'd have been included with full information and potentially even comments in an appendix.

If you're a fan of Neil or just a fan of well written biographies of interesting people I think you'll enjoy this book.

Rating:
Summary: An interesting individual
Review: I've admired Neil Peart for years, not only because he's the amazing drummer of an excellent band, but because he's such an interesting individual as well. And not only is he the writer of a couple of bestsellers, but he's the group lyricist also, an unusual duty for a drummer. Neil's the type of person one might think lives an existence of perfection, bordering unadulterated fantasy, until one learns of the tragedy that had so rudely entered into his life a while back. Losing a spouse and a child within a year of each other is more than enough for anyone to have to experience. Life holds the intricate ability to shine brightly one day, but cast absolute darkness the next. It's good to see that Neil was eventually able to get his life back together, and new love into it as well. He's definitely a survivor.

`Traveling Music' speaks a little of that adjustment, where his earlier book, `Ghost Rider', had left off. But this story is more about his life between stage shows, and what he does to occupy himself after the music's over. Neil captivatingly describes his motorcycle jaunts across America, Africa as well. His keen judgment has taught him that roughing it can bring him to respect the good life, when he returns to it, even more. It's amazing that he opts to sit atop his bike instead of riding in the band bus or airplane, and sometimes takes it upon himself to travel to the next show.

Viewing the book before purchasing it, I immediately discovered how interesting it would be to read about an individual such as Neil, talking about the CDs in his stereo while driving around in his new sports car. I wish more professional musicians would do that, and provide us with their opinions on the music of others as they live their lives.

I only had a couple of problems with the book. At one point, when Neil spoke of a fellow traveler, and how unintelligent he perceived the man to be ... I had trouble with that. He belittled him because of his blatant opinion on homosexuality. Granted, the individual he described did come across as a tad slow witted, but I feel that people should be more tolerant of other people's beliefs and opinions, especially when religion is involved. We all have a right to our own beliefs, and everybody should respect that.


The other thing was the music Neil spoke of, and played in his car stereo. I enjoyed it when he talked of great talent that often went unnoticed, or unappreciated, such as Vertical Horizon and the Tragically Hip, especially the latter, as I'm a big fan of the Hip, and have been for years. He spoke of, and played many CDs of Frank Sinatra. In fact, he went on and on about Old Blue Eyes, and others as well, such as the boy band, 98°, Madonna, and the Beach Boys. He also wrote of performers I enjoy a lot, such as The Who, Linkin Park, Coldplay, and Jeff Buckley. I just couldn't help feeling, especially because he's such a talented musician from a progressive rock band, that he pays way too much attention to pop music. His taste came across as somewhat shallow to me. Though there's nothing wrong with the entertainers he spoke of, he didn't seem to be aware of the fact that there's so much real talent out there today, extraordinarily deep talent. Neil appears to be missing the boat on it all. Madonna? C'mon Neil, what about Sarah McLachlan, Norah Jones, Dianna Krall? Oh ... They're not Pop. Though all music can be considered traveling music, Neil's selection is more what one might hear on an AM radio, not the diverse CD player of an alleged tasteful, progressive rock musician.

I did find it quite interesting, though, to read about his admiration for the drumming of Keith Moon, Buddy Rich, and others. But what about the drumming of Matt Cameron, Matt Sorum, Steve Gadd, Dan Gottlieb, etc.?

But all things considered, the book was a fairly good read. It made me look forward to the next Rush concert all the more, and seeing an awesome band once again, whose members work together as a fine-tuned machine, even though the drummer doesn't appear to have much to do with the other members once the show is over.


Rating:
Summary: Now what?
Review: The answer to "Now what?" was "Why don't I write a book about me driving around in my very expensive car listening to music"? Good book, but it's the least accessible of his 3 published books to date for non-Rush fans. Honestly, part of what I don't like about this book (and the previous one) is learning that one of my "heroes" is all too human. Even the quick "I like your work" in passing is an invasion of privacy??? Wow! The jacket description seems to indicate the book is all about his musical influences. There's some of that, but in general this is thankfully not the case. While I found it interesting that a member of my favorite band doesn't share my musical tastes, I was not at all interested in the details. Do I really care why he thinks Madonna is great? Nope! Do I care which "boy band" is his favorite? No! In fact, I really wish he didn't have one! Which of Sinatra's albums are the best? Hmmm... I really don't care! There are times while reading this book that I wondered if I should stop. Luckily I didn't because the last few chapters are the best! Fans of the "Letters to Brutus" format will not be disappointed as there are plenty of raw letters, e-mails, and audio tape journal entries, etc. Gee Neil, now that you're a real writer don't you think you could summarize the contents in prose??? If it was really important, you could always include a sentence that the end that said "I wrote this in a letter/journal entry/e-mail, etc.. to so-and-so". I love the travel stories in all of his books, and "Vermillion Flycatcher" would be a great name for a band!

Rating:
Summary: An insightful look at a man, and music
Review: When I first purchased the book, I wasn't sure of what I would think, a story around the music from a trip, yet upon finishing it, I have to give it five stars. Mr. Peart has woven a book together through insights, and skill, tossing that aspect which has always followed him in his art, detailed, but not dry, clean, yet not 'polished'. Through the book, and his writing style, he has shown how human he really is, and the struggles associated with that.

The mixing of the two story lines, of the music on his week excursion to Big Bend National Park, and the autobiographical look back at a life, and how that life was molded by the times, and as you could guess, by the music of those times. The structure I found very interesting (and throughly enjoyed), put together much like a song would be, between the verses (the current trip) and the choruses (the "look back").

Being only his third published delve into the world of prose writing, I commend him for his skill, and look forward to his next endeavors (both musically, and in literature). The books only strong caveat that I see is the strong interspersing of opinion, his take on the world, and some of his values. If you find his lyrics 'annoying', or to opinionated, it simple, don't buy the book! but if you are willing to keep an open mind for opinions you do not share, and want a good read, and a view from a shy, and to a degree, self conscious 'minor celebrity', I think this is a book you may enjoy!

Rating:
Summary: Entertaining and insightful
Review: With the trilogy now complete comprising Mr. Peart's literary works, I found this book the most entertaining and insightful. In particular, the chapters on growing up in Ontario, the various events of his childhood and time in London were interesting and at times quite humorous. Could we have not all imagined Neil as a tall, "geeky" looking kid who would read Tolkien novels while his buddies were playing hockey? I found myself completely enthralled as he picks apart his traveling CD collection. From Sinatra to Linkin Park, Neil's sense of appreciation of the various styles of music was wonderful. How many Rush fan's were more than a wee bit shocked to know that The Professor enjoys listening to 98 degrees?!? My only negative on this book were the later chapters on the African bike tour. They seemed a bit tedious and were essentially a continuation of "The Masked Rider". Overall, a well-written and enjoyable biography and musical voyage through the mind of one of music's greatest drummers.