CBS 2 Vault: Marching with Bob Wallace and the Shannon Rovers on St. Patrick's Day
CHICAGO (CBS) -- The Shannon Rovers Irish Pipe Band has been a staple in Chicago for nearly a century – playing bagpipes and drums at parades and events throughout the city and beyond.
CBS 2's Bob Wallace first marched with the Shannon Rovers for a feature story in 1975. He soon became a full-fledged member – donning a kilt and beating the drum for decades to come.
In the CBS 2 News above report from March 17, 1987, we see Wallace marching with the Rovers in the downtown St. Patrick's Day Parade. He also takes us inside a weekly practice session and explains the skill required for playing bagpipes – "leather lungs and nimble fingers," as he puts it – and the pressure on the drummers to keep everyone in time.
The Shannon Rovers Irish Pipe Band founded in 1926 by a group of Irish immigrants. They began as a fife and drum corps, but switched to bagpipes – or warpipes – in 1932, according to the Shannon Rovers website.
The Shannon Rovers note that they appeared at the 1933 Century of Progress Exposition, played for many U.S. presidents going back to Franklin D. Roosevelt, and played for Pope John Paul II when he visited Chicago in 1979.
The Rovers have also performed at parades around the country and the world. A small group of Rovers even helped Megadeth with some bagpipe music for the 2013 track "Built for War," according to the pipe band's website.
"Today, the band is made up of eighty plus pipers, drummers and color guard," the Rovers say on their website. "Membership has passed from generation to generation and includes plumbers, social workers, bankers, lawyers, electricians, firemen, doctors and celebrities to name but a few. It's a mix of people who enjoy each other's company and genuinely work hard at putting together the best performance possible."
Bob Wallace passed away in 2021. The Rovers honored his memory with some photos of his time marching and beating the drum.
You can find the Shannon Rovers performing around the Chicago area on Friday night and through the weekend. Their schedule is below.
