On September 16, 1973, the marching Spoofhounds were supposed to be part of a 12-band, 1,600-person concert at Arrowhead supporting Chase band founder Bill Chase for the season-opening Kansas City Chiefs game vs. the Los Angeles Rams. Arrowhead had sold out, and for the first time ever, the Chiefs lifted the local broadcast blackout.
However, rainy weather caused about 16,000 no-shows, and the Chiefs complained about lost revenue. It also played havoc with the music plans, although things cleared for the Marching Spoofhounds’ halftime.
The above image is based on a Kansas City Times photo published September 17, 1973 which showed the bands on the field. The original online image is dark and the AI lightened image doesn’t properly show the dramatic effect on the Band Day.
Hi-Lights Coverage Sept 8, 1973
Move Over, Chiefs!
The Maryville Daily Forum, September 8, 1973, Page 6. via Newspapers.com https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-maryville-daily-forum-spoofhound-ban/15374549/
If any of you football fans tune in to the Kansas City Chiefs-Los Angeles Rams game on Sept. 16 at half-time, you just might see the Marching Spoofhounds (all 97 of them) performing on the field.
The Maryville Lions Club volunteered to submit an application for the band’s participation. The Spoofhounds were among 14 high school bands in the four-state area chosen for their ability.
Dr. Russel Colman, director of the Warrensburg State University Band, is in charge of the Chief’s Band Day. The guest soloist for the performance is Mr. Bill Chase. CBS has made no final commitment concerning half-time coverage. Mr.
Lee T. Schneider, MHS band director, has the music to be played but has yet to receive marching instructions. The Chiefs will provide the noon lunch, and the evening meal will be provided by the local Lions Club.
This will not be the marchers’ first performance of the ’73- ’74 school year. Seventy-six students, with chaperones and a director, journeyed to the Missouri State Fair two weeks ago. They participated in two parades and a band concert, and for entertainment, they watched the stock car races and enjoyed the midway.
KC Star Coverage on Preparations for Band Day, September 16, 1973
The Kansas City Star, September 16, 1973, Page 127. via Newspapers.com https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-kansas-city-star-logistics-of-band-d/201604200/
Although traffic jams are an everyday occurrence for the average fan, Wachter is concerned with another traffic problem. This one will be within the stadium itself. About 1,600 band members from 12 schools will be taking part in Band Day this afternoon. And it’s Bob Wachter’s job (director of stadium operations) to see that all goes well. Usually, the visiting band performs before the game, sits in the end zone during the first half, plays at intermission, and returns to its seats to watch the remainder of the game.
But not this time. Because of sheer numbers, half the performers will see only the first half of the game live, and the other half will see only the second half. Ten to 12 televisions will be placed in a service tunnel that is 600 feet long and 36 feet wide. Chairs will be set up so the performers can watch the game without actually being on the field
Hi-Lights Coverage of Event September 22, 1973
Rain Can’t Stop Those Marching Spoofhounds!
The Maryville Daily Forum, September 22, 1973, Page 6. via Newspapers.com https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-maryville-daily-forum-hi-lights-repo/201613607/
Last Sunday morning around 7:30, while most of Maryville’s population was still asleep, a certain segment was wide awake and ready to go, despite miserable weather. You guessed it -it was the Marching Spoofhounds, accompanied by director Lee T. Schneider, wife Nina and sons, assistant director Fred Sipes, Mr. and Mrs. Ronald Gaugh, Mr. and Mrs. Don Haage, three buses complete with drivers, one instrument truck, and an infinite variety of paraphernalia.
They arrived at Arrowhead Stadium in the drizzle at about 10 a.m., then unloaded equipment, donned rain gear, and practiced for the afternoon’s activities. After a free lunch provided by the Chiefs, band members had most of the afternoon to themselves, which they spent in a variety of ways.
Some rested in the instrument storage area, others roamed among different bands in search of friends, and the most adventurous inspected the new stadium. Squeals of joy could be heard from the female marchers as their favorite football players walked past to the locker rooms.
Due to limited seating space on the field, only half the group was able to watch the game at one time. The rain stopped just in time for the mid-game performance.
Along with ten other high school bands, the Marching Spoofhounds played several pieces under the direction of Dr. Russel Coleman, of the Warrensburg University Band. Mr. Bill Chase was the guest soloist.
The Chief’s Band Day was the idea of Mr. Lamar Hunt, owner of the Chiefs.
