I think I may be on to something here with a possible series of getting Colliegettes™ the scoop on what’s up musically, because there seems to be a lot, especially if you’re new to Lawrence (which is definitely my way of subtly suggesting that you read my article from last week on our school songs).
As some of you may know the Her Campus KU team celebrated its second birthday at Bullwinkle’s Bar (@KUbullwinkles) on Friday! Around 10:45pm a large group of roughly thirty people decked out in KU gear made their way to the back patio, instruments in one hand and a PBR in the other. As a former member of the Marching Jayhawks, I had heard rumors of a group called “Bar Band” and their glorious Friday night adventures, and I quickly came to understand why.
Their performance rocked the entire bar! We heard everything from “All I Do Is Win” by DJ Khaled and Rick Ross, to the Crimson and the Blue, as well as some Bon Jovi here and there. EVERYONE was singing along, dancing and raising their drinks as high as they could, and it was a great way to celebrate both HC KU’s birthday as well as get pumped for the next day’s game. Before Friday night, I had a really awesome article about The Granada planned (rest assured I am still planning to write it) but I knew that I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to spotlight this amazing Jayhawk tradition.
Thankfully I was able to briefly “sit down” and get the full scoop from one of the band’s members, Tim Hewitt (@Timmy_Hewitt), a recent KU grad.
So give me a little background on Bar Band: Well bar band started in the mid 90’s by some students who went to KU. We are in no way affiliated with the University of Kansas, KU School of Music or the KU Band program. The purpose of bar band is to get people fired up for the game the next day. We are Jayhawk fans who just love performing for other fans.
What do you play in the band? I play cymbals but I’m a clarinetist in real life. Due to the nature of what we play and where we play, we can’t really include woodwinds because the instruments would get damaged.
Who can play in the band? You just have to know how to play a brass instrument or the drums and know someone in the band. There is always a lot of turnover form year to year, so we have new people in and out all of the time.
What is your favorite thing about Bar Band? My favorite thing about bar band, other than the beer, is just seeing how excited everyone is to hear us play. It’s like being a celebrity for the night.
What is your favorite song to play? Definitely “Sounds of Summer,” I love dancing with everyone else.
Which bar is your favorite to play at? The bar that always sticks with me is The Hawk. Sometimes the basketball players even join us in playing and one time a girl stuck her hand in my mouth as I was singing along to one of the songs. SO much stuff happens there, it’s insane.
I’m so glad I got the chance to talk with Tim and get a better understanding as to what Bar Band is all about. So for all of you Collegiettes™ who are of age, if you’re planning to go out I would definitely suggest checking out Lawrence Bar Band’s Twitter (@LawrenceBarBand) on Friday nights and make an effort to hear them play. You can normally catch them at The SandBar, The Bull, The Hawk and The Wheel between 9:15 and midnight.
(Cover photo courteousy of @JayhawkCafe)