Alex Lifeson
- FaceOff - עימות חזיתי
- Aug 27
- 6 min read
Today is Alex Lifeson's birthday and this is a good opportunity to tell you some interesting facts about him:
(Photo: Rush R30 30th Anniversary Tour Book)
1. Alex was born on August 27, 1953, as Aleksandar Živojinović in Fernie, British Columbia, Canada, to Serbian immigrant parents.
2. The stage name "Lifeson" is actually a translation of his original surname Živojinović, which means "Son of Life".
3. When he was young, Alex's parents enrolled him in viola lessons, but he did not like it.
4. At the age of 13, he received a guitar from his father as a Christmas present, and he has been connected to the instrument ever since.
5 His first electric guitar was an inexpensive red Japanese-made Canora that cost his parents less than $60. Geddy Lee also played a Canora bass at the time, and the two painted their instruments themselves in an attempt to make them look like those played by the members of "Cream". Decades later, Lifeson's guitar was discovered in "Rush"'s storage and restored for him.
6. His playing was influenced by Jimi Hendrix, Jeff Beck, Pete Townshend, Eric Clapton, Jimmy Page, and Steve Hackett.
7 At the age of 17, Lifeson appeared in the Canadian documentary "Come on Children", which followed the lives of ten teenagers. In one of its most memorable scenes, he is seen arguing with his parents about his desire to leave school and dedicate his life to music. Decades later, the scene appeared in the "Rush" documentaries "Beyond the Lighted Stage" and "Time Stand Still".
8. In 1968 he formed the band "Projection" with his neighbor drummer John Rutsey and bassist and singer Jeff Jones. Later the band's name will be changed to "Rush" and Jeff Jones will be replaced by Geddy Lee, Alex's friend from high school.
(Photo: News.2112.net)
9. In October 1970, his eldest son was born to his then-girlfriend Charlene. Alex was only 17 at the time, four years before "Rush" released their debut album. He married Charlene in 1975, their second son was born in 1977, and they remain married to this day.
10. For the most part, Alex and Geddy Lee, are responsible for composing the music on "Rush"'s albums.
11. In addition to being the guitarist of "Rush", he has played keyboards, bass pedals, bouzouki and mandolin on the band's albums, as well as contributing backing vocals.
12. During "Rush"'s live performances, Alex also used pedals with his feet to trigger synthesizers, backing vocals and various effects that helped complete the band's sound.
13. His bandmates, bassist and singer Geddy Lee, and drummer Neil Peart nicknamed him "Lerxst".
14. Over the years, Lifeson has been recognized as one of rock's greatest guitarists. Among other honors, he was included on "Rolling Stone"'s list of the 100 Greatest Guitarists, while readers of "Guitar World" ranked him third, behind Eddie Van Halen and Brian May.
15. Alex is both a certified pilot and a painter.
16 The fact that Lifeson is a pilot also has an interesting connection to one of "Rush"'s most famous pieces. During a flight back to Toronto in a small plane, the band heard a navigation beacon transmitting the letters YYZ, Toronto's airport code, in Morse code. The rhythm caught their attention and became the basis for the opening of the instrumental "YYZ" from "Moving Pictures".
17. In 1996, he was appointed an Officer of the Order of Canada, one of the country's highest civilian honors.
(Photo: BBC.com)
18. In 1994, Lifeson became a co-owner of "The Orbit Room", a live music club in Toronto. Over the years, it became a well-known venue in the local music scene, and Lifeson would occasionally visit and even take the stage to play with musicians performing there. The club closed in 2020.
19 Lifeson was the first member of "Rush" to release a solo album, with his 1996 project "Victor". He served as producer, recording engineer, arranger and mixer. His son Adrian played on two tracks, while his good friend Les Claypool of "Primus" also appeared on the album.
20. Alex has contributed his guitar skills to numerous artists. Among other appearances, he played the guitar solo on "Anesthetize" from "Porcupine Tree"'s album "Fear of a Blank Planet".
