Personal life Rutsey was the son of
Toronto Telegram crime reporter Howard Rutsey. He had an older brother named Bill, and a younger brother named Mike who became a baseball writer. Whereas Lee and Lifeson were listening to
progressive rock bands such as
Yes,
Pink Floyd and
Genesis at that time, Rutsey drew more inspiration from harder styles of music.
Formation of Rush Rutsey and Lifeson became close friends while attending St. Patrick’s School, and the pair would play
street hockey together in their neighborhood. Together, they initially were members of the bands The Projection with Bill Fitzgerald and "Doc" Cooper. When Rush performed live, Rutsey was the one who would introduce the band members to the audience, and tell them the name of the song before they would perform it. Soon after Rush released its debut album, Rutsey left the band, due to musical differences, health concerns related to diabetes, and his general distaste for touring. Rutsey's final performance with the group was on July 25, 1974, at Centennial Hall in London, Ontario. He was replaced by
Neil Peart.
Later life Lifeson stated in a 1989 interview that he still often had seen Rutsey, and after leaving the band Rutsey went into bodybuilding. Lifeson remarked, "He competed on an amateur level for a while, doing that for a few years, and has sort of been in and out of that, but he still works out, and I work out with him a few times a week at a local gym – at a Gold's, here in Toronto." In 2005, Lifeson said that he had not seen Rutsey since around 1990.
Death On May 11, 2008, Rutsey died in his sleep of an apparent heart attack, related to complications from diabetes. Rutsey's family wished to keep the funeral a private affair, ==Aftermath==