For anyone who is wondering, this was shot for a Canadian film project about the relationship between teenagers and their parents circa 1971. Rush was an unknown band at the time and nobody could foresee the band even signing in a label, let alone having success. Without cameras on, Alex most likely spoke Serbian with his parents, or rather a mix of English and Serbian, as his parents were Serbian immigrants.
Yes, it was part of a documentary and that actually IS Alex Živojinović (also known as Alex Lifeson). They were speaking English in their home for the sake of the documentary. DUH!
Imagine if he didn't follow his dream, considering everything Rush has given to the world. But he has always said in later interviews his parents were actually right and he (Alex) was wrong. Food for thought.
all they wanted was for him to finish high school though. not give up on his dreams. high school is not hard to do lol. but whatever... he seems to have made all the right decisions regardless. things worked out... rather well for him :)
@@moldren5263 Think on it like this. Time spent in high school meant time away from his future livelihood. He has mad guitar skills for a reason, and that reason is practice practice practice. Sorry, but 7 or 8 hours of time (including travel) committed 5x per week to learning things that aren't going to be as valuable in the long run versus practicing his instrument. 35-40 hours may not seem like much, but it's 21-24% of a total week, and 31-36% of one's wakeful hours. He definitely made the right choice for himself. Others should probably stay in school though, since talent like Alex's doesn't come around every day.
I love that this is the guy who ended up getting inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and then says "Blah Blah BLah" for a couple minutes. Freaking legend.
There's a special place in heaven for whomever it was to film this, keep it, and then to release it. Truly a piece of rock and roll history, deservedly belongs in the Rock Hall.
I’d say he is even a better person now than then. For parents it was inconceivable to think he would be in a successful band & they’re right to be concerned esp. Alex being a parent. He looks like he’s at his bottom here.I’m glad he’s successful & for his parents.
Amazing! Alex's parents are so right because they obviously are good people and care for their son, God bless them. However, they could not see the amazing talent that their son had and they can't be blamed for that. Alex made some mistakes early on, but he had the proper upbringing to see his way through that and to work hard to develop his talent as well. if there is one thing (and there are many) that truly defines RUSH it has to be their shared work ethic. Hard work has definitely set this band apart from many other bands. In the end, it speaks volumes about the way these three musicians have been raised. So, to mom and dad Zivojinovic I say congratulations, all of your hard efforts paid off.
In the documentary he watches this scene, and even admits his parents were right. But in the end it was his decision to bet on himself, and he was lucky. It took a few years, but his gamble eventually paid off.
I remember seeing this in a full length documentary and it was probably the most memorable scene in it for me. How rare is it that we get to see a rock star at the beginning of his career in a conversation like this?
I totally agree with you, if I heard correctly Alex was a father at this time, it could not have been an easy time for him or his family. Thankfully things turned out to be good. ✌
There are people who can play music. Countless of them. There are also people who are talented. Not so many of them. When the music is good, when there is strong personality, character, uniqueness and creativity, when people notice you, remember your riffs, solos, playing style and eventually idolize you and become phenomenal, that's because you have it all. Talent and everything. Otherwise, you are just another guy with an instrument who fails to stand out from the rest. Basically Alex has all this. Not only he is a damn good guitarist but the entire band itself is strong, tight and well connected as a unit. They are very dedicated as musicians. That's why today Rush is one of the most important bands in rock history.
@for repeated and serious violations I think the original comment was in regards to the irony of Alex's intuition of his success as a musician, and how he expressed it in this argument with his parents. He was already making a high income while his parents were trying to convince him to take a regular job. The only thing that makes since to some people is sitting in an office cubical, earning an average salary.
That's because people used to have respect for themselves and each other. You can tell today how little self respect someone has by how disrespectful they are to their fellow humans
and at the end of the day he's a guitar genius. he couldn't have found this much success in any other profession, and the best part of this is we get to listen to rush! very polite family as well.
Yeah, being gifted with talent makes most of the difference here. Take away the talent, and there is a different outcome... I know, because I'm not that talented. Good for him for seeing his opportunities so clearly. Seems like a great family, very caring, and good at open discussions..... Alex is very fortunate.
