The venerable 95th Division Army Reserve Band posted up in our annual showing at Shreveport's Krewe of Centaur mardi gras parade. Thankfully the temps were tame, making the six mile jaunt worthwhile. And it might be the last one we do there in Louisiana.
The entire army reserve is restructuring and reorganizing. So, soon our band will be in a new division and have a new geographic area to entertain. For us army bandsmen bearing the brunt of national defense, all that will change is our unit patch and the gigs we play. No biggie.
The Mighty Mississipp.
Parade route pass over.
Dennis taking in some light reading before the parade.
Loud warmup.
Sort of awkward.
Of course there was an LSU float. BOO, HISS. I realize, however, that I am bitter at them because A) I watched them beat OU in person at the Sugar Bowl, and B) they win bowl games at all. What a novelty...
Go O-U. We drew some stares...
Good times rolling.
Me and the Burger King...or something. Notice his cig and "coca-cola" in hand. The alcohol weighed heavily upon his breath. And other parts too. He was quite cheery though. Quite happy to have his picture taken with a lowly soldier.
There were 89 floats in the thing. And the sidelines were pretty much packed the whole six miles of the procession. Tons of LSU fans, lots of backwater accents, some Stars and Bars and of course the cheap-A beer. If I had a nickel for every 40oz brew I saw. A veritable Tall Boy alley for sure.
Post-game. Every quality army band needs some R&R to recharge following a raucous traipse in the South. Unfortunately, the old-school Clint Eastwood movies weren't helping me sleep on the way home. (that's why you don't let Tuba players pick the movies) I mean, A Fistful of Dollars...what a riveting display of cinematic excellence. How could you sleep through that?
But all in all not a bad way to carry out an army commitment. Seriously.
Very nice! Loved the "king", the Mississippi, and yes, I DO love A Fistful of Dollars :-) Enjoyed the ride...Erin
Yeah, don't be making fun of Clint Eastwood movies. Have you seen Unforgiven? Amazing!!