Overview:
The beloved fixture of the Stockade arts scene will be remembered with a processional and jam session.
Long-time Kingston resident Ed Butler, a beloved member of the town’s arts and music community, passed away in July at age 73 after a lengthy battle with cancer. To honor his memory, a memorial event will take place at the Old Dutch Church in the Uptown neighborhood that Butler called home on October 24.
One of the undisputed pioneers of the Stockade district’s revitalization during the late 1990s and early 2000s, Butler was born in Ashland, Kentucky, and never lost the warm, genteel personality he was raised with, making him the sweet friend of so many of us in the Kingston creative community. He served in the US Air Force during the Vietnam War, repairing aircraft electronics, and continued his work in electronics with Sony before settling in Kingston. Here, he opened the Wright Gallery arts space on Front Street, which he eventually converted into the record store; the space is now the home of Rocket Number Nine Records.
Butler was a skilled musician—banjo was his preferred instrument—raised on rock ’n’ roll and the rural country folk styles of his birthplace, and the regular jam sessions he held in the back room of his gallery/shop remain legendary. He also set up a small studio in the space, where he produced and played on the 2008 album by local singer-songwriter Kat Larios, Bathos in Aqua, and with his own band, the Old Double E. After selling the building he retired to Florida.
“To know Ed was to know someone who was brilliantly intelligent, endlessly curious, wonderfully particular, and unapologetically himself,” reads his obituary on the St. Petersberg funeral home that rendered services upon his passing. “He knew a little—or often a lot—about nearly everything and was always eager to share what he had learned. He loved a well-organized schedule, a thoughtfully made list, a great meal, good drinks, lively conversation, and the company of family and friends. His stubbornness was legendary, but so was his kindness. Even as illness challenged his body, his sharp mind, wit, and determination never left him.”
Butler is survived by his beloved wife, photographer Nancy Donskoj; his children, Margaret “Meg” McMullen (Patrick McMullen) and Brian Butler (Natalie Rostran-Butler); and his grandchildren, Molly and Russell McMullen, and Wesley and Charlie Butler. He also leaves behind many, many friends in the Kingston arts scene. We here at Chronogram send our love and warmest regards to all who knew him.
The memorial for Ed Butler will take place at the Old Dutch Church in Kingston on October 24 at 6:30pm and will be followed by a procession to Rocket Number Nine Records, where a jam session and open mic will be held.
