Rusty Day

Russell Edward "Rusty Day" Davidson, also known as "Pachuco" by his closest friends, (born in Garden City, Michigan) was a rock vocalist and frontman, best known for his work with Steve Gaines, Cactus, & Ted Nugent's American Amboy Dukes.

Career with The American Amboy Dukes

Day joined Ted Nugent's band The American Amboy Dukes in 1969, after their former vocalist, John Drake, was fired. Day had just quit his own band, Rusty Day & The Midnighters. He stayed only for one album, Migrations.

Career with Cactus

Cactus was initially conceived in late 1969 as a supergroup of the Vanilla Fudge rhythm section of bassist Tim Bogert and drummer Carmine Appice with guitarist Jeff Beck and singer Rod Stewart. However, Beck had an automobile accident and Stewart joined Ronnie Wood in The Faces. Out of frustration, Bogert and Appice formed what became known as Cactus in early 1970. The cast was complete when Day joined them on vocals and Jim McCarty joined on lead guitar.

Having made a name for himself in Detroit's rock scene, Day worked to restore The Band Detroit to national prominence. The Band Detroit was formed as an offshoot of The Detroit Wheels by members Steve Gaines (who later joined Lynyrd Skynyrd), Teddy "T-Mel" Smith, Nathaniel Peterson, Terry Emery, Bill Hodgeson, and others. There is a recording of Rusty Day, Steve Gaines, and the rest of the band performing in 1973 called The Band Detroit - The Driftwood Tapes, which got released as a Lynyrd Skynyrd bootleg in 1998.