To USAF Band in Washington DC

In the fall of 1969, we finally got orders transferring us to Bolling AFB in Washington DC.  We were now members of the USAF Headquarters Band.

Travelling to Washington DC was a road trip we will never forget.  Jerrel and Cindy were in their car.  Pat and Pat were in their car.  Martha and I were in our 1968 Buick LaSabre and we were towing our 22' motor boat filled with everything we owned in it.  (the boat weighed considerably more than our car.)  We left Tampa early in the morning and by 7:00pm we were still only a few miles north of Tampa.  The boat was so heavy that it was difficult to tow at any speed because it would wobble and make driving our car very dangerous.  We packed and repacked the boat at least three times trying to get the weight right so it could be towed.   We finally got it right, but by that time, Martha was ready to "leave the boat on the side of the road forever!!"  We caused the other couples to spend an extra night on the road. As we travelled the car started to "hum", so Martha and I would just turn the radio up louder to drown it out. When we finally got to our new apartments in Oxen Hill Maryland, I had to replace the differential in our new car, but we made it.

Our living situation in Maryland was much better.  We rented apartments right next to each other.  It was great because we knew that we were going to be travelling all over the world without our wives and "the girls" could be close to each other while we were gone.

Our Time in Tampa

Martha and I rented a fully furnished third floor walk up apartment. Cindy and Jerrel rented an apartment in the same building.  We had common walls, but we had to walk down three flights of stairs and then back up three flights to visit each other.  Rent was $78/month.  Needless to say, we banged on the walls to meet in the lobby which was "guarded" by our landlord.  She watched everyone who came in or out of the building.  One time Martha and I broke the bed and had to sneak the broken bed frame down to the basement, past the landlord, where we knew there was a replacement bed frame, then sneak the new bed frame back up to our apartment.  We accomplished the switch undetected.  The apartments were infested with cockroaches and termites.  Martha wore my cowboy boots all the time because she feared the "bugs".  Pat and Pat lived in a small house closer to McDill AFB.

If the band had no performances scheduled, our job was easy.  Most days we played bridge while at the base and as soon as we were dismissed we went fishing.  I had purchased a nice boat from a sergeant who got transferred to England.  It actually had a cabin with two beds in it.  We had some good days fishing and some great fish fries.

Here is one story that I remember from our time in Tampa.  The McDill Airforce Band was scheduled to play a mid day concert at the outdoor pavilion in downtown St. Petersberg, Florida,  When the bus and truck carrying the band equipment drove up to the venue, we were totally surprised because there were hundreds of people sitting in the seats waiting for our concert.  We complimented our host for the great job of publicity.  We did our concert. It was well received and we were happy.  A few days later, Martha and I were shopping in St. Petersberg and we happened to drive by the pavilion.  We noticed another large crowd, however the stage was empty!  I guess the senior citizens just congregate there every day.  We laughed.

Transition to the USAF

A brief word about the man that facilitated our induction into the USAF.  In Summer of 1967, Gene Northway attended a concert we did at Baylor University.  At that time, Gene was an Assistant  National Director of Exploring for the Boy Scouts of America.  He later became the Director of Exploring of the BSA in New Brunswick, New Jersey.  Gene had asked us about our draft status and he also asked us if we had ever been boy scouts.  All three of us were boy scouts earlier in our lives.  With that information, Gene contacted his friend Lieutenant General Albert P. Clark and explained the WINDJAMMER draft situation.  Soon thereafter, Sgt. Jack Townsley came to our room at McMurry and formalized the paperwork to recruit us into the USAF as a group.  Texas Congressman Omar Burleson actually swore us in and on February 1,1968 we went to basic training at Langley AFB in San Antonio.

After completing basic training, we were assigned (for one year) to the USAF Band at McDill AFB in Tampa Florida while we waited for the "slots" to be opened in the USAF Band in Washington DC.  Our name was changed to "The GOODTIMERS" since "the windjammers" was to nautical for the Airforce.

Our year in Tampa was interesting.  Since Jerrel could play the clarinet and Pat could play the flute, they transitioned into the marching and ceremonial band quite well.  For me it was different,  the McDill USAF Band already had enough trombone players.  They wanted me to play the sousaphone/tuba.  I received a few lessons, but did not put my heart into it.  It was hard enough just to carry the instrument much less learn how to play it!  The McDill Band would do many "concerts" that year, however the concerts consisted of the National Anthem, then The Goodtimers would do a 30 minute show, and then the band would end the concert with "Stars and Stripes Forever".

In July 1968 we all married our college sweethearts.  Jerrel married Cindy McCann of Lometa, Texas.  Pat married Pat Smith of Midland, Texas, and I married Martha Miers of Dumas, Texas.  All of us lived in apartment very close to each other.  We all had a good time in Tampa.

More pre-military memories

I found another box of clippings from my McMurry days.  As I said earlier, Pat made a big difference in our show.  He could play the piano, flute and drums.  Our show now consisted of some satire, parodies, and jokes.  Pat was the fall guy and Jerrel and I just had to react to him and play the straight men.  It was really fun.  Jerrel could play the guitar and the clarinet.  I played the bass guitar, occasionally the piano, and sometimes the trombone.  We had fun switching instruments.  However, it was the vocals that carried us.  We could sing!

A story that I like to tell is the one about our "Blanket Excuse" from missing classes at McMurry. Dr. Bennett ordered the dean of the faculty (Dr. Howard Ramsey) to make sure that we were not penalized for missing class since we were promoting the college and we often returned to Abilene very late on Sunday nights and often had shows during the week. However, I took one class (History and Principles of PE) taught by Pete Shotwell. He was a very well respected football coach in the State of Texas. His teams had won several state titles and he served as athletic director at McMurry. He also had the largest football stadium in Abilene named after him. Well. I often missed his class.  I turned in all the required papers, passed all the quizzes, but when the final grades came out, he gave me an "F". Needless to say, I was upset, I thought the dean would "make it right", but I was wrong. In this case, Pete Shotwell was more powerful than the president or the dean of the faculty. I had to retake the whole course the next semester!

