EARP, Douglas A. Age 50, of Swartz Creek,MI died Friday, December 17, 2004 at Genesys Health Park. Funeral services will be held 11 AM Monday, December 20, 2004 at Sharp Funeral Homes, Miller Road Chapel, 8138 Miller Rd., Swartz Creek. Visitation will be held 2-5 & 7-9 PM Sunday. Those desiring may make contributions to the Lance Armstrong Foundation. Doug was born December 20, 1953 the son of Herschel and Kathryn Earp. He owned and operated Wyatt Earp Records for 24 years. Doug loved the outdoors. He enjoyed hunting, fishing and golfing. Surviving are: wife, Sarah; mother, Kathryn Earp; step-children, George and wife Betsy Bush, Gary and wife Teri Bush, Sarah Kay Miller all of Swartz Creek; 8 grandchildren, Lauren and Megan Bush, Matthew and Brittany Bush, Zachary, Peyton, Sarah Anne and Emmaly Kay Miller; sisters, Kay and husband Gary, Lorraine, Marjorie and husband Cecil; nieces, Kari, Kristina and Sarah; a great niece and great nephews; father-in-law, Dr. Wallace Pike; many friends. He was preceded in death by his father.
He was a great supporter of the independent bands of Flint Michigan.
Store owner nurtured music scene
Doug Earp, 50
FLINT
THE FLINT JOURNAL FIRST EDITION
By Doug Pullen
dpul…@flintjournal.com · 810.766.6140
Doug Earp wasn’t a musician, but he was famous around town for
supporting and nurturing them.
The owner and founder of Flint Township’s Wyatt Earp Records died of
complications due to cancer early Friday morning, three days shy of his 51st birthday.
Earp was famous in local underground music circles - punk, heavy metal, rap - for being the guy who offered encouraging words, sold their albums and provided a place where they could promote their bands and socialize with others who shared their love of music, particularly music outside the mainstream.
“His contributions have been immeasurable. He was like a den father.
His record store was ground zero, the mother ship, for the whole
scene,” said author Ben Hamper, who hosted a long-running punk music
radio and TV show, “Take No Prisoners,” which Earp sponsored.
Earp’s death caught a lot of people by surprise. He was married for the first time Nov. 18. He started feeling ill about six weeks ago,
according to Al Steel, his friend and co-worker for 18 years.
“He just thought he had a cold,” said Steel, who described his fallen
colleague and mentor as “my brother, my father, my best friend.”
Earp was hospitalized Dec. 5 at Genesys Regional Medical Center in
Grand Blanc Township, and was told he didn’t have long to live.
Steel said his friend and boss took the grim news in stride.
“He was the ultimate realist,” Steel said. “That’s why when the doctors told him what was going on, he told them thank you and gave them the thumbs up sign.”
His life was a big thumbs up to the local music community he loved so
much. A Swartz Creek High School graduate, Earp worked at Boogie
Records and Rock-a-Rolla Records before starting his store, named after the 19th century lawman who supposedly was a distant relative, in 1981.
The store, at 5204 Corunna Road in Flint Township, and its owner played an integral role in developing a healthy underground rock scene that is alive and well today.
“As a teenager from the suburbs, walking into Wyatt Earp Records was
like visiting Willy Wonka’s Chocolate Factory. Everywhere you looked
was something you’d never seen before and you probably wanted,”
recalled Joel Rash, owner of Flint Local 432, a downtown Flint
alternative music space.
Earp bankrolled Rash’s first all-ages shows in the late 1980s. He also helped out some of Flint’s earliest and important underground bands, including Repulsion, whose extreme brand of heavy metal, called grindcore, has been cited as an influence on European metal bands such as Napalm Death.
Earp was one of the area’s first alternative music promoters, bringing pivotal punk and metal acts such as Slayer, Black Flag and 7 Seconds to town.
He was famous for his cool, nonjudgmental approach to music.
“Doug always seems calmly amused by something, in a Buddhist kind of
way,” local club disc jockey Michael Absher, who first met Earp in
1984, wrote in an e-mail.
“This is a man who kept an independent record store going for years in an out-of-the-way spot, with no advertising, as chain stores and other independents crashed and burned in a dwindling economy. And he never seemed to even break a sweat doing it.”
Steel plans to keep the store open, though it will be closed Monday for Earp’s funeral.
“I have every intention of carrying it on,” Steel said.
Earp is survived by his wife, Sarah.
He was a great supporter of the independent bands of Flint Michigan.
Store owner nurtured music scene
Doug Earp, 50
FLINT
THE FLINT JOURNAL FIRST EDITION
By Doug Pullen
dpul…@flintjournal.com · 810.766.6140
Doug Earp wasn’t a musician, but he was famous around town for
supporting and nurturing them.
The owner and founder of Flint Township’s Wyatt Earp Records died of
complications due to cancer early Friday morning, three days shy of his 51st birthday.
Earp was famous in local underground music circles - punk, heavy metal, rap - for being the guy who offered encouraging words, sold their albums and provided a place where they could promote their bands and socialize with others who shared their love of music, particularly music outside the mainstream.
