Guardsmen Recordings
1971 - 1980
Guardsmen - July 4, 1971 - Wheaton, IL
Guardsmen - July 3, 1975 - Wheaton, IL
Guardsmen - 1976 DCI Finals - Philadelphia, PA
Guardsmen - July 4, 1977 - Hoffman Estates, IL
Guardsmen Cadets - July 4, 1977 - Hoffman Estates, IL
Guardsmen - August 1977 - Racine, WI
Guardsmen - 1977 DCI Prelims - Boulder, CO
Fox Valley Raiders - July 3, 1977 - Wheaton, IL
Guardsmen - July 3, 1978 - Wheaton, IL
Guardsmen - August 13, 1978 - Fort Collins, CO Percussion Judge Tape
Guardsmen - 1978 DCI Finals - Denver, CO
Guardsmen - June 17, 1979 - Geneseo, IL Show Highlights
Guardsmen - 1979 DCI Prelims - Birmingham, AL Percussion G.E. Judge Tape
Guardsmen - 1979 DCI Finals - Birmingham, AL
Guardsmen - 1980 DCI Finals - Birmingham, AL
My brother Jim Scheffler recorded the Guardsmen at our local Wheaton show in 1971, when Bill Harty was drum major and Jim Campbell marched in the snare line. In 1975, the Guardsmen were back in Wheaton, with Bill Harty teaching the color guard and Jim Campbell instructing the drumline. The 1976 Guardsmen made DCI Finals for the first time, finishing 10th in prelims and 12th in finals.
I joined the Guardsmen bass drum line in January 1977, and my brother Jim recorded the corps a few times during the 1977 season. We didn't make finals in 1977, finishing 16th.
This page also includes recordings of the 1977 Guardsmen Cadets, featuring several future Guardsmen members, and the 1977 Fox Valley Raiders, with many members that followed Tim Salzman to the Guardsmen in 1978.
In 1978 Jim recorded the Guardsmen at the Wheaton show where a rifle sliced through my timpani head while I was playing it. In August 1978, drum judge Rod Goodheart recorded an innovative Execution Evaluation tape during our judged exhibition. We made DCI finals in 1978, placing 11th.
1979 was the greatest year ever for the Guardsmen. On the June highlights recording, you can hear our opener fall apart, and we played our first drum solo of the season, The Battle of Agincourt, which Jim Campbell replaced with Glinka at mid-season. The Percussion G.E. judging tape is from the 1979 DCI prelims, where our hornline finished 4th in brass execution and 3rd in Brass G.E. and Musical Analysis. At the 1979 DCI finals, the Guardsmen moved from 10th place up to 7th place, and we beat the Madison Scouts for the second time that year.
1980 was an up and down season for the Guardsmen. We came from behind and made DCI finals, finishing 12th. I found out right after prelims that 1980 would be my last season of drum corps. I was a surprise age out.