The first Rough Cutt lineup featured vocalist Paul Shortino, drummer Dave Alford, guitarist Jake E. Lee, keyboardist Claude Schnell, and bassist Joey Cristofanilli.

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.

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.

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.

[10] Rough Cutt were also part of the Super Rock '85 festival bill on August 10, 1985, at Odaiba-Undohiroba in Odaiba, Tokyo, Japan, sharing the stage with headliners Dio, Foreigner, Mama's Boys, Sting, and Japanese act, Earthshaker.

The show was commemorated with a VHS release titled Super Rock In Japan '85; Rough Cutt was featured with four songs from their debut album, "Black Widow", "Take Her", "Dreamin' Again", and "Piece of My Heart."

[1] Derakh, Thorne and Alford re-grouped with singer Danny Simon and guitarist Michael Raphael to form Jailhouse, releasing a live EP, Alive in a Mad World, in 1989;[1] while Hager would team up with Jeff Warner of Black 'N Blue in Woop & the Count.

Rocks, renamed Eyes once vocalist James Christian entered the fray, while Derakh found major success with self-proclaimed death pop band Orgy in the late 1990s.

The same label would also issue a full-length studio album by Rough Cutt offshoot Jailhouse in 1998, with all five songs from the 1989 Alive in a Mad World EP added as bonus tracks.

The classic Warner Bros. era lineup of Rough Cutt reformed for a one-off reunion show in October 2002 at the Viper Room in Hollywood with Shortino, Alford, Derakh, Hager, and Thorne performing together once again.

According to Alford in an interview after the performance, the song aired on an episode of the 1980s television series Fame, and has not been played live by Rough Cutt since the 1980s when arena audiences of the time failed to appreciate it.

On June 8 2021, a reformed version of Rough Cutt featuring original members Paul Shortino, Amir Derakh and Matt Thorne released a new album, "3" - on CD and Digital.