Tops in Blue scheduled to rock RAF Mildenhall

  • Published
  • By Tech. Sgt. Kevin Wallace
  • 100th Air Refueling Wing Public Affairs
ROYAL AIR FORCE MILDENHALL, England --  The U.S. Air Force's Tops in Blue is offering a free night of family entertainment at the North Side Fitness Center here, Oct. 8 at 5 p.m.

The 2011 tour, titled Rhythm Nation, celebrates 55 years of premier entertainment and brings American music ranging from the early 1900s to current hits, providing a glimpse of popular music's evolution through new rhythms and technology.

Any base pass holder is invited to attend the concert, sing along and dance in their seats as they listen to pop, rhythm and blues, and country grooves.

So far, the Rhythm Nation tour has made its way to more than 120 worldwide locations inspiring Service members along the way. Some of that inspiration came from unplanned performances.

With merely four hours of sleep, Chaplain (Maj.) Rives Duncan, 386th Air Expeditionary Wing, stepped out onto the tarmac at his deployed location to receive the remains of a fallen Soldier. This was the third time Duncan received a fallen hero in less than 18 hours, and he had to brief the C-17 Globemaster III crew and passengers on what the dignified transfer would entail once they arrived at Dover Air Force Base, Del.

One passenger approached Duncan and told him the Tops in Blue team was aboard, and wished to sing a song for the fallen Soldier.

Over the whine of the C-17s generator, the team began to sing "The Irish Blessing," and when Duncan looked up, he didn't see a dry eye on the plane.

"My body was tired," recalled Duncan. "But my soul still rejoices and sings. The Soldier now rests in peace, but today I live in peace thanks to the gift of the singers."

Duncan wasn't the only one touched by the performance.

After a show at Grand Forks Air Force Base, N.D., Ian Kelly posted this on the Tops in Blue Facebook page:

"Best show I've seen of the Tops in Blue performances in Grand Forks and I've seen six of them. Great job everyone!"

Each Tops in Blue performance is comprised of 35 to 40 Airmen vocalists, musicians, dancers and technicians, who applied and were selected for the Air Force's premier entertainment team. Once selected, the members attended a 60-day training period at Lackland Air Force Base, Texas, then embarked on a 10-month tour.

To read more about Tops in Blue or for information on joining their team, visit www.topsinblue.com.

For more information on the coming Royal Air Force Mildenhall show, call the 100th Force Support Squadron Marketing Division at DSN 238-4371.

Editor's note: Informatoin from www.topsinblue.com was used in this article.