Steven A. Edwards

Steven Alan ?Raggs? Edwards of Nashville, Tennessee, passed away at home unexpectedly due to natural causes on April 23, 2013, at the age of 55. He was born in Utica, New York on January 17, 1958 as the first son of Daniel and Antoinette Edwards. He attended Robert E. Lee High School in Springfield, Virginia where he first became interested in music and discovered his talent for playing the drums. Over his nearly 30-year career, Raggs developed a reputation as an extremely gifted sound engineer, lighting technician, musician, and ?all around talented dude?. He was described by his close friends and colleagues as competent, reliable, intelligent, sensitive, caring, and gentle, with ?an unflinching honesty that was rare, refreshing, and often funny?.

Raggs had a passion and fond love of authentic ethnic music, and was moved by genres that made a statement far beyond fad or trend. In fostering this, he maintained a close relationship with The National Council for the Traditional Arts, which began during the early days of the National Folk Festival in Lowell, MA in the late 1980?s. Later, he was a regular presence at over 25 NCTA festivals, mixing both front-of-house and monitors on a variety of stages big and small, at National Folk Festivals in Richmond, Virginia; Butte, Montana; and Nashville, Tennessee, as well as in National-offshoots in Lowell and Bangor, Maine. He also worked on several NCTA tours as an engineer and lighting designer including ?Juke Joints and Jubilee?, ?Masters of Mexican Music?, ?Masters of Caribbean Music?, ?Music from the Crooked Road?, and ?Don't Fence Me In?. Raggs made venues like "The Original" Stage in Butte and Railroad Stage in Bangor sound amazing, and his eye for lighting made even some of the most intimate settings seem awesome and radiant. He also had a masterful way with traditional musicians, especially those with full, electric sounds, and he took great pride in making groups seem as big as he felt they should be. He will be remembered fondly sitting behind a large soundboard, quick with a laugh, quicker with a verbal jab, and almost always with a smile across his face. In addition to putting his production skills to good use at NCTA events, he toured with a variety of popular acts including Suzy Bogguss, Mary Chapin Carpenter, Dream Theater, and Aaron Tippin.

Beyond bringing life to the sights and sounds of other performers, Raggs was also an extremely talented musician in his own right, playing drums, guitar, and singing on a variety of his own material, much of which he recorded solo or with a group of close friends at his home studio in Nashville.

Steven is survived by his family members of Houston, Texas: mother, Antoinette Edwards; brother, Brant Edwards; sister in-law, Annette Edwards; niece, Jessica Edwards; and nephew, Daniel Edwards. Raggs was a man who followed his own path in life - holding true to a unique moral code, valuing integrity over the dollar, and coping with the challenges of everyday life with a biting, sometimes cynical, sense of humor (and continuous bike riding and the occasional fly fishing trip). His family and friends will treasure the memories of Ragg?s rare spirit and gentle ways ? and will miss him dearly.

Steven was predeceased by his father, Daniel Lewis Edwards, of Springfield, Virginia.

A mass will be held on Saturday, July 20 at 10:30 a.m. at Immaculate Conception Church, 130 Summer St. Burial will be immediately after mass at St. Thomas Cemetery, 209 Belleview Ave.

The family requests that in lieu of flowers you do something exceptionally nice for someone close to you, who if they were no longer with us tomorrow, you would regret having never told them how you feel and just how much they mean to you.