dc oldtimer

Not really a "GUS" moment but, I think it was in 79 when instructing the Cavalier drum line someone got ahold of a pair of his pants and promtly (and rather easily I might add) fit two people in them. They walked around with these on for about 5 minutes with everyone in the corps in stitches.

I helped my good friend and fellow Cavalier FMM Jim Baron who designed their drill in 80 or 81 with basic marching and help teach the drill. I showed up once with my Cavalier jacket and promptly was asked to take it off. (didn't want the "competition" for kids but.... it got me a few dates :P I guess they didn't want THAT kind of competition also) Anyway, I had many friends in the Grenadiers and they might have been pretty good if it wasn't for the usual; lack of $$ and trying to get kids from a market that already had the Cavaliers, Phantom, Scouts, Kilties & Guardsmen. TOUGH MARKET! (Don't forget, kids back then didn't travel to march like they do now) Plus, I had a lot of family in Kankakee that brought me there a lot from Chicago.

Great Review and Welcome!! I am sure things are a little slow on this site because the season is over, kids are back in school, parents are back at work... blah, blah. Anyways, again, welcome!

Sorry to nitpick but didn't Bonnie Ott play mellophone? Now, Chris Metzger is STILL #1 on my list. Imagine what he could do with todays horns. Hmmmm wow!

The only reason why I quoted both is that one seemed a bit more enthusiastic than the other. But again, I am not criticizing... just an observation. This just serves as a reminder to everyone not to take any criticism of a corps to heart. Different strokes for different folks. Being a Cavalier FMM/fan I didn't take dimstint's remarks as a knock. It obviously was not his "cup of tea" as many posters say when a show just doesn't knock them over. Which is fine of course. He said it in a nice way and was respectful of others that may have different views. (BTW, I am pretty sure the lone guard member is an alternate. Rather than sit in the stands in street clothes, he is at least on the field in uniform. But, I may be wrong. He also may be injured.)

"Cavies - 93.6 my 2nd viewing. To truely enjoy this show, you must see it from a high perspective. On my first viewing, where I was seated rather low, I was saying this just isn't a typical Mike Gaines drill....WRONG. The drill is once again, the trend setter in all of DCI. No one in the past few years has equalled the Cavies in terms of coming up with great "pictures" and unbelievables ways to get there. 2004 is no different. The velocity and range of movement is incredible. It's almost as if Mike Gaines opperates under the assumption of "If I can think it, they can march it". Even with FOUR marchers taking falls at different times, thanks to quick recoveries, the corps just kept it coming. I do believe the field was somewhat wet and with this drill, falls are going to happen in those conditions. Although it's hard to get past the visual aspects of the drill and equally visual color guard, you also realize THESE GUYS CAN PLAY! Although I was a fan of the original works of R. Saucedo the past couple of years, it is really great to hear what has been done with the music of Bond." oldbandguy "Cavies - Their show was fairly good. The hornline sounds really nice this year, with moment of loudness and softness. I enjoyed a lot of different things about their show except for the thing that they has excelled in in the past: their drill. I just wasn't awe'd about it. It didn't have any distinct moments about it, like the ones that existed in frameworks or spin cycle. It just kind of seemed like they flew around the field for the whole show. I liked their guard though. They do some pretty neat stuff with the flags. The one thing that concerns me though is that they still have a guard member hanging out in the end zone. I was just wondering what is going on with that. They have like 2 weeks left in the season and they can't fit him in somewhere other then the very end of the show? " dimstint "Cavaliers are so incredibly good that it is mind boggling. I love their drill. Their music has NOT a dull moment, and the show just captivates you. It is one big GE Festival. Should win DCI hands down IMO. I honestly thought they might have beaten SCV by 2.5 tonight. Only weak spot for Cavies is some dirt in the marching in the opener, and a lot of dirt in the closer. Also, the drill is just fantastic at the end, but the music doesn't have that drive to the end that is needed to really get the crowd on their feet. Soloists were very good tonight. They had a few horn players fall, but recover quickly. " Jonathan Willis This is not a critisizm of any of the three posters but I find it very interesting that three people at the same show can have entirely different experiences. A great example of "you can't please everyone". Again not knocking any of the posters. just an interesting observation. At least for me it is.

Nice reviews!! Of course we care! Good job! I personally enjoy reading all the opinions. I agree with some (SCV & Bluecoats) but I respectfully disagree with one (Cavaliers). Cheezy was VK's version of 007 but that's why I liked VK. They we suppose to be cheezy! But hey, like I said, we all have our opinions. Glad you enjoyed the show!!