Returning home at about 10 p.m., the marchers were just in time to get a little rest before 7:30 a.m. practice the next morning. Other regular practices are held Tuesday and Thursday evenings and Saturday mornings.
Last night, the band made its third performance of the season at the football game between the ‘Hounds and the Bedford Bulldogs.
The halftime show consisted of precision marching. Squares, diagonals, and an open cross were formed. Part of this routine will be used when MHS participates in the Clarinda Band Jamboree, Oct. 6. Featured numbers were “Basin Street Blues,” with a dance routine by Miss DeAnn Smith, freshman, and “Well Git,” with Mark Mitchell, senior, and Steve Pride, junior, as trumpet soloists.
The majorettes also took part in the last arrangement.
Notes About Chase Playing in Maryville and the Plane Accident in Minnesota
The Marching Spoofhounds and 11 other school bands—1,600 musicians in all (Maryville contributing 97)—were scheduled to perform with trumpeter Bill Chase, founder of the band Chase, at the rain-soaked Chiefs game on September 16, 1973. It would have been a remarkable concert, but I’ve found no detailed accounts of the event. Some articles note that the Spoofhounds reproduced parts of their routines elsewhere, including a performance of Chase’s hit “Get It On.”
Chase had previously appeared in Maryville on November 9, 1972, for homecoming at Lamkin Gym. The 1973 Tower yearbook includes colorized images from that season and carries the unintentionally ominous headline, “Final Event Spotlights Chase.”
Tragically, four members of Chase’s band—Bill Chase (trumpet), Walter Clark (drums), Wally Yohn (keyboards), and John Emma (guitar)—along with the pilot and co-pilot, were killed on August 9, 1974, when their twin-engine Piper Twin Comanche crashed in a field near Jackson, Minnesota, during a severe rainstorm while en route to the Jackson County Fair. Four other band members who had driven to Jackson survived. August 9 was the day Richard Nixon resigned.
The flight to Jackson had departed from Waterloo, Iowa; two of the driving survivors were from Iowa. The crash site lay roughly 80 miles in a straight line from Clear Lake, Iowa — the same area where Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, and J. P. “The Big Bopper” Richardson perished in the 1959 plane crash immortalized as “The Day the Music Died.”
Facebook Discussion About Chase
Jokes about Marching Spoohounds Being One of 12 Bands Supporting Trumpeter Bill Chase at the opening of the Kansas City Chiefs’ 1973 Season at Arrowhead
- “The Marching Spoofhounds joined 11 other bands that day — 1,600 musicians. You could hear one missed note and 1,599 people blame the weather.”
- “They say it rained so hard at Arrowhead that the tuba players got a full refund: all brass instruments converted to small boats.”
- “Opening day with Bill Chase and 12 bands — the only thing wetter than the field was the audience’s playlist.”
- “The Spoofhounds marched so well in the rain that the grounds crew asked for their drills to fix the drainage.”
- “Bill Chase promised a hot performance — the rain brought its own encore: ‘Get It On (Slippery Edition).’”
- “You could tell the percussion section had commitment that day: soggy drumsticks, dry sense of humor.”
- “With 1,600 musicians on the field, Arrowhead briefly qualified as its own weather system.”
- “They called it a halftime show — Mother Nature called it intermission for her shower.”
- Setup: “When 12 bands show up for a pro football opener, expectations are high…” Punchline: “Except for the trumpet section — they were just trying to keep their valves from hydrating.”
- Setup: “The Spoofhounds were pumped to perform with Bill Chase, then it started raining.” Punchline: “Chase still blew the roof off Arrowhead — the roof was already gone; the rain helped.”
- Setup: “The yearbook caption read ‘Final Event Spotlights Chase.’” Punchline: “Some people thought that was about the concert. Others thought it was about the forecast.”
- “You know you’ve got a committed high school band when 1,600 musicians show up for a game, and none of them mention the weather — until someone tries to play a slide trombone and it becomes a water park ride. The Spoofhounds figured out a new halftime formation: the human umbrella. Results were inconclusive, but the crowd loved the synchronized soggy salute.”
- “Bill Chase on stage with 12 bands at Arrowhead — that’s a lot of brass. After the first downpour, the trumpets went from ‘fortissimo’ to ‘for-what-iss-o?’ The snare drum joined the goalkeeper business: soggy, but valiantly keeping the band in play.”