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VILLAGE VOLUNTEERS HISTORY – 1965

Posted on: February 1st, 2011 by hauleymusic No Comments

***** CORPS HISTORY 1965 *****

February 22, – Performance, G E X Dept. Store, Albany.

This performance was the first of the year, but was not an ideal beginning, weather was bad, the corps was small, and the job did not come up to expectations. We left the Junior High with Mr. Frueh and Bob Morse driving. We arrived at the G E X store about four p.m. As it was Washington’s Birthday, we were to play several short concerts as part of the stores’ holiday celebration. This we did, as well as playing at certain points in the store to attract shoppers. Roberts also played drum rolls to announce winners of prize drawings. The corps marched around the store several times between four and six p.m., then went to store cafeteria for a free supper. After this we returned to Delmar. Drum major for this event was Art Allen, with fifers Harlan Ives, the Morse Bros., and Bob Laraway; drummers were Chuck Roberts and Bill Frueh. Tom Gannon was color bearer, and Fred Walsh was guide on.

April 10, – Mobilegas Economy Run, Thruway Motel, Albany.

This event began with a small economy run of own, with no less than six cars taking members to the motel. Drivers for this event were Mr. Frueh, Dave Gregory, Bob Morse MuIIigan, John Fitzgerald, and Rick Stewart, The corps was a good sized one, with, several old members back for this engagement . Bob Mulligan was drum major, with fifers: Harlan Ives, the Morse Bros., Rick Stewart, John Fitzgerald, Dave Gregory, and Bob Laraway, drummers: Chuck Roberts, and Bill Frueh, and color guard Magoo (Greg Warner), Tom Gannon, and Fred Walsh. This was the first parade for Jack Hanifan, who also marched color guard. The Thruway Motel was the stop over point for the economy run. The corps took turns with the Interstatesmen Bugle Corps in playing to welcome the drivers. This finally resulted in a jam session between
the drummers of the two groups; the fifers finally joining in later. The corps was very well received and also got some newspaper publicity for attending this event.

May 30, – Memorial Day Service, Memory Gardens, Schenectady, N.Y.

This service took place on Sunday afternoon at 2 o’clock in an open area in the Memory Gardens Cemetery. Besides the corps, the Tryon County Muzzle Loaders Inc. were on hand, as well as two Civil War military units. The corps marched the units onto the field, then played several pieces at intervals during the service. Among the tunes played were: Battle Hymn,Arkansas Comp Piece and our slow march Chicken Reel. The fifers for this event were: Bob Morse, Harlan Ives, Dave Gregory, and the Morse Brothers, drummers: Chuck Roberts, and Bill Frueh, and color guard: Magoo (Greg Warner), Jack Hanifan, Tom Gannon, and Fred Walsh.

May 31, – Memorial Day Parade. Delmar, N.Y.

The corps once again took part in the Delmar parade. This year we marched for the Slingerlands Fire Dept., and had several unusual changes, Tom Gannon was on bass, as Bill Frueh was graduating from college. The corps also had a majorette for this event, Claudia, who was connected with the fire company and decided to march with us. The parade went as usual, with the corps playing for the service in the park after the parade. This year we again played our Connecticut Comp. Piece. After the parade, most members adjourned to the Fitzgeralds’ summer camp on Burden Lake for a lively party.

June 12, – Endicott Muster. Endicott, N.Y.

This is the first year the corps attended this muster, and those who went all enjoyed it. Drivers for the event were Buz Olsen,
home on leave from the Navy, and Ray Hauley. The corps was small, with Ray, Rick Stewart and John Fitzgerald on fife, Buz and Bill Frueh on drums and Jack Hanifan and Tom Gannon as color guard. The corps took part in the parade, then took its turn on the field. Despite its size, the group played extremely well and received many compliments. After appearing on the field, the corps spent some time talking with other groups present and promoting our own Delmar Muster to be held in August. The corps made several new friends at this muster, and were very warmly received, After enjoying the free supper provided by the Endicott Continentals, Ray left with his group. Buz and the rest of the corps remained to enjoy the jam session.

June 13, – Firemen’s Parade, Ticonderoga, N.Y.

This event was done for the Slingerlands Fire Dept., and they provided drivers for the event. The corps was made up of fifers Ray Hauley, Harlan Ives, Brit Brown, John Fitzgerald, drummers Chuck Roberts and Bill Frueh, and color guard Tom Gannon, Pete Gregory and Dennis O’Neil. After stopping at Lake George for lunch, the group arrived at Ticonderoga about 1 :00 in the afternoon. The parade itself was fairly uneventful, with everything going well. Again despite its small size, the group played well. Rick Stewart arrived just as the parade was over, but did enjoy a jam session with other groups present. Most members headed for home about four p.m. and enjoyed a pleasant ride back to Delmar.

June 26-7, – New York State Meet. New York, N.Y.