For so many dreamers, talented or not, there's something to be said about listening to the parents. The odds of making it big in music, sports or entertainment are against most who try. Think about all those people who won or were in the top 5 of American Idol. Where are they now and how many can you name? In fact many of the actual winners never did much with their career and they were very talented people. For those willing to sacrifice everything to go for it, it seems wise to also have some marketable skills just in case. A good example is Brian May. If Queen hadn't been so successful, he could've used his PHD in Astrophysics and I believe he still does some work with NASA.
@@RKDriver Great guitar players used to be a dime a dozen. Now they are a nickel a dozen. It's timing, talent and promotion that make an act popular. Even a person with not so much talent can make it with one hit song if the marketing is done correctly. If not then it's just another song regardless of how good it is.
You can tell by his expressions, Alex had different plans for himself, but he really did care what his parents thought. He was taking a gamble, one that paid off, but at this time, nobody knew his future.
@@ElMakz Wrong. He knew how to play the guitar better than 99.999999% of the population even at that age. Since you've obviously never had musical talent anywhere close to that, you cannot possibly know anything about his thoughts.
@@basedbear1605 Why the hell do you correlate being good at guitar with knowing stuff about life? El Max is right, when you're 18 you're completely fucking clueless, but you learn more stuff as you get older. Alex just happened to be good enough to make it in the business. Many people think they'll make it, but so many fail, because they don't have what it takes. The fact that you randomly bash El Max for having no musical talent even though you know nothing about him tells me you're pretty insecure about your own abilities.
What one has to understand is that Lifeson's parents were more or less refugees from Yugoslavia. Canada was a land of opportunity for them and they built a life for themselves there. So, their attitude is understandable, both generational and culturally. In fact, they come accros as quite reasobable here...especially his dad. I dont think my parents would have let me skip grade 12 to pursue music
That's exactly right. Besides hindsight is always 20/20. There are thousands of us, maybe millions who are grateful Alex didn't listen to them, but it's obvious their hearts were in the right place. And yeah, my parents either.
It's true. A lot of immigrants from Yugoslavia, especially Serbs were tough on their children. Heard stories from my mom about her parents (her dad especially) and about my great grandparents.
Wow, It shows the frustration and angst of growing up as a teenager. I can relate to a lot of this. We were a generation of dreamers. I'm glad to see his vision came true. His parents went through some hardships before coming to Canada and were just trying to help and guide him to adulthood. A message to young kids, listen to your parents, take their advice, but never forget who you are and stay true to your vision. Its like going through a series of doors. Some doors may open, some may be locked, but there is more than one entrance to a room! There will be hard times along the way. be strong and plough through, but don't ever step on anyone's toes. Rush a great Canadian band, a legacy and a dream come true.
This is uncanny....same talk I had with my parents in grade 11. I had enough of school and wanted to go to work in the outside world. They allowed me and I've had dozens of jobs that enriched my life, never needing a diploma to do so. Today I'm 61 with a successful business and looking forward to retiring. Oh, I looked A LOT like Alex back then! LOL
I think his parents were right to push him to finish grade 12. This is from a 1973 documentary called Come on Children. The producers lucked out by getting a future guitar hero on their show.
Sure his parents were right. You can tell by all the success they’ve had in life, by just loving and supporting and having concern for their son. Through those emotional moments, he tried extra hard to prove them wrong, and he succeeded.
@S Tra I think that it’s not so much like winning a lottery... the chance of him huge like rush yes but the chance of him making a decent living with music not so much so... he said he didn’t want to be rich or famous
Alex had no idea his fame of the future. His parents were in the right asking him to finish grade 12. He's one of the lucky ones (not taking away his guitar skills at all) to get with Ged and succeed. Chances of this happening in garage bands and even better to hit the big time are about a million and one. Good video. Surprised it exists and so glad I'm part of that dinner table. R.I.P Neil Peart. 🙏
@@marcosveron5881 It's more the opposite. For those that don't finish it becomes much more difficult to do anything. Not impossible but the odds are much against them.
