UI Alumni Marching Band – The Fossils.

**At Homecoming on October 7, 2023 – the University of Iowa Hawkeye Almuni Marching Band celebrated its 50th anniversary!**

In celebration of this illustrious anniversary, my old HMB buddy – Larry Bobe (see pic below) wrote up a fun article offering a first-hand look at…

Yes, your humble author, along with Dan Cassidy (left) and Larry Bobe (center) were a part of the “Golden Age” of the HMB from 1969-1972, and members of the first edition of the Alumni Band in 1973. Read more here.

*PS. As you can see, we’ve added pics & links along the way!*

Anniversaries are important not just because they mark longevity, but they provide an opportunity to remember and understand the origination of event that they celebrate. So, as we celebrate 50 years of Alumni Band at the University of Iowa, it’s appropriate to look at the original performance and the early years. If you do a web search for the history of the Alumni Band, about the only information you will find says that former director of the Hawkeye Marching Band, Thomas L. Davis, was responsible for the group’s formation in 1973 and served as director for the first 30 years.

While that is true, it really doesn’t recognize the efforts of the many people involved. While some Big Ten schools such as Michigan and Ohio State had started alumni performing groups as early as the 1950’s, it wasn’t until the late 60’s and early 70’s that most of the remaining schools began to follow their lead. And here in Iowa, it was around 1970 when a group of former band members approached Professor Davis about starting an Alumni Band here. While in favor of the idea, Davis told them he was too busy at that time and he might reconsider in the future, if his workload lessened.

Mr. Davis began his career in the fall of 1958 as the Assistant Director of Bands to Frederick Ebbs, but was also hired to begin a percussion program at the University. When Ebbs left in 1967 to take the job of Director of Bands at Indiana University, Frank Piersol was hired to lead the University band program, including the Hawkeye Marching Band, with Davis maintaining his position as assistant. One year later, it was decided that the marching band needed its own director so Davis was elevated to the position of Associate Director of Bands and Director of the Hawkeye Marching Band along with his duties as percussion instructor.

*Opening in 1972, Hancher Auditorium was attached to the new UI School of Music.*

During his time at Iowa, the percussion program had experienced exponential growth and was taking more and more of his time. When the School Of Music moved into their new state-of-the-art building (see above) along the Iowa River in 1971, Iowa finally had a facility to handle its booming percussion program along with the increased enrollment in all areas of the music department. At that time, the framework was established for hiring a new director for the marching band, so Davis could concentrate on teaching percussion.

Professor Davis’ first year with the Hawkeye Marching Band coincided with the 2nd of the two Rose Bowl trips that Iowa earned in the 1950’s, and that connection played a large role in the formation of the Alumni Band 15 years later. Among the band members that year was a trumpet player named Morgan Jones who returned to his alma mater in 1973 to take over as the Director of the Hawkeye Marching Band. Also, in that band, were two of the alumni who became the driving force behind the Alumni Band – Al Huntzinger and Larry Fountain. Huntzinger – a tenor drummer from Iowa City, and Fountain – an alto saxophonist from West Branch, both remained in the Iowa City area after graduation and stayed in touch with their former director, Professor Davis. They were the ones who advocated early, often and vociferously, for the formation of an alumni band and in 1972, with plans underway for bringing in a new HMB director the following year, Davis agreed to direct the first University of Iowa Alumni Band.

There is a very important difference in the organization of the early years of the Alumni Band when compared to what happens now. When the event started, the U of Iowa Alumni Association was not involved at all. Whether they were approached and declined to participate, or whether they were never consulted is not known, but the Alumni Band originally was an extension of the School of Music. Davis leaned heavily on the contacts he developed while leading the marching band, his colleagues in the School of Music, and along with Huntzinger and Fountain, formed a committee of former band members to organize the event. The current Alumni Band Advisory Committee is the first sponsored by the Alumni Association, but the original group was a working committee in which each of the members was directly responsible for making sure the event took place. Among the practical considerations were arranging for admission to the game, finding seats, providing food and beverages for the participants and compiling a mailing list of potential participants – which was a prodigious task during those pre-internet days and without access to the records of the Alumni Association.

*Iowa Stadium was renamed Kinnick Stadium in the fall of 1972. Read more here.*

The Athletic Department provided free tickets to the game, but would not provide seating free of charge, so folding chairs were rented and set up along the East sideline, behind the visiting team’s bench. Hy-Vee agreed to provide coffee and donuts, but participants were responsible for their own lunch. Dr. Morgan Jones provided room in the pre-game show for the Alumni Band to march out and join the HMB in a performance of The Iowa Fight Song, followed by the alumni group’s performance of “Hey Jude” – a crowd favorite since Davis had premiered his arrangement in 1969.

Give “Hey Jude” a listen and just try not to sing along on the chorus! Time: 2:37 Enjoy!

Davis and Dr. Nile Dusdieker – a longtime piccolo player in the band, wrote some new arrangements to be played in the stands during the game and someone came up with a flatbed trailer so the Alumni Band could sit and play during the Homecoming Parade. No records are available for us to know how many participants were involved the first year, but a large number of them were former music majors as those were the people whose addresses were most readily available to Professor Davis.

The crowd greeted this first performance – in 1973 – with great enthusiasm, although it could be said that anything new and interesting would have received the same audience response. At the time, the football team had an 0-6 record and finished the season winless at 0-11. Coach Frank Lauterbur (above), in his remarks at the Homecoming pep rally, blamed the band, cheerleaders and fans for the team’s poor performance, citing their lack of support. Perhaps he was paying attention to the numerous “Knit-1-Purl-2” cheers to the water tower along with dwindling attendance and growing chorus of boos. Lauterbur’s tirade formed the basis for one of the first examples of HMB “alternative” lyrics for college fight songs, as the band proudly sang “C’mon And Eat My Shorts, Frank Lauterbur” whenever they could get away with it. This was picked up quickly by the Alumni Band and became a favorite refrain of the group even after Lauterbur’s firing at the end of the year.

Another tradition was started that year and continues today, as the Fossils still steadfastly maintain that the Junior Band is “nowhere near as good as when they marched”. With that auspicious debut, the University of Iowa Alumni Band took the first step in what has become a timeless tradition. Each year, it became easier for Professor Davis and his committee to publicize the event as former HMB members started initiating the contacts, expressing their desire to be a part of the Alumni Band. In the winter of 1982, the committee received a proposal from the Alumni Association offering to take over the administrative duties of organizing and running the Alumni Band. The committee was dwindling in size as the group aged and they didn’t always seek new members. While the committee, after many long and contentious meetings, eventually agreed to the proposal, a number of members objected because they were convinced that Alumni Association would end up changing the rules to exclude former HMB members who were not members of the Alumni Association. As many of you know, that did come to pass, and for a few years, it created a controversy among the Alumni Band participants.

Fortunately, the group has weathered the storm and ended up with an Advisory Committee that will hopefully continue the university’s Alumni Band experience in the way that it was originally intended. So, as we celebrate the past 50 years of the Fossil Band, let us give thanks and credit to those people whose spent countless hours volunteering to get the event off the ground. Like Al Huntziger – with his remote-controlled furry creature whose interactions with alumni and fans entertained us for many years, and Larry Fountain whose curved soprano saxophone provided an added coloring to the band’s sound. Like Bob Kesselring and Bob Hobart, who worked tirelessly behind the scenes, to Bill Fabrizzio and Nile Dusdieker, who created some of the unique musical arrangements for the ensemble.

But, most of all, to Professor Tom Davis – who remains the heart and soul of the event even after his death and who was the original and best “Mom” to so many of us.