Jersey Shore Rock and Soul Guitar Hero Billy Walton and his band are set to headline the Annual Somers Point Good Old Days Festival.
Billy Walton is an accomplished guitar master from the vibrant New Jersey Shore music scene. He earned his stripes in the rock and roll trenches, playing lead guitar for many years with Jersey icon, Southside Johnny. He has also shared the stage with music legends; Little Steven, Gary US Bonds and Steven Tyler, to name a few.
The Billy Walton Band grew out of this rich musical heritage, and found its groove when Billy connected with bassist William Paris. With the addition of Tom Petraccaro on sax, Eric Safka on Hammond B3, Bruce Krywinski Jr on trumpet, and Shane Luckenbough; the band has truly hit its stride. More recently, the arrival of vocalist extraordinaire Destinee Monroe has brought the band to a whole new level. Their efforts met with immediate interest from the fertile British Blues scene, leading to multiple successful tours across Europe and eastern United States. They have a solid, dedicated fan base which is growing quickly. In addition to blues rock fans, the jam band scene has also embraced the band – hungry for their high energy live shows.
Joining the lineup with Billy Walton is Danny Eyer and Rich “Megahertz” Kurtz who will present a musical show, “McCartney vs. Lennon: Jammin’ the Beatles’, highlighting the two iconic songwriters. This promises to be a crowd favorite.
Also scheduled to appear is local favorite Patty Blee, “Our Grand Dame of Song”. Patty has a long history of great music shows throughout the area. Patty has a distinctive guitar style full of bass lines and grooves, and has intertwined memorable melodies into mid and up-tempo songs of love and longing. A wide range of influences are evident — blues, folk, country, and rock. Toni Teschner and Mike Puggi will join Patty on stage.
In addition to all the wonderful music, there will be antique cars on display, children’s entertainment including carnival games, a dunk tank, inflatables, a magician, karate demonstrations, as well as Police K- 9 demonstrations with over 20 vendors and community groups, food and treats including hot dogs and hamburgers fresh from the grill.
New this year at the festival is Circle Liquor’s Wine Garden and Tastings with 7 premium international wines available by the glass and tasting flights. Plus the Bud Light Beer Garden, always a crowd favorite, will be back.
Photos by Steffen Klenk
