Asbury Angels Dedication Returns Noon Sunday
Cats on a Smooth Surface Tribute To Pony's Robert ‘Butch’ Pielka Follows
Six music industry professionals and performers who helped influence the Asbury Park music scene and global legacy will be honored Sunday on the Asbury Park Boardwalk, Eileen Chapman of the Bruce Springsteen Archives & Center for American Music at Monmouth University has announced.
Selected by the Asbury Angels Project, plaques donning their names will be added to the “Boardwalk of Fame,” which currently honors close to 50 musicians, tech support personnel, DJs, journalists, club owners, record company employees, managers and promoters.
The noon event, being held at the Second Avenue entrance of the boardwalk, will recognize the following: 
REESE LAMARR DUPREE, 1883-1963
Born on a cotton plantation in Bibb County, Georgia, Dupree moved to New York at age 13 and began singing in hotels and writing songs, including “Shortnin’ Bread.” Known as the first dance promoter in the country, he began promoting public dances in Asbury Park in the early 1900’s. He operated the Roseland Cabaret, the largest and grandest venue on Asbury Park’s West Side in the 1920s and by the 1940’s he was the largest promoter in the south of “negro bands on the one-night circuit”.
JOAN PIKULA, 1936-2015
One of the first female rock and arts critics, Pikula covered rock and roll and wrote feature articles for the Asbury Park Press. Reviewing everything from local plays to Convention Hall concerts, she was also a passionate supporter and strong advocate for some of Bruce Springsteen’s first bands, including Steel Mill and the Bruce Springsteen Band.
RICHARD SIMONSEN, 1948-2013
A Bradley Beach Councilman who owned the McNeely Real Estate Agency, Simonsen co-owned the legendary Student Prince nightclub on Kingsley Street with his father. The club was known for nurturing young musicians and encouraging original music. In 1971, a young Bruce Springsteen played at the club more than 50 times. It was here that Springsteen first met [and jammed with] Clarence Clemons.
JOHN SHAW, 1943-2006
Shaw was a drummer and co-founder of the Jaywalkers, the most popular band on the Jersey Shore from the early to mid-1960s. The band, which played covers and some original music, provided a steady income for a large group of musicians, including Buzzy Lubinsky, Little Steven Van Zandt, Garry Tallent, David Sancious, Leon Trent, Nicky Addeo, Billy Ryan and Ray Dahrouge.
The Guardian Angel Awards will go to the following:
SCOTT MUNI, 1953-2004
Known as ‘Scottso,’ Muni was a pioneer of FM progressive, underground and free-form rock radio, most famously at the legendary WNEW-FM. He was the host of two syndicated rock-radio programs. In the 1980s, WNEW produced and broadcasted massive live concerts on the Asbury Park beach on Memorial Day and Labor Day weekends. They featured local acts like Southside Johnny & the Asbury Jukes, John Eddie, the Smithereens and Glen Burtnik, who played alongside national acts like Robert Cray, Joan Jett, The Hooters & The Georgia Satellites.
ED SCIAKY, 1948-2004
A pioneering disc jockey from Philadelphia, Sciaky is best known for his stints on progressive FM stations
Photo by Mpozi Mshale Tolbert of City Paper
WMMR and WIOQ, where his passion for music helped shape the listening habits of a generation of music fans. His promotion of Bruce Springsteen, Southside Johnny the Asbury Park music scene helped to create a hotbed of fan support in Philadelphia, long before it was embraced in other areas of the country.
The Asbury Angels are comprised of a panel of music industry professionals and historians. Their criteria in choosing inductees include significant contribution to the creative music community and the impact on that community; and the length of time spent on the Asbury Park music scene. Those eligible for consideration must have been deceased for at least one year.
In related news, Cats on a Smooth Surface, will be held immediately following the dedication ceremony at the Stone Pony at 913 Ocean Avenue. The event is a tribute to Robert ‘Butch’ Pielka, the venue’s original owner, who passed away June 8.
Headliners include Bobby Bandiera, Joel Krauss, Harry Filkin, Vinny Daniele, Glen Burtnik, and Peter Schulle. There will be a first ever Bobby Campanell & The Shakes Reunion featuring Rock & Roll Hall of Famer Vini Lopez, Lance Larson, DJ Lee Mrowicki.
Butch and co-owner Jack Roig opened the Pony in 1974, creating a home for Asbury Park musicians that’s lasted over 40 years, organizers said in a written statement. Bands like Southside Johnny & The Asbury Jukes, The Shakes, Yasgur’s Farm, Cahoots, Cold Blast & Steel, The Shots, Kinderhook Creek, The Smithereens, The Lord Gunner Group, Salty Dog, Fresh, Stir Crazy, Cats On A Smooth Surface, The Nines, John Eddie, The Outcry, LaBamba & The Hubcaps, Max, and Rokinon found a place in the relatively barren Asbury Park of the late ‘70s and ‘80s where they could play to a real music crowd and develop their sound.
The Pony was open seven nights a week in those days, in rain, sleet, snow and ice,” the statement said. “No matter where you had been traveling or living, no matter how long you’d been away, when you got back into town, you went to the Pony that night because you knew that your friends would be there, a good, maybe a great band would be on stage, the dance floor would be open, DJ Lee Mrowicki would be spinning the tunes in between the live sets, booze would be flowing and Butch would probably buy you a drink or three. It was totemic, musically and socially, the Cheers of live music venues.”
Tickets to the Cats On A Smooth Surface 2 to 10 pm show are $25 via stoneponyonline.com.
For more about the Asbury Angels, visit their website, Facebook and Twitter pages.
[Photos courtesy of Asbury Angels]
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