More responses via email from Showco Alumni:
Ted Shawe - Unfortunately, I won't be able to make it to either Austin or Dallas, but I will have JB and Patti and all of you in my thoughts.
Danny "Chicken Ear" Huffman - He was a great guy.
John Wiseman - Please pass on my heartfelt sympathies to the family...JB was a good dude.
Bruce Thatcher - I've been trying to figure out a way to get to Austin, but just too much on the schedule for the 19th to happen. I can't make the 10th in Dallas either. Please pass along my regards.
Kevn Carl (Sims) Gilpatric - Personall JB, like Donnie, was a huge part of my Showco "life" and now another part of that life has passed.
Gary Bayles - Thanks for this info. I was one of JB's "kids" as he would say. I've kept in touch with him over the years and went down to visit a few times in Austin. This hit me hard. I really wanted to see him again.
Kevin "KT" Taylor - Thanks so much for letting me know. I enjoyed my time with JB on the Vince Gill tours. He will be missed.
Rance Caldwell - I called him and we spoke for awhile, so glad I did. He was a great engineer. We did a War tour and had a blast. I learned a lot from him, and he was always glad to teach.
David Hickey - Dang it!
John "JR" Rea - Sad news to hear about JB. RIP John.
Billie Osburn - Oh my! Sad to hear this. Toured with him on ZZ...rip
Joe Casanova - I'm sad that JB's not with us anymore, but I'm also sad for Patti. I had some great conversations with her on a few occasions. Like JB, always cordial and "never met a stranger".
Mike Garvey - John did FOH for the Who tour in late '79. When the tragedy happened in Cincinnati, John was a consummate professional who always set an example of how to handle adversity. He was mentor to many of us and is missed. Then in a later response: A selfless mentor to many of us who aspired to be the talented & skilled engineer he was. He is missed. Please extend my condolences to John's family.
Jim Bornhorst - I do remember John as being engaged and eager to help. In the mid-70s when we were rapidly pursuing technological changes and putting out the "PA du jour", JB rolled with the changes never grousing. I greatly respected his mixing skills as he always made the Superboard and the PAs sound great. He was a pro! After an absolutely wonderful night in Memorial Auditorium with The Blues Brothers, JB handed me the board tapes which I treasure today. What a remarkably generous gift.
John Gill - So sorry to hear about JB.
Charlie "Chuck" Parnell - John helped make me the man I am today. ML. Sarge. Big Daddy. Jack Maxson. Rusty. Bad boy Badenhop. JW Roberts. Mark Hughes and George Wheatley. And so so many GREAT PEOPLE from SHOWCO. JB was such a great GUY. It is a very sad day. I LOVE YOU JB. Rest in peace, my friend.
Wil Sharpe - So very, very sad to read this news. JB was a kind and good-hearted man!
Dave Barnett - Now that dos hit close to home.... tempis fugit, amiga
Chris Lantz - He was a good man. He hired me at Showco.
Gary "1K" Kudrna - This one hits a lot harder than most.
Mike Caterina - Godspeed JB
Carter Buschardt - RIP John
John Wiseman - Shit, this sucks. JB was always nice and had a smile.... my best to the family...dammit
Mark Hughes - After ZZ opened for The Stones at the Cotton Bowl in 1981, driving home in a flash flood, JB told me to "jump in the back seat" and miraculously started the engine and drove us to safety. Bystanders applauded.
And another story from Mark Hughes - I met Patti at the ZZ Top Reunion in Houston in May of 2019. When I found John, sitting with her, I decided to hang out with him, as I hadn't seen him in many years. He said to me, "It sure is good to see you", and I felt and said the same.
And another quote from Mark Hughes - John Blasutta was a great mentor to me in my early years at Showco. On a Beach Boys tour in the summer of 1978, he and Roy Snyder were leaving our afternoon outdoor show to do another show that night. Still a rookie, I asked JB how the truck was to be loaded. His answer: "All of the big black boxes go into the big white truck." RIP, JB.