Dinosaurs
The Kroks of 1982 were rock stars. That group had real swagger, backed by a bold sound, clever intros, and a murderer’s row of soloists. Auditions in the spring were packed with wannabes, both intimidated by the awesomeness of it all and desperate to be a part of it. From the scrum, eight new Kroks were chosen and inducted after a fretful night of waiting and the traditional “grease”, extending the 36 years of Nunc Est Cantandum that came before. Those rock stars turned out to be great guys who took the time to pass on the evolving lore of the group to us newbies before heading off on the first-ever European summer tour.
Still, when the new academic year began, and WE were the Kroks, the intimidation factor rose anew. Sure, four of the previous year’s rock stars had stuck around, including all-time Krok legends Bryan Simmons and Marc Clinton (along with intro-meister Joel Wachman and new MD Frank Chaiken), but we were aware that the Halloween Jam was fast approaching and afraid that the Harvard audience might find us wanting.
That fear factor brought us close together as we worked to learn the repertoire and hone our sound. That first Sanders concert laid to rest some of the unease in an ocean of raucous applause, but K’83 always felt a bit like underdogs, and I think we liked it that way. Of course, there were highlights – debuting Bernstein’s gift “Screwed on Wrong” then singing it at an evening of bacchanalia chez Lenny, Sanders Theater rocking with foot stomping from audiences thirsty for more, the annual spring break Bermuda trip, and a 3-week whirlwind tour of Europe- along with so many other wonderful moments.
Four of us continued on to the Kroks of 1984, with a drive to make even more of a mark. As Dean Archie Epps remarked after hearing our very first performance of the year: “These Kroks are not afraid to sing.” November saw us on the Today show ahead of the 100th Harvard-Yale game and a triumphant set upstaging the Whiffs at Woolsey Hall. We debuted more than 10 new arrangements during the year, including Stu Malina’s masterwork “I Got Rhythm” which introduced tap dancing to stage show- who knew how much further THAT ball would be roll into the future.
The year ended with an extended return to Europe- nine weeks of comradery, music making, and hijinks. We hit many of the same spots as the K82 and K83 tours, but added Spain, Norway, and Denmark to the itinerary. The tour banquet was held at Spatenhaus in Munich, and I think a lot of beer was consumed.
Seven Kroks returned for K85, continuity that helped the group off to a rousing start. Early in the year, we debuted a pair of undeniably hokey Harvard songs that had jointly won a contest to add to the school spirit repertoire – Numa’s proto-rap “Veritas … Don’t do it!” lives in our memories. The Yale Jam was notable for the tense stand-off with Harvard Police after our bonehead manager oversold Sanders Theater. Crisis was averted when the fire marshal agreed to let us proceed after seating the extra 150 in chairs set on the stage. The roar of the capacity plus crowd was unbelievable, particularly after the debut of Stu’s “I Can’t Believe that You’re in Love with Me/This Can’t Be Love” mash-up launched us into four encores. At our Valentine Jam, we invited the Nassoons and Tiger Lilies, with the double shot of Princetonia ensuring that the humiliation of the Nassoons would have witnesses. K85 tour was a low-key affair – three weeks chilling in California and Hawaii – but included key elements of Krok lore, such as foisting the word “Glove” on a few naïve high schoolers as cool kid college lingo and Bob Parlin’s extraordinary tan
Three of K85 continued on into K86, joined by music director Mark Shone who had skipped a year after K84. This was a year of firsts and lasts for the Kroks. The 40th anniversary of the group was celebrated with the first major Kroks alumni reunion, the start of the now extensive Krok archives, a gala Sanders Jam, and the release of “Back in the Square”, the last of the groups albums to be produced on vinyl. For the summer, tour manager Dave Rosenzweig masterminded the first around-the-world tour – not only the first for the Kroks but the first for any Harvard group. The tour marked the beginning of a long and happy association with the Von Sayn-Wittgenstein family and the ebullient Princess Manni. A visit to Paris saw the Kroks on stage as President Mitterand awarded Leonard Bernstein the Legion d’Honneur at a concert emceed by Lauren Bacall. This was the last tour that the group had to haul boxes of those vinyl albums along – unfortunately, many of them perished in the Indian and Malaysian heat or were confiscated by humorless customs officials along the way.
In 1996, for the 50th anniversary celebration, 13 Kroks of the mid-80’s recombined for a chance to relive past glory on the Sanders stage, christening ourselves as “The Dinosaurs” and sharing the program with the wonderful and gracious Kroks of ‘96. This was the start of a lasting association, with performances at both Krok alumni gatherings and at college reunions pulling in more Kroks of our era together on a seemingly annual basis. Several of the Dinosaurs have also continued to actively perform music outside of the Krok experience, including our much-loved musical mentor Stu Malina, who conducts the Harrisburg Symphony, and a group of four who call themselves “The Squares” and are prone to pop up in venues from street corners to the Zayn castle. With the pandemic, the expanded Dinosaurs began a regular Tuesday night Zoom date featuring trivia quizzes, open mic Koffeehouses, and occasionally juvenile chit chat. In a year to remember, those Tuesday nights are certainly the best memory most of us can muster.
– Paul Sagawa, K83, K84, K85
