Canadian rock trio Rush has finally earned a place in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame after fans petitioned for more than a decade to get them inducted.
Rush will join others like Donna Summer, Randy Newman, Heart, and Public Enemy as members of the 2013 class of Rock and Roll Hall of Fame honorees to be inducted Thursday night at Los Angeles' Nokia Theatre.
The trio — composed of bassist and front man Geddy Lee, 59; guitarist Alex Lifeson, 59; and drummer Neil Peart, 60 — became eligible for induction in 1999, 25 years after the release of the group's first record. But they didn’t make the Hall of Fame ballot until 2012.
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"I'm relieved for our fans, who took it personally each time we were overlooked," Lee told USA Today. "But I also hope this means other great bands like Yes will follow suit. Deep Purple was on the ballot this year, and I was hoping they'd get in with us. We wouldn't be the band we are without Deep Purple's existence."
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame museum officials in Cleveland are also relieved, as they no longer will have to field calls from angry fans.
"The normal barrage of e-mails and calls from Rush fans complaining that the band was overlooked was gone," Meredith Rutledge-Borger, assistant curator at the Cleveland-based rock shrine's museum, told USA Today. "I don't know what I'll do now with all my spare time."
Though Rush has long been snubbed by critics, the band has always sustained a loyal fan base.
"We were just kids from the suburbs who wanted to play music, and when we finally did that, we spent a lot of our early years deliberately touring the heartland," Lifeson told USA Today. "Our lyrics went beyond just girls and partying. There was a little more thought to them. We were honest about who we were, and I guess in the end that struck a chord."
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Later this month, Rush will soon resume its world tour to support its 20th album, "Clockwork Angels."
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