Roadshow: Landscape With Drums: A Concert Tour by Motorcycle by Neil Peart Summary and Reviews
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Book Reviews of Roadshow: Landscape With Drums: A Concert Tour by Motorcycle
Book Review: More tales of woe from the reluctant 'rock star'
Summary: 2 Stars
Readers of this book will fall into 2 broad categories:
1. The Rush fanatic (and I mean FANATIC) who will devour every page in the hope that it will offer a further insight into the mind of Mr Peart and hopefully a hint into when their heroes might return to the concert stage.
2. The 'normal' fan who will read it out a of a sense of curiosity and with few expectations.
I was going to add a third category, that of the non fan, but then changed my mind as there is absolutely nothing in this book of any interest to anyone who doesn't know Rush, that most misunderstood of rock bands. As a result it won't be read by any such non-fans, for there is limited mileage (pardon the pun) in reading about the drummmer in a band you've never heard of reluctantly riding his motorcycle around the USA and (very reluctantly) Europe, playing drums, sleeping on a bus, eating some nice dinners, and all the while wishing that he could go home and do something less tedious.
The irony of course, is that for years Peart has been banging on about his loss of privacy and the price of fame - yet here is his third book in 4 years, once again pouring out the details of his life for the benefit of all those "strangers" he is so wary of.
So I'm looking forward to the next installment of The Professor's lifestory.[...]
Book Review: Keep on keeping on
Summary: 4 Stars
If you've already read Neil Peart's previous books you will enjoy this because it's a further exploration of the Peart persona - a sincere soul who is a bit uncomfortable with humanity and himself, but is still self-aware. It's also an interesting insight into the relentless life of touring, not that Peart is looking for sympathy; just understanding. His dry humour is also more to the fore in the mix than on previous outings, and that's no bad thing. The reason for four stars not five: by the end you feel as weary as Peart feels after the tour - the book is that relentless, but this is no doubt intentional. Book Review: Confessions of a man who's tired of his profession
Summary: 2 Stars
Rush fans who bought tickets, travelled long distances and queued often for many hours to see the band on their R30 anniversary tour will be disappointed to discover that their revered 'Professor' on the drumkit did not especially enjoy the experience, was bored most of the time and spent hours aimlessly burning up the roads on his motorbike in order to relieve the tedium by travelling to destinations that he himself admits were mostly pointless exercises in going nowhere. The result is a curiously flaccid travel book, about places he has mostly been to before and that are not visited for any intrinsic desire to go there but simply as notches on his odometer (every other page faithfully gives us his mileage in K and mph -- who cares?).
When he does occasionally write about playing with the band -- as opposed to what he had for dinner and how many copies of his last book were sold -- his disengagement with the whole process is painfully obvious.
It's also sad to note how paranoid and downright afraid he is of his fans: though admitting that 999 out of 1000 Rush fans are sensible decent people, every time he ever encounters one he reacts with anger and frustration (and that's not just the nutters who follow him or invade his tour bus privacy, but just the ordinary ones who want nothing more than to say 'Thanks for the music and the inspiration'). If ever I see Neil Peart in the street I'll cross the road ...
[Oh, and by the way Neil, the reason you hardly ever see traffic cops in Britain is not because the British are laid back about speed -- if only! -- but because all the police have been sacked to make room for remote controlled speed cameras.]
Book Review: More of the same...
Summary: 2 Stars
Once again, Mr Peart demonstrates that while he has some talent as a writer, his weaknesses are terribly exposed over the course of an entire book. Having read his other books, primarily as a Rush fan (but then who else would read them?) I have had more than enough of these self-indulgent road trips which he thinks are so deserving of a wider readership.
Each chapter goes something like this: "So after another 500K of great scenery, just RUINED by some idiot who wanted to go faster than us, we decided to make a quick overnight at the local 5 star hotel. After a stunning meal, followed by The Macallan (yes, it's a whisky but say it in awed tones) I could not believe it when some moron decided he would RUIN my evening by asking me if I was me!! Even after 30 years in one of the world's top rock bands some doofus thinks he can just waltz right up and say hello...I swiftly told him where to go. If I'd had my security man with me it would have been a hell of a lot worse for that guy so he was lucky. Completely RUINED the entire day. Had a look at tomorrow's schedule, seems we have a gig somewhere. Oh sufferance."
Maybe I'm being unkind. The book that Rush fans were expecting is not within these pages, having been promised something about life on the road as part of the rock juggernaut that is Canada's biggest band. There's just not a lot between this and his last book and the writing style is becoming predictable. Yes, Neil does come across in his books as vain, self-centred and intolerant (human failings indeed) but he has never sounded quite so...spoiled. I wonder if he is capable of writing about anything or anyone other than himself?
Book Review: Better than some would say
Summary: 5 Stars
It's interesting how negative many Rush fans seem to be about this book. Yes, it reveals that Peart is often tired, bored and disillusioned with touring. But, he is not always so, and if they would take the time to read the final chapter a bit more carefully, they will get a fantastic summing up of all his feelings - not just the negative ones. I am not surprised he is often tired and bored - it's his THIRTIETH year of touring all over the world for months on end, apart from his loved ones, four years after he lost both wife and daughter in the space of a year. He's in his fifties, not his teens, and he is that ultra rare commodity - an intellectual drummer! He's a complex man - what did these fans expect, a moronic sex, drugs, and rock 'n' roll extravaganza?! Or, maybe a song by song, night by night, dissection of every gig - even the most hardened fan would lose interest in that after a few gigs, and no one else would possibly care. Incidentally, my wife, who is not a Rush fan, is really enjoying it, and I would say that it is actually a really good read. Stuffed full of interesting anecdotes, observations, and philosophy. Don't be put off by the negativity, and give it a go. I'm glad I did.