@Bray IDK yeah it's great nowadays!! millions of people addicted to antidepressants- xanax etc . Children on Ritalin. Pharmaceutical companies making billions.
Alex, Geddy and Neil won the lottery. There are many, MANY. MANY other musicians that weren't so lucky. I hung out on the Sunset Strip during the hey day of the 1980's. Several bands made it: Motley Crue, Quiet Riot, Ratt, Dokken, Poison, Warrant. But there were hundreds of bands that didn't and are permanently homeless or one step away from it. A great friend of mine, Lizzy Grey was in London with Nikki Sixx. Lizzy gave it is all, but never broke big. He died about two years ago from cancer chasing the dream until the very end.
@@rickleblanc8900 Right, all the abusive, neglectful, pedophilic, and murderous parents "always care". All-or-nothing thinking is RARELY healthy or accurate.
These "bouncy chairs" sort of exacerbate his nervousness of being put on the spot and being grilled about his future plans. Great video. Lots of respect for one another around this table.
What's crazy is that I grew up listening to Rush, I love Rush, Alex Lifeson to me as a guitarist myself is top 5 greatest guitarists all time and he stands tall with the likes of Hendrix, Page, and Clapton. Yet, I totally understand his parents here because I am older and have children too. And to be honest as much as I respect and love Lifeson for his second-to-none career in music, here he does sound foolish to me and naïve and if this was some random 70's home video and I didn't know that this was Alex Lifeson....I would agree with the parents. I guess that goes to show that you should never underestimate your children--It's just like underestimating yourself. My kids are still pretty young now but when they come of age, if they have an off the wall passion (imagine how insane joining a rock band sounded to Alex's refugee father) they truly love and want to pursue, I'll support who they are and what they love as long as it doesn't hurt anyone else. I've learned in my short time parenting and being a child that you can certainly raise, teach, and guide your children but you can never truly control them or stifle their free will, especially if they have a bold personality. Those that try are just bad parents.
Classic discussion. It is nice to see that the parents are so engaged and involved in Alex's future. It is natural for parents to be concerned and worried for their children's decisions. This is what all parents should do.
What all parents should do is what Alex said: to really listen to their kids and not assume that they already know what is or what is not good for them. TRULY listen means to have empathy, which is something that most parents does not have. They are worried with other things, such as what their families would think, what their dreams as a parents are, etc.
Alex's parents instilled some awesome values, allowing him to question. Thankfully he was a good listener. These good ethics of self discipline are behind his success I believe. Alex never gave up. IMO greatest guitarist ever!
I feel like every parent who gives even the most slightest / smallest shit about their children would have the exact same conversation with their kid in this situation. Can’t blame them but thank you to Alex’s parents for letting Alex chase his dreams...and becoming one of the most complex and innovative guitarists the human race has ever and will ever see
The one kid in a million who took the risk, quit school, worked his butt off, lived his dream, and proved them wrong! Of all the kids who had this same conflict with his parents, THIS is the one who actually made it! (And, married “her” and is still with her!)
How amazing that this was captured, no matter the context. I bet this dialogue happens continuously day in and day out all around the world in every language and culture. Parents generally do know best, this was obviously quite the glaring exception lol. Rush are not just artists, but true craftsman and they blazed an unrepeatable trail 50 years long. For what it's worth, I don't think Alex’s parents were unreasonable. I'd love to hear his commentary on this all these years later.
Its not his fault he made millions off great music... his music made him famous.. all 3 guys in RUSH are masters of the craft... the perfect storm at the perfect time!!!
I saw this on the Rush documentary DVD and always wondered what prompted them to film this family gathering and conversation at the time. What a crucial piece of band history this turned out to be in retrospect.
@@coxscorner THANK YOU! I was wondering who knew Alex enough at such a young age to be at his home filming this. I take it those are his siblings. Its also interesting how none of THEM jump into the conversation.
As talented as Alex is,he lucked out. Many young musicians have gone nowhere. The parents only wanted him to finish High School so it wasn’t a crazy idea. He’s just a kid here but man if anything he bet on himself and won.
