Yesterday Prog magazine revealed the cover for their upcoming issue #61 which will hit newsstands on Wednesday, November 18th. The issue will contain a new interview with Alex Lifeson which Prog has just made available online at this location. Alex covers a wide variety of subjects including the R40 Live tour, golf, painting, marijuana use, his various aches and pains, his Rock Hall induction blah speech, and the future of Rush. Here's what he had to say when asked about the R40 Live tour potentially being Rush's last:

... I don't know if I do still feel that way now. I thought the tour was great. I thought we played really well, the turnout was fantastic, I thought the set was great, the songs we chose were right. There was so much about it that was so positive and I think going into it there was the thought that this is the last one, a nice way to go out on top. But once we were in the middle of it or even towards the end of it, it seemed like it was just too short. ...

And when asked about his and Geddy Lee's desire to extend the tour:

... That's the thing, the human thing. It's the three of us and we've always made decisions that way. It has to be unanimous and if it isn't then you work hard to try and make it so. If not then you defer to the one outside. And in this case I think it's pretty obvious that Neil doesn't want to tour any more and that's fine and I understand. He's got some really good reasons: it's painful, it's hard, it's not joyful for him, it's difficult and it hurts his body and it hurts his brain and I totally get it. I'm fine with that.

I just wish we'd been able to do another 20 shows or so and it's too bad that we're going to miss the UK particularly. It just feels a little shy of a true finish, a complete resolution. But if that's the way it is then we'll adjust to it. I think we need to have a little space, a little time off to regroup and think about what we want to do in the future. If and when we want to record another record and if there's a possibility of us doing something in the future, I don't know. The ball is in Neil's court, clearly. ...

When Lifeson was asked about whether we might expect some future solo work, he says:

... Sure - I write stuff all the time. I have a whole library of bits and pieces and complete songs that I've written at home and in the studio. I think if it looks unlikely that we're going to do much in the near future then I will definitely get into something like that next spring. What sort of project it turns out to be I'm not quite sure, but it will be a musical project. I can't sit around and I just love doing it so much. ...

He concludes the interview with these remarks on what's next for Alex Lifeson:

... I'll keep playing for sure. I think Ged and I will get together this fall, in fact. I was over at his place last night for dinner and we just chatted very briefly and said, 'Whenever we feel like it then let's get together, do whatever we can and get it going, and then include Neil, see if he's ready for it and then take it from there.' But if for some reason that doesn't happen then I'll definitely work on some stuff this fall, probably even sooner.

You can read the entire interview online here (registration required).