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Ronald Coleman, beloved member of the Broadways music group of Asbury Park, and a staunch advocate of the city’s former Springwood Avenue music scene, died Tuesday, April 4, of kidney failure at Jersey Shore University Medical Center in Neptune.
He was 82.
“This is a painful day for me, his family and his many friends, who loved him as I did,” said Broadways member Leon Trent on social media.
The Broadways were the musical kings of Asbury Park in the ’60s, and their orbit included future music stars. Member Billy Brown would later join the Moments, which became Ray, Goodman and Brown. Saxophonist Clarence Clemons would accompany the Broadways on stage at city shows. He, of course, gained fame with Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band.
The group, which included Coleman, Brown, Trent, Robert Conti, Ray Morris and Dennis Anderson, formed as the Uniques. The name changed when they signed with MGM Records in 1964.
“It was like anything else, you had to be at the right place at the right time, and when the right time presents itself, you have to be ready,” Trent said. “We were always rehearsing and we knew the value of personal appearance, presentation and that’s what it was. When you went on stage you were looking good, sounding good — but you had prepared for that. There was a lot of work that went into that.”
The group recorded several singles for MGM, including “You Just Don’t Know” and “Goin’ Goin’ Gone,” which led to concerts, promotional appearances and TV spots.
“It was a wonderful thing in that there was so much happiness in our lives at that time,” Trent said.
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A 1967 show at the Jersey Shore had the Castiles, with a pre-fame Springsteen, on the bill. Years later, Springsteen would sing with Coleman and other members of the West Side scene at the Wonder Bar in Asbury Park in 2011. He cited the Broadways and the West Side groups as a major influence on him and the Sound of Asbury Park.
Music greats like Count Basie, Duke Ellington, Lenny Welch, Bobby Thomas, Clemons, Garry Tallent and more were either inspired by or played Springwood Avenue’s club circuit.
The music scene came to an abrupt halt during the summer of 1970, when riots tore apart the city and, specifically, Springwood Avenue. After decades of abandonment, there is now a growing recognition for the cultural legacy of the Springwood Avenue scene.
Coleman was at the forefront of the drive for recognition.
In 2011, the Smithsonian traveling exhibition, “New Harmonies: Celebrating American Roots Music,” came to the Asbury Park library; the Asbury Park Historical Society crafted an exhibit for “Harmonies,” focusing on Asbury Park’s West Side.
“That’s when I got to know Ron,” said former historical society president Don Stine. “He was always very vocal about how he felt this music had been ignored over the years.”
The 2011 Soul of Asbury Park concert, produced by the historical society, reunited the Broadways, who had disbanded in the early ’70s after Brown left to join the Moments.
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“Ron was instrumental in putting on the historical society’s Soul of Asbury Park concert at Convention Hall, and I can still see him sitting in the front row during rehearsals, voicing his opinion when he heard problems,” Stine said. “He had a great respect for the music he helped create.”
Coleman of Neptune worked for decades at the DuPont Parlin site in Sayreville, and later as a crossing guard in Neptune. He is predeceased by his wife Laura Coleman and son Gregory Matthews.
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He is survived by son Keith Coleman of Neptune; daughter Marilyn Mcburnie of Houston; son Derrick Coleman of Neptune; daughter Terri Coleman Lomack of Neptune; and his fellow Broadways members and best friends Brown and Trent.
“I always wanted to be just like him,” Derrick said. “That’s what hurts me the most now he’s gone.”
Coleman was with family and friends when he passed, said Coleman Lomack.
“He was surrounded by love,” she added.
A service will take place at noon Saturday, April 15, at Ely Funeral Home in Neptune.
“We were living on Division Street (in Neptune) when we were kids, so we had to walk down to the Block (Springwood Avenue),” Trent said. “We’d sing our way all the way down to the street. Wherever we were, we’d walk along singing. That’s the stuff that you remember.”
Chris Jordan, a Jersey Shore native, covers entertainment and features for the USA Today Network New Jersey. Contact him at @chrisfhjordan; cjordan@app.com.