I know what you mean by the “luck” factor, as there have been many talented people who never made it in the music business. But I do think his work ethic had at least something to do with the success. Rush was one of the hardest working bands. They toured like mad for years on end - living on the road for almost a decade before they saw any big money come in. Not every great musician has that kind of dedication, but all three members of Rush did. Most people would not have wanted to go through what Alex went through to get where he is. So a little bit of luck, a great deal of talent, and A LOT of work.
@@patrickwoods2213 yes ! He had the talent but imagine having Geddy Lee by your side and then coming across the greatest drummer of his generation in Neil Peart. As you put it. There’s a lot of talented musicians in bands that have gone nowhere.
Relax, parents. You have created a musical genius. He's going to be set for life, whether he wants it, or not! I met his mom a few years after this, she was my nurse in the hospital. She asked if I'd ever heard of her son, I told her I had a poster of him on my wall!
They did not create a musical genius. They created a child. That child grew up, and despite his mother calling his music "a racket" and his father telling him he could never earn a living, he followed his passion and became a master of his craft. He did that DESPITE their disapproval, lack of faith in him, and trying to persuade him otherwise.
@ALJ Studios You need to work on your reading comprehension. lol Calling me "ignorant"...when it is YOU who misunderstood. Cut and past the comment where I said you stop worrying about your children. OOPS, YOU CAN'T...because I never typed that.
Yes, that is for sure, but all along money wasn't his motivation he just wanted to be happy with the decisions he made for his own life and learn from his own mistakes and successes instead of learning from a university. He chose well.
This conversation takes place with almost every artist and their parents. To have this footage and where Alex ended up is gold. This should be the video bible for all musicians. Alex had one thing many artists don't - an absolute firm belief in his talents and the talent to back it up. Hooray for the guy who made it. Way to go Alex! I wonder how many times he'd like to show this to his family?
Wow, this is mind blowing and incredible cool to see the young lad fighting for what he wants and loves! How many of us had these same conversations with our parents over our futures! What a gem of a video
@WilshirecityBlues Yup...I'm a musician myself. Never achieved financial success...but still loving it and still at it 30 years later. Check out my album on my channel.
WOW......I did not know he had a child when he was in High School. At least as he was talking to his parents he had respect for them. He did not yell, cuss or get angry. He was a good boy.
And, as I've always taught my students, the stars that we admire in sports, the arts, etc... aren't necessarily the best at their craft. They're simply the ones that never gave up.
I first saw this a few years ago. It took me back to so many conversations with my parents. My folks RIP, were incredibly supportive towards my brother RIP and myself. But we certainly had conversations such as this.
Wow, what a powerful video...a chat that many successful (and unsuccessful) musicians have had to have with their parents. It takes so much courage to follow your own path and go agains the wishes of the people that love you. It’s a hurdle that shapes your character.
This is an incredibly mature conversations by all parties. I wish more families would have these conversations today. I think we all can agree Alex has made good life choices! True musicians are no different than other artists, writers actors who are incredibly driven.
This is so so fascinating. Love Rush and Alex and watching this in 2023 is truly traveling in time. What is really teaches us is that if you are really committed to something, whether music or any other artistic endeavor, work as hard as you can to make it happen. It may or may not... but if you are really, deep in your soul, serious about it, you have to try. Alex was, and did. And was one of the blessed ones who succeeded beyond his wildest dreams by doing what he really loved. It's a tale as old as time itself.
They knew he was talented but they were concerned that if his musical dreams didn't materialize, he'd have no plan B to fall back on. And back then, parents didn't see security or value in trying to make it big in the music business. Alex pulled it off, we are grateful for the awesome music and his parents must have been so proud of him.
