30 Years Ago - Bridgemen

[TCBone]

Don't let the bushy hair and droopy moustache fool you..Bobby was a VERY competitive person...he was the visual designer all three years I marched in the Cadets. Bobby, Pete Emmons, and Ray Capacelli were sticklers for getting it right.

Bobby Hoffman was also a very competitive person in '75 when he wrote drill and worked with the Blue Stars. under the tick system we marched a five minute opener (Mennin Canzona) with ONE tick. That means one marching mistake.....if memory serves me right we did not lose a marching show until DCI finals to who else..the Madison Scouts.....

Bobby Hoffman was a major driving force behind this. He had the fire in him....

[boxingfred]

I remember my first corps director saying " There is Drum Corps, and then there is the Bridgemen"

" DCI should run them out on a rail" I heard at a show PA.

I thought they had the entertainment value of a Black Collage Show Band and the execution of a top Drum Corps.

Bridgemen 76

Star 93

Cadets 05-06

I've heard alot.

[glory]

You hit that all backwards my friend... they were the threat!!... When the establishment doesn't feel threatened they pat you on the head and say aren't they cute... and this is not meant as a slight on VK but that is the way they were treated.. the Bridgemen finished in the top 6 a lot. and were right there right on top in 1977 and in 1980.. this was not received well by the establishment. I rememeber the old saying before I joined Bridgemen... "THATS NOT DRUM CORPS!!" like it or not some of you have to take off the rose colored glasses and stop re-writing history. The Bridgemen were loved by the fans... and only half loved by the drum corps community. Some saw it as terrific.. some hated it!

No, not backwards. History makes clear that Bridgemen weren't a genuine threat to the drum-corps status quo, just as I said. If they had been, their style would have been copied by more corps. Instead, only one truly followed the Bridgemen lead. And that corps - VK - had a director in common with Bridgemen.

And that's why I say more fans didn't hate Bridgemen. Sure many of the legacy fans of that day did. But, in general, y'all got the "aren't you cute" pat on the head because top six is impressive, but it ain't No. 1. If they had been No. 1, they'd have been hated all the more, back in the day.

HH

[MarimbasaurusRex]

Also, note the context. Would Bridgemen have happened the way it did if Muchachos hadn't been DQ'd? A natural reaction to the painful events of 75, they pretty much invented the idea of doing quality drum corps and having fun at the same time. The activity needed to lighten up.

The "old timer" thing gets too much play. Old guys maybe react more strongly because of their investment of years in the activity. But just like Cadets today, there were young and old who did or didn't like what Bridgemen were doing. I could have done without Gene Gene the Dancin Machine, that silly chicken suit and some of the cheesy antics. I never liked joke corps and still don't. I saw Bridgemen more as a protest corps veiled in humor. Either way, it was easy to look past the jokes and see a great ensemble of people, and a great energy.

Bottom line, my mother loved them. She didn't have to scratch her head and figure out what they were trying to do. It knocked her socks off and that's why she watched the shows. When she saw the faint in 76, she became a Bridgemen fan for life. She didn't like everything and thought some things like the chicken suit should go, but she still liked Bridgemen because they never took *themselves* too seriously. That was their charm and maybe their greatest asset.

[Windsor]

No, not backwards. History makes clear that Bridgemen weren't a genuine threat to the drum-corps status quo, just as I said. If they had been, their style would have been copied by more corps. Instead, only one truly followed the Bridgemen lead. And that corps - VK - had a director in common with Bridgemen.

And that's why I say more fans didn't hate Bridgemen. Sure many of the legacy fans of that day did. But, in general, y'all got the "aren't you cute" pat on the head because top six is impressive, but it ain't No. 1. If they had been No. 1, they'd have been hated all the more, back in the day.

HH

- You cannot compare the accomplishments of a drum corps that competed in the tick system to a drum corps that competes in the broken judging system of today.

- Bridgemen never got the "aren't you cute" pat on the head.

- Having been a Garfield Cadet for 2 DCI finalist seasons before becoming a Bridgemen for life, you will never convince me that the BB weren't every bit as much a drum and bugle corps.

