Charles W. Ruff III (May 25, 1951 – October 14, 2011) was an American rock drummer well known for his work with Edgar Winter on the popular instrumental "Frankenstein".[1]

Chuck Ruff
Ruff in 2006
Ruff in 2006
Background information
Born(1951-05-25)May 25, 1951
Reno, Nevada, U.S.
DiedOctober 14, 2011(2011-10-14) (aged 60)
San Francisco, California, U.S.
GenresRock
OccupationDrummer
Years active1963–2011

Biography

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The Edgar Winter Group, 1975. L–R: Chuck Ruff, Rick Derringer, Dan Hartman, Edgar Winter.

Ruff was born in Reno, Nevada, on May 25, 1951, to Charles W. "Bill" Ruff II and Georgie Ruff.

He played in the rock group Sawbuck with Ronnie Montrose and Bill Church from 1968 to 1970. Ruff and Montrose later joined Edgar Winter with Dan Hartman to form The Edgar Winter Group in 1972. It was with this band that he had his biggest successes. The album They Only Come Out at Night (1973) featured "Frankenstein," which reached No. 1 in the U.S. in May 1973, and the top 15 single "Free Ride", which reached No. 14 that same year. The album Shock Treatment featured the top 40 hit "River's Risin'" and "Easy Street", which also charted.

In 1977, Ruff joined Sammy Hagar and performed on the albums Street Machine (1979) and Danger Zone (1979), including the song "Bad Reputation", which is in the film Up the Academy.

In his later years, Ruff continued performing music in Reno, Nevada, with the Chuck Ruff Group, The Max Volume Band (played drums on the 2007 album Illuminaughty) and his last project, Geezersläw.

In 1967, Chuck dated Kristine (Krissy) Pickering, who now sits on the Supreme Court Of Nevada, as of October 29, 2020.

Ruff died in San Francisco on October 14, 2011, after a long illness.[2] He was survived by two sons, Dustin and Damian.[3]

Ruff played Gretsch Drums throughout his career.

Discography

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Filmography

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References

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  1. ^ "Chuck Ruff | Biography, Albums, Streaming Links". AllMusic. Retrieved August 20, 2017.
  2. ^ "Charles W. (Chuck) Ruff III's Obituary on Reno Gazette-Journal". Reno Gazette-Journal. Retrieved August 20, 2017.
  3. ^ Chuck Ruff interview @Swampland.com Retrieved April 14, 2012.
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