(ASBURY PARK, NJ) -- The Light of Day WinterFest 2022 has announced the Asbury Angels class of 2022 and inductees include Andrew “Hood” Kafafian, Kerry Layton, Jonathan T. Richardson and Billy Ryan. The inductees will be recognized this evening at the Stone Pony in Asbury Park by Eileen Chapman, Jean Mikle and Tony Pallagrosi.
The mission of the Asbury Angels is to honor and memorialize the lives and history of members of the Asbury Park musical community, including but not limited to, musicians, tech support persons, DJs, journalists, club owners, record company personnel, managers and promoters.
Andrew “Hood” Kafafian (from the words of Eileen Chapman) “Hood” was smart, quick, funny, mysterious, honest, trustworthy and generous. He had every quality that made him a dedicated friend and operative. Hood was in constant motion: driving, doing, exploring and seeking, all with a sparkle in his eyes. But more than anything else, he lived and breathed music. It was his passion, it was his life. He had an encyclopedic knowledge of rock and pop music, the Yankees, and video games and would converse for hours on any of those subjects.
Hood dedicated his life to New Jersey Music. As a young teen he spent most of his time in record stores collecting 45’s and LP’s. It was in Relic Rack Record Store in Hackensack where he met many life-long friends that shared his passion for music. With Ken Viola, he managed a record store, started Thunder Road Magazine and Thunder Road Messenger Service. In fact it was Hood and Kenny that were the earliest purveyors and supporters of Bruce Springsteen, and later Southside and the Jukes music in north Jersey. Hood worked security and managed the front door at all on the Metropolitan Entertainment shows at the Capitol Theatre, Asbury Park Convention Hall and Casino, Roosevelt Stadium, The Ritz, Beacon Theatre and every other venue where John Scher presented shows in the New York, New Jersey metropolitan area. He loved people and always treated patrons with a smile and kindness, often greeting fans by name.
He was passionate about music in many forms and always went the extra mile for those artists that he worked for. Hood cherished his time working with touring performers like the Grateful Dead, Dave Edmunds, and his favorite band of all time-Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes with whom he worked for over forty years. Hood loved life. His passion for music was so infectious that could be felt by everyone he came in contact with. He was a legend and I am honored to have the great pleasure to meet and share many adventures with him. He is greatly missed by everyone he touched from musicians to fans who became his friends.
Kerry Layton - An avid surfer, a long-time lifeguard in Deal and then in Long Branch, Kerry Layton was also a devoted rock climber, a bike riding enthusiast and a talented photographer with a singular view of the world. His greatest love, after his long-time girlfriend, Pam DeLisa, of course, music, of all kinds. No matter where he was, Kerry always had to have the music with him; no doubt some of you remember him sitting on his bench on the south side of Convention Hall, listening to WCBS-FM on a tinny little transistor radio. An original member of the Asbury Ushers, Kerry worked at many shows at the Paramount Theatre and Convention Hall in Asbury Park, as well as at Monmouth University.
But more of you probably remember him in his favorite spot, at the back bar of the Stone Pony, a club he and Pam started coming to back in the mid-1970s. Back there you can see a plaque with his name on it, next to the spot where he sat with Pam for hundreds of shows. Dubbed one of the Stone Pony “ambassadors” by Kyle Brendle, Kerry really was a true ambassador for the music scene. He loved to talk about music, and he loved to speak to musicians and hear old favorites, as well as new bands.
Of course, his very favorite musician was a man he called “Mr. Big,” aka Bruce Springsteen. Many a night here would start with Kerry telling me that he thought it was the perfect time for Mr. Big to make an appearance. And quite often, he was right.
Many a musician – as well as quite a few music fans – enjoyed stopping by the back bar to hear Kerry’s quirky and unique takes on the world around him (and he was one of only two people I know who could work the old fireplace back there). He was a true advocate for Asbury Park and its music scene.
Jonathan T. Richardson - Jonathan Theodore Richardson (January 31, 1875 – December 1956) was one of the West Side’s best known orchestra and bandleaders of the early 1900s. Richardson was a direct descendant of the Sand Hill Indians. He lost his right arm to polio at age six but it never deterred him from doing what he wanted to do. Richardson formed an orchestra of Indigenous and African American musicians prior to 1900. Richardson’s Orchestra had a long association with the local lodge of the Colored Knights of Pythias. The Richardson Orchestra was West Park / West Side’s premier orchestra over the first couple decades of the 20th century. As was the custom in those times, Richardson’s Orchestra could be as small as four pieces or expand into a couple dozen, depending on the event. Often they would break into a brass marching band to perform in local parades. Concerts by the Richardson Orchestra would draw hundreds of attendees.
Billy Ryan - Born in Long Branch and raised in Allenhurst, Billy settled in Tinton Falls. He fell in love with the blues at a young age. He learned how to play guitar and his skillful playing led to him being dubbed as “The Guitar Man,” at the Jersey Shore. He played with many bands, including Norman Seldin and Joyful Noyze, Speed Limit 25, The Jaywalkers, The James Cotton Blues Band, Nicky Addeo and Clarence Clemons & The Red Bank Rockers. He also played with his own bands, Ryan’s Express and Billy Ryan and the Bluescasters. One of the creators of the Sound of Asbury Park, Billy name is included on the SOAP monument in front of the Paramount Theatre. Billy began working for Henry Vaccaro Sr. as a young man, and later joined the New Jersey Carpenter’s Union Local 2250. He was also a lobster fisherman who enjoyed being on his boat, “The Dreamer.” He was also an accomplished photographer whose photographs were accepted into the Monmouth Festival of the Arts juried art shows and also at galleries in Vermont, where he considered the Green Mountains his second home.
The Light of Day Foundation, Inc. is designated by the IRS as a not-for-profit 501(c) (3) organization. The Light of Day Foundation, Inc.'s Federal ID # is 20-1560386. Light of Day - the concerts and the organization - grew from a birthday party and fund-raiser held in 1998 at the Downtown Cafe in Red Bank to celebrate the 40th birthday of artist manager and music industry veteran Bob Benjamin, who was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease in 1996.
