‘Washington Greys’ once more

To the editor:
    Regarding your article “Farewell to Oscar Grant”.
    Oscar Grant was a great musician, friend, and tireless contributor to anything musical around town and out-of-town! His command of the coronet and/or trumpet at band concerts, jazz nights at Nickerson Lake, or at any other dance floor in the county on a Saturday night was tantamount to “swingin’ at the Ritz”.
    But the best show for him was playing at the Saturday Night Band Concerts. The Houlton Town Band was made up of a lot of farmers and a group of others just released from the high school band (seniors) who were OKed by the band directors at the time (Bert Wetmore and Emmons Robinson). We would rehearse on Thursday nights at the old Armory next door to the Firehouse. There wasn’t a mosquito alive when we finished blasting the last “chord” at 10 p.m.
    On of the absolute favorites of the band was a march named “Washington Greys”, and it was a thriller for the trumpet section. Oscar and the boys wouldn’t even look at the conductor; all that triple tonguing and the forceful dramatics of the melody just got them like Zeus at the roller rink. At concert time I’m sure the prisoners at the jail across the way must have had the best seat!
    Now you may think we were a bunch of grapes waiting to be picked, but when we put on our blue Serge uniforms we marched as clean and even as any military group seen. One of the drummers (Ally Merritt) knew about every marching cadence in the book and on long parades he would bang it up a bit, as they say. The drummer Atchison (Atchy), who worked for Taggert & Gartley’s, carried his blank police pistol for when we played the Chicago Police Band March. He would fire this at the CODA and poor “Moze” the tenor sax player in front of him would loosen his false teeth on the reed. Atchy liked to play!
    Finally, I mentioned the blue Serge Uniforms with Sambrowne belts; well, few in the band could well afford one (1939) and thus one would have to wait until it became available. My mother would have some restitching to do.
    Yes, Oscar Grant was a man of our times, always good humored, bright, funny, reflective, intelligent, and as ready as the tree sap in the spring for an adventure and be a friend. Oscar, dear man, give us that Washington Greys once more.
James M. Chadwick
San Jose, Calif.