Just learned about Jazz composer Dave Brubeck, he died Dec 5, 2012. In a repeat of an interview on NPR, he mentioned forming a band which had many wounded and recovered infantrymen that were musicians before the war. Wiki has this on him: "After graduating in 1942, Brubeck was drafted into the army and served overseas in George Patton's Third Army. He was spared from service in the Battle of the Bulge when he volunteered to play piano at a Red Cross show; he was such a hit he was ordered to form a band. Thus he created one of the US armed forces' first racially integrated bands, "The Wolfpack".[9]" In the interview, he also mentioned being in the Ardennes when the Germans struck in December. While trying to escape the truck driver took a wrong turn and they were lost. Though they made it out safely, for while they seemed to be between the lines. According to his enlistment record he volunteered for the Air Corps. NARA - AAD - Display Full Records - Electronic Army Serial Number Merged File, ca. 1938 - 1946 (Enlistment Records)
I hadn't heard that. Nor had I heard that he was a WWII veteran. Be at peace, Mr. Brubeck. :S! Had that turned out differently, it could have had dire consequences for the history of jazz music. Maybe that observation belongs in a "What if..." thread.
