Posted by Wade (long post!!) on August 29, 2002 at 15:06:30:
In Reply to: Total Commitment by a tuba player posted by Geo.B. on August 29, 2002 at 08:05:27:
Hello, all.
This picture was taken during the initial weeks of Operation Desert Shield (pre "Storm") at an airfield in Riyadh. This guy was probably offloading his personal gear from a C-130 and heading directly to a rehearsal or gig. (I think that that was what the caption said, and yes, they really did things like that to the musicians on a regular basis.) As far as I know, eight Army Bands eventually served in the Saudi Theatre of Operations. (I am not sure about USN, USAF, and USMC bands.)
As in the Marine Corps, an Army bandsman IS a combatant. (Air Force and Navy Bandsmen are non-combatants.)
An Army musician's combat role is as a member of the security forces. That means that you provide rearguard perimeter security and may have to deal with POWs and enemy deserters. It also means that if the base is attacked that you are one of the front line defenders.
At least one band (82nd Airborne Division?) actually took a BUNCH of prisoners while out on patrol of the Base perimeter area. Musicians discovered and engaged several hundred starving Iraqi soldiers, who surrendered after the brief exchange of fire. The Bandsmen had to disarm, "tie up" (with trash bag "zip ties"), and bring their prisoners back to Base. I believe they ended up pulling the duty to be their jailers as well. (BTW - this is anecdotal, but I have heard it from at least five different sources.)
The history of the band with which I served included the receipt of medals awarded by Roosevelt and (after the war) the French Government for participation in the assault landing on D-Day. Something like 80% of the musicians were killed on the beach by the heavily entrenched German forces. They were the 26th Infantry Division Band, and had to be deactivated shortly thereafter because they couldn't field a viable ensemble any longer due to musician casualties.
Unit awards such as the Presidential Unit Citation or the French "Fourrege" (spelling, anyone?) are worn by the current members of the recipient unit forever. I wore both of those citations on my uniform knowing that some poor tubist died for them, and that if I stayed in that I might be called upon to lay down my tuba and pick up my M-16 or my M-60 and be a "real" soldier. We trained for it a pretty good deal when I served (Reagan was CINC at the time).
I first saw this picture as a clipping from USA Today tacked on Don Little's studio door in 1989 (I think) when it was new. Someone had written something like "Wade, is that YOU???" on it as a joke. It surprised me, because I think that I was at the School of Music when that guy was there - I might have played with him. There he was, geared up in Saudi, and there I was in school. If I had done the "re-up" thing, then that could very well have been a picture of me. I wonder what happened to that guy.
Note that they are all wearing the standard issue "Woodland Camouflage" pattern BDUs and not the tan "Desert Camouflage" pattern ones - that means that this tubist and his band went over with the very first group and had to have the new uniforms issued on-site. That would make me guess that it was an Infantry or Armored Division Band from Germany (maybe the 1st AD Band of Bad Kreuznach or that band that used to be at Ansbach).
Sorry for this ramble - I am just trying to identify/clarify/humanize this photo for you. That is a real tubist with a real M-60 in a real Combat Zone. And while an amusing picture, it should still be taken soberly and seriously.
This guy was serving his country in peacetime, playing his tuba for a living, yet nearly every day secretly wondering whether or not this very situation might occur . And if it did: how would he react when ordered into harm's way?
I, and all of my buddies, had the very same thoughts regularly. We would talk about it at times. "I am just a musician. What happens if war breaks out and they stick me and my Unit into combat? Am I trained well enough to live? Will I be a coward? Will I die? Will I kill men?"
And, while I knew that I would go if called, and that I was pretty well trained for combat, I still wondered if I would "do my job" as well as my Dad and Grandpa did when they were in combat.
As I said: Go ahead and laugh at this picture; it IS funny, after all.
But THINK about it as well. What if that were you?
cheers...
Wade Rackley