"The President's Own"

We had the opportunity to experience the United States Marine Band last evening at Bowdoin College's Farley Field House, thanks to our friend Hope Lavender.


Each piece was flawlessly performed, from Irish pub songs to a Russian overture and all things in between. This included one our favorites from the night, Asphalt Cocktail, which made use of a garage can for percussion. If you closed your eyes you could just imagine yourself hurdling through NYC in a crazy cab ride. Then there was the well known Italian tune "Napoli" which made Jim, Nolan, Atira and I chuckle. All we could think of during the performance was Larry the Cucumber from Veggie Tales singing, "a great big squash just sat upon my hat; a great big squash just squashed my hat real flat.." Some of you will understand. One of the final songs was a crisp, rousing rendition of "The Stars and Stripes Forever." Hearing this elite band play it so impeccably was by far my favorite moment of the night. What a treat!