"Intermission – Alamodome Souveniers Burning Question: How are the souvies this year? When you walked in the A-dome, the first booth you saw was the US Army Bands. Then the McMurray College Marching Band. Then the University of Texas Marching Band. Sense a theme here? The corps stuff was farther back. The Cavaliers had to have had the busiest booth of all, but I think SCV had the best selection of merchandise. (However, I want the monitor that the Cavaliers were using to show their DVD on – holy cow!) SCV also gets props for being the only corps there with infant shirts. Southwind had some great shirts on clearance – I got a 2002 tour shirt for $5. I resisted will all of my might, but I did end up buying the Cadets 1980’s DVD and the Blue Devils Through The Years ‘80s DVD from the DCI booth. Incidentally, DCI has some *great* souvies this year – their DCI @ Mile High shirt is a classic." #1) What a GREAT review!! The best one ever written! I applaude you! #2) I toured with the Cavaliers last week and worked the souvie stand (CPI=Cavalier Promotions Inc.). We were EXTREMELY busy in San Anotonio. So busy that (and I apologize to anyone who didn't get what they wanted) because of the set up we didn't have a lot of things we normally have in the trailer. Because San Antonio is indoors we have to carry everything to the souvie area.... which is totally on the other side of the stadium from the parking lot. CRAZY! I love that monitor also. We get a lot of compliments on it. Lastly, we have two infant shirts (refer to www.cavaliers.org) ..... my little sales pitch. Again, LOVED your review.

You got that right. Being a FMM horn player of The Cavaliers I was surprised to hear not just one or two screamers this year but a few. I think many people will be pleasantly surprised. All the people that hated their show last year should love their show this year. "It's out there" as you said. As far as jazzin it up, ya I agree to a point but many of these kids are accomplished musicians... as are BD's players. BD is known for it. Cavaliers are not. It will be interesting to hear how this new style (for them) progresses through the season.

Yep. They are working on it but in the mean time it doesn't seem to be hurting them at this point. I admit, it will once they bump up against BD and SCV. I suspect that they will develop an ending as they go along then come up with something for finals weeks that is different. I didn't mind the ending last year. IMHO, a corp doesn't need to blow the stands down on their final note. Don't get me wrong, I love a face peel like anyone else, I am just saying as long as the corp entertains the first 12 minutes then the ending doesn't need to be a park and blow.

BTW, Larry was on our M&M staff in '81--as a drummer I totally LOVED his lackadaisical approach to leg heights--somewhere around mid-calf as opposed to the ususal heel-to-the-kneecap!!!! :lolhit: (and my knee joints are happier 20+ years later!!!) Yea, "back in the day" when there was a leg lift, Larry was the only one in the corp that got away with lefting his legs no higher then his ankles. No one really said anthing because he was our best player plus how can you hit triple G's with your legs up to your chest? For me, my knees are fine but my back aches constantly. #### drum corp!! To this day, he is one of the most layed back people I know. I still think he was born in southern California not Chicago. But a great guy! He GAVE me his trumpet some years back when I couldn't afford more then a cornet.

Wasn't Concert Bill Chase's "Run Back To Mama", Winston?? BTW, I was watching 1976 Legacy DVD last night--is the soloist in "Give It One" Chris Theriault?? ..darn you for making me remember ANYTHING from that year! Yes. Here was our fine repertoire from 78: Russian Sailor's Dance Do You Wanna Get Funky? Run Back to Momma Shostakovich's 5th ..what a show. huh? <**> Larry Pawlowski was the soloist in 76 in Give It One. Chris was our soloist on 77 using a piccolo soprano. We had a recent debate as to who, in Cavalier history, has hit the highest note. If you listen to Larry, he hit some pretty high ones. IMHO Ron Koth during your years comes close with last years soloist not far behind.

I have said it before.. I have blocked the year of 1978 from my memory banks. :)

90% of the people I am friends with today are guys I marched with. We were and will be forever, best friends. I have stood up in SO many weddings, godfather to a few of their children and will ALWAYS be there for them. We will probably be 80 years old and attending DCI together. It's in our blood forever!

