Neil David Louison

1947 - 2022
Neil David Louison of Stony Brook, New York, died peacefully on Saturday, June 25, 2022, surrounded by his loved ones. He was 74 years old. He is survived by his partner Kit Raseman; his children Laura, Sophie, Evan, Angela, and Marco; and his grandchildren Ida, Noa, Ilsa, Rafaela, and Jonah. He was a cousin to Gregory, Robert, and Cathy Somma, and dear to his large extended family. He was a beloved and generous friend and bandmate to many.
Neil began his professional career as a music critic and concert promoter, writing for Crawdaddy, Creem, and Fusion, and publishing a chapter in the 1971 anthology No One Waved Goodbye: A Casualty Report on Rock and Roll, edited by his cousin Robert Somma. Neil worked as a theatrical stagehand and master carpenter, first at City College of New York and later at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center. He was a devoted student of music and inseparable from his guitar.
Born in Brooklyn, Neil was the eldest son of attorneys Leo Louison and Angela Parisi, and attended Loyola School in Manhattan. Neil’s mother Angela was a leading figure in the Democratic Party of New York, and upon her death, Neil and his brother James were raised by their grandparents Salvatore and Mary Parisi, their uncle Rosario Parisi, and their beloved aunt Juliette Somma (née Parisi). Neil was proud of his Italian heritage and forebears. As a young man he continued his schooling, including at Stony Brook University, where he studied history, drama, and stagecraft.
Neil was a voracious reader and had an ardent curiosity. He could build a house from the ground up and was working outside into his last active days. He shared this pursuit of knowledge, along with a lifelong passion for history, music, cinema, theater, and literature with his family. His devotion to the natural world was evident in his love of the water, and Neil was drawn to the shore from a young age. He spent countless days sailing, and later kayaking, on the open water of the Long Island Sound. Neil’s laugh, gestures, and outsized expressions were infectious and unforgettable. He was a true original. We miss him terribly, and will never be without him.
Services will be held at Bryant Funeral Home of Setauket on Monday June 28th, with viewings from 2-4 p.m. and 6-8 p.m., with a memorial service from 7-8 pm. A commemoration at Holy Rood cemetery of Westbury, NY, will follow Tuesday morning at 10:30 am. Memorial contributions in Neil’s name may be made to the Long Island Sound Conservation Society, https://longislandsoundconservationsociety.com/.