Reverie Juniors

The saga of the Immaculate Conception (IC) Reveries Junior Drum and Bugle Corps of Revere, Massachusetts, begins in 1967. At that time the parish in Revere sponsored a senior corps as well as a junior corps, both under the same name. The senior Reveries disbanded after pulling an infamous "sitdown strike" at the VFW Nationals in New Jersey. This job action upset the parish pastor so much that he no longer wanted anything to do with that bunch. In stepped George Bonfiglio. He asked the senior corps members if they wished to remain together as an independent unit. When they voted in the affirmative, the corps that emerged was the 27th Lancers, with Bonfiglio as manager. The Lancers subsequently became one of the most successful corps in Drum Corps International history. The junior corps, however, now found themselves on their own.

The junior Reveries, under the management of Al "Slushy" Solombrino and the leadership of instructors such as Larry Kirchner, Rick Connor, John Powers, and Frank Annetti on brass, Joe Lyons, Frank Grelle and Al "Cisco" Collameano on percussion, and Arthur Reilly, Dick Burke, Frank Raffa, Franny Haines, and Karen Kelly on marching and maneuvering, rose through the ranks of Class C and Class B with remarkable speed, winning numerous local titles along the way. They made it to the big leagues in 1970 when they won their first Open Class competition. The Reveries had matured to a level at which they were now competing head to head with their own former senior corps, the 27th Lancers. The closest they would come to beating these cross-town rivals was at the 1974 World Open in Lynn's Manning Bowl when 27th outscored them only 75 to 69. To their credit, the Reveries beat “2-7” across the board in execution but lost out in all three general effect captions.

The corps adopted a nautical theme in 1971. Red, black, and white sailor uniforms were fashioned after those worn aboard the U.S. Navy's oldest commissioned fighting ship, the U.S.S. Constitution, berthed in nearby Charlestown. The corps became the musical ambassadors for the ship, and performed dockside for turnaround cruises and other special occasions.

At the conclusion of the 1974 season, a devastating split in corps ranks and financial weakness led to the defection of half the unit to the Lancers, leaving the remaining half little choice but to merge, which they did with the Blue Angels of Danvers. The new corps, the Blue Angel/Reveries, or perhaps called the Bluveries, met with moderate success. However, "two broke corps don't make a rich one," and in late 1975 the Blue Angels/Reveries merged again with the Legion Cardinals to become the North Star Drum Corps, from the North Shore of Massachusetts.

In the end the IC Reveries produced two great DCI corps, the 27th Lancers and North Star. Many people from the Reveries went on to become successful DCI instructors and judges over the years. Others filled administrative positions in several world-class DCI corps. The Reveries legacy is the continued participation of former members in the full spectrum of the activity including DCI corps, winter guard and alumni corps.

[http://www.thefog.com/reveries/history.html; Michael Merrett; rec.arts.marching.drumcorps, Paul Pearsall, 9/15/94; Stephen A. Solombrino]

No collection items available. Please contact us if you have something to contribute.

LOADING.....