21. Alex is also known as a music producer. He worked with "3 Doors Down" and produced three songs for the band: "Dangerous Game", "Dead Love" and "Wasted Me". The early versions of all three tracks produced by Lifeson were later included on the 20th anniversary expanded edition of "Away from the Sun", released in 2023.
22 Although he neither produced nor participated in any way in "Metallica"'s "Master Of Puppets", Lifeson and his "Rush" bandmates received a special acknowledgment in the album's liner notes.
23. During the recording of "Rush"'s 2002 comeback album "Vapor Trails", Lifeson used no fewer than 50 different guitars, partly as a result of the decision to make it the band's first album since the 1970s without keyboards.
24. During "Rush"'s induction into the "Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame" in 2013, Lifeson delivered his famous "Blah Blah Blah" speech, an unusual acceptance speech in which he replaced almost everything he wanted to say with "blah blah blah" for more than two minutes. Lifeson had actually prepared a real speech beforehand, but shortly before taking the stage he decided to abandon it and go with the spontaneous idea instead. Even Geddy Lee and Neil Peart had no idea what he was planning.
25. On New Year's Eve 2003, Lifeson and his son Justin became involved in a confrontation with police at the Ritz-Carlton hotel in Florida. During his arrest, Lifeson's nose was broken and he was shocked six times with a Taser. The incident led to lengthy legal proceedings, with Lifeson maintaining that the police had used excessive force against him.
26. Gibson released a special version of its famous Les Paul designed specifically for Lifeson. The "Alex Lifeson Axcess Les Paul" includes, among other features, a tremolo system and specially selected pickups.
27. Amplifier manufacturer Hughes & Kettner also released a signature amplifier bearing Alex's name. Lifeson donated his royalties from the amplifier to UNICEF.
(Photo: News.2112.net)
28. Lifeson wrote the music for "Rush"'s 18th studio album, "Snakes & Arrows", on acoustic guitar, following advice from none other than David Gilmour, who favored this approach to songwriting. At Alex's request, Gilmour was thanked in the album's liner notes.
29. Lifeson's playing has influenced many notable guitarists. Among those who have cited him as an influence are Paul Gilbert, John Petrucci, Steven Wilson and Steve Rothery.
30 Lifeson even has a chord closely associated with him, known as "The Alex Lifeson Chord" or "The Hemispheres Chord". It is the famous chord that opens "Cygnus X-1 Book II: Hemispheres", based on an F# shape with open upper strings that give it the wide, ringing sound so strongly associated with his playing. John Petrucci of "Dream Theater" even chose it as the one chord he would take with him to a desert island, saying it should be called "The Alex Lifeson Chord".
31. In June 2021, he released two new instrumental pieces, "Kabul Blues/Spy House".
32. OOn April 8, 2022, the debut album by the project "Envy Of None" was released, featuring Lifeson alongside singer Maiah Wynne, among others. In 2023, the band released the EP "That Was Then", followed by the album "Stygian Wavz" in 2025.
33. On May 20, 2022, an auction was held in which Lifeson sold dozens of guitars and instruments from his personal collection. Among them was his custom-built 1976 Gibson ES-355TD, nicknamed "Whitey", which sold for $384,000, as well as the Hentor Sportscaster built for him in 1980.
34. On August 10, 2022, he reunited with Geddy Lee to perform "Closer to the Heart" with "Primus" and "South Park" co-creator Matt Stone on drums during "South Park: The 25th Anniversary Concert".
35. Lifeson and Lee reunited again later that year during the two "Taylor Hawkins Tribute Concerts" held in memory of drummer Taylor Hawkins.
36 In 2026, Lifeson returned to activity with "Rush" alongside Geddy Lee as part of the "Fifty Something" tour, their first tour together since the conclusion of "R40" in 2015. They were joined by drummer Anika Nilles, with the shows celebrating more than 50 years of "Rush"'s music while also honoring the memory and legacy of Neil Peart. Following enormous demand, the tour was expanded, with dates in South America, the UK and Europe scheduled for 2027.
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