The drummer Stewart Copeland knows is out of his league: “My God!”
Without a good drummer, a band falls apart, and Stewart Copeland was always an excellent drummer.
Copeland knew how good he was as well, to the extent that his ideas almost extended beyond the bands that he was in. Occasionally, it would lead to friction, like when The Police were rehearsing for their reunion shows.
Granted, there was already tension leading up to these gigs, as Sting seemed to think that they were somewhat beneath him. “When the Police reunited, it had been long enough, and it was the right time to do it. And I’m taking credit for that because that was my decision,” he said. “Doing it again would just be gratuitous, and that won’t happen. But we did it, and everyone was happy that mum and dad got back together again and had one last fling.”
This tension was difficult to ignore, to the extent that it extended into rehearsals for the band’s reunion, as Copeland was trying to show off his chops as one of the world’s best drummers and frustrated Sting in the process. There is a clip of the band arguing in one of their pre-reunion rehearsals, which shows that they were doomed before a tour bus engine had even been turned on.
“That’s gunna be on the fucking cover of modern drummer magazine,” said Copeland after a complex drum fill of his stopped a song in its tracks, “It’s gunna be fucking devoted to that drum fill you cunt!”
Sting didn’t think much of the moment of improvisation: “It’s amazing you can play that drum full in nine beats,” Copeland concluded, “Get lost! Just because it’s a little confusing for the fucking bass playing element!”
Despite Copeland being well aware of how much of an exceptional drummer he was, he knew there was always one percussionist he could never live up to. Regardless of how much he tried to ignore the imposing figure of this drummer, fans would always remind Copeland just how excellent he was, as they would constantly call Copeland their second-favourite drummer behind this one. That master of rhythm was none other than Rush’s Neil Peart.
“Neil was a good friend of mine,” said Copeland. “One of the indignities of being me, what I have to deal with is, you know, walking down the street whistling a happy tune and somebody comes up ‘Oh wow, Stewart Copeland, my God! My God! You’re my second favourite drummer!’ And I know it’s Neil, it’s always Neil.”
Rush also knew just how excellent a drummer Peart was, as after he passed away in January 2020, they felt like they would never tour again, as playing such music without Peart didn’t feel right, but once Geddy Lee and Alex Lifeson jammed together, they knew that Peart wouldn’t want the band to stop performing just because he was no longer here, and so his influential percussion lives on even in his absence. A true testament to sound, unrelenting in his innovation.
“It’s been over ten years since Alex and I have performed the music of Rush alongside our fallen bandmate and friend Neil,” said Lee. “A lifetime’s worth of songs that we had put our cumulative hearts and souls into writing, recording and playing together onstage.”
Concluding, “And so, after all that has gone down since that last show, Alex and I have done some serious soul searching and come to the decision that we fucking miss it, and that it’s time for a celebration of 50-something years of Rush music.”
