Royal British Legion Youth Band Brentwood

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Updated 17th August 2008

The Royal British Legion
Youth Band - Brentwood

The Band Room, The Drive,
Warley, Brentwood,
Essex CM13 3BH
Telephone : 01277 221967
Fax : 01277 221967

Memories

Billy Lozowski

My memory is the 1st Swanage I went to! Marching in the carnival when I'd only been in the band 6 weeks! Dressing up as Mexicans, watching the ashes whilst we were having drum lessons, learning new set pieces and the prominade of an evening with all the arcades and the fireworks!!!

I also remember the show we did on the top of sandpit hill! I dressed up as a clown and had to play the cymbals because Will had gone to Torquay to go surfing!

Great times in Swanage, and I hope that there are more to come!

John Seabrook

Mine would be Swanage 2005 when it was decided we would do an impromptu march on the Carnival route dressed in fancy dress. We managed to come up with a show which featured the band performing various 'skits' and playing songs and marches to the crowd. It was decided that I would do the Bass drum. One of the songs was 'tequila' which required some dancing and rumba moves. I did the best I could loaded with a bass drum and also managed to do a dancing bass drummer in Cockney cocktails. Hot but fun. Which is what the band is all about 'having fun' no more no less. Yes we want to appear and sound professional but we want to have fun. Let's face it we don't get paid, it's not our 'job' so if there wasn't any fun I'm sure not many would come. Fortunately there's no chance of that because the band is a 'hoot' the members are great and we have lots of pride. Our Swanage gig in fancy dress that year was typical of our ability to adapt and turn our hand to anything musical.

Rebecca Heaton

One memory which, when prompted comes to mind is that of Belgium! It was a weekend parade on a blazing hot summer weekend, not the weather you want to be covering from head to toe in with a uniform. But what a parade! We were all geared up waiting in the shade for the move off of the parade surrounded by bands of all sorts, pipe and drum, Caribbean…etc
The best feeling after an exhausting parade and display infront of dignitaries just before the end was to get back on the coach take off that tunic sit down with a bottle of water and laugh about it with all those that were right there with you, your mates!
I have so many fabulous memories of band but strangely it may seem, not of the places and jobs we have done, which in themselves deserve a memory, but of the atmosphere created within the band, of family, friendships and good times that's what I remember most.

Rebecca Heaton

David Hoy

I know it's an old cliché, but when it comes down to it, even I am 'lost for words' when having to pick one memory from so many wonderful occasions. This year it's eight years since I came under the RBLYBB banner and what a time it's been; From the legendary cap incident of the Lord Mayor's show, to many 'interesting' sod's opera performances at Swanage. Each and every one has been individual, but none the less as special as the next. To sit here now and pick just one is hard, but let's go back to basics to a firm favourite of mine, Haileybury.

I'm sure many of the band agree, that no matter how many times you walk through those gates onto the courtyard at Haileybury, the task in front of you becomes no less daunting. That's why to me, this occasion always epitomises the band as a unit, as you never know (even from the practice!) what's gong to happen when you enter the 'field of play'. My most poignant memory of Haileybury is actually one of my earlier visits, when we had just started a junior fanfare team to open up the show. The practices beforehand had not gone too well, and I can always remember some 'choice words' from the older ones in the marching practice hours before we went on. At the time you think they are words of anger, but they weren't, in hindsight they were words of motivation and belief in one another to achieve - a trait the band has flowing stronger than ever right now. We started round the back of the old buildings, fanfares in hand, and lined up along the steps at the far side of the courtyard. As we lined up into position, all eyes of the mass audience lay solely on us, and every pair of eyes made the anticipation of what we were about to do grow ever stronger. The band could be seen peeking round the opposite corner, but there wasn't any time to think or be nervous, as the moment we had built up to for months had arrived. Up the trumpets went, out the fanfare bellowed, bouncing off every wall and filling the open air with a sound of raw emotion from us 'young guns'. What an experience that was and I think a turning point into my approach to music. That moment showed to me a motto I live by today; that if you believe in yourself, you will succeed. We all stood heads held high and produced to the best of our ability, not only for ourselves, but for each other; another trait the band holds strong today - team ethic. After our fanfare finished and died away, the band roared into action coming from the shadows and in true British fashion, with little fuss, us trumpeters swapped our instruments and marched into the band as they countermarched. The bands drill and playing went into the standard we all believed and knew we could achieve, working best under pressure seems a another trait we possess. The topsy-turvy ride of rehearsals were all now forgotten, as the show was the defining proof, that together we can achieve anything we set our heights to, with commitment and belief.

