Progressive rock was a major part of Rush's make-up -- including, of course, Emerson, Lake & Palmer. Drummers Palmer and Peart had only one short meet-up, but as the "elder statesman" Palmer tells Billboard below, he had a great admiration for the late Peart, finding him to be a kindred spirit.
I only met Neil once, in Montreal, at a Rush concert. It was a brief encounter, no more than that. We talked about snare drums. I remember he was a shy man, but a very nice guy.
He helped move the boundaries in progressive rock music. That is for sure. As far as his playing, I would not say he was the most original player but he was always searching. That's what made him interesting. He had very good ideas overall and I commend him on that. The music of Rush was so dynamic it would be hard not to play well in a band like that. Neil always played well, and that’s the most important thing. He looked like, and sounded like, he was trying all the time. And that's why he was a great drummer, because 95% of the time he pulled it off!