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oaklandcrusader

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  • Your Drum Corps Experience
    Oakland Crusaders
  • Your Favorite Corps
    Oakland Crusaders
  • Your Favorite All Time Corps Performance (Any)
    1974 Madison Scouts / 1976 Blue Devils
  • Your Favorite Drum Corps Season
    1976
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  1. Thanks for the great story!...I don't remember that but that sure sounds like something Float would have us do -- He knew exactly when to put the hammer down and when to lighten things up...That was one of his many great strengths...
  2. Yes, he was...It really should have been his 1st Drum Title...It's the one that got away lol He aged out after the '74 season with Kingsmen...In '75 he helped out with the Freelancers then came to us in '76 and '77 as our Head Instructor...He went to Spirit of Atlanta after us then on to Blue Devils from there...
  3. Since DCI is just around the corner, I thought I'd selfishly take this opportunity to remind and or inform everyone that this year marks the 40th Anniversary of the Oakland Crusaders winning Top Drums at DCI Prelims in 1977 in Denver, Colorado but unfortunately, our Corps didn't make Finals that year...A distinguished feat that was never accomplished either before or after in the history of DCI... The Blue Devils who had a solid Drum Line that year went on to win Top Drums in the Finals posting a score of 18.80 which was still lower than our Prelims score...I was on the Bass Line and if memory serves me well ( I'm 57 yrs old now so it might not ) we only lost once that year and it was to the Blue Devils...Everyone knew that we were the Best Drum Line that year but you know what they say-- If ifs and buts were candy and nuts my Aunt would be my Uncle lol...In other words, that's the way it goes... We were in the stands watching the Finals and during Retreat when they announced that the Blue Devils took Top Drums, our entire Drum Line ran down onto the field to congratulate and shake their hands...I'll never forget the shocked look on long time Devils' Drum instructor Scott Johnson's face who was on then marching on the Devils Snare Line -- I think they thought we were going to jump them lol Our Drum Line staff had a distinct Anaheim Kingsmen flair to it with 3 former Snares at the helm...Al Murray was the builder and architect of the Line in 1975 then 2 DCI Hall of Famers came on board for the 1976 - 1977 seasons -- Tom Float who became our Head Instructor and Ralph Hardiman who wrote some music for us as well...Funny, but when Tom left after the '77 season a 4th former Kingsmen Snare Drummer took the line over for the "78 season named Sammy Kays, who in my humble opinion, was one of the best Drum Line music writers ever in the history of DCI... The Corps had made Finals 3 years in a row '74 ( De La Salle Oaklands ) '75 and '76 with no reason to think any differently in '77...For a variety of reason which are too boring to get into details the Corps got off to a rocky start and we basically re did the entire show 2 weeks before Finals but we fell just short...Another couple of days and we would have made it for sure!... The Drum Line worked their way from the middle of the pack in '74 and kept getting better every year after that to the point where we only finished a couple ticks behind Blue Devils in the '76 Finals...We weren't music majors like the kids are today -- We just a bunch of kids with no real musical backgrounds that just liked the thought of banging drums and being able to hang out with girls that were in the Corps lol...Once we got a taste -- We wanted to be the best and were willing to work as long and hard as we could to do it!... With the invaluable knowledge and direction from