And to MIke D...

IMO the Cadets were not well received by the crowd by the time their performance ended.

If DCI finals this year were judged solely by the tick system, the Cadets would have finished behind SCV's "on fire" performance.

[Phan Doris]

I dunno about any discussions, but I do know what tape I still play almost every day in my car. It is the 1978 DCI Finals recording that has Bridgemen and Phantom Regiment (and others) on it. I still enjoy playing that cassette as loud as that scratchy, old thing will play.

Whenever Bridgemen came to Rockford, they were very well received. I vividly remember the blindfolded drum line, the guy falling "dead" when the timer's gun was shot, and that v-e-r-y l-o-o-o-o-o-o-ng final note the corps played while the DM bowed to the crowd. :P

If that was controversial, then I love controversy!!!

Now it's only a couple days after Finals at Madison and I'm having a hard time trying to remember any such great moments in The Cadets' show.

Edited August 15, 2006 by Phan Doris

[donnebrook]

[

Bottom line, my mother loved them. She didn't have to scratch her head and figure out what they were trying to do. It knocked her socks off and that's why she watched the shows. When she saw the faint in 76, she became a Bridgemen fan for life. She didn't like everything and thought some things like the chicken suit should go, but she still liked Bridgemen because they never took *themselves* too seriously. That was their charm and maybe their greatest asset.

This is what the activity has been missing for a long time. Anyone unfamiliar with drum corps could watch Bayonne perform and walk away feeling good. I had introduced many "outsiders" to the activity and they were always their favorite. It kept them coming back year after year. Soon enough they became fans of other corps and began to appreciate the activity.

[MarimbasaurusRex]

No, not backwards. History makes clear that Bridgemen weren't a genuine threat to the drum-corps status quo, just as I said. If they had been, their style would have been copied by more corps. Instead, only one truly followed the Bridgemen lead. And that corps - VK - had a director in common with Bridgemen.

And that's why I say more fans didn't hate Bridgemen. Sure many of the legacy fans of that day did. But, in general, y'all got the "aren't you cute" pat on the head because top six is impressive, but it ain't No. 1. If they had been No. 1, they'd have been hated all the more, back in the day.

HH

74 - 26th place

75 - off the radar

76 - 6th

77 - unofficially 4th

If that's not threatening to the status quo, what is? Where would the 77 corps have placed if not for the distractions of that year? Would that momentum carry on in 78 for a win? No one can say the DQ was motivated by that threat, but... oops... guess I just did. My mistake. :)

Imagine what it's like to place 4th and go to court at the same time. That momentum took a big hit and we can only wonder how things might have been.

Bridgemen still win the prize for most controversial of all time. Cadets are going to have to get thrown out of DCI if they want a shot at that title.

Edited August 15, 2006 by MarimbasaurusRex

[Jeff Ream]

Here's what I recall. Lots of people who had friends, who had friends, on the east coast - or had a subscription to Drum Corps News - talked like they knew the scoop and badmouthed what Bridgemen were doing early on in 76.

Until they saw Bridgemen.

Then it was - how cool is that.

Regards,

John Swartz

i agree. I was 7 when i rolled into Franklin Field, and I remember dad and his friends complaining about the Birdgemen from what they read in DCW and DCN, and how the word was out that they were a disgrace to drum corps.

then, I remember after they saw Bayonne.....they loved them> they not only loved the fun, but they respected the kick ### talent the corps had.

think about it...in the 2nd year of the bananas, they were top 3 until they were dq'd. that wasn't gonna happen without a seriously ###### good corps.

[zarblap]

Maybe this should be in the historical section, but I was wondering -

30 years ago (1976) the Bridgemen had just completed their first season w/ the yellow trenchcoats, etc. Today, they are held in high esteem for being innovative and entertaining. As I recall, at the time their approach was quite controversial.

So - look at the reaction the Cadets are getting this year - same thing? Someone flag this so it pops back up after DCI finals in 2036...

they wern't that inovative,just cool....back in the 60's thee were corps such as the jolly jesters, les diplomats,etc..no comparison