The Ruts

A meteoric band like so many in the punk era, The Ruts will go down in history as the authors of one of the most successful fusions of rock and reggae with The Clash. Formed in 1977, The Ruts started out as one of the countless bands to emerge that year. It was their breakthrough single "In a Rut ", played extensively by John Peel in 1979, that brought The Ruts out of obscurity. The Crack album and its iconic single "Babylon's Burning" were a real smash in September 1979. Unfortunately, lead singer Malcolm Owen could not resist this dazzling success and succumbed to a heroin overdose on July 14, 1980. Now known as Ruts D.C., the band split up in 1983 after the release of Animal Now (1981) and Rhythm Collision (1982), the latter produced by Mad Professor. Ruts D.C. reformed in 2007 for a special concert featuring Henry Rollins in place of Michael Owen.