Rough Cutt "Rough Cutt (Japan Edition)"

Rough Cutt is an American heavy metal band from Los Angeles who released two studio albums on Warner Bros. Records in the mid-1980s. Rough Cutt never achieved the commercial success enjoyed by many other Los Angeles bands of that time but various members went on to success in other groups, including Jake E. Lee with Ozzy Osbourne, Amir Derakh with Orgy, Paul Shortino with Quiet Riot, and Craig Goldy and Claude Schnell with Dio.

The current line-up of Rough Cutt, which debuted on November 29, 2019, at the Bossanova Ballroom in Portland, Oregon is drummer Dave Alford, first guitarist Chris Hager, second guitarist Darren Housholder (Shrapnel Records recording artist, Love/Hate, War & Peace), bassist Jeff Buehner (The Loyal Order), and lead vocalist Steven St. James.

The first Rough Cutt line-up featured vocalist Paul Shortino, drummer Dave Alford, guitarist Jake E. Lee, keyboardist Claude Schnell, and bassist Joey Cristofanilli. Both Lee and Alford had also previously been in another Los Angeles band, Ratt. Both Schnell and Cristofanilli had previously been in the band Magic.

Lee left Rough Cutt in 1982, auditioned for, and was hired briefly by the band Dio, and then replaced the deceased Randy Rhoads as Ozzy Osbourne's guitarist. Lee in turn was replaced by Craig Goldy, formerly of the San Diego band Vengeance. Ronnie James Dio greatly influenced the development of the band. Dio's wife Wendy Dio was the group's manager, and Dio himself helped write one of the band's songs. Rough Cutt contributed two tracks, "A Little Kindness" and "Used & Abused", both produced by Dio and featuring Jake E Lee on guitar, to the compilation album L.A's Hottest Unsigned Bands, issued in 1983. Another Dio-produced track, "Try A Little Harder", with Goldy on guitar featured on the KLOS 95 1/2: Rock to Riches compilation, along with another Wendy Dio project NuHaven, released later on in 1983. Goldy soon left the band, and went on to play in Giuffria, and later in Dio's band. Goldy was replaced by Amir Derakh, another San Diego band alumnus.

With the line-up solidified with Shortino, Alford, Derakh, Hager, and Thorne, Rough Cutt was signed to Warner Bros. Records in 1984. The band gained national exposure when they appeared on the 'Rock Palace' TV show performing the songs "Crank It Up", "Dreamin' Again", "Street Gang Livin'", and "Try A Little Harder." Hosted by comedian Howie Mandel, the recording took place on January 1, 1984, at the Hollywood Palace, now the Avalon Hollywood. Rough Cutt also made their way to Europe showcasing at London's famed Marquee Club on April 13, 1984, and playing a badly promoted show at the Fabrik in Hamburg, Germany, both well in advance of recording their first studio album.

After waiting around for a year to work with producer Ted Templeman, who had signed the band to Warner Bros. but was busy with David Lee Roth, Eric Clapton and Aerosmith at the time, Rough Cutt decided to record their debut album, Rough Cutt (1985), with Tom Allom instead.

Rough Cutt is the debut studio album by American heavy metal band Rough Cutt, released in 1985. It was produced by Tom Allom, who is most famous for producing Judas Priest.

The song "Take Her" was co-written by Ronnie James Dio. The songs "Dreamin' Again" and "Black Widow" were co-written by Wendy Dio, Ronnie's wife and also the band's manager at the time. "Piece of My Heart" was originally performed by Erma Franklin, though Janis Joplin made it famous, and many people mistakenly believe Janis Joplin was the original performer of the song. "Never Gonna Die" was written by vocalist Mark Gable and guitarist Brad Carr whose band The Choirboys scored a minor hit with it in 1983. The single peaked at No. 21 on the Australian charts.

Track listing

1. "Take Her" (Chris Hager, Matt Thorr, Paul Shortino, Dave Alford, Craig Goldy, Ronnie James Dio) - 3:39
2. "Piece of My Heart" (Bert Berns, Jerry Ragovoy) - 4:44 (Erma Franklin cover)
3. "Never Gonna Die" (Brad Carr, Mark Gable) - 4:21 (The Choirboys cover)
4. "Dreamin' Again" (Alford, Hager, Thorr, Shortino, Wendy Dio) - 5:34
5. "Cutt Your Heart Out" (Hager, Thorr, Shortino) - 2:28
6. "Black Widow" (Amir Derakh, Alford, Thorr, Shortino, W. Dio) - 4:33
7. "You Keep Breaking My Heart" (Derakh, Hager, Thorr, Alford, Shortino) - 5:13
8. "Kids Will Rock" (Thorr, Shortino) - 4:02
9. "Dressed to Kill" (Hager, Alford, Shortino) - 4:16
10. "She's Too Hott" (Hager, Alford, Shortino) - 3:27

Tom Allom – producer

Mark Dodson – engineer

Paul Wertheimer – second engineer

Kevin Aguilar – front cover illustration

Steve Gerdes – art direction, design

Rough Cutt – original concept

Wendy Dio – management for Niji Productions, Inc.