Jerome “Butch” Baldassari
1952 – January 10, 2009
Butch Baldassari was a respected mandolin player and educator. Over the course of his career, he formed two superb groups, Weary Hearts and the Nashville Mandolin Ensemble with whom he released a handful of albums. He also played in bluegrass perennial favorites, Lonesome Standard Time from time to time. In later years, worked as an adjunct professor at Vanderbilt University in Nashville. Butch Baldassari was 56 when he died of a brain tumor on January 10, 2009.
Thanks to Craig Rosen from Number 1 Albums for the assist.
What You Should Own
I have been thinking about trying to find Butch for about a year now and found out tonight it is to late. I met him in Scranton Penn in December of 86 or 87 he was a friend of my friend John’s who I had met in Palm Springs I flew to Scranton to visit John and met the Baldassari family. Butch came to Portland Oregon for a Blue grass concert in the summer of 1988 with his group Weary Hearts I went to the concert to watch him. He was good —we kept in touch for years through letters and a phone call once in a great while. He would send me his tapes when he made one, he got married and I heard from him when his child was born, I used to get Christmas cards from him and his family then we lost touch. I always wondered how he was doing and often thought I should try to find him via Internet… I am cleaning up my attic and found and old magazine of the Bluegrass Association summer of 1988 and decided I needed to find Butch and and kid him about Huber’s. A friend and myself took Butch to Huber’s ( a restaurant) for a famous Spanish coffee he had two when we dropped him off he told us he had never had two girls get him drunk on two drinks… We tried to warn him they taste good but are strong one would be plenty but oh know he had to have two. I am really sad he passed away and I did not make that call when I thought about him now it is to late to catch up and laugh with him. I always wondered if he had more than one child and how his wife was I can not remember her name. I am impressed with what he accomplished since we last spoke his family should be proud. I am happy he was a part of my life and I had the chance to meet him. Bye Butch