Nope....North Star was 9th and you guys were 11th.....you didn't "beat them along the way." Maybe I'm misreading this, but I don't see where Mitch said Cavies beat North Star that year. He just said they were one of the corps they were trying to catch along the way. And, as he noted in his earlier reply, they never did. Not that year, anyway. I understand that 1979 is a sore spot for anyone who marched Crossmen. But it seems like you're interpreting Mitch's comments as a dig against Crossmen, and I don't think that's what he meant. In fact, I think if you ask just about anyone from any corps that year, they'll say they thought Crossmen should've been in finals that year, and they were robbed of a finals spot which was justifiably theirs. (The Cavies I knew who marched in '79 certainly believed this, and said it.) But weird stuff happens sometimes, and that's just one of those years. It doesn't, however, take away from any of the corps who did make finals. Cavies were plenty hurt when they didn't make finals in '78. I know, because I had friends who marched Cavies all three years I marched Oakland. As Mitch explains, one of the motivating tools they were using to get back into finals was to try to beat any of the corps who placed ahead of them the previous year. (I suspect that realistically, there was probably a ceiling to that goal . . . say, any corps that placed from 15th through 10th.) It may or may not be an effective motivator. We can argue that one till the end of time. But the reality is that competitors do different things to motivate themselves to overtake other competitors. Whether it really works, who knows? But apparently this was one of the things Cavies did in '79. Thanks Sue, I couldn't have said it better. Malibu, I meant no disrespect at all. In fact as I was tying what I typed, I totally forgot that The Crossman were one of the corps that didn't make finals that year. Sue was right about one thing, there was a realistic ceiling. We obviously didn't expect to be in the top 5 or even the top 8 or 9. Our only goal that year was to make it back into finals... period. Obviously that meant we had to beat some corps we didn't beat in the previous year. Please understand, many of the kids in the Cavaliers in 79 were brought up from our cadet corps. My guess was about 30 or 35 kids. (We didn't have a full corp in 78) That is a lot of kids ranging in ages of between 14 and 16 years old. Management had to find ways of getting these kids out of that fear of "big time compitition". The list was one of many ways, trust me. I understand your disappointment. In the Cavaliers we call the 70's "The Dark Years". If you look at our history, the 70's was a bad decade for the corp. When a corp with a rich history does that pourly for almost 10 years, it kind hits a sore spot. There were a lot of years we thought we were ripped off but there is no questioning what we have done since. OK, back on topic...... ####! We couldn't catch those darn Northstars. I'll say it again, they were just too #### good! b**bs

I know this is off topic but I just want to comment that it in VERY interesting to me to see the differences between Quebec and the rest of Canada. I work for a bank in Chicago that is owned by Bank of Montreal. When this purchase was made in 1985 it was interesting to me that the headquarters for "Bank of Montreal" was in Toronto. One day I asked a Torontoan (??) why was this. I got an hour and a half lesson on Quebec vs. the rest of Canada saga….. for lack of a better word. I learned a lot about the history of Canada and the word "separatism" on that day. I am not judging, I am just saying that it is interesting as an American looking north of our border.

Didn't know that the issues were taken care of after 1981. Thanks for the info. But, it still doesn't fix the fact that I can't see the The Cavaliers hesitation move during the step over while play Softly as I Leave You in 81. (They put the hesitation in for finals) One of the biggest ovations I have ever heard in any drum corp show. Oh well, we'll just have to remember it in our minds because it was never recorded.

Just checked, it was 1981: http://store.dci.org/prodinfo.asp?number=D...tem=20&mitem=27

I know that there was one year that they used another show (Whitewater?) on the Legecy DVD. Someone help me here. I remember seeing it when I tried to order my DVD's and DCI stated that it was not from finals due to copyright infringements. DCI's store site is down right now.

I wouldn't mind it but if I remember right, there were issues when DCI was in Montreal. Something happened with the contract with the stadium. DCI was suppose to be there for two years but they ended up going to Madison at the last minute the second year. Also, there were a lot of copyright problems in Canada thus why we don't have, I think, 1982's finals on DVD/video. The Canadian government has the rights to the broadcast and they refuse to give it to DCI. Maybe someone else has more/better information then me.

..they were just one of the corps that beat us the previous year and we were trying to catch.... whether we beat them in finals didn't matter as long we beat them along the way. ... But we did move up 5 spots so some of those corps were premanantly taken off the list on Aug. 18th, 1979. Again, just a motivator.

(Sorry, haven't figured out how to do double quotes in one posting) Absolutely agree. Additionally it has a lot to do with the leadership of the corps. Only because it is closer to home I know Jeff Fieldler makes sure that everyone currently marching realizes what the corps roots are. Our alumni are proud and many are still active in the corps. I am sure many of the "older" corps can say the same. Personally, I am proud to say that I was part of the Cavaliers when times were VERY tough and to be honest, The Cavaliers were VERY close to folding. A year doesn't go by when someone from the corps will come up to me and say "Thank you so much for keep this thing going for us back during the 'The Dark Years'" (a term us alumni use when talking about marching in the Cavaliers in the '70's)

LOL! Yea, one of the drawbacks of us marching in the Cavaliers. Too bad they didn't allow our groupies on the busses. But, we did seem to pass the time away in other ways, didn't we Pete? b**bs

Maybe because I am from the midwest: 1) Whitewater for some reason holds a special place in my heart. 2) Franklin Field probably because that was where my first Finals were 3) U of C Boulder. Beautiful stadium with the Rocky's as a backdrop. 4) Mile High - The biggest crowd I ever performed in front of 5) Allentown - Great drum corp stadium 6) DeKalb - another GREAT drum corp stadium but out in the middle of knowhere.

Madison - Brian's Song SCV - Clown's 27th - Danny Boy Kilties - 'ol Cavaliers - Softly/Rainbow Boston - Conquest