Certain performances beg for an encore.  Billy Hector's last gig at The Stone Pony was one of them, and that encore will take place on Saturday, April 6th.  Hector, a legend on the Jersey shore music scene, has been playing the blues since the 1970's and has been a popular and recognized figure in the blues world, and at The Stone Pony, ever since. He has been a fixture at the Asbury Music Awards, has performed twice at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, and is planning to release two CDs this year, to follow-up the seven LPs in his discography.  Most importantly, there are few performers who can control a stage and light up an audience with a rock/blues sound honed by a grueling concert schedule and a work-ethic second-to-none.  Keep reading for a look into the early history of The Stone Pony, Billy's upcoming new releases and insight from a bluesman who brought tears to Bonnie Raitt's eyes when she heard him perform. 

The Stone Pony: Your last performance at The Stone Pony on February 2nd was an incredible show. Fans left making comments such as “I knew he was good, but not this good!” How did you feel after that show, and do you still get excited as a performer after such a positive experience? Are you able to enjoy each show, or do they start to blend together when you’re performing so many dates a year?

Billy Hector: It was a real good evening. I felt very good about the show. After a show like that you are so taken up with the good vibes that when people come up to you to ask where you'll be the nite after, you just can't say cuz you don't know. You're in that moment and nothin' else matters. I enjoy each show that I'm living at that time.

If you got one foot in tomorrow and one foot in yesterday you're pissin' on today ...

The Stone Pony: Asbury became famous for a bunch of musicians performing incredible R&B in an era of disco and watered-down rock. Can you offer any explanation about how this style of music developed locally, independently of what was going on in the national music scene at the time? Is there any correlation between you and Bobby Bandiera both hailing from Orange, NJ and both being known as killer players and white boy blues guitarists?

BH: I can't offer any explanation about how the Asbury sound came about cuz it was in place when I showed up. I always liked R&B and the Asbury sound drew me here because of that. They were playin' more Zeppelin than James Brown in Orange at that time. There were a lot of bands in Orange. There were 4 in my 2 block area. They were the older guys playin' Doors, Cream, etc. and I was just a young boy at the time doin' my lessons. There was a lot of bands in every neighborhood. Harry Filkin [from Holme, Cats, Beyond the Blue] is from Orange, too. I got into the blues when I was 13 and got heavy in to it. I think whatever the similarities between Bobby and I might be in terms of style [and] is attributable to us both having learned so much from Eric Clapton.

The Stone Pony: Your history with the Pony dates back to 1977, when your band, The Shots, took over from the Asbury Jukes as the house band. What sort of schedule did the Shots play in the late 1970s and what affect did your time with the Shots have on the rest of your career? Are there any impressions of what the Pony was like during that period which stand out years later?

BH: The Shots played 2 days a week, I think, at The Pony. I think 10PM to 3AM. I think that was 4 sets. I moved down the shore because of the Shots. It was the rock 'n' roll hot spot of the day. We played D-Jai's when Terry Magovern ran that club and we did 10 sets every Sunday, I think it was. We'd start in the early afternoon and do the 40 on 20 off thing all day basically. We were hard-working motherf*****s. I got to play a lot of great R&B. It was just like being in the Commitments (the movie). That's when I learned about things, like my guitar was breakin' a lot of strings and I had better have cables that work!! I still play some of those songs that I learned while in The Shots, "Lovey-Dovey","Barefootin'."

What stands out is I'm still in touch with the players from back then, you know, we went thru our war together, the brotherhood still remains - John Luraschi, Eileen, etc. All the players. It's the players that stand out. Ricki D, Lance ... we had a lotta fun. Going to the Jefferson after the Pony closed. Stuff like that.

The Stone Pony: After your time with The Shots, you continued to play the Pony, and worked up to a once-a-week schedule by 1979. Since the Pony re-opened about two years ago, you’ve enjoyed another great run at the club, often playing two sets a night. What are some of the differences, or similarities, in the club, and the fans, between then and now? Are there fans you remember from your shows in the 1970’s you’ve been able to meet again at your most recent gigs?

BH: I miss the dressing rooms. They got the trailer, though. The place looks the same, it feels the same. Domenic did a great job restoring it. I was there when John Luraschi was putting up the brickface for the side barway back when. When I started playing there, the back room was open so the club was bigger than when Southside and Bruce were making their mark. There were seats along the wall on the side of the stage where the ticket booth is. That was a riser with seats on it and the sound booth was smaller. It still feels the same, though. Like I said, Domenic did a great job.

