Given their reputation for being obsessive, it was no surprise that many of tonight’s audience had seemingly travelled a considerable distance to witness the opening night of Geddy Lee‘s UK book tour in support of his recently released memoir, My Effin’ Life. It marked the first time a member of Rush had graced a stage in Wolverhampton, although the band did of course play many shows in the region over the years, including venues such as Birmingham Odeon, the NEC and Stafford’s Bingley Hall. The format of the two hour show saw Geddy being interviewed by a special guest in the first half, followed by a book reading and an intermission, with a further reading to start the second half that was followed by an audience Q & A.

Guest interviewers for the North American shows had included Alex Lifeson and Soundgarden’s Kim Thayil, and tonight it was the turn of Manic Street Preachers Nicky Wire, very much a self confessed Rush geek who discovered the band after borrowing his brothers copy of A Farewell to Kings. With Wire’s extensive knowledge of Rush history this made for a very entertaining conversation between the pair that touched on subjects including Geddy’s motivation for writing the book, the passing of Neal Peart, his lifelong friendship with Alex and the musical changes in Rush over the years. The first half then closed with Geddy reading a chapter on his distinctive voice and vocal style.

The interval included a trailer for Geddy’s new TV series Are Bass Players Human Too?, which looks to be good fun, and he then read a chapter focused on some of his childhood memories. Longtime friend of the band Phil Wilding then hosted the Q & A which included some amusing anecdotes about touring with UFO (including Geddy doing his Pete Way impression), and opening for Sha Na Na. Some of the questions covered topics that had already been discussed in the first half, use of keyboards, singing Neal’s lyrics etc, which didn’t seem the best use of the time available. Nevertheless, a rousing standing ovation closed the evening and you get the impression Geddy is really enjoying his time back on stage, even if he doesn’t have a bass guitar strapped around his neck. Hugely inspirational and influential, for Rush fans tonight was a rare opportunity to witness their hero in a very relaxed environment, and celebrate the legacy that Geddy, Alex and Neal created.