the Kingsmen guys we were well on our way...The Bluecoats Drum Line of today actually reminds me a lot of our Lines from back in the day -- just inching closer and closer every year... Our Drum Line left our mark in many other ways as well even to this day -- We were the first Drum Line to use the "Down Stroke Style" which Tom Float developed based on the flawless drumming style of our Lead Snare Doug Bass ...We were one of the first Drum Lines to start singing Dut! Dut! Dut! Dut! before Attacking...A lot of the exercises that Drum Lines use today have been tweaked from our exercises, warm ups, etc from back in the day...They say that imitation is the best form of flattery lol... We also like to think that we were one of the last Drum Lines to play all 26 rudiments in a Book -- Don't get me wrong, the drummers of today are fabulous the stuff they play is fast and amazing but a lot of the stuff that some Drum Lines play today are basically just Taps and Diddles...Just saying -- Don't hate!...I give tons of credit to the drummers of today -- I can't imagine how hard it is to do all that running around out there and still try and play clean! Below, is the Recap of the Top 12 Scores from Prelims...Back in those days they used the Tick System...2 Execution Judges on the field and one GE Judge in the stands...The Total Execution Scores were made up of 20 points -- 15 points for Execution and 5 for Exposure to Error ( Basically, how difficult your book was ) they then took the Avg Score of both Judges for a Grand Total...The GE Drum gave you a score out of 10 points ( which I didn't list )...I think we were either 9.9 or 10 in GE We had an Avg Score of 18.85 in Prelims which was 6.5 Tenths ahead of 2nd place Blue Devils -- Believe me, that is a huge gap in the Tick System...That gap is kind of equivalent to the way Tiger Woods basically lapped the Field at The Masters that one year... At the end of that year back in Toronto, the Drum Line had a BBQ and Tom Float brought a huge cake for us... He was very emotional and had some very kind words about us then he said he had this cake specially inscribed that was befitting of our accomplishment... We thought it would say " Congratulations Champs" or something along those lines -- Instead in only Float's humorous way, it said -- "YOU SUCK!" lol A big Shout out to DCI who acknowledged our achievement over the PA system during the DCI Buffalo show this past weekend... The Recap is an interesting read...There are 6 Corps on the list who aren't around anymore and Santa Clara Vanguard probably had one of the their lowest placements ever at DCI for Drums DCI Prelims / August 18, 1977 ( Denver, Colorado ) Drum Judge #1 : J. Blair Drum Judge #2 : P. Wojtena Drums #1 Exp Total #2 Exp Total AVG Oakland Crusaders 14.2 5.0 19.2 13.6 4.9 18.5 18.85 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 Blue Devils 13.5 4.8 18.3 13.4 4.7 18.1 18.20 6 2 2 5 2 2 2 Freelancers 13.8 4.5 18.3 13.6 4.5 18.1 18.2 2 5 2 1 5 2 2 27th Lancers 13.7 4.5 18.2 13.5 4.5 18.0 18.10 3 5 4 4 5 5 4 Bridgemen 13.6 4.4 18.0 13.6 4.5 18.1 18.05 5 8 5 1 5 2 5 Phantom Regiment 13.3 4.6 17.9 13.1 4.6 17.7 17.8 8 3 6 9 3 6 6 Madison Scouts 13.4 4.5 17.9 13.2 4.5 17.7 17.8 7 5 6 8 5 6 6 Kilties 13.2 4.6 17.8 13.1 4.6 17.7 17.75 9 3 8 9 3 6 8 Anahiem Kingsmen 13.7 4.1 17.8 13.3 4.0 17.3 17.55 3 18 8 6 19 11 9 Santa Clara Vanguard 12.9 4.4 17.3 13.3 4.4 17.7 17.5 13 8 11 6 10 6 10 Blue Stars 12.6 4.4 17.0 13.0 4.4 17.4 17.20 17 8 14 11 10 10 11 Cavaliers 13.0 4.3 17.2 13.0 4.2 17.2 17.2 11 15 12 11 15 12 11 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Recap of 1977 DCI Finals ( Drums ) ( Drum Line Scores are outlined in Overall Corps standings ) Perc. Perc. Perc. #1 #2 Avg. Blue Devils 18.6 19.0 18.80 Phantom Regiment 17.6 17.8 17.70 Santa Clara Vanguard 