Neil Peart Taking Center Stage: Lifetime of Live Performances

My husband is a drummer and mentioned that he loved this guy. The dvds are amazing! So many facts and insight to his genius!! I enjoyed them as well.

I've been a Rush fan for more than three decades, and am also a recreational musician (mostly guitar and drums, dabbling with the bass), so it made sense for me to check out this DVD. Many reviews have already been written, so I'll just highlight the things that stood out for me:- Neil is a very articulate guy. At first, he might come across as pretentious, but no, he just possesses a serious intellect so this is how he normally is. Once you get used to it, it's quite refreshing!- It was interesting to learn how Neil does what he does, but I have to admit that I was also slightly saddened to see his magic 'demystified'. Of course, that doesn't mean that now I can even remotely do what Neil does, it's just that there's a certain pleasure in basking in the music without thinking about or knowing about how it's created.- I would have preferred seeing Alex and Geddy here and there, but I guess this DVD is Neil's gig.- I was a little surprised that Neil's physical posture doesn't seem all that relaxed - too me, he looks a bit tense. Maybe it's a reflection of age, how hard he hits, and having to navigate a rather large drum kit?- OK, this comment will draw criticism, but I have to be honest: I sometimes felt that Neil's timing was a bit 'off', i.e. tending to be slightly on the sluggish side. I can't explain it, and maybe it's just me, but I've never perceived this when listening to the albums.Not wanting to end on a negative note, let me conclude by saying that I really enjoyed this rather long DVD, in fact enjoying it more and more as I got further into it. It was like listening to a kind, humble, intelligent, and wise friend, so I was sad when we reached the end and it was time to part company, at least for a while. I highly recommend this DVD to anyone who appreciates Rush, drumming, and/or the effort involved in achieving artistic expression at a very high level.

Peart is nothing short of a genius, and to see this iconic MASTER sit and talk eloquently in perfect paragraph after perfect paragraph about HOW MUCH HE HAS LEFT TO LEARN is...well. It's Zen. It's sitting at the feet of the master.Now, I've banged around on drums for about 35 years and I can do some passable percussion in really banal situations--had a great time last fall playing udu at a folk sing-a-long. I have a small electronic trap set I take my frustrations out on many evenings. But I don't have the slightest chance of being able to play anything like Peart, ever, no matter how hard I might be able to try.So why do I find this--what amounts to an instructional video--so mesmerizing? The same thing that makes me watch Adrian Peterson play even when the Vikings are having a terrible season. Just watching someone at the top of his game, knowing that I belong to the same species as the one that produced this...wonder...is uplifting. Even if I can never do what these other people do, I can thrill vicariously at the accomplishment.And Peart is so well-read and well-spoken that little bits of philosophy often slip out even as he holds forth on the vagaries of rock drumming. Among my favorites on this set, he said that if you make a mistake, make it again. Presumably to make it appear more intentional.To underline my implied point: Even if you're not a drummer, just a fan of drumming, or of rock music, or hell, just excellence...this is a collection worth owning. And if there's a young person in your life, someone you wish to encourage in any endeavor, she could do a lot worse than to have the humble and hard-working Neil Peart as a role model.I know Peart is uncomfortable being lionized, and I don't want to put him up too high on a pedestal. That sort of thing is never good for the idol, and not much good for the idolater, either. But I think it's good for humans to have examples of what we can become, given the proper virtues of patience, hard work, inquisitiveness, creativity, humility, and wisdom. When we see such virtues personified, as they too seldom seem to be, I don't think it goes far amiss for those of us who notice to call it out.

Not only is Neil the exact percussionist I always thought he would be. He is a Teacher, a Shaman, a spiritual guide. His excitement about his approach to kit drumming, is quite evident. He doesn't want you to bend to his style. He wants you to take the music where it leads you. He encourages individuality. Neil takes you through all the aspects of being a modern-day arena act. He puts in the time to perfect his craft, because he respects his mode of expression. I am not a trained musician. I play drums as a hobbyist. I didn't start with rudimentary lessons, and learn counting and time sense. I picked it up by doing what I liked, and going to the next level. Neil even speaks to the beginner, which I consider myself. Any skill level, any knowledge, any technical proficiency or ability will be able to take something away from this video. His drum tech even shows you how he assembles, and mics his performance kit. There are specific key fills and ride patterns that are broken down, and then played in slow motion. As far as musicianship, and creativity, I would recommend this video to musicians playing any instrument. His views on practice, warm up and performance, in a work/life balance are essential tools for any gigging musician. All this from a very humble personality. If you are, or want to be a professional musician, this video is a must own!

Neil is so down to earth and approachable in this video (like always) and covers all details in technique and the making of songs. His level of detail and attention to detail is evident and he covers how he honed his precision and experimental phase of music. The World lost a genius and a gentleman when Neil passed, he was so relatable, communicated clearly, and was a talent without peer.

There is so much material on this set that it's hard to take it all in. Anyone who's ever heard of Neil Peart will already know that he was probably the greatest rock drummer to have sat behind a kit, but there was so much more to him than that and much of it comes across here.The sheer attention to detail to every beat and movement and even every breath he took whilst drumming made Neil a one-off. I simply don't know of anyone else who went to such lengths as a drummer. He deconstructs every song on the associated tour and explains how his updated versions of the drumming relate to the original or previous versions. Each song is taken apart piece by piece with slow motion capture of his technique and style, and then each song shown only from the drummer's perspective, as we progress through a full Rush concert.For drummers I guess this is particularly interesting, but for non drummers like me its utterly fascinating and I felt myself saying 'how did he do THAT!' or simply 'WOW' time and again. He even had special shoes made to help him out for goodness sake.I would classify this as unmissable for any fan of Rush. It is a superb documentary with huge insight not only into Neil and his drumming, but the whole musicality of Rush. It serves to make any fan even more sad at his untimely death.

Absolutely superb! Artistically, it clearly demonstrates Neil Peart's genius.The technical presentation is also extremely helpful.

The Professor is the One and Only, the Alpha and the Omega. Recommended for any drummer. Gave this to my brother and he loves it. But, as he would say, "that doesn't mean I can play like Neil".

This fantastic for real fans of rush and drummers

To anyone in the UK thinking of buying this, I can confirm that this DVD is region free and not region 1 as stated!As for the DVD, if your a drummer BUY IT! you won't be disappointed, it's worth every penny!