Lee Rauch

William Lee Rauch (also spelled Rausch; September 10, 1964 – June 23, 2023) was an American drummer who played in several thrash metal bands based in California from 1983 to 1987, most notably playing Megadeth's first live shows. Rauch's career began in late 1983. Former Metallica lead guitarist Dave Mustaine formed Megadeth shortly after having been abruptly fired from Metallica for "his problems with drink, drugs, and aggression towards fellow bandmembers". Brett Frederickson, Rauch's predecessor, briefly played with Megadeth in November 1983, while Frederickson was enrolled at the Musicians Institute in Hollywood. Megadeth, consisting of Rauch, Mustaine, Slayer guitarist Kerry King, and bassist David Ellefson, began rehearsing in December 1983 at Curly Joe's and would rehearse there in early 1984 for their first gigs. The band played their first live gig at Ruthie's Inn in Berkeley, California on February 17, 1984. The band played their second gig two days later at The Stone in San Francisco and also played a gig at The Keystone in Berkeley that April. Megadeth recorded their first publicly released demo, Last Rites, on March 9, 1984, in San Francisco on a twenty-four track multitrack recording. This consisted of three tracks: Last Rites/Loved to Deth, Mechanix and The Skull Beneath the Skin; Metal Hammer states that the demo was recorded at Hitman Studios in Hollywood. The lineup on this demo is debated, with former Megadeth bassist David Ellefson claiming the lineup consisted of himself, Mustaine, and Rauch's replacement Gar Samuelson.