18.0 17.7 17.85 Bridgemen 18.7 18.4 18.55 27th Lancers 18.6 18.1 18.35 Madison Scouts 18.7 18.6 18.65 Blue Stars 16.8 17.0 16.90 Cavaliers 15.8 16.1 15.95 Seneca Optimists 15.6 15.3 15.45 Freelancers 18.7 18.5 18.60 Kilts 18.2 18.2 18.20 Crossmen 17.8 17.4 17.60 Garfield Cadets 15.0 14.8 14.90 .7 18.6 18.65 19.1 17.8 18.45 Blue Stars 16.8 17.0 16.90 17.1 17.9 17.50 Cavaliers 15.8 16.1 15.95 18.5 19.0 18.75 Seneca Optimists 15.6 15.3 15.45 19.3 17.8 18.55 Freelancers 18.7 18.5 18.60 17.1 15.7 16.40 Kilts 117.8 17.4 17.60 16.3 16.1 16.20 Garfield Cadets 15.0 14.8 14.90
  4. Since DCI is just around the corner, I thought I'd selfishly take this opportunity to remind and or inform everyone that this year marks the 40th Anniversary of the Oakland Crusaders winning Top Drums at DCI Prelims in 1977 in Denver, Colorado but unfortunately, our Corps didn't make Finals that year...A distinguished feat that was never accomplished either before or after in the history of DCI... The Blue Devils who had a solid Drum Line that year went on to win Top Drums in the Finals posting a score of 18.80 which was still lower than our Prelims score...I was on the Bass Line and if memory serves me well ( I'm 57 yrs old now so it might not ) we only lost once that year and it was to the Blue Devils...Everyone knew that we were the Best Drum Line that year but you know what they say-- If ifs and buts were candy and nuts my Aunt would be my Uncle lol...In other words, that's the way it goes... We were in the stands watching the Finals and during Retreat when they announced that the Blue Devils took Top Drums, our entire Drum Line ran down onto the field to congratulate and shake their hands...I'll never forget the shocked look on long time Devils' Drum instructor Scott Johnson's face who was on then marching on the Devils Snare Line -- I think they thought we were going to jump them lol Our Drum Line staff had a distinct Anaheim Kingsmen flair to it with 3 former Snares at the helm...Al Murray was the builder and architect of the Line in 1975 then 2 DCI Hall of Famers came on board for the 1976 - 1977 seasons -- Tom Float who became our Head Instructor and Ralph Hardiman who wrote some music for us as well...Funny, but when Tom left after the '77 season a 4th former Kingsmen Snare Drummer took the line over for the "78 season named Sammy Kays, who in my humble opinion, was one of the best Drum Line music writers ever in the history of DCI... The Corps had made Finals 3 years in a row '74 ( De La Salle Oaklands ) '75 and '76 with no reason to think any differently in '77...For a variety of reason which are too boring to get into details the Corps got off to a rocky start and we basically re did the entire show 2 weeks before Finals but we fell just short...Another couple of days and we would have made it for sure!... The Drum Line worked their way from the middle of the pack in '74 and kept getting better every year after that to the point where we only finished a couple ticks behind Blue Devils in the '76 Finals...We weren't music majors like the kids are today -- We just a bunch of kids with no real musical backgrounds that just liked the thought of banging drums and being able to hang out with girls that were in the Corps lol...Once we got a taste -- We wanted to be the best and were willing to work as long and hard as we could to do it!... With the invaluable knowledge and direction from the Kingsmen guys we were well on our way...The Bluecoats Drum Line of today actually reminds me a lot of our Lines from back in the day -- just inching closer and closer every year... Our Drum Line left our mark in many other ways as well even to this day -- We were the first Drum Line to use the "Down Stroke Style" which Tom Float developed based on the flawless drumming style of our Lead