Tis a Gift to be Simple

[MarimbasaurusRex]

Efficiency... it's one of the things that drew me to drum corps. And it's been totally lost for the sake of pseudo show biz.

Some of my favorite uniforms were just a shirt and pants with a few ornaments attached, Madison, Blue Stars, old Crossmen with the capes, even Rochester Phoenix with their JC Penny unis. This was while bands were wearing wool blazers with vinyl overlays and big poofy hats. I was glad those uni companies didn't make MY uniform. Call me crazy, but to me, that was special. It was cool, comfortable, cheap, and made sense.

Carrying everything you play, so the corps can play with a full compliment anywhere, any time. Yes there was a trade off in what you could do with it, but that was part of the fun of the game, doing more with less. We weren't out to make a masterpiece, we did it for fun.

A marching/movement style that was casual and comfortable, not contrived, and didn't cause injuries every other night. Bands did all kinds of goofy things with their feet and we were proud to be cooler than that. Now I look at certain corps/players who take the whole rolling foot thing to the extreme or move bolt neck style with locked knees and they look as silly as the old marching bands did.

Horns that could be played with your thumbs like a monkey, so almost anyone with a pucker could join. In a key that allowed even high school players to sound a little like Maynard.

These are things I miss.

Tis a gift to be simple.

Tis a gift to find out where you ought to be.

Edited August 21, 2010 by MarimbasaurusRex

[Northern Thunder]

I remember when Phantom Regiment changed from their cadet/shako uniform after the 1974 season. There was a big writeup about their new look. They bought white waiter coats at a restaurant supply company, and topped it off with the helmet. (Of course they also added the dark drape on top of the coat.)

They looked SUPER in '75!

Edited August 21, 2010 by Northern Thunder

[KeithHall]

Those were the days my friends.....

[tommytimp]

Efficiency... it's one of the things that drew me to drum corps. And it's been totally lost for the sake of pseudo show biz.

Some of my favorite uniforms were just a shirt and pants with a few ornaments attached, Madison, Blue Stars, old Crossmen with the capes, even Rochester Phoenix with their JC Penny unis. This was while bands were wearing wool blazers with vinyl overlays and big poofy hats. I was glad those uni companies didn't make MY uniform. Call me crazy, but to me, that was special. It was cool, comfortable, cheap, and made sense.

Carrying everything you play, so the corps can play with a full compliment anywhere, any time. Yes there was a trade off in what you could do with it, but that was part of the fun of the game, doing more with less. We weren't out to make a masterpiece, we did it for fun.

A marching/movement style that was casual and comfortable, not contrived, and didn't cause injuries every other night. Bands did all kinds of goofy things with their feet and we were proud to be cooler than that. Now I look at certain corps/players who take the whole rolling foot thing to the extreme or move bolt neck style with locked knees and they look as silly as the old marching bands did.

Horns that could be played with your thumbs like a monkey, so almost anyone with a pucker could join. In a key that allowed even high school players to sound a little like Maynard.

These are things I miss.

Tis a gift to be simple.

Tis a gift to find out where you ought to be.

IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII don't know about that. YMMV, of course, but I fail to see anything simple or efficient about the old Belleville uniforms, for instance, and a good thing, too, because their look was Queen's horse guards, and their job was to inspire awe and a sense of concern that they might, you know, kill you if you got too close to the Queen. And find that Cavies picture of Sam Flores from 1975, where he's got his xylophone, his mallets, his goody bag, AND a chime tube riding his axe. If he steps wrong all that crap is going to fall over and he'll look like something out of PDQ Bach.

Corps now do more with more, but do it with an efficiency that boggles the mind. Yes, there's too much pit equipment and no, corps don't need new drums and/or every year, but they could be doing a lot worse than they are in terms of excess.

Content dictates form.

[MikeD]

Efficiency... it's one of the things that drew me to drum corps. And it's been totally lost for the sake of pseudo show biz.

Some of my favorite uniforms were just a shirt and pants with a few ornaments attached, Madison, Blue Stars, old Crossmen with the capes, even Rochester Phoenix with their JC Penny unis. This was while bands were wearing wool blazers with vinyl overlays and big poofy hats. I was glad those uni companies didn't make MY uniform. Call me crazy, but to me, that was special. It was cool, comfortable, cheap, and made sense.

OTOH, my Garfield uniform had pants, jacket, cummerbund, drop sash, crossbelt, silver buckle, suspenders, white bucks, socks, gloves (the year I played horn), shako, and plume....plus about 37 safety pins to hold it all together.

[MarimbasaurusRex]

Of course there were exceptions. But there was a window in time when a corps with $20 unis could compete head to head with a money corps. But, that was fading already as I was part of it.

Unis like Garfield and Belleville were holdovers from the 50's/60's and I'm thinking mostly of the mid 70's when drum corps was coming into it's own. And carrying chimes on a keyboard for the sake of a few tenths in GE was silly and the exception not the rule. But, it all came down to trying to milk a few extra tenths in GE, just as it continues today.

I remember a particular corps director saying, essentially... *You have to win. Because, if you win, you can control the game and keep winning. If you lose, you fold.* That was news to me at the time, but he was right (and that philosophy has served his corps well). But, things got less fun after hearing that.

I don't hate modern drum corps. The performances are seriously amazing. Even when I don't care for the content or approach, they are always well performed. But, drum corps is big in the head and it has been for a long time (see G7 among other things).

I just appreciate an environment where if you had some horns and drums, a truck and some good teachers, you could build a corps and maybe even be competitive.

The old days weren't always great, but the philosophy was different and I liked it.

It was a gift to be part of that time.

[HornsUp]

Here's how the beauty of the single-valve bugle was explained to me at a very young age:

"You blow the horn. If you can't make the note round right ..... push the valve in.

Now it's GOTTA be right !!!"

[JeromeyBush]

OTOH, my Garfield uniform had pants, jacket, cummerbund, drop sash, crossbelt, silver buckle, suspenders, white bucks, socks, gloves (the year I played horn), shako, and plume....plus about 37 safety pins to hold it all together.

Me too,minus so many pins. Personally,I liked having to put on my"Superman suit",it made the whole experience feel special.

Edited August 22, 2010 by JeromeyBush