bobby burke

I have to give credit to that un named other baritone soloist from St Rita's.His name is Steve Wright...a former SKYLINER and unquestionably one of the finest horns i have ever heard.Steve is very humble and layed back....but I marveled at his talent when he marched with me in NY. Jimmy M..Ruben, Billy P, The Col.Joe..on and on...no wonder the BRASSMEN sound so good ...with a compact horn line.

SUNRISER come back after one year not marching.Almost all are seasoned veterans,playing traditional SUNRISER favorites.'THE MOUSE THAT ROARED !!!!! Great kids...and a lot of spirit. BB

Hey St Lucy....you got some splaining to do !!!!!

Met and was instructed by George in the SUNRISERS in the late 80's.His sense of humor was only matched by his genius in drill design.I used to be amazed at how he would change drill sets on the fly....all in his minds eye.Of course the changes would always work and make the final result so much better.He would never belittle anyone on the field,,,,even if they were WAY out of the form.Even as a veteran and lead soloist in the corps ..when I was not where i should have been his remark was "BOBBY darling do you really want to be in that spot.....there is no soprano solo in this segment." We all laughed and trust me.... I was never out of that form again. We will never see his like again .R.I.P. GEORGE

The first time I heard the1960 SKYLINERS at the Dream play the kick off to SLAUGHTER ON 10th AVENUE...it was like an organ ...never heard a sound like that before or since.How the CABS seemed to kick up dust on the "starting line" even if the grass was 6 in.high.Sac's El Cid...Garfield's 'KING OF KINGS"...Kevin's "Voice of the Guns"with what seemed like the whole lead line hitting a high A above the staff on the last chord.Again Sac's "NATIONAL EMBLEM"...and of course the thrill of this young teenagers career... the incredable off the line of BALLANTINE 'Somethings Coming"after I played "HEY GET YOUR COLD BEER" .definetly one of the LOUDEST horn lines I ever heard.ETC ETC..

THANK YOU....IT'S NICE TO BE REMEMBERED....TA TA KA TA.

How about the old fashioned 'PRODUCTION NUMBER " The Hurcs 'CARAVAN " Ny's "MISERLOU",the CAB'S "FLAMENCO CHA CHA...ST. LUCY'S 'GIRL FROM IPONIMA." HAVA NAGILA....SKY/BALLANTINE/BOSTON CRUSADERS/. Sac's "MUTINY ON THE BOUNTY ...etc...I remember sitting in the stands already knowing the corps routines,..saying to everyone 'wait till you hear this...here it comes!!!!

I remember Blue Rock entering the field in a tight block formation....looked like something from SPARTACUS in Roman times. very intimidating !!!

Some of my favorite solo "going off the field exit" moments.Bill Pusey with Blessed Sacrament with his beautiful "Free Again" MARCHING BACKWARDS NO LESS!!! That memorable soprano from Garfield playing "MARIA" in the early 60's... the Cabs soprano feature in 'Evita' ....And of course Sir Thomas Martin from my beloved SKYLINERS with his incredible triple tongue embellishment of "Little Old New York " as the corps marched off to Hy's masterpiece. Ta ta Ka ta,,,,,

Are they still accepting applications for the horn line ?Can't read music that well.....play by ear !!!!! but i think i can pick up the music ....i've heard it once before..

The Blue Devils company front charging the stands from the 5 to the 5 yard line with an incredable wall of sound.Bridgemen soprano line triple tongue feature ala Gus Wilke The disappearing Phantom of the Opera trick at the finale of SCV 's show.....Casper Trooper's exploding circle...and their 0 to 50 yard line company front ...straight as an arrow.Sky's Butch Anderson's limo entrance to the Dream contest.....drove chief judge Kelly crazy. The Matador's megaphone trio in ROCKY.Richie Price hitting notes that only dogs could hear....before it became run of the mill.and so on and so on !!!