Snare Doug Bass ...We were one of the first Drum Lines to start singing Dut! Dut! Dut! Dut! before Attacking...A lot of the exercises that Drum Lines use today have been tweaked from our exercises, warm ups, etc from back in the day...They say that imitation is the best form of flattery lol... We also like to think that we were one of the last Drum Lines to play all 26 rudiments in a Book -- Don't get me wrong, the drummers of today are fabulous the stuff they play is fast and amazing but a lot of the stuff that some Drum Lines play today are basically just Taps and Diddles...Just saying -- Don't hate!...I give tons of credit to the drummers of today -- I can't imagine how hard it is to do all that running around out there and still try and play clean! Below, is the Recap of the Top 12 Scores from Prelims...Back in those days they used the Tick System...2 Execution Judges on the field and one GE Judge in the stands...The Total Execution Scores were made up of 20 points -- 15 points for Execution and 5 for Exposure to Error ( Basically, how difficult your book was ) they then took the Avg Score of both Judges for a Grand Total...The GE Drum gave you a score out of 10 points ( which I didn't list )...I think we were either 9.9 or 10 in GE We had an Avg Score of 18.85 in Prelims which was 6.5 Tenths ahead of 2nd place Blue Devils -- Believe me, that is a huge gap in the Tick System...That gap is kind of equivalent to the way Tiger Woods basically lapped the Field at The Masters that one year... At the end of that year back in Toronto, the Drum Line had a BBQ and Tom Float brought a huge cake for us... He was very emotional and had some very kind words about us then he said he had this cake specially inscribed that was befitting of our accomplishment... We thought it would say " Congratulations Champs" or something along those lines -- Instead in only Float's humorous way, it said -- "YOU SUCK!" lol A big Shout out to DCI who acknowledged our achievement over the PA system during the DCI Buffalo show this past weekend... The Recap is an interesting read...There are 6 Corps on the list who aren't around anymore and Santa Clara Vanguard probably had one of the their lowest placements ever at DCI for Drums DCI Prelims / August 18, 1977 ( Denver, Colorado ) Drum Judge #1 : J. Blair Drum Judge #2 : P. Wojtena Drums #1 Exp Total #2 Exp Total AVG Oakland Crusaders 14.2 5.0 19.2 13.6 4.9 18.5 18.85 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 Blue Devils 13.5 4.8 18.3 13.4 4.7 18.1 18.20 6 2 2 5 2 2 2 Freelancers 13.8 4.5 18.3 13.6 4.5 18.1 18.2 2 5 2 1 5 2 2 27th Lancers 13.7 4.5 18.2 13.5 4.5 18.0 18.10 3 5 4 4 5 5 4 Bridgemen 13.6 4.4 18.0 13.6 4.5 18.1 18.05 5 8 5 1 5 2 5 Phantom Regiment 13.3 4.6 17.9 13.1 4.6 17.7 17.8 8 3 6 9 3 6 6 Madison Scouts 13.4 4.5 17.9 13.2 4.5 17.7 17.8 7 5 6 8 5 6 6 Kilties 13.2 4.6 17.8 13.1 4.6 17.7 17.75 9 3 8 9 3 6 8 Anahiem Kingsmen 13.7 4.1 17.8 13.3 4.0 17.3 17.55 3 18 8 6 19 11 9 Santa Clara Vanguard 12.9 4.4 17.3 13.3 4.4 17.7 17.5 13 8 11 6 10 6 10 Blue Stars 12.6 4.4 17.0 13.0 4.4 17.4 17.20 17 8 14 11 10 10 11 Cavaliers 13.0 4.3 17.2 13.0 4.2 17.2 17.2 11 15 12 11 15 12 11 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Recap of 1977 DCI Finals ( Drums ) ( Drum Line Scores are outlined in Overall Corps standings ) Perc. Perc. Perc. #1 #2 Avg. Blue Devils 18.6 19.0 18.80 Phantom Regiment 17.6 17.8 17.70 Santa Clara Vanguard 18.0 17.7 17.85 Bridgemen 18.7 18.4 18.55 27th Lancers 18.6 18.1 18.35 Madison Scouts 18.7 18.6 18.65 Blue Stars 16.8 17.0 16.90 Cavaliers 15.8 16.1 15.95 Seneca Optimists 15.6 15.3 15.45 Freelancers 18.7 18.5 18.60 Kilts 18.2 18.2 18.20 Crossmen 17.8 17.4 17.60 Garfield Cadets 15.0 14.8 14.90 .7 18.6 18.65 19.1 17.8 18.45 Blue Stars 16.8 17.0 16.90 17.1 17.9 17.50 Cavaliers 15.8 16.1 15.95 18.5 19.0 18.75 Seneca Optimists 15.6 15.3 15.45 19.3 17.8 18.55 Freelancers 18.7 18.5 18.60 17.1 15.7 16.40 Kilts 117.8 17.4 17.60 16.3 16.1 16.20 Garfield Cadets 15.0 14.8 14.90
