John Rutsey, Rush’s founding drummer, dead at 55.

John Rutsey, a founding member of Toronto rock band Rush, passed away this weekend according to Rush management company Anthem Entertainment. He was 55.

Rutsey was famous for playing on Rush’s 1974 debut album, including the song “In The Mood,” before deciding to leave the group due to health concerns. Rutsey suffered from diabetes and was unable to go on extended tours with the group.

Rutsey was replaced by drummer Neil Peart, which marked a turning point in the band’s sound towards progressive rock.

Rush formed in 1968 in Toronto and was originally composed of guitarist Alex Lifeson, bassist Jeff Jones (who shortly thereafter was replaced by Geddy Lee) and Rutsey.

According to a 1989 interview with Alex Lifeson on the Rockline Radio program quoted by Wikipedia.org, Rutsey, “gave up playing (drums) shortly after he left the band and went into bodybuilding. He competed on an amateur level for a while, doing that for a few years.”

As of Monday afternoon, no official statement has been released on a cause of death, nor plans for a memorial service.

http://www.q107.com/Blogs/TheQ107RockReport/BlogEntry.aspx?BlogEntryID=10000007

a day off

I took the afternoon off so I could get the lawn mowed. I intended to do it last night, but it was really frikking cold. Today the forecast was for 60°, with storms after 7pm. I left work at 1:30.

I got the lawn mowed and trimmed, and cleaned the garage, somewhat. I got the hoses out, and watered the gardens. That doesn't sound like much, but I sure feel accomplished. I was working all day and all evening.

The temperature was steady at 55 for most of the day, but the wind switched, and it started warming up after supper time. By the time it was dark, it was well above 60, and I wanted to work outside some more. It only rained a little bit around 10:00.