“His contributions have been immeasurable. He was like a den father.
His record store was ground zero, the mother ship, for the whole
scene,” said author Ben Hamper, who hosted a long-running punk music
radio and TV show, “Take No Prisoners,” which Earp sponsored.
Earp’s death caught a lot of people by surprise. He was married for the first time Nov. 18. He started feeling ill about six weeks ago,
according to Al Steel, his friend and co-worker for 18 years.
“He just thought he had a cold,” said Steel, who described his fallen
colleague and mentor as “my brother, my father, my best friend.”
Earp was hospitalized Dec. 5 at Genesys Regional Medical Center in
Grand Blanc Township, and was told he didn’t have long to live.
Steel said his friend and boss took the grim news in stride.
“He was the ultimate realist,” Steel said. “That’s why when the doctors told him what was going on, he told them thank you and gave them the thumbs up sign.”
His life was a big thumbs up to the local music community he loved so
much. A Swartz Creek High School graduate, Earp worked at Boogie
Records and Rock-a-Rolla Records before starting his store, named after the 19th century lawman who supposedly was a distant relative, in 1981.
The store, at 5204 Corunna Road in Flint Township, and its owner played an integral role in developing a healthy underground rock scene that is alive and well today.
“As a teenager from the suburbs, walking into Wyatt Earp Records was
like visiting Willy Wonka’s Chocolate Factory. Everywhere you looked
was something you’d never seen before and you probably wanted,”
recalled Joel Rash, owner of Flint Local 432, a downtown Flint
alternative music space.
Earp bankrolled Rash’s first all-ages shows in the late 1980s. He also helped out some of Flint’s earliest and important underground bands, including Repulsion, whose extreme brand of heavy metal, called grindcore, has been cited as an influence on European metal bands such as Napalm Death.
Earp was one of the area’s first alternative music promoters, bringing pivotal punk and metal acts such as Slayer, Black Flag and 7 Seconds to town.
He was famous for his cool, nonjudgmental approach to music.
“Doug always seems calmly amused by something, in a Buddhist kind of
way,” local club disc jockey Michael Absher, who first met Earp in
1984, wrote in an e-mail.
“This is a man who kept an independent record store going for years in an out-of-the-way spot, with no advertising, as chain stores and other independents crashed and burned in a dwindling economy. And he never seemed to even break a sweat doing it.”
Steel plans to keep the store open, though it will be closed Monday for Earp’s funeral.
“I have every intention of carrying it on,” Steel said.
Earp is survived by his wife, Sarah.
EARP, Douglas A. Age 50, of Swartz Creek,MI died Friday, December 17, 2004 at Genesys Health Park. Funeral services will be held 11 AM Monday, December 20, 2004 at Sharp Funeral Homes, Miller Road Chapel, 8138 Miller Rd., Swartz Creek. Visitation will be held 2-5 & 7-9 PM Sunday. Those desiring may make contributions to the Lance Armstrong Foundation. Doug was born December 20, 1953 the son of Herschel and Kathryn Earp. He owned and operated Wyatt Earp Records for 24 years. Doug loved the outdoors. He enjoyed hunting, fishing and golfing. Surviving are: wife, Sarah; mother, Kathryn Earp; step-children, George and wife Betsy Bush, Gary and wife Teri Bush, Sarah Kay Miller all of Swartz Creek; 8 grandchildren, Lauren and Megan Bush, Matthew and Brittany Bush, Zachary, Peyton, Sarah Anne and Emmaly Kay Miller; sisters, Kay and husband Gary, Lorraine, Marjorie and husband Cecil; nieces, Kari, Kristina and Sarah; a great niece and great nephews; father-in-law, Dr. Wallace Pike; many friends. He was preceded in death by his father.
He was a great supporter of the independent bands of Flint Michigan.
Store owner nurtured music scene
Doug Earp, 50
FLINT
THE FLINT JOURNAL FIRST EDITION
By Doug Pullen
dpul…@flintjournal.com · 810.766.6140
Doug Earp wasn’t a musician, but he was famous around town for
supporting and nurturing them.
The owner and founder of Flint Township’s Wyatt Earp Records died of
complications due to cancer early Friday morning, three days shy of his 51st birthday.
Earp was famous in local underground music circles - punk, heavy metal, rap - for being the guy who offered encouraging words, sold their albums and provided a place where they could promote their bands and socialize with others who shared their love of music, particularly music outside the mainstream.
“His contributions have been immeasurable. He was like a den father.
His record store was ground zero, the mother ship, for the whole
scene,” said author Ben Hamper, who hosted a long-running punk music
radio and TV show, “Take No Prisoners,” which Earp sponsored.
Earp’s death caught a lot of people by surprise. He was married for the first time Nov. 18. He started feeling ill about six weeks ago,
according to Al Steel, his friend and co-worker for 18 years.
“He just thought he had a cold,” said Steel, who described his fallen
colleague and mentor as “my brother, my father, my best friend.”
Earp was hospitalized Dec. 5 at Genesys Regional Medical Center in
Grand Blanc Township, and was told he didn’t have long to live.