The band, since then, has gone from strength to strength, with people coming and going, but the standards rising as time has gone on. For me, that Haileybury showed what we could achieve and showed me how to approach what you think is the near impossible. Never give up, always believe, aim high and work as a team; the ingredients for a winning recipe and mentality. Band has given me so many good times over the past eight years, all of which you take the positives from and learn along the way to make you a better person. I feel I owe a lot to the senior members of the band, for believing in me and setting such a high bar to aim at. Most of all, thanks to you John. If it wasn't for you, the band wouldn't be what we are today, we wouldn't have the 'never say die' attitude you have installed into us and most importantly we wouldn't be the friends and people we are without your time, effort and pure passion to the band. From a personal view, thank-you for giving me such strong beliefs and positive mentality in all I do. Thanks band, here's to many more memories.

David Hoy

Tony Howes

Having been in the band for nearly 15 years I have so many memories to speak of. There are literally hundreds of memories that I could put down on paper, from the time in Swanage when we had the peeping tom and the older boys, of which I was not then one, took it upon themselves to hunt him down, to doing the Main Street parade in Disney World Los Angeles. Then of course the back to back victories at the Albert Hall which set the standard for other bands to aspire to. Then there is the most prestigious event which was playing at the Festival of Remembrance in front of the Royal family and a ‘packed to the rafters’ Albert Hall.

All of the above are performances I'm sure I will remember for the rest of my life, but the event that will always make me think of the band, has to be the most recent of them all Sunday 10th July 2005.

The weekend started for me at around 3pm on the Saturday when I went straight from work to the venue (Shenfield common) where the beer tent had already been put up. It was not what I expected at all but Paul, the landlord of the Horse and Groom (the pub used after every band job rehearsal) had done us proud. From that moment I had the feeling it was going to be a good day. On the Sunday Richard Hyam, Dad (John Howes), Paul and a couple of friends Rob and Rob stayed at the tent for the best part of the night playing golf, football and the odd game of cards to pass the time. Then horror 'where is my helmet? I had not seen it for some time and had totally forgotten about it. By then it was 11pm and I thought it best to leave with Richard, going home to look for my helmet and prepare for the next day.

The Sunday started at 6am when I was phoning the Smith household, having realised that that is where my helmet was. For anybody that knows the Smith household, for them there is only one 6 o'clock in a Sunday. Having got my helmet from them we made our way to the common to start the day. John Wyndham had spent months organising this day and he was determined that it would go well. As the people started to arrive to set up their stalls John had given a couple of SGT's the job of telling them to get their cars off the common ASAP. We would then know what was happening and who was left to come. This caused a little bit of upset, what with us rushing them, but nevertheless the cars were off the common, the fence erected all the way round and we were set for the start of a good day.

The entertainment was great; there were people dressing up which looked fantastic. The veterans were on top form, all attacking the bar and all of them more than willing to answer any questions that they were asked about what they had done in the war, and what all their medals meant. The band had their own stall which was doing fantastic with the selling of the summer draw tickets and the CD's. The local pie and mash shop from the town had a stall which ran out of pies so they had a good day. The war-time slot machines were getting lots of interest. And the best part of all was that it was a glorious summer’s day everybody was in shorts which brought the public out en- mass to see the day John had organized purely so the veterans could have their day of celebration.

The day ended with the band parading with the veterans from the council offices to their V.I.P. seats for the final beating retreat. The band was performing fantastic with an amazing amount of pride knowing what it meant to the veterans. Then to top the day off there was what John would like us all to believe, a planned flypast and that just put the cherry on the cake.

After the beat retreat the task of clearing up began with picking up of rubbish, setting down of the tents and the boring task of just generally clearing the whole common. By the end of it all sadly, the common looked like the day had never happened and all remained was the memories of the day, some very bad sunburn and the overwhelming urge to sleep.

This is the most memorable day for me, as it meant so much to the veterans, everybody involved and John, more than most had worked so hard to make it work and it just all seemed to fall into place, to enable us all to have a great day.

Cheers John

Tony Howes.

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