Love the communication going on here, a lot of love and respect in that room, it's wonderful. No yelling no swearing just people talking and listening, trying to understand one another, it appears to me everything worked out fine, RUSH one of the greatest loved bands of all time. God Bless Alex's parents, you can see they loved their son
One thing I will say about this clip is that while Alex Lifeson would end up getting tremendous success, a big component of that success is the fact that everyone in the band by 1975 wanted that same success. Had he been in a less driven and motivated band, I don't believe he would have had the same success. There are a lot of musicians (myself included) who write music alone because every band I've joined just wanted to play half an hour and smoke pot the next two. Alex Lifeson might smoke pot, but he spent a lot of time writing and practicing his parts and ideas. After the show is done, do what you will. But when the show (and recordings) are being done is the time to think and songwrite.
I was in a lot of LA bands back in the day. Not many so-called musicians took it very seriously. Being in a band was just a lame excuse to get laid, drink and smoke dope. There were a few that took it extremely seriously, but that was not the norm.
It’s just like when John Lennon’s Aunt Mimi told him: “ John, the guitars are great but, you’ll ever make a living at it.” But, no one obviously knows the end result of someone’s pursuits. We do have prescience as an innate quality which helps us to be logical for safeguarding ourselves and Alex’ parents did the best they could to encourage him. Truthfully, not many people ever reach the level of success which Alex has achieved but, this video is a lesson to all. No guarantees in life. I admire his courage though and it paid off. Thanks Alex for the great music and believing in yourself!
But I think now it is harder to make music a living with all the streaming, you gotta make rap, pop, know about music business and try to know what people wanna hear. I wanted to make music a living and I realised that it's a lot of pressure (but if someone really wanna do it, I'll still respect his/her opinion)
Equally amazing, that Lerxt married Charlene and remains married today.. Odds of pursuing musical dreams and being one of the world's top guitarists in one of the world's greatest bands, while also staying with high school girlfriend who got pregnant.....pretty small. Its almost like God's hands were directy in Geddy, Alex and Neil's lives, to create such a group that elevated so many of us above the Norm...... all of the twists of fate in their personal lives and factors that could have prevented RUSH from forming.. amazing
This is an "argument?" All parties are so civil and polite. Especially Alex, while he's being ganged upon and video taped. If this was my house, there would be flying dishes, overturned furniture....you name it.
Well James, sounds like you were raised by a pack of wolves. I feel sorry for your kids who have to witness that bullshit and think that is normal behavior.
The irony in this is that this kids have no clue how much his parents actually DID negotiate and speak and he was better for it. Sitting around talking like this.... Motivation and love that you can't deny... it was a blessing. I know he knows it now. He wanted them to support him and they did. Just not in the way he wanted them to at the time. Beautiful to watch. A family that isn't afraid to live one another and speak their minds. Really.
Fame is probably 95% luck and 5% talent. There are a shit ton of VERY talented guitarists on youtube who will never even sniff fame or Lifeson type money.
I can't say I totally agree with that. Great songwriters will get noticed eventually, because they're a genuinely rare commodity. A skilled guitar player however, is ultimately a dime a dozen. Alex made it because he was in a great band.
Absolutely incredible to be a fly on the wall for part of this conversation. I got this same talk when I wanted to drop out of college and tour with my band. But I didn't end up in Rush so....
Just like Geddy, a son of immigrants. Maybe that's a reason for them getting along so well, like blood brothers. His Serbian surname is Živojinović, which means 'son of life', inspiring his stagename Lifeson. I'd like to nickname him Alexandar the Great.
I’m very happy Alex took the path in life that we have come to know as Rush. I can look back in my own life and see where Rush has been a positive example. But for every Alex Lifeson or Kobe Bryant there has been hundreds if not thousands of artists who wanted the same thing. Perhaps they wanted it just as much or even more. But for some unlucky turn of events in life they were ultimately rejected. Remember, Rush consists of three equally talented musicians who’s lives were joined together in life and location. None of them died along the way in some accident. The chances that Rush made it to the finish line like they did are astronomical. But they made it in style!! I own every album they ever sold….many on Vinyl, many more on 8 track or cassette tape, but today I own most every song via MP3. I bought Geddy’s Book of Bass….the deluxe version! I’ve walked in reverence thru the abandoned (now, sadly, completely gone) Le Studio in Morin Heights, Quebec Canada. Yes, Alex made it big….but I’m glad it was him who took the risk, and not me!
