Ruthie's Inn.The undisputed mecca for angry music in the 80's, at least in the East Bay. SF had the Mabuhay gardens, but we had Ruthie's and god was it entertaining...
My very, very first encounter at Ruthie's was at the front door paying to get in to see Metal Church, Control and Death Angel, and this very spastic, extremely energetic, and very friendly metal head was yelling out lyrics to an Exodus tune, and suddenly 4 other people chime in (one of which was Zetro Souza). As it turns out the spastic dude was the late, legendary Yaz (the spaz) of Heathen. I was intimidated (as an underfed suburban 18-year old metalhead) but I was pretty sure I had found my tribe. I was so stoked to actually be within the hallowed walls of the cathedral I had only read about in Metal Forces and Metal Mania. I didn't know how to act, but I could tell I wasn't extreme enough. At least I dressed the part...leather jacket with denim vest over it (sleeves TORN OFF DAMMIT), metallica, exodus, DRI and Suicidal logo's either sewed or drawn on it. I was hoping to survive the evening without losing my tremendously-hot-and-way-out-of-my-league girlfriend and my life, in that order.