With the evolution of modern Drum Corps shows ,and all the "over the top" effects that are included in them ,I thought maybe it would be interesting to go back in time to the beginning of our hobby ,and reminise about some single moments in the "GOLDEN YEARS" that stood out in our memories.The" WOW FACTOR". It could have been just one note ...like Reilly's High "G " in Irish Eyes. The Yankee Rebels 'stripper"...Just about anything that PEPE from NY played or 'performed" on the field. The concert ending of STARS AND STRIPES FOREVER from St. Kevin's .Reilly's classic "head /chopper" move.the Cab's concert with Jimmy D'amico and Don Angelica wailing away in the early 60s.Kevin's color pre intro to 'SEA HAWK".and their stratisferic soprano ending at the finish line NY'sTommy Martin's effortless playing of the most famous 4 notes in drum corps history.27s rifle line.The lightning storm that simultaniously occured when the Hurcs played ''Stormy Weather " at a show.i could go on and on...but lets see how long we can keep this going..Once again any memory is allowed ,as simple or brief as it was ,as long as it brought the" WOW" response from the crowd.

The legend tells of a Spanish "GENTLEMAN" hanging out with a "GHOSTRIDER"sitting by a guy from the 'CONCRETE CANYONS OF NEW YORK CITY"

Are they the 4 TOPS? Do they give autographs ?.....on brass? Do they perform all over the Empire....and for the Royals....and even sometimes for Giants.

Jimmy Kirkwood ..a genuinely nice guy.he was unassuming and would bend over backwards to help anyone in need.I marched with Jimmy in the SKYLINERS,where he played soprano.His talent warranted a lead spot ,but he went where he was needed in a lower split .Always with a smile and a gentle way of looking at the world,he was someone that you wouldn't normally see in the "Dead End Kids". I marveled at his almost child like enthusiasm in being part of Big Red.As I mentioned on the NY forum he helped me out one day at a show,when after a car accident I was in great pain and woundn't have been able to go on.He came up with some Magic medicine that allowed me to compete.Guys like Jimmy were rare in our hobby...and I for one will miss him and his gentle way .R.I.P. Jim...Bobby B

Almost as good as "MAYNARD"..with a little medical help !!

Just received word of the passing of Reilly Raider soloist,instructor ,and BHOF member Bob Adair.He was probably best known for the incredible soprano solo in the Raider's concert of the late 50's "STARDUST", A tough horn man from the "old school" he always pushed to get the best out of any line he taught. He was a big part of the resurgence of Reilly as an alumni corps. I am sure he will be welcomed with open arms into that great Drum Corps in the sky...and will have them playing" When Irish Eyes Are Smiling"very soon .God grant peace to him and his family .Bobby B

With all due respect...The topic fails to mention any Senior corps for the most influencial show.IMO the 1960 SKYLINERS paved the way for modern Drum Corps to come out of the "Strict" military mode that was present up until that time.With the benefit of Hy Drietzer's great arrangements Drum Corps was taken from very the straight laced books of that era to modern jazz being heard on the competition field.Eric Perillou on drums,Carmen Cluna on drill were innovators very early on.While still within the old frame work of squads and straight lines I think credit should be given to the early forward thinking and talent of the participants in that show. The Devils,VK,Bridgemen,all can trace their roots back to that great corps,or we would still maybe be hearing military marches being played by modern horn lines.Each era has it's own break out points..with some exceptions, early on, the debut of NY at the Preview Of Champions in 1960 ushered in the new age of music to Drum and Bugle Corps.

Yeah..that was Kevin alright .Another member of what Hy used to affectionately call his "Pig Section"...That was the guys that played the split lead parts.Donato Glussi.Bill Speigler,Speedy,Robby,The Bear,Gus Wilke Jr,myself,and many other "LINEMAN".We used to get the biggest compliment from Hy when he would say"hey my split lead guys could be playing solos in any other senior corps.I was so lucky to have been with these great players during my years with NY.

Granted.I am one of those purists.That said, I never stated or implied that adding one valve,rotary,2 valves,3 valves to an existing bugle changes the essence of the instrument.It is still a bugle by the basic definition. Bells..or glockenspiels..I think i spelled that right..! ,were part of traditional Drum Corps going back to the 40s.I think you will admit that the introduction of some of the instruments and ideas have more in common ,at least to the untrained eye and ear,with an orchestra or at the very least a traditional marching band.Ultimately Drum Corps to stay alive and be competitive with other interests has to make room for more possibilities of attracting members.I guess to that end enhancement,different voicing ,and instrumentation is almost a given.Please don't misinterpret my sentiments as not wanting the activity to move forward with the times.As someone that was lucky enough to play a few solos in my time..projection,heart,and feeling were the watch words of my day.No mas

Strike up the BAND!! So put the final nail into the coffin where DRUM AND BUGLE CORPS are buried.