I had the same battle with my parents but I lost. Congradulations Alex! I remember back in the early 80's anything was up for grabbs in music, just put some flowerpots on your head, bounce around on stage, call yourselves DEVO and they'll love you. Back then as I was getting out of high school, my band was aproached by an agent who wanted to book us on tour. At the same time my old man was harping on me about what I was going to do with my futrue. He said "get a trade under your belt" then you can do whatever you want. Then you will have something to fall back on. To get the old man off my back I became an electrician just like him. After I finished my 4 year apprenticship things had changed in my life, I found a girlfriend and moved out of my parents house, had bills to pay. When I contacted the agent 4 years later, he explained the buisness had changed and were looking in different areas. Now I have a degree in electronics, have a position with a good company, a waterfront house with a high performance boat, a wife, children, soon to become a grandfather and soon to retire. I have the top of the line TAMA STAR drumset in my basement studio and I occasionally have friends over to jam (mostly to Rush songs). I guess I'll never know what it would have been like to disobey the old man and jump on the tour bus but this isn't so bad either.
Amazing! It's like he knew he was going to be famous so he made a 'Making of Alex' documentary ( his dad was very wise ). Wish I made the movie when my parents gave me the same serious talk about the 'real world' when I decided to drop out of music college in Toronto in the 1980's.
This is a clip from a movie that Alex was in called Come On Children (1973). A group of kids from different walks were put in the same house for a few weeks and filmed to how they would react.
Every parent at some time has a similar conversation about how your high school kid is going to make it in the world. Great video with a lot of true emotions and discussion.
This is like footage of someone winning the lottery ticket. It’s so rare to see people actually turn out to be a rockstar. I don’t blame his parents for their concern.
Perfect description. It's like a literally a one in a million shot. At least to get as big as Rush did. It's crazy that we have this footage when he's just some random guy with a dream
Not every aspiring musician is Alex Lifeson either. You are watching a young musical genius trying to make people believe in him. He knew then, later we all knew.
They were absolutely correct and these parents went through horrible times in Yugoslavia during WWII and they were worried for his well-being. God Bless them.
While Alex certainly made good on his goals and dreams, his parents were NOT wrong. They didn't have a crystal ball and couldn't have seen what he would become...
Alex was not destined to greatness. He made it happen with his natural talent, hard working ethic and confidence in his ability. Thank god he sticked to his plan. Very interesting footage.
Oh man this is awesome to see. I would love to see alot more young musicians & famous people arguing or talking with their parents before they became superstars. Priceless!
When I was young I told my parents I wanted to make a living as a rock musician, they said I was wasting my time. Look at me now - I've released no records, have no money and live in a trailer park. Parents, what do they know?
Many, many successful musicians will tell you they were just lucky. They happened to be in the right place at the right time and that was it. Elvis Presley said as much and more than a few others I've heard talk about it. JJ Cale said it was basically a miracle he made any money as a musician. Eric Clapton heard one of his songs, "After Midnight" I think it was, and when JJ heard it on the AM radio one day he was astonished. His first thought was "Now I can buy a new car!"
I had the same dream, and I was a decent player by many standards. But my father was a 30 year Navy Vet Hardass that told me I went to pot as soon as I quit HS band playing the French Horn, and then started playing electric "geetar" as he called it, with all of the other long haired potsmoking shits. According to him, that's when I became the scum of the earth. We eventually found some peace, many years later. But yeah man, I know the feeling well, got talent, and no parents to support it. I am broke like you. If I knew then what I know now.................Hey, I still love playing music now I am54 ! Some things never die
Some really level headed, well reasoned points of view on both sides. Very obvious he had some exceptionally caring parents who were concerned about his future, as such a small percentage of musicians make a successful career out of music. But I see Alex's will to grasp the opportunity he had and to exercise his passion for playing. So glad he made it 🙂🤘💜
My friend introduced me to Rush in 1978, and I am eternally grateful for this amazing band. This footage right here is the culmination of why so many people came to love this band. I will always love Rush for as long as I live.