Steel said his friend and boss took the grim news in stride.
“He was the ultimate realist,” Steel said. “That’s why when the doctors told him what was going on, he told them thank you and gave them the thumbs up sign.”
His life was a big thumbs up to the local music community he loved so
much. A Swartz Creek High School graduate, Earp worked at Boogie
Records and Rock-a-Rolla Records before starting his store, named after the 19th century lawman who supposedly was a distant relative, in 1981.
The store, at 5204 Corunna Road in Flint Township, and its owner played an integral role in developing a healthy underground rock scene that is alive and well today.
“As a teenager from the suburbs, walking into Wyatt Earp Records was
like visiting Willy Wonka’s Chocolate Factory. Everywhere you looked
was something you’d never seen before and you probably wanted,”
recalled Joel Rash, owner of Flint Local 432, a downtown Flint
alternative music space.
Earp bankrolled Rash’s first all-ages shows in the late 1980s. He also helped out some of Flint’s earliest and important underground bands, including Repulsion, whose extreme brand of heavy metal, called grindcore, has been cited as an influence on European metal bands such as Napalm Death.
Earp was one of the area’s first alternative music promoters, bringing pivotal punk and metal acts such as Slayer, Black Flag and 7 Seconds to town.
He was famous for his cool, nonjudgmental approach to music.
“Doug always seems calmly amused by something, in a Buddhist kind of
way,” local club disc jockey Michael Absher, who first met Earp in
1984, wrote in an e-mail.
“This is a man who kept an independent record store going for years in an out-of-the-way spot, with no advertising, as chain stores and other independents crashed and burned in a dwindling economy. And he never seemed to even break a sweat doing it.”
Steel plans to keep the store open, though it will be closed Monday for Earp’s funeral.
“I have every intention of carrying it on,” Steel said.
Earp is survived by his wife, Sarah.
He was a great supporter of the independent bands of Flint Michigan.
Store owner nurtured music scene
Doug Earp, 50
FLINT
THE FLINT JOURNAL FIRST EDITION
By Doug Pullen
dpul…@flintjournal.com · 810.766.6140
Doug Earp wasn’t a musician, but he was famous around town for
supporting and nurturing them.
The owner and founder of Flint Township’s Wyatt Earp Records died of
complications due to cancer early Friday morning, three days shy of his 51st birthday.
Earp was famous in local underground music circles - punk, heavy metal, rap - for being the guy who offered encouraging words, sold their albums and provided a place where they could promote their bands and socialize with others who shared their love of music, particularly music outside the mainstream.
“His contributions have been immeasurable. He was like a den father.
His record store was ground zero, the mother ship, for the whole
scene,” said author Ben Hamper, who hosted a long-running punk music
radio and TV show, “Take No Prisoners,” which Earp sponsored.
Earp’s death caught a lot of people by surprise. He was married for the first time Nov. 18. He started feeling ill about six weeks ago,
according to Al Steel, his friend and co-worker for 18 years.
“He just thought he had a cold,” said Steel, who described his fallen
colleague and mentor as “my brother, my father, my best friend.”
Earp was hospitalized Dec. 5 at Genesys Regional Medical Center in
Grand Blanc Township, and was told he didn’t have long to live.
Steel said his friend and boss took the grim news in stride.
“He was the ultimate realist,” Steel said. “That’s why when the doctors told him what was going on, he told them thank you and gave them the thumbs up sign.”
His life was a big thumbs up to the local music community he loved so
much. A Swartz Creek High School graduate, Earp worked at Boogie
Records and Rock-a-Rolla Records before starting his store, named after the 19th century lawman who supposedly was a distant relative, in 1981.
The store, at 5204 Corunna Road in Flint Township, and its owner played an integral role in developing a healthy underground rock scene that is alive and well today.
“As a teenager from the suburbs, walking into Wyatt Earp Records was
like visiting Willy Wonka’s Chocolate Factory. Everywhere you looked
was something you’d never seen before and you probably wanted,”
recalled Joel Rash, owner of Flint Local 432, a downtown Flint
alternative music space.
Earp bankrolled Rash’s first all-ages shows in the late 1980s. He also helped out some of Flint’s earliest and important underground bands, including Repulsion, whose extreme brand of heavy metal, called grindcore, has been cited as an influence on European metal bands such as Napalm Death.
Earp was one of the area’s first alternative music promoters, bringing pivotal punk and metal acts such as Slayer, Black Flag and 7 Seconds to town.
He was famous for his cool, nonjudgmental approach to music.
“Doug always seems calmly amused by something, in a Buddhist kind of
way,” local club disc jockey Michael Absher, who first met Earp in
1984, wrote in an e-mail.
“This is a man who kept an independent record store going for years in an out-of-the-way spot, with no advertising, as chain stores and other independents crashed and burned in a dwindling economy. And he never seemed to even break a sweat doing it.”
Steel plans to keep the store open, though it will be closed Monday for Earp’s funeral.
“I have every intention of carrying it on,” Steel said.
Earp is survived by his wife, Sarah.
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