Billy Hector, born 1956, is a blues guitarist and singer-songwriter from Orange, New Jersey

Orange, New Jersey

The City of Orange is a city and township in Essex County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the township population was 30,134...

, Hector, who considers himself a workingman’s musician, has been performing and producing albums for over 20 years. Hector’s guitar style is a combination of Jersey Shore

Jersey Shore

The Jersey Shore is a term used to refer to both the Atlantic coast of the U.S. state of New Jersey and the adjacent resort and residential communities. . The New Jersey State Department of Tourism considers the Shore Region, Greater Atlantic City, and the Southern Shore to be distinct, each having...

 blues and rock n roll. Hector received the Best Guitarist Award from music critic Bob Makin of The Aquarian Weekly

The Aquarian Weekly

The Aquarian Weekly is a regional alternative weekly newspaper based in New Jersey. Founded in 1969, its focus is popular music. It is accompanied by a pull-out section, The East Coast Rocker, which is freely distributed throughout the New Jersey/New York City/Eastern Pennsylvania region.The paper...

's East Coast Rocker section twice. Hector is also the recipient of 3 Asbury Park Music Awards

Asbury Park Music Awards

Asbury Park, New Jersey, USA has a rich musical history that includes a strong Blues tradition as well as the Jersey Shore sound. Artists associated with the town include Bruce Springsteen, Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes, Bon Jovi, and many others. Asbury Park's musical history, however, did...

. The awards were for "Best Guitarist", "Best Blues Band" and the "Living Legend." Hector and his band were billed alongside for Bonnie Raitt

Bonnie Raitt

Bonnie Lynn Raitt is an American blues singer-songwriter and a renowned slide guitar player. During the 1970s, Raitt released a series of acclaimed roots-influenced albums which incorporated elements of blues, rock, folk and country, but she is perhaps best known for her more commercially...

 at The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's "Tribute to Muddy Waters

Muddy Waters

McKinley Morganfield , known as Muddy Waters, was an American blues musician, generally considered the "father of modern Chicago blues"...

". Hector has also played with the likes of B. B. King

B. B. King

Riley B. King , known by the stage name B.B. King, is an American blues guitarist and singer-songwriter.Rolling Stone magazine ranked him at No.3 on its list of the 100 greatest guitarists of all time. According to Edward M...

, but is most at home in small clubs, such as the Ragin’ Cajun restaurant in Belmar, NJ and The Wonder Bar in Asbury Park, NJ. He plays in similar New Jersey clubs in Asbury Park

Asbury Park, New Jersey

Asbury Park is a city in Monmouth County, New Jersey, United States, located on the Jersey Shore and part of the New York City Metropolitan Area. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city population was 16,116. The city is known for its rich musical history, including its association with...

, Montclair

Montclair, New Jersey

-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 38,977 people, 15,020 households, and 9,687 families residing in the township. The population density was 6,183.6 people per square mile . There were 15,531 housing units at an average density of 2,464.0 per square mile...

, Southampton, Belmar

Belmar, New Jersey

Belmar is a borough in Monmouth County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the borough population was 5,794. The Borough of Belmar is governed under the Faulkner Act system of municipal government....

, Chatsworth, Long Branch, Clementon, Jackson, Medford Lakes or New York City

New York City

New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...

.

History

Hector began playing in bands in Orange, NJ while working the usual jobs available to teenagers. He delivered newspapers, caddied in Brielle, worked on the Seaside Heights boardwalk, and washed dishes. Later, he started hanging out in Asbury Park, going to see Southside Johnny

Southside Johnny

Southside Johnny is an American singer-songwriter, who usually fronts his band Southside Johnny & The Asbury Jukes.-Early days:...

, and playing in a band himself. He moved to Asbury Park in 1977, the heyday of Southside Johnny

Southside Johnny

Southside Johnny is an American singer-songwriter, who usually fronts his band Southside Johnny & The Asbury Jukes.-Early days:...

, Bruce Springsteen

Bruce Springsteen

Bruce Frederick Joseph Springsteen , nicknamed "The Boss," is an American singer-songwriter who records and tours with the E Street Band...

, and The Stone Pony

The Stone Pony

The Stone Pony, located in Asbury Park, New Jersey, is one of the world's best known music venues. It is known as a starting point for many musicians, first and foremost for Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes, who were the house-band for much of the mid-seventies, but also for New Jersey natives...

, to play with The Shots, a band with a strong horn section, characteristic of the Jersey Shore Sound

Jersey Shore sound

The Jersey Shore sound is a genre of rock and roll popularized at the Jersey Shore on the Atlantic Ocean coast of New Jersey, United States, that goes by a variety of names or, more often, is defined by its artists...

.
Around 1980, Hector met Suzan Lastovica, his partner of over 30 years, who he refers to as “The Queen.” Lastovica had come out to see the band perform. Later, he was her guitar instructor for a while. Eventually the two became romantically involved. Around that time, Hector and Lastovica played in bands such as the Fairlanes together. He describes their longtime relationship as “hippie

Hippie

The hippie subculture was originally a youth movement that arose in the United States during the mid-1960s and spread to other countries around the world. The etymology of the term 'hippie' is from hipster, and was initially used to describe beatniks who had moved into San Francisco's...

married.”
As of 2011, Hector was producing his own recordings.

Discography

• 1989 All The Way Live
• 1993 Wild, Wild Beast
• 1994 Cold Wind
• 1997 Hard to Please
• 2000 What Can a Poor Boy Do?
• 2001 Duct Tape Life
• 2002 Busy Man
• 2002 Undertow
• 2003 Stonehenge
• 2003 Out of Order
• 2005 Alive and Kickin'
• 2007 Hard Rockin' Blues