  5. Since DCI is just around the corner, I thought I'd selfishly take this opportunity to remind and or inform everyone that this year marks the 40th Anniversary of the Oakland Crusaders winning Top Drums at DCI Prelims in 1977 in Denver, Colorado but unfortunately, our Corps didn't make Finals that year...A distinguished feat that was never accomplished either before or after in the history of DCI... The Blue Devils who had a solid Drum Line that year went on to win Top Drums in the Finals posting a score of 18.80 which was still lower than our Prelims score...I was on the Bass Line and if memory serves me well ( I'm 57 yrs old now so it might not ) we only lost once that year and it was to the Blue Devils...Everyone knew that we were the Best Drum Line that year but you know what they say-- If ifs and buts were candy and nuts my Aunt would be my Uncle lol...In other words, that's the way it goes... We were in the stands watching the Finals and during Retreat when they announced that the Blue Devils took Top Drums, our entire Drum Line ran down onto the field to congratulate and shake their hands...I'll never forget the shocked look on long time Devils' Drum instructor Scott Johnson's face who was on then marching on the Devils Snare Line -- I think they thought we were going to jump them lol Our Drum Line staff had a distinct Anaheim Kingsmen flair to it with 3 former Snares at the helm...Al Murray was the builder and architect of the Line in 1975 then 2 DCI Hall of Famers came on board for the 1976 - 1977 seasons -- Tom Float who became our Head Instructor and Ralph Hardiman who wrote some music for us as well...Funny, but when Tom left after the '77 season a 4th former Kingsmen Snare Drummer took the line over for the "78 season named Sammy Kays, who in my humble opinion, was one of the best Drum Line music writers ever in the history of DCI... The Corps had made Finals 3 years in a row '74 ( De La Salle Oaklands ) '75 and '76 with no reason to think any differently in '77...For a variety of reason which are too boring to get into details the Corps got off to a rocky start and we basically re did the entire show 2 weeks before Finals but we fell just short...Another couple of days and we would have made it for sure!... The Drum Line worked their way from the middle of the pack in '74 and kept getting better every year after that to the point where we only finished a couple ticks behind Blue Devils in the '76 Finals...We weren't music majors like the kids are today -- We just a bunch of kids with no real musical backgrounds that just liked the thought of banging drums and being able to hang out with girls that were in the Corps lol...Once we got a taste -- We wanted to be the best and were willing to work as long and hard as we could to do it!... With the invaluable knowledge and direction from the Kingsmen guys we were well on our way...The Bluecoats Drum Line of today actually reminds me a lot of our Lines from back in the day -- just inching closer and closer every year... Our Drum Line left our mark in many other ways as well even to this day -- We were the first Drum Line to use the "Down Stroke Style" which Tom Float developed based on the flawless drumming style of our Lead Snare Doug Bass ...We were one of the first Drum Lines to start singing Dut! Dut! Dut! Dut! before Attacking...A lot of the exercises that Drum Lines use today have been tweaked from our exercises, warm ups, etc from back in the day...They say that imitation is the best form of flattery lol... We also like to think that we were one of the last Drum Lines to play all 26 rudiments in a Book -- Don't get me wrong, the drummers of today are fabulous the stuff they play is fast and amazing but a lot of the stuff that some Drum Lines play today are basically just Taps and Diddles...Just saying -- Don't hate!...I give tons of credit to the drummers of today -- I can't imagine how hard it is to do all that running around out there and still try and play clean! Below, is the Recap of the Top 12 Scores from Prelims...Back in those days they used the Tick System...2 Execution Judges on the field and one GE Judge in the stands...The Total Execution Scores were made up of 20 points -- 15 points for Execution and 5 for Exposure to Error ( Basically, how difficult your book was ) they then took the Avg Score of both Judges for a Grand Total...The GE Drum gave you a score out of 10 points ( which I didn't list )...I think we were either 9.9 or 10 in GE We had an Avg Score of 18.85 in Prelims which was 6.5 Tenths ahead of 2nd place Blue Devils -- Believe me, that is a huge gap in the Tick System...That gap is kind of equivalent to the way Tiger Woods basically lapped the Field at The Masters that one year... At the end of that year back in Toronto, the Drum Line had a BBQ and Tom Float brought a huge cake for us... He was very emotional and had some very kind words about us then he said he had this cake specially inscribed that was befitting of our accomplishment... We thought it would say " Congratulations Champs" or something along those lines -- Instead in only Float's humorous way, it said -- "YOU SUCK!" lol A big Shout out to DCI who acknowledged our achievement over the PA system during the DCI Buffalo show this past weekend... The Recap is an interesting read...There are 6 Corps on the list who aren't around anymore and Santa Clara Vanguard probably had one of the their lowest placements ever at DCI for Drums DCI Prelims / August 18, 1977 ( Denver, Colorado ) Drum Judge #1 : J. Blair Drum Judge #2 : P. Wojtena Drums #1 Exp Total #2 Exp Total AVG Oakland Crusaders 14.2 5.0 19.2 13.6 4.9 18.5 18.85 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 Blue Devils 13.5 4.8 18.3 13.4 4.7 18.1 18.20 6 2 2 5 2 2 2 Freelancers 13.8 4.5 18.3 13.6 4.5 18.1 18.2 2 5 2 1 5 2 2 27th Lancers 13.7 4.5 18.2 13.5 4.5 18.0 18.10 3 5 4 4 5 5 4 Bridgemen 13.6 4.4 18.0 13.6 4.5 18.1 18.05 5 8 5 1 5 2 5 Phantom Regiment 13.3 4.6 17.9 13.1 4.6 17.7 17.8 8 3 6 9 3 6 6 Madison Scouts 13.4 4.5 17.9 13.2 4.5 17.7 17.8 7 5 6 8 5 6 6 Kilties 13.2 4.6 17.8 13.1 4.6 17.7 17.75 9 3 8 9 3 6 8 Anahiem Kingsmen 13.7 4.1 17.8 13.3 4.0 17.3 17.55 3 18 8 6 19 11 9 Santa Clara Vanguard 12.9 4.4 17.3 13.3 4.4 17.7 17.5 13 8 11 6 10 6 10 Blue Stars 12.6 4.4 17.0 13.0 4.4 17.4 17.20 17 8 14 11 10 10 11 Cavaliers 13.0 4.3 17.2 13.0 4.2 17.2 17.2 11 15 12 11 15 12 11 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Recap of 1977 DCI Finals ( Drums ) ( Drum Line Scores are outlined in Overall Corps standings ) Perc. Perc. Perc. #1 #2 Avg. Blue Devils 18.6 19.0 18.80 Phantom Regiment 17.6 17.8 17.70 Santa Clara Vanguard 18.0 17.7 17.85 Bridgemen 18.7 18.4 18.55 27th Lancers 18.6 18.1 18.35 Madison Scouts 18.7 18.6 18.65 Blue Stars 16.8 17.0 16.90 Cavaliers 15.8 16.1 15.95 Seneca Optimists 15.6 15.3 15.45 Freelancers 18.7 18.5 18.60 Kilts 18.2 18.2 18.20 Crossmen 17.8 17.4 17.60 Garfield Cadets 15.0 14.8 14.90 .7 18.6 18.65 19.1 17.8 18.45 Blue Stars 16.8 17.0 16.90 17.1 17.9 17.50 Cavaliers 15.8 16.1 15.95 18.5 19.0 18.75 Seneca Optimists 15.6 15.3 15.45 19.3 17.8 18.55 Freelancers 18.7 18.5 18.60 17.1 15.7 16.40 Kilts 117.8 17.4 17.60 16.3 16.1 16.20 Garfield Cadets 15.0 14.8 14.90
  6. Someone sent me a note informing me that Ralph Hardiman may no longer be working with the Blue Knights Drum Line anymore...If that is indeed the case, then kudos to whoever is instructing -- job well done!
