An award-winning musician, Lee's style, technique, and virtuosity on the bass guitar have proven very influential in the rock and heavy metal genres, inspiring such players as Steve Harris of Iron Maiden, John Myung of Dream Theater, Les Claypool of Primus, Cliff Burton of Metallica, and countless others. Lee's vocal style, while less influential, is nonetheless distinctive; one Rolling Stone critic opined a negative review in the Rolling Stone Album Guide that Geddy Lee's voice was a cross between Robert Plant's and Donald Duck's voices. Reference to the latter in the brief review upset many die-hard fans of Rush and Lee.
Lee's first solo effort, My Favorite Headache, was released in 2000. In addition to his composing, arranging, and performing duties for Rush, Lee has produced albums for various other bands, including Rocket Science, and recorded a short rendition of "O Canada" with Lifeson included on the "South Park: Bigger, Longer and Uncut" soundtrack. Geddy Lee is also heard singing the Top 20 hit "Take Off" on the McKenzie Brothers (Rick Moranis and Dave Thomas) 1981 comedy album The Great White North: Bob and Doug McKenzie, and on the Max Webster song, "Battle Scar," featured on their Universal Juveniles album, which saw both bands playing together live in the studio. Geddy shares lead vocals on this track.
Geddy is also a devoted baseball fan, and performed "O Canada" at the 1993 Major League Baseball All-Star Game, and took batting practice with the then-California Angels (circa 1992).
Along with his colleagues Alex Lifeson and Neil Peart, Lee was made an Officer of the Order of Canada on May 9, 1996. The trio were the first rock musicians so honoured.
Grace To Grace
Geddy Lee Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
A Hundred Thousand Miles Of Track
A Hundred Thousand Tears
Hundred Thousand Souls
You Can't Give Back
When The Dark Subsides
An Eternity Goes By
Between Then And Now
When The Truth Hides
An Eternity Goes By
On The Fault Line
Between Then And Now
Grace To Grace
Immaculate Vision
Of What Should Have Been
Face To Face
Eloquent Stories
Of What Could Have Been
A Hundred Thousand Dreams
A Hundred Thousand Beams Of Light
A Hundred Thousand Schemes
Gods In The Heavens Can't Get It Right
When The Dark Subsides
An Eternity Goes By
On The Fault Line
Between Then And Now
When The Truth Hides
Integrity Falls Shy
On The Fault Line
Between Then And Now
Grace To Grace
Immaculate Vision
Of What Should Have Been
Place To Place
Elegant Story
Of What Could Have Been
When The Truth Hides
Integrity Falls Shy
On The Fault Line
Between Then And Now
When The Truth Hides
An Eternity Goes By
On The Fault Line
Between Then And Now
Grace To Grace
Immaculate Vision
Of What Should Have Been
Face To Face
Elegant Story
Of What Could Have Been
Grace To Grace
Immaculate Vision
Of What Should Have Been
Grace To Grace
The lyrics of "Grace to Grace" by Geddy Lee explore the complexities of life, time, and the human experience. The opening lines, "A hundred thousand years, a hundred thousand miles of track, a hundred thousand tears, hundred thousand souls you can't give back," seem to encapsulate the enormity of the human experience. Life is long and filled with trials, and we can accumulate so much over time, but ultimately, we cannot undo the past.
The repeated phrase "On the fault line between then and now" presents an interesting metaphor for the passage of time. A fault line is a geological feature where two tectonic plates meet, causing instability and the potential for earthquakes. In this song, the fault line represents the instability and uncertainty of time, especially when it comes to our memories and regrets.
The lyrics explore the idea of alternate outcomes, with lines like "Immaculate vision of what should have been," and "Elegant story of what could have been." These lines highlight the human tendency to dream of what might have been if we had made different choices. Ultimately, though, the song seems to suggest that we must accept our past, flaws and all, and move forward with grace.
Line by Line Meaning
A Hundred Thousand Years
A lengthy amount of time has gone by
A Hundred Thousand Miles Of Track
A considerable distance has been traveled
A Hundred Thousand Tears
Countless tears have been shed
Hundred Thousand Souls
An immense number of people
You Can't Give Back
The past cannot be undone
When The Dark Subsides
When difficult times come to an end
An Eternity Goes By
It can feel like an endless amount of time
On The Fault Line
At the point when things change
Between Then And Now
The time that has passed since a certain moment
When The Truth Hides
When the reality is concealed or unclear
Grace To Grace
A chance for redemption or forgiveness
Immaculate Vision
A perfect vision or ideal outcome
Of What Should Have Been
Of what was hoped for or expected
Face To Face
Directly confronting or encountering
Eloquent Stories
Compelling and persuasive accounts
A Hundred Thousand Dreams
Many aspirations and desires
A Hundred Thousand Beams Of Light
An abundance of hope and positivity
A Hundred Thousand Schemes
Numerous plans and strategies
Gods In The Heavens Can't Get It Right
Even a higher power may struggle or fail to achieve the desired outcome
Integrity Falls Shy
Honesty or moral principles may not meet expectations
Place To Place
From one location to another
Elegant Story
A sophisticated and well-crafted narrative
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: BEN MINK, GEDDY LEE
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
J Liz
I’m ready for another Geddy solo project 🔥who’s with me 🙋♀️
debra zawodniak
Absolutely yes!
Paul Johnson
Geddy personally autographed a copy of this album for me at a Best Buy in Cleveland in 2000. I remember that day well. Very quiet and low key. Great album.
Hey
Probably wrong guy, but does Calgary mean anything to you?
Paul Johnson
@Scott Reid he was promoting his solo CD. It came out around 1999.
Patrick Pesegna
I went to the signing in Dearborn Michigan. I shook geds hand and thanked him for all the great music. He never let go of my hand and was so down to earth
Scott Reid
what happened? he doing a signing, was just there, what? please explain.
jerry boogaloo
The chorus of this song is so amazing. It gives me goose bumps.
Stone Keeper
This is a damn good album........
Jack Kitchen
I always thought too many of the songs sounded alike. I always loved this tune, but not much else. I'll give it another listen. I still have the CD lol