This event saw a somewhat unusual corps, but was immensely enjoyed by those who attended. Ray Hauley, Rick Stewart, and Tom Gannon left from Delmar on Friday night. They stayed at Dave Gregory’s New York apartment for the weekend. On Saturday, they took part in the individual competition, but were not too successful. Sunday was the corps competition, and the group was joined by Vic Wing, Richard Burke, and the Brodeurs. The only other ancient fife and drum corps present, was the Chippawa Corps of Yonkers. The corps placed second in most categories. Afterward, we returned to Gregory’s for a jam session on the roof, and later wound up in Chinatown, attracting quite a crowd. The group returned on Monday without a trophy, but pleasant memories of a great time. Denny Lewis was a new recruit.

July 4, – Patriotic Services, St. John’s Church, Albany, N.Y.

This was the second year for this event, and again the corps was well received. Ray Hauley and Chuck Roberts again began the service with the Church Call. The corps then slow marched into the church playing Belle of the Mohawk Vale. During the service, the fifers played a special medley of a Mighty Fortress and Ginger Pop. Near the end of the service, the entire corps played the Star Spangled Banner with the organ and congregation joining in. The corps for this event consisted of fifers Ray Hauley, Bob Morse and Brit Brown, drummers: Chuck Roberts, and Bill Frueh, and color guard: Tom Gannon, and Fred Walsh.

July 17, – Deep River Muster, Deep River, Ct.

As usual, this event saw the biggest corps of the year, with a few additional people taking part. Some members went down early on Friday night. Others came on Saturday morning. The group going down Friday, again enjoyed the parties and other activities for those who come early. Rick Stewart especially enjoyed a songfest with the Potomac Field Music Corps, who were busy making their uniforms until the early hours of Saturday morning. The weather on Saturday was hot and sticky as usual, but there was no rain. We formed at the school grounds around 11 :30 a.m. and enjoyed the various jam sessions which were going on. Finally the corps stopped off onto the parade route led by drum major Richard Burke. The fife line consisted of Ray Hauley, Dave Gregory, Vic Wing, the Fitz Bros., the Morse Bros., Harlan Ives, and Connie Burke. Chuck Roberts and Bill Frueh were on drums and the color guard was Tom Gannon, Jack Hanifan, Mike Nayland. The parade itself was without incident, After the parade, the group split up to watch other units come onto the field. We were all somewhat surprised to hear announced: “The 2nd New York Colonial Line” from Pine Plains. This turned out to be a three man corps led by former drum major Bob Mulligan. Another surprise during the afternoon was the arrival of former member Dave Weinstock, who marched with us in our appearance on the field. For this we played our Granny Comp. Piece. After going on the field, we again split up to see our friends and to promote our muster. We were pleased to find that our corps was one of six on a special recording of the 1963 muster at Deep River, which was being sold at this year’s event. Around supper time, there was a slight shower, but it did little to dampen anyone’s spirits. The jam session was enjoyed by all as usual. A few members tried to organize a marching jam session, but this broke up when the fifers took a wrong turn. The rest of the evening was spent as usual except for the rain which managed to get everyone and everything soaked during the night. The next day it had been planned to go to a competition at Riverside Park in Massachusetts, but because of the rain; drums and uniforms were in no shape for this. Therefore most members went to the Sunday Picnic and jam session at Bradford Manor, Ct. Some had a good deal of difficulty finding this area, but did finally enjoy this event. One group, Bill Frueh, Bob Morse, and Harlan Ives, did go to Riverside Park, but found no senior fife and drum corps there, so they too returned to Delmar,

August 7, – Parade, Wells, N.Y.

This was the first half of a busy weekend, with a parade at Brattleboro to follow on Sunday. Cars left the Junior High for Wells at about 9:30 a.m. driven by Mr. Frueh, Mr. Ives, and Dave Gregory. The group arrived at the Wells campsite about 11:00
a.m. Some ate lunch while others enjoyed a swim. The weather was beginning to get hot and the cool water hit the spot. After this, the corps headed for town, where they got together with Bob Mulligan, who had driven up from Pine Plains to major for the day. The corps finally stepped off, with fifers: Harlan Ives, Dave Gregory, the Morse Bros., Brit Brown, drummers: Chuck Roberts, and Bill Frueh, and color guard: Tom Gannon, Pete Gregory, and Fred Walsh. The corps was fairly well received during the parade, but the increasing heat did not help matters. Therefore, we all
returned to the campsite for a swim, which was interrupted by a large thunderstorm. Some members went into town for some food, while Bob Mulligan, Bill Frueh, and Dave Gregory worked out tunes for an evening concert. While the group enjoyed a picnic supper, the fifers worked on a special tune, Bummer’s Reel, which they planned to play at this concert. Returning to town at 7:00 p.m., the group formed in front of the school where the concert was to be. The concert went well, and the crowd was very appreciative. Each of the corps members introduced themselves over the speaker system, and Bob Mulligan talked about the corps and its music. After a short jam session, the group headed for home.