  7. I agree mfrontz... I want all the corps to do well too!...I just feel sorry for the marching members especially, the Overagers -- Can you imagine ending your marching career on that? lol
  8. These are some of my random thoughts and observations from the 50 yard line at the DCI Buffalo show this past Sunday - The Good, The Bad and The Ugly in no particular order... Smoke 'em if you got "em and please feel free to talk amongst yourselves.... -- As always, great to see old friends at the show in Buffalo! -- "Blue" seemed to be the color of the night -- Blue Stars, Blue Knights, Bluecoats and Blue Devils -- There seemed to be 3 levels of competition out there-- The one between Blue Devils and Santa Clara then a slight gap down to the one between Bluecoats and Caroilna Crown then a bigger gap down and almost a Pick 'em between Cadets, Blue Knights, Phantom Regiment and Blue Stars -- I thought Phantom deserved a higher score and were the best of this group -- Last year it seemed to me that shows that were a blend of both old and new school drum corps which I really liked -- This year it felt more like new school again -- I have to admit it -- For the time in over 40 years of either competing against them or just watching them as a fan, I wasn't bored to death watching The Phantom Regiment...I enjoyed their show and really liked their uniforms * Speaking of Phantom Regiment -- 2 HUGE thumbs up to their Color Guard! --They were simply fabulous!...I thought they were the best Color Guard out there...I couldn't take my eyes off them and this coming from a former drummer who usually just focuses on the drum lines for the most part (lol) ...Those girls didn't stop the whole show! -- Congratulations on a great performance! * My only minor knock against the guard would be that the first set of flags that they used in the show (orange and black) were kind of dull and didn't enhance their flag work the same way that the more eye catching and colorful flags that they used the rest of the show did -- Was pleasantly surprised and impressed with the Blue Knights drum line...Great job Mike Jackson and all drum staff! -- Whoever the idiot was that came up with and designed The Cadets show should be fired!... Just another example of some delusional, self serving show designer trying impress the "Drum Corps World" with what a great visionary they are instead of thinking -- Hmmm??... What can we come up with that will not only be high energy, highly entertaining and fun to watch but will also be a showcase for all the great talent of the marching members??... Believe me, whatever the answer to that question was -- This isn't it!....It's the total opposite!...Instead of "Rebirth" -- It should be a complete "Re Do!" You would have to think that there had to be some staff members and instructors that said if we go thru with this idea-- I quit!...But, I guess not?? -- The Off the Line set up and drum intro of the Blue Devils show this year reminds me of the Bluecoats from a couple of years back * Speaking of the Blue Devils Off the Line -- Gotta love and be impressed with the 16 snares ( which includes Quad and Bass drummers ) playing drum intro from Legend of the One-Eyed Sailor to kick start the show ...Also, loved the Old School feel from all rifles spinning as they come off the Line! -- Can we please stop with all the voice overs and singing that is part of a lot of corps shows already!...I say that not because I'm Old School or anything like that -- I say it because it's confusing, distracting and most of all -- boring!... Here's an idea -- Do something that is high energy and entertaining that will get the crowd behind you -- Don't leave the fans scratching their heads thinking -- "What the hell is going on here?" or "What the hell was that??" A fan shouldn't have to be in on the staff production meetings to know what's going on in the show -- We want to cheer for you -- Help us to do that! -- Getting back to Garfield -- Sorry, The Cadets -- I didn't time it but it seemed to me that their Horn Line probably didn't play a note for at least 4 or 5 mins of their 12 min show -- Hats off to the Santa Clara staff who decided that "just" being a Top 5 Corps isn't good enough anymore...They broke tradition and changed with times a little bit for them and went with a more jazzier sounding show...Looks like it might pay off for them as they are very serious contenders to win their first Title since I think 1999... -- I liked Bluecoats show but I don't think it's good enough to repeat them as Champions this year...Always a big fan of their Drum Line! -- Crown's Horn Line sounded was crisp and clean as always...The Drum Line which is usually lags a little behind their