BACK TO OUR ROOT'S
THE ULSTER VOLUNTEER FLUTE BAND WAS FORMED IN AUGUST 1969.MANY PEOPLE WITHIN OUR OWN COMMUNITY SAID "IT WOULD NEVER LAST".
LEADING INDIVIDUALS IN THE LOYAL ORDERS EVEN TRIED TO HAVE US STOPPED BEFORE WE EVEN STARTED PARADING. JACKIE BRADLEY AND THE BOYS OF "69" STOOD FIRM IN THOSE EARLY DAYS AND CREATED AN INSTITUTION THAT FOR MANY WAS TO BECOME A WAY OF LIFE.
FOUNDER MEMBER'S RECALL OUR FIRST UNIFORM,BEING WHITE SHIRTS,BLACK TROUSERS WITH A RED STRIP SEWNON BY MOTHERS SISTERS AND WIVES.ALSO OF LOCALBANDS HELPING OUT ESPECIALLY THE GERTRUDE STAR WHEN PURCHASING NEW HAT'S.
OUR FIRST INSTRUMENTS WERE BEGGED AND BORROWED WITH OUR FIRST BASS DRUM BEING BOUGHT SECOND-HAND IN SMITH FIELD MARKET.THIS DRUM HAD A TRAP DOOR SO THAT A LIGHT BULB COULD BE INSERTED FOR DANCE HALL MUSIC.JACKIE SPOKE OF THE PERIOD THAT WE WERE'ROUGH' BUT WE HAD DEFIED ALL ODDS AND WE WERE " ON THE ROAD".
AFTER THE INFANT YEARS THE BAND MEMBERSHIP GREW,BLOOD AND THUNDER WAS THE ORDER OF THE DAY, BUT EVEN BACK THEN THE VISION OF A MELODY FLUTE BAND WAS EMERGING.
THE FIRST MILESTONE FOUNDER MEMBERS TALK ABOUT IS WHEN THE GOVERMENT BANNED PARADES SO AS TO TRY AND EASE THE WORSENING SITUATION IN NORTHERN IRELAND.IN DEFIANCE WE LEAD SEVERAL THOUSNAD LOYALISTS THROUGH LIVERPOOL AND LONDON TO PROTEST FOR THE RIGHT TO MARCH!WE WERE ALSO GETTING "TRENDY" THEN WITH SKY BLUE JUMPERS FOR THE FLUTERS AND A RED FOR THE DRUM CORP.
BY THE LATE 70'S SKY BLUE WAS OUR COLOUR.JACKETS WERE BOUGHT ALSO CROME DRUMS AND THE U.V.F. BAND WAS BEGINNG TO TAKE SHAPE.MARCHING AND DEPORTMENT WERE NOW BECOMING AS IMPORTANT AS PLAYING.THE OVERALL AIM WAS TO BEFIT THE NAME OF THE ULSTER VOLUNTEERS. |
