Does Geddy come up w/ most of the vocal melodies??

[TheWinslowOfWillowdale]

I've read (in a few interviews) that Geddy and Neil work together "with the lyrics". So in essence, can we assume that Geddy writes all of Rush's vocal melodies??

[USB Connector]

They've mentioned a few times that sometimes they'll go beyond their designated instrument (Alex wrote the main drum part to the anarchist). So my guess is that they write things on their own for their parts and when they get together everyone gets some input on everything.

[Mika]

I would imagine that as the guy that has to sing the lyrics, Geddy does come up with the vocal melodies. I think how he and Neil work on the lyrics together, is that Geddy might need to tweak some lyrics in order to sing them a certain way or fit them into a melody, and Neil might come up with alternatives. I don't imagine Neil coming up with melodies, as he doesn't seem to work with melody much at all, working with words and drums. But it's not like I'm a fly on the wall at the nexus of Rush song creation (oh, to be that fly!), so this is just what I would think goes on.

 

I think it would be fun, though, to hear a demo tape of Neil singing his freshly-written lyrics, as maybe he's heard them in his head (I wonder if he ever hears melodies with them, before he passes them on?), and then compare this with the finished result. I think it would be very interesting!

[Babycat]

I would imagine that as the guy that has to sing the lyrics, Geddy does come up with the vocal melodies. I think how he and Neil work on the lyrics together, is that Geddy might need to tweak some lyrics in order to sing them a certain way or fit them into a melody, and Neil might come up with alternatives. I don't imagine Neil coming up with melodies, as he doesn't seem to work with melody much at all, working with words and drums. But it's not like I'm a fly on the wall at the nexus of Rush song creation (oh, to be that fly!), so this is just what I would think goes on.

 

I think it would be fun, though, to hear a demo tape of Neil singing his freshly-written lyrics, as maybe he's heard them in his head (I wonder if he ever hears melodies with them, before he passes them on?), and then compare this with the finished result. I think it would be very interesting!

 

This. :)

[SchemingDemon]

I'm positive that I've read an interview before with Geddy saying that he creates all the vocal melodies himself. I can't cite it though.

[eshine]

I don't think Neil has a "melody" in mind at all when he writes lyrics, which makes his and Ged's relationship all the more impressive.

 

In my opinion, Clockwork Angels contains some of their greatest work in that regard.

[Mika]

I don't think Neil has a "melody" in mind at all when he writes lyrics, which makes his and Ged's relationship all the more impressive.

 

In my opinion, Clockwork Angels contains some of their greatest work in that regard.

 

Agreed! There's some really good vocal melody in CA. It's amazing, really, how the songs come to be, and come to be so good, too, considering how they're kind of 'stitched' together. And it's amazing how much differentiation there is between songs, considering there's, what, 150ish songs in the Rush catalog, each with its own 'stand alone' style. True, these songs are spread over 40 years, but it's impressive that Rush's music still sounds so fresh, and doesn't sound rehashed at all (the obvious nod to 'Bastille Day' notwithstanding!).

 

I wonder if Geddy ever casually works on any of his own lyrics, as he did with My Favorite Headache; I wonder if he feels a need to have a lyrical outlet, or if he's satisfied with Neil coming up with everything and Geddy's content in his role.

[GeddysMullet]

Here is Geddy speaking about working with Neil as a lyricist:

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=pFfw-fgOIPo

[Weakly Criminal]

I would imagine that as the guy that has to sing the lyrics, Geddy does come up with the vocal melodies. I think how he and Neil work on the lyrics together, is that Geddy might need to tweak some lyrics in order to sing them a certain way or fit them into a melody, and Neil might come up with alternatives. I don't imagine Neil coming up with melodies, as he doesn't seem to work with melody much at all, working with words and drums. But it's not like I'm a fly on the wall at the nexus of Rush song creation (oh, to be that fly!), so this is just what I would think goes on.

 

I think it would be fun, though, to hear a demo tape of Neil singing his freshly-written lyrics, as maybe he's heard them in his head (I wonder if he ever hears melodies with them, before he passes them on?), and then compare this with the finished result. I think it would be very interesting!

 

I would agree that Neil contributes little to the melodies of the songs. But to say that he does not 'work with melody much at all' is to ignore much of what he's done in his solo's.

[Mika]

I would imagine that as the guy that has to sing the lyrics, Geddy does come up with the vocal melodies. I think how he and Neil work on the lyrics together, is that Geddy might need to tweak some lyrics in order to sing them a certain way or fit them into a melody, and Neil might come up with alternatives. I don't imagine Neil coming up with melodies, as he doesn't seem to work with melody much at all, working with words and drums. But it's not like I'm a fly on the wall at the nexus of Rush song creation (oh, to be that fly!), so this is just what I would think goes on.

 

I think it would be fun, though, to hear a demo tape of Neil singing his freshly-written lyrics, as maybe he's heard them in his head (I wonder if he ever hears melodies with them, before he passes them on?), and then compare this with the finished result. I think it would be very interesting!

 

I would agree that Neil contributes little to the melodies of the songs. But to say that he does not 'work with melody much at all' is to ignore much of what he's done in his solo's.

 

I know what you mean, and I agree that Neil has some very melodically-inclined drum solos, and drum parts, for that matter; I just mean that working with drums isn't quite the same as working with vocals, which are much more melodic, as vocals are uninhibited by the limited amount of tones that drums produce. But going off on this little tangent, one thing (out of many!) that I respect about Neil's drumming is that he tries to tell stories with his drums, particularly with his solos; he's not just keeping a beat, he's trying to evoke emotion. It really is quite amazing what he can do with drums!

[losingit2k]

Nah, all the melodies are created by Alex in different keys, then transposed into one key, where Geddy tries to desipher what Alex sang and puts them to Neil's Lyrics.

 

:laughing guy:

[TheWinslowOfWillowdale]

Nah, all the melodies are created by Alex in different keys, then transposed into one key, where Geddy tries to desipher what Alex sang and puts them to Neil's Lyrics.

 

:laughing guy:

 

Do you have a source for this?? Geddy and Alex are both extremely melodic.....I could see them sharing this task pretty evenly, but I've never read anything to that effect on point.....I have read that all "three" share the song writing credit, in equal shares (1/3 to Geddy for music, 1/3 to Alex for music & 1/3 to Neil for lyrics). I would imagine vocal melodies factor evenly into Ged's and Alex's aforesaid shares.....;)

[EagleMoon]

Nah, all the melodies are created by Alex in different keys, then transposed into one key, where Geddy tries to desipher what Alex sang and puts them to Neil's Lyrics.

 

:laughing guy:

 

Do you have a source for this?? Geddy and Alex are both extremely melodic.....I could see them sharing this task pretty evenly, but I've never read anything to that effect on point.....I have read that all "three" share the song writing credit, in equal shares (1/3 to Geddy for music, 1/3 to Alex for music & 1/3 to Neil for lyrics). I would imagine vocal melodies factor evenly into Ged's and Alex's aforesaid shares..... ;)

 

He was joking. :)

[TheWinslowOfWillowdale]

Yeah, haha.....I realized that after posting.

[Rhyta]

I just watched the making of Snakes & Arrows last night on youtube and Geddy says that Neil gives him the freedom to tweak his work and they have some give and take in the process too. [startat minute 7:37 to about 11:05. This is a great documentary how they work together and on the songs on S&A. These guys are amazing !

 

media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0eNjOPCdFtc [/media]

Edited March 30, 2013 by Rhyta