Windjammer Changes

In 1966 a new freshman from Borger Texas came to McMurry.  His name was Pat Hamilton.  He joined the Chanters and immediately made an impression on Jerrel and I.  He was the first uninhibited person I had ever met.  He was a free spirit who reminded me of Robin Williams, and he could sing beautifully.  He had tremendous stage presence and in the summer of 1966 he won a spot at Six Flags as a single performer.   That summer Jack lived at home with his parents in Irving while working with us at Six Flags.  Jerrel and I asked Pat to stay with us in an apartment we rented in Arlington Texas while we all worked at Six Flags.  As the situation developed, Jerrel and I asked Pat to join the WINDJAMMERS, since Jack was graduating from McMurry in the fall.  Needless to say it was a rough breakup.  Jack went on to form a group called "The Shoppe" with his brother.  They were very successful as a country-rock band for many years.

Looking back on the transition, I can say that our act was truly enhanced when Pat joined our group.  We decided to forget folksinging and went to electric instruments.  With Pat, our act turned into singing with comedy.  Our bookings continued through 1967.  Jerrel and I were looking at graduating from McMurry and fearing "The US Army Draft" which was looming in our future.  In the Summer of 1967, we did a concert at Baylor University in Waco which was very well received.  After the concert a man named Gene Northway asked us "what is your draft status?"  We told him we were going to break up because we knew we were going to be drafted.  (We were physically fit and college graduates.  There was no lottery system in those days).  Well, Gene had a friend in the Pentagon in Washington DC.

Windjammer Early Years

Jack, Jerrel, and I were quite busy performing at assemblies in many of the high schools near Abilene. We were able to get into a recording studio in Dallas and produce our first 45 RPM record "Joshua" and the flip side "Let It Be Me". Our next record was a song called "The Drifter" and the flip side was "The Red Rose". Jerrel sang the lead on "The Drifter" which got major airplay and really helped our bookings.  We were actually screamed at by young audiences during this time.   We were full-time college students, but very busy on the weekends. We were selling our records from the stage. We travelled in Jerrel's '57 Ford sedan which meant that whoever was riding in the back seat had to lay down under my bass fiddle. We performed with two microphones and converted stereo speakers using the amplifier from a tape recorder which meant the every performance was recorded.  I believe those recordings made us much more accurate singers.

In the Spring of 1965, we auditioned and won a job for the summer show at Six Flags Over Texas.
In early 1966 we were selected as one of the acts on the state-wide CBS Television show called "Campus Talent 66". It was a big deal on campus when the CBS affiliate station in Houston (KHOU) visited McMurry to film our performance.

In the Spring of 1966, we accepted an invitation from the management of Six Flags (we did not have to audition) to again perform for the summer at Six Flags.  Some of the people that were performing with us were:  Jay Johnson, a ventriloquist who later starred on the sitcom "Soap".  Betty Buckley, who later starred on Broadway in "Cats".  Jane Hitch who was Miss Oklahoma in the Miss America pageant.  Micky McClelland who later became a Playboy Playmate.  Cissy King, who later danced regularly on the Lawrence Welk Show.

Singing Fool

I am writing this blog to document my life as a professional musician.

Looking back on my life, growing up in Roswell New Mexico was pleasant.  I am the oldest of 5 children of Pete and Elizabeth Walter.  Our family was very musical.  Mom and Dad owned a piano studio where they taught piano to many of the residence of Roswell.  Since our family was large, our daily routine was regimented.  My siblings and I were required to learn piano and a "second instrument" from age six on.  During my time in Roswell, I played piano, violin, trombone, and took voice lessons.  Our family also sang during the Christmas season, as a madrigal group, for our friends and neighbors.  In high school, I played one year in the band, but enjoyed the Roswell High Choir much more.  I was honored to be selected as one of the "Roadrunners " (a barbershop quartet) my junior and senior years.  The group travelled quite a bit and I gained valuable experience singing in front of crowds.   

In 1963 I went off the college.  I received a small scholarship from our church to attend McMurry College/University.   I was a frustrated athlete.  I knew my father was a good athlete, but he never had the time to coach me or attend many sporting events with me.  I was an average athlete, but had little success in organized sports.  As you know, the mid 1960's were a time of rebellion and I was determined to NOT be a musician.   I decided to pursue a degree in education, hoping to become a football coach someday.  At McMurry I did join the choir, but just for fun.

While in the choir (The Chanters), I met some guys who were starting a folk group.  The original group consisted of Jack Wilcox (McM head cheerleader) Jerrel Elliott, Kenneth Elliott, Sam Barnes, and myself. We called ourselves THE WINDJAMMERS. Our first performance was to be at the TIP Singsong on November 22, 1963.  The event was cancelled because of the JFK assassination earlier that day.   We were disappointed because we had rehearsed quite a bit and did not get to perform.  Jack decided to see if we could get a "paying gig".  Somehow he got us a job singing at the Abilene Downtown Petroleum Club once a month.  Kenneth Elliott left the group because he had already joined the US Marines earlier that year.  Sam Barnes left the group in the spring of 1964 when he did not come back to college.  Jack, Jerrel and I were having success singing at various venues around Abilene.  One day, Dr.Gordon Bennett (President of McMurry College) asked us if we would promote McMurry when we performed.  Of course we agreed and received some compensation towards our college fees.