August 8, – Firemen’s Parade, Brattleboro, Vt.

This parade saw one of the most unusual groups of the year, due to conflicts which prevented some members from attending. Drum major for this event was Mr. Frueh, with fifers: Dave Gregory, Bob Morse, Harlan Ives, and the Fitzgerald Bros., drummers: Fred Walsh, and Bill Frueh on snare, Tom Gannon on bass, and color guard Pete Gregory, and Mel, a friend of Fred Walsh who helped out at the last minute. Cars left from the Junior High as usual, and we arrived in Brattleboro about noon. While the playing during the parade was not up to our usual standard, due to inexperience, the crowd still seemed pleased, and we got our usual applause. After the parade, we packed up the cars and headed back to Delmar.

August 21, – Delmar Muster, Delmar, N.Y.

This year’s muster was plagued by several problems, but turned out to be fairly successful. The major problem was the date, which was a conflict for most of the Connecticut corps. However, we did have several New York and Massachusetts corps. The weather was better than last year, with fair skies and moderate temperatures. Corps members spent Saturday morning getting the field ready and picking up uniforms. Finally, the groups began to arrive and the parade started shortly afternoon. On hand were the Dutch Arms Corps of Rhinebeck, the James Buxton Corps of Uxbridge, Mass. with a few members of the Lexington Minutemen, and the 2nd NY colonial Line of Pine Plains, led by Bob Mulligan. This group had increased since Deep River, and now contained four men. Our corps was increased by two members of the Col. John Chester Corps of Wethersfield, Conn. Drum major for the day was Richard Burke, with fifers Ray Hauley, Dave Gregory, Rick Stewart, the Morse Bros., John Fitzgerald, Harlan Ives, and Vic Wing, drummers: Chuck Roberts and Bill Frueh, and color guard: Fred Walsh, Tom Gannon, Pete Gregory, Jack Hanifan. The parade ended with a massed corps, which marched onto the field at the Junior High. The groups were then given some time for lunch. The Village Volunteers began the muster officially with the Star Spangled Banner, then played several other selections. Ray Hauley then took over the microphone and introduced the other corps, each of which played several tunes. While doing this, the Verplank Corps from Lake Mohank, New York arrived and was also able to play several tunes on the field. A massed corps was then formed which played various tunes to complete the public part of the muster. The groups then adjourned to the Ryan farm on North Street, where a jam session and free supper was enjoyed. A few more people arrived later in the afternoon, including Bruce Wood, a drummer with the Buxton corps, and JoAnn Brodeur and her mother, who came up from the Connecticut State Firemen’s Parade. Some individuals stayed at the field overnight, but most returned home.

August 28, – Westbrook Muster, Westbrook, Ct.

The corps had planned to attend this as a unit, but, transportation problems made it impossible. However, the corps was represented by Dave and Pete Gregory, and Rick Stewart. They, were unable to play by themselves, so they teamed up with the James Buxton Corps. They enjoyed the muster a great deal, and enjoyed the company of the Buxton Corps so much that they decided to attend a competition with them the next day. This was the Massachusetts State Meet, at Riverside Park in Agawam, Mass. The group decided to register under the name of the Village Volunteers, as this made them an out of state corps and gave them a better chance to win something. However, the group did not pay the fee for entering, so they were not able to receive a trophy. Rick Stewart and Dave Gregory won medals for fifing, and Bruce Wood of Buxton won in the drumming competition, but they also were not permitted to keep these awards for the same reason. However, the boys did have a good time, and headed back to Delmar with some happy memories.

Fall and Winter, – Various Activities

Due to the fact that the corps was somewhat diminished by members going away to college and into the service, there were no more official corps events this year. However, the corps was represented at some of the important events including the Northeastern Meet and the World’s Fair muster in October by Dave and Pete Gregory. Bill Frueh and Dave Gregory attended the Chinese Corps revue in November, which featured several well-known corps including the Sons of Liberty. Dave and Vic Wing also participated in this event. Meanwhile, at home, a junior corps was being organized by Ray Hauley and Bill Frueh. This group held a Christmas Party, also attended by some of the senior corps on December 22nd. There was also a jam session over the holidays with Buz Olsen, (returned from the Navy), Bill Frueh, the Morse Bros., John Fitzgerald, and Dave Gregory on hand. A similar event had been held during Thanksgiving with Ray Hauley, Dave Gregory, Bob Morse, Rick Stewart, Baron Fitzgerald, Harlan Ives, Fred Walsh, Bill Frueh and Greg Warner aka Magoo(home on leave) on hand. This was the last event for Rick for quite a while, as he left shortly after for Viet Nam.