When the Pony closed years back my fans followed me. They never left. The ones I had from the old days are still there. They don't come out as often but they're still there. My fans, they never left.

The Stone Pony: You were recognized at the 2001 Asbury Music Awards with honors for Top Guitarist and Top Blues Band, while also gaining recognition as a “Living Legend”. Why do you feel you have managed to keep your music relevant and current, while obviously having a storied musical career and history behind you? How have you continued to connect with new audiences, while keeping long-time fans interested in your music?

BH: Well, I have a big repertoire to draw from and I can custom make it to an audience while still sounding like me. Whatever I do, it's gonna sound like me be it a Beatle song or my song or a Muddy Waters song. People are coming to see me, to see what I'm performing that evening.

The Stone Pony: Blues musicians seem to be much more aware of the artists who came before them than musicians of other genres. Any decent bluesman knows any number of songs from the greats they can add to their live performances or recordings and freely praise their influences and inspirations. How aware are you of your place within the ranks of blues greats and can that be intimidating at times? How do you balance the desire to pay tribute to the masters, while still staking out new and innovative musical paths of your own?

BH: I'm not aware I'm in the ranks. I'm not even in their ballpark, so I'm still looking up to them. I do what I do. I've taken whatever it is I've taken from all the music I've absorbed through the years and I spit it out Billy Hector style. They are inseparable.

The Stone Pony: A great Billy Hector show seems to be one where the audience moves, moves, moves. Can you judge the success of a particular show by how hot and sweaty the audience is at the end? Is the ability to make an audience jump and shout simply a factor of the music you play, or is that a separate talent you’ve developed over the years?

BH: You can never tell how an audience is going to take any particular piece of music. Dance songs that work all the time at one place won't work in another. Each crowd is different. Just as the solo you thought was the worst you ever played can be the best thing someone's ever heard. It's all perception. I like a hot and sweaty show, but for me it's like shootin' pool. Some day all the balls go in, some days they don't.

The Stone Pony: Your primary songwriting collaborator is also your wife, Suzan Lastovica. Is it different for you when performing songs you write on your own, and those which are co-written? Does performing songs written with Suzan make it a little easier to be on the road over 250 days a year? Can you share some of your impressions about working with her as a songwriting partner?

BH: When you sing a song you just become the song. You have to get the words right, the chords right, you are relaying the song, the message. And afterwards you think, "Hey, that was a good song, where'd that one come from??" And then you realize it's one of your own or whatever ... when you're in the song you're in the song. Me and Suzan work hard to hammer out the songs, the singing part of it is easy, much easier than writing it. So, with Suzan it's the hard work part.

Sometimes I feel that my songs should be heard so I'll make a point of playing them that evening. If I don't do it, you know nobody else will.

The Stone Pony: You have announced plans for the debut of two new CDs this year. What can you let us know about these discs and when and how will fans be able to get their hands on them?

BH: The first CD to be released in May, our 8th release will be more of a singer-songwriter type thing. It's half live performance with the Acoustic Armada and half studio performance. It sounds more Celtic than blue, but somehow it still sounds American. I've been performing acoustically a few times a month either solo or with what I call the Acoustic Armada, which is the acoustic band that I recorded the CD with. That's acoustic guitar, some banjo, stand-up bass, harmonica, snare drum and even a violin player. It's a lot of fun. So that's where I get to play all the songs that'll be on the CD due out in May.

The second CD will be out later, in the summer. It also was recorded live at The Stone Pony!! and will be released at The Stone Pony this summer. Both discs will be available at all gigs and online at www.billyhector.com.

The Stone Pony: What’s the set list looking like for your next Pony appearance? Will you be performing anything off the new CDs? What do you hope people will be saying to each other when they leave the Pony in the early morning hours after your next show?

BH: We do stuff from all our CD's and from soon-to-be-released CD's all the time. We don't pigeon-hole ourselves into any set list. One word leads to another. We can be fairly certain that we're probably gonna do "Butt Naked" at our next Pony appearance. It's a crowd favorite. Probably a couple new tunes as well.

At the end of the night we want everybody to feel that the world is a better place.