Horn Line and Guard were pretty good...Didn't think the Corps overall show was as good as it has been the last few years though -- I like Blue Stars uniforms so much better nowadays -- After watching all the Corps, I really thought Santa Clara put on the best performance of the night and were going to stop Blue Devils winning streak -- Shows you how much I know (lol) -- Finally, a very big thank you to DCI for the shout out over the PA system during the show -- Acknowledging the distinguishing 40th anniversary of our Drum Line winning Top Drums at the 1977 DCI Prelims but unfortunately our Corps not making Finals that year -- A feat never accomplished before or after that year in any caption That's all Folks! Duz Ga Duz
  9. Attention all Drummers! Doug Bass and Dwayne Dumont would like to invite all drummers who marched in Oakland Crusaders, De La Salle Oaklands or Etobicoke Crusaders to come out to a Drumming Jam Session during the day of the 40th Oakland Crusaders reunion on November 14th... We will have drums available for those who wish to drum...If you don't wish to drum you can still come out to watch and socialize with old friends... More details to follow but it looks like the Jam Session will go from approximately 10:00 am to 2:00 pm at the same banquet hall as the reunion... So far the response has been really good and we hope that you can come out and join us... We have alumni drummers coming from the States and all across Ontario so there is no excuse not to attend -- especially if you live in the area. If you are interested you can reach either of us at: Doug Bass - dbass@rogers.com Dwayne Dumont - ddumont@rogers.com Duz Ga Duz The Oakland Crusaders will celebrating their 40th Anniversary Reunion at the Rembrandt Banquet Hall on November 14th ( details can be found at doca.ca under the Events tab )
  10. Attention all Drummers! Doug Bass and Dwayne Dumont would like to invite all drummers who marched in Oakland Crusaders, De La Salle Oaklands or Etobicoke Crusaders to come out to a Drumming Jam Session during the day of the 40th Oakland Crusaders reunion on November 14th... We will have drums available for those who wish to drum...If you don't wish to drum you can still come out to watch and socialize with old friends... More details to follow but it looks like the Jam Session will go from approximately 10:00 am to 2:00 pm at the same banquet hall as the reunion... So far the response has been really good and we hope that you can come out and join us... We have alumni drummers coming from the States and all across Ontario so there is no excuse not to attend -- especially if you live in the area. If you are interested you can reach either of us at: Doug Bass - dbass@rogers.com Dwayne Dumont - ddumont@rogers.com Duz Ga Duz The Oakland Crusaders will be celebrating their 40th Anniversary Reunion on November 14th, 2015 at the Rembrandt Banquet Hall (details can be found at doca.ca under the Events tab)
  11. To be honest, I'm not a big fan of it and who knows what they're going to come up with next?...I'm all for trying to come up with new and creative ideas but I think that the pendulum for creative expression has swung over too much to that side...Basically, at the rate that things are going we're just going to end up with a hybrid version of drum corps...I think they have to pull the reins back a little bit because it's almost like a -- "the barn door is open and the horses are running around all over the place" type of mentality when it comes to the use of props, amplification, voice overs, etc...Instead of enhancing the performance I found they were more distracting at times and overshadowed the music... The show coordinators have to remember that the marching members should always be the stars of the show and that their musical and marching talents should always be at the forefront...The funny thing is by trying to go over the top creatively they've made the shows less entertaining and more boring...As I mentioned in an earlier reply, there was a huge crowd in Buffalo and there was hardly any spontaneous applause from the audience while the corps were performing which I can't ever remember happening before...The applause at the end of each of the shows was kind of lukewarm at best...I don't think there were too many people clapping thinking -- " I could see that show 20 more times! " ... And I think that says a lot Cheers,
  12. Thanks for your reply... Don't worry it doesn't bother me...I was just throwing out some thoughts and observations out there...wasn't trying to make a Federal case out of anything...if some people agree -- great!...if they don't -- no worries Cheers,
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