Rush Fans Outraged OR Are They Ever Satisfied?!

Rush will be inducted into the rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland later this year..finally!  Fans have been disappointed for years that this induction didn’t happen sooner. Now it seems original drummer John Rutsey will be left out of the induction lineup, which has caused a small wave of online outrage among long-time fans of the band.

Rutsey left the band in 1974 due to issues with diabetes, and passed away aged 55 in 2008. He was replaced by drummer/lyricist Neil Peart, forming the classic Rush lineup most fans are familiar with.

“Original drummer” Rutsey was included on the band’s debut single and album, and is most well-known for his work on the 1974 track “Working Man”. It is also said that Rutsey’s brother Bill was responsible for coming up with the band’s name.

Judging by the band’s Facebook page, fans feel that his exclusion from the Hall of Fame is an insult to the drummer’s memory, with one dubbing it the “Rock and roll Hall of Shame.” “Without John, Rush would not exist” bluntly stated another.

His performing talents have been preserved in the bonus features of two recent Rush films, 2010’s ‘Beyond the Lighted Stage’ and 